NI Film Receives Oscar Nomination

The Shore, written and produced by Belfast film-maker Terry George, has been nominated for an Oscar.
The short film has been nominated under the 'Best Short Film' category.
Set on the beautiful County Down coast in Northern Ireland,the film, portrays in stunning cinematography, the incredible natural beauty of the location. The two-time Oscar-nominated director, Terry George, used the best local acting talent and a world-renowned crew to bring to life this compelling human story of divided friendship, misunderstanding and eventual reconciliation.
The short film is the inspiring story of two boyhood best friends - Joe (Ciarán Hinds) and Paddy (Conleth Hill) - divided by 25 years of misunderstanding. Their world and their friendship is shattered by the conflict escalating in Northern Ireland, the two boys' lives take very different paths until, 25 years later, Joe returns for the first time to his homeland with his 24-year-old daughter, Patricia.
Meanwhile a graduate from the University for the Creative Arts (UCA) at Farnham has also been nominated for an Oscar.
Grant Orchard’s film A Morning Stroll is shortlisted for Best Short Film (Animated) at the 84th Academy Awards.
Grant, who is 39 and graduated from UCA Farnham’s BA (Hons) Animation degree in 1995, said: "It’s absolutely amazing to be nominated but slightly unreal.
"The Oscars are one of those events that you see on TV from when you’re very little. Being nominated is one of those unrealistic childhood ambitions that rank alongside becoming a spaceman, so when it actually happens years later it feels very strange.
"I’m really looking forward to the whole Oscars adventure. I’m feeling surprisingly confident about walking down the Red Carpet alongside the likes of George Clooney and Brad Pitt – I reckon I can turn and pose with the best of them – gulp!"
A Morning Stroll, which tells the story of one New Yorker’s early morning encounter with a chicken using traditional 2D animation and 3D computer techniques, is also nominated for a BAFTA Award next month in the same category.
"It's amazing to be this close to an Oscar," Grant added.
"I've never been to Hollywood before and I've always wanted to visit some of the big studios out there but, like the BAFTAs, I don’t want to get too excited about winning because it might not happen.
"Just being nominated though is fantastic, not just for me but for the production company Studio AKA. We worked hard on it, without any budget, so hopefully this will help us get some interest in future projects, which would be great."
(CD)