Offaly-made short film wins top award at festival in Waterford

A short film that was made in Offaly earlier this year was the winner of the 'best short film' award at the Waterford International Film Festival last weekend.

A Simple Killing, which was filmed in Shinrone in late January, took the top honours as the event in the south east where Waterford-born actor Moe Dunford (known for Vikings, The Dry, Black 47, and Texas Chainsaw Massacre) was a guest judge.

Reacting to the award win, the production company for A Simple Killing, Western Front Studios, stated: "We are absolutely blown away to share that A Simple Killing has just won Best Short Film at the Waterford International Film Festival.

"This honour means so much to all of us. Thank you for your support and recognition.

"This film was a labour of love, and we couldn’t have done it without our phenomenal team."

The win for A Simple Killing comes ahead of this weekend's Foyle Film Festival in Derry, a BAFTA and Oscars-qualifying event, where the film will also be featured.

Actors Aidan O'Callaghan (The Witcher) , Daphne Cheung (Doctor Who) and Claire Gavin (Wreck) appear in the short film, which has been described as a taut and gripping thriller.

Written by Mark Conway and directed by Jason Branagan, it was funded by the FilmOffaly Short Film Award through the Offaly Arts Office.