Grierson Awards: shortlist announced features Lyra, Nothing Compares, James Joyce Ulysses and Once Upon a Time in NI
Date Posted: July 20, 2023
The Grierson Trust has announced the shortlist for the 2023 British Documentary Awards. Northern Ireland Screen is delighted to see a number of documentaries produced in Northern Ireland on the prestigious shortlist.
LYRA, NOTHING COMPARES, ARENA – JAMES JOYCE’S ULYSSES and ONCE UPON A TIME IN NORTHERN IRELAND are amongst fifteen films and series shortlisted. The awards recognise and celebrate documentaries from Britain and abroad that have made a significant contribution to the genre and that demonstrate quality, integrity, creativity, originality and overall excellence.
LYRA is shortlisted for Best Cinema Documentary and Best Single Documentary – Domestic
LYRA is an intimate portrait of murdered journalist, Lyra McKee made by her close friend Alison Millar. Using personal archive, recordings from Lyra’s dictaphone and her written word, the film is carefully crafted to allow Lyra to tell her own story. From growing up as a ‘ceasefire baby’ in Belfast to becoming an internationally renowned journalist who tirelessly sought justice for others, the film examines the fragility of peace through her life and her death. Directed by BAFTA-winning Alison Millar and executively produced by Hillary Rodham Clinton’s HiddenLight Productions and supported by Northern Ireland Screen.
NOTHING COMPARES is shortlisted for Best Cinema Documentary and Best Music Documentary
Kathryn Ferguson’s NOTHING COMPARES is the story of Sinéad O’Connor’s phenomenal rise to worldwide fame and how her iconoclastic personality resulted in her exile from the pop mainstream. Focusing on her prophetic words and deeds from 1987-1993, the film reflects on the legacy of this fearless artist through a contemporary feminist lens. NOTHING COMPARES was directed by Kathryn Ferguson and produced by Eleanor Emptage and Michael Mallie. Executive producers: Charlotte Cook, Lesley McKimm, Lucy Pullin, and Lisa Marie Russo. Editor: Mick Mahon. Music: Irene Buckley and Linda Buckley. Production: Tara Films (UK) and Ard Mhacha Productions (Ireland) in association with Field of Vision, Screen Ireland, BFI Doc Society Fund, ie:entertainment, and Northern Ireland Screen.
ARENA – JAMES JOYCE’S ULYSSES is shortlisted for Best Arts Documentary
One hundred years since it was published, Adam Low’s Arena – James Joyce’s Ulysses unlocks Joyce’s masterpiece in all its surprising, poetic, moving, verbose, sexually explicit and endlessly hilarious glory. ARENA – JAMES JOYCE’S ULYSSES is a co-production by DoubleBand Films and Lone Star with support from Northern Ireland Screen.
ONCE UPON A TIME IN NORTHERN IRELAND is shortlisted for Best Documentary Series and Best History Documentary
Twenty-five years on from the Good Friday Agreement, ONCE UPON A TIME IN NORTHERN IRELAND gives voice to the people who lived through the Troubles, sharing intimate testimonies from all sides of the conflict. Combining unfiltered personal accounts with archive footage, the series tells the story of ordinary men and women who were drawn, both willingly and unwillingly, into the violence that spanned three decades, and who are still dealing with its legacies today.
Lorraine Heggessey, Chair of The Grierson Trust says: “The record number of entries to this year’s Grierson Awards alongside a very high standard of filmmaking is a reflection of the significance documentaries have in every schedule and on every platform and demonstrates a demand from viewers for meaningful content that has an impact on their lives. The shortlisted documentaries are insightful, thought-provoking and often introduce audiences to new subjects. The incredible talent represented on and off-screen – from established names through to breakthrough newcomers – is a testament to our industry’s continued ability bring powerful storytelling to screens in the UK and worldwide.”
The 2023 British Documentary Awards ceremony will be held on 9th November at Queen Elizabeth Hall, London.
