Tourism Ireland has opened the application process for Round 2 of its 2024 International Programming Ireland Fund, to be submitted by 3pm on Wednesday 5th June 2024, with funding awards to be announced in September.
Now in its 4th year, the funding scheme is designed to stimulate and support high-quality TV projects with the potential to positively showcase the island of Ireland to an international TV audience.
Experienced independent production companies (domestic, international or a co-production partnership) with a demonstrable track record in producing high-quality programming for TV broadcasters outside the island of Ireland are invited to apply for funding.
Tourism Ireland has also confirmed that €1.5m has been allocated to the fund for 2024, to support a number of TV projects. Funding is awarded on a sliding scale to projects that fulfil the scheme criteria, with a maximum investment of up to €200,000 available (no more than 50% of the global budget for the project).
Since launching in 2021, Tourism Ireland’s International Programming Ireland Fund has supported almost 40 high-quality international television projects, including documentary, lifestyle, specialist factual and factual entertainment series, produced for international broadcast on channels such as Channel 4, Sky, PBS, ITV, France 3, Arte, Smithsonian, BBC, Food Network UK, SVT in Sweden and more.
The fund is designed to attract and support new, original and commercially viable programming that will showcase the island of Ireland in our key markets overseas. Targeting Britain, the US and Mainland Europe as key markets, projects with a confirmed European broadcaster attached are of particular interest – particularly in Germany and France, but also in Spain, Italy, the Netherlands and the Nordic countries. Themes can include profiling the island of Ireland’s stunning landscapes, rich heritage, living culture, food and drink, soft adventure, people, characters and stories. Projects that profile Northern Ireland and our regions, as well as stories rooted in winter, spring or autumn, are of particular interest to the fund in 2024.
Funding is awarded to producers through a competitive selection process of projects that are at a sufficiently advanced stage of development and fulfil the dual function of showcasing the island of Ireland, as well as fully satisfying the brief of an identified international broadcaster.
Previously funded projects include Adrian Dunbar’s Coastal Ireland produced by Afro-Mic Productions for Channel 5, John Torode’s Ireland by Cornelia Street Productions for the Food Network, Ireland with Michael by Wexford House for PBS, Golf’s Greatest Holes by No 4 Productions and Leap Productions in partnership with Boulder Creek International for Sky Sports and Donal’s Irish Adventure (a culinary travelogue with Donal Skehan) that continues to air in multiple territories.
New to 2024:
- There are three funding rounds in 2024. This presents enhanced opportunities for applicants to get their projects market and criteria ready.
- Experienced Development/Executive Producer Colin Pauser-Cowman has been appointed to oversee this year’s application process. Colin is available to provide development and eligibility feedback prior to submission to companies with developed proposals intending to apply.
- If an application demonstrates genuine potential to fulfil the scheme objectives, but requires further development to meet the criteria, Tourism Ireland may provide development guidance and support to allow perceived gaps in the project to be addressed and to then be re-submitted to the next round.
- There is now a much-reduced gap between funding rounds, particularly helpful where the project may have time-sensitive broadcaster or funder interest.
- Priority is given to submissions with confirmed international broadcaster interest. Co-production projects with Northern Ireland or Irish broadcasters, additional state funding or tax incentives attached/identified are also welcomed. In this case, applicants must clearly demonstrate an international distribution plan for the project and how it will be crafted/tailored to fulfil the brief of at least one international broadcaster in a desired territory.
