Ireland Steals the Spotlight as Oscar® Nominations Roll In
The Academy Award® nominations announced on 22 January have once again highlighted Ireland’s remarkable contribution to global storytelling, with multiple Irish creatives recognised across key categories. Leading the charge is Jessie Buckley, widely regarded as a frontrunner for Best Actress in a Leading Role for her powerful portrayal of Agnes in Hamnet.
Paul Mescal, Maggie O’Farrell and Jessie Buckley
Buckley’s nomination follows an exceptional awards season, including her recent wins at both the Golden Globes (Best Female Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama) and the Critics’ Choice Awards (Best Actress). Born in Killarney, County Kerry, Buckley has consistently celebrated the influence of Ireland’s landscapes and storytelling traditions on her work. Speaking on the Hamnet press tour, she reflected: “I grew up in nature; in Killarney… What I love about nature in Ireland is that it is so wild. Things just grow because they want to grow. It’s moody and emotional.” Co-star Paul Mescal echoed this sentiment, describing the west of Ireland as a place where “there’s a drama to the nature when you start heading west. Gorgeous.”
Located in the southwest of Ireland Killarney can be said to be the epitome of the unique Irish experience. Featuring timeless natural beauty, vibrant culture and rich history, the land is infused with the whisper of ancient stories and offers a genuine warm welcome. The start of the Ring of Kerry, Killarney also boasts a magnificent National Park, home to Ireland’s tallest mountain Carrauntoohil, as well as spellbinding lakes and forests, and waterfalls.
Hamnet, based on the bestselling novel by Northern Irish writer Maggie O’Farrell, intertwines themes of love, loss and artistic inspiration - the same forces that shaped Shakespeare’s Hamlet. O’Farrell, who also co-wrote the screenplay with director Chloé Zhao, grew up in Coleraine on the Causeway Coast. Its rugged cliffs, pristine beaches and dramatic landscapes influence her writing and reflect the spirit of storytelling that defines the island.
Ireland’s literary and creative heritage continues to resonate on the global stage. Home to four Nobel laureates (George Bernard Shaw, W.B. Yeats, Samuel Beckett and Seamus Heaney) the island has long been a place where stories, myths and folklore were preserved and shared by the seanchaí, the traditional storytellers. Today, that legacy thrives in contemporary literature, film and the arts.
Alongside Buckley, several other Irish creatives earned Oscar® nominations this year, including John Kelly and Andrew Freedman for their animated short Retirement Plan, starring Domhnall Gleeson and Ed Guiney and Andrew Lowe of Element Pictures, nominated as producers of Yorgos Lanthimos’ Bugonia.
From performance to production, Irish excellence continues to stand out on the world stage