Funding without Borders

TIME & LOCATION

Wednesday 11 November, 10:00 am

End Time: 11:00 am

Studio Theatre

About

With production budgets under pressure, knowing where to find funding – and how to make it work for your project – has never been more important. Across the island of Ireland, a range of funding opportunities are available to independent producers, from Coimisiún na Meán’s Sound & Vision and the new €14m Shared Island Media Fund to Tourism Ireland, Northern Ireland Screen, the Irish Language Broadcast Fund and the Ulster-Scots Broadcast Fund. But with different criteria, priorities and application processes, knowing which doors to knock on – and at what stage – and how different funding streams might work together, can be a challenge.

Bringing together funders and producers who have successfully navigated the system, this session explores what’s available, what projects are eligible, what makes a strong application and how to build a viable funding package. Where should you start? What do funders want to see? Can different pots be combined? And how can producers build meaningful North–South partnerships that bring real financial and creative value to a project? This panel will offer practical advice, insights from the people making the decisions, and a clearer picture of how to turn funding opportunities into productions.

Nicky Coyle – Head of Funding, NI Screen

Chair

Aine Walsh

SPONSOR

Panel

Nicky Coyle

Head of Funding, NI Screen

Nicky joined Northern Ireland Screen in July 2016, and has worked across the Lottery Fund and Screen Fund, focusing on Independent Film projects, including short films, feature films, and documentaries. She was appointed Head of Funding in May 2025 and manages the Funding Department including the operation of production and development funding programmes across all sectors in the screen industry. As well as Nicky’s day to day role of Head of Funding, she is also the sector lead for Animation Children’s content. Prior to joining Northern Ireland Screen, Nicky previously worked for a media company in Toronto as a member of its finance team, dealing with public funding and tax credit applications.

Brian Furey

Senior Manager of Funding, Coimisiún na Meán

Brian Furey is Assistant Director of Funding at Coimisiún na Meán, where he oversees the development and delivery of a range of public funding programmes, including the Sound & Vision Broadcasting Funding Scheme and the Shared Island Media Fund. With more than twenty years’ experience across broadcasting, media regulation and public funding, Brian works closely with broadcasters, independent producers and industry stakeholders to support the growth, sustainability and diversity of Ireland’s media sector. His work focuses on fostering high-quality content and ensuring that funding delivers cultural, social and democratic value for audiences across Ireland.

Aine Walsh

Chief Language & Cultural Officer and Head of the ILBF, NI Screen

Áine Walsh is Chief Language & Cultural Officer and Head of the Irish Language Broadcast Fund (ILBF) at Northern Ireland Screen. With an annual budget of over £4 million, the Fund supports Northern Ireland production companies to deliver around 60 hours of television annually, primarily for TG4, BBC NI and RTÉ, alongside audio and digital content, and plays a key role in developing talent and skills within the Irish language production sector. During Áine’s tenure, the ILBF has supported a wide range of acclaimed productions, including crime drama Crá, award-winning feature films Kneecap and Aontas, animated series Lí Ban, and feature documentary Rocky Ros Muc. Before joining Northern Ireland Screen, Áine spent ten years working in television and radio production with UTV and BBC Northern Ireland. She became Chair of the Celtic Media Festival in 2024, having served on its executive board since 2009.

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Emma Gorman

Manager of International Programming Ireland Fund, Tourism Ireland

Emma has over 15 years’ experience marketing Ireland as a holiday destination overseas. In her current role she is responsible for Digital PR, Blogger outreach & collaboration, media content creation, as well as collaboration with the Film industry and promotion of festivals. She recently developed and delivered an internal training programme for Tourism Ireland’s international publicity team on digital PR skills, including social media skills and a module on working with bloggers. Prior to taking up this role, Emma worked in Tourism Ireland’s German Office in Frankfurt, initially on the PR team and later in a consumer marketing role. Emma originally studied French & German in Trinity College Dublin. Later she completed an MBA with the Open University and most recently she completed a Diploma in Digital Marketing in Dublin’s Digital Marketing Institute.

Michael Fanning

Managing Director, Below the Radar

Michael Fanning is an award-winning television executive, producer and director with a background in journalism and more than two decades’ experience making programmes for audiences across the UK, Ireland and internationally. Managing Director of Belfast-based Below the Radar since 2013, Michael leads the company’s creative and commercial direction and oversees its English and Irish-language television output. His work spans investigative journalism, observational documentary, arts, culture and popular factual programming, with credits for broadcasters including the BBC, Channel 4, RTÉ and TG4. He is executive producer of all Below the Radar’s content – the company’s slate includes Stacey Dooley Cleans up, Anna Haugh’s Big Irish Food Tour, Jane Rea’s Bloomin’ Wild, Restoration Rescue and Tara Mills: Life After Loss. Michael directed the acclaimed feature documentary Rocky Ros Muc and documentary series Confessions of a Killer. Michael joined Below the Radar in 2006 after five years in news and current affairs at UTV, and has worked across the company as a producer, director and executive producer.