Huge Congratulations to Kate Sweeney! - Winner of the 11th Ó Bhéal Poetry-Film Competition, with her film 'To be Two'. 30 shortlisted films were screened at the 11th Winter Warmer poetry festival (26th-28th Nov 2023) at Nano Nagle Place in Cork city, as well as online. The screenings can be viewed here:

https://www.obheal.ie/WinterWarmer/PoetryFestival2023.htm

2024 is the 12th year of the competition. Previous winners include Jelle Meys, Janet Lees, Peta-Maria Tunui, Waitahi Aniwaniwa McGee, Shania Bailey-Edmonds, Jesse-Ana Harris, Lilián Pallares, Charles Olsen, Fiona Aryan, Alvaro Martin, Kayla Jeanson, Marie Craven, Cheryl Gross, Marleen van der Werf and Manuel Vilarinho.

One winner receives the festival prize for best poetry-film. The award is designed by glass artist/poet Michael Ray.

View previous winners and prizes at:

https://www.obheal.ie/blog/competition-poetry-film/

Shortlisted films to date have also featured in Ó Bhéal’s poetry-film touring programme, at a number of international film and literary festivals, to date including the Clare Island Film Festival, Belfast Film Festival, Stanzas in Limerick, the Cyclops festival in Kiev, Poemaria in Vigo, the Madeira Literary Festival (2018), Salerno Letteratura (2018) and Cadence: Video Poetry Festival in Seattle (2019).

Ó Bhéal’s complete archive of shortlisted entries is screened throughout the year (in random), at the start of each Ó Bhéal poetry event.

International submissions are accepted for any poetry-film under ten minutes (English subtitles are required for non-english language films). Entries must have been completed within two years of the opening submission date (since 1st May 2022).

Submissions will be open from 1st May – 31st August. Entries made outside of these dates cannot be considered. You may submit as many films as you like – each entry must convey a poem (present in its entirety, audibly and/or visually).

Broadly speaking, a poetry-film is the translation of a poem into film form, by way of interpretation that features the entire poem, either visually and/or audibly.

Overall Rating
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  • Fiona Aryan

    This festival has a lovely welcoming atmosphere and shows an inspiring and diverse selection of Irish and international poetry films.

    December 2023
  • Grace Wells

    Ó Bhéal is one of the warmest and most supportive poetry-film festivals out there. Really supportive of this genre, and finding great work from Ireland and across the world.

    December 2023