Picture Day

After learning that class photo day is approaching, a young boy comes face to face with the manifestation of his insecurities in the form of a troll called Alan.

  • Jason Branagan
    Director
    Forever Hold Your Peace, The Wall, Eastenders
  • Jason Branagan
    Writer
    Forever Hold Your Peace, The Wall, Eastenders
  • Emer Durcan
    Producer
    Bruise, Barry Versus The Binman
  • Sam Atwell
    Producer
    Forever Hold Your Peace, Smother, North Sea Connection, Hidden Assets
  • Eimear O'Mahony
    Producer
    Ace My Space, Dagda's harp, The Doireann Project
  • Joe McGucken
    Key Cast
    "Alan"
    Bad Things In The Middle Of Nowhere, Joe & Darren's Free Gaf, The Doireann Project
  • Charlie Duffy
    Key Cast
    "Milo"
    Fair City
  • Peter McGann
    Key Cast
    "Mr. Sallins"
    Nova Jones, La Tumba, Modern Love
  • Fiona O'Carroll
    Key Cast
    "Joanne"
    Mrs. Brown's Boys
  • Aisling Kearns
    Key Cast
    "Assumpta"
    Barber, Darklands
  • Brian Durcan
    Cinematography
    Bruise, Barry versus the Binman
  • Paul Rowland
    Sound Deisgner
  • Emer Landers
    Composer
  • Jason Branagan
    Editor
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Genres:
    Comedy, Fantasy
  • Runtime:
    12 minutes 15 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    June 1, 2023
  • Country of Origin:
    Ireland
  • Country of Filming:
    Ireland
  • Language:
    English
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2.39:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • LA Shorts International Film Festival

    United States
    July 22, 2023
    World Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Flickers’ Rhode Island International Film Festival

    United States
    August 8, 2023
    East Coast Premiere (USA)
    Official Selection
  • San Jose International Shorts Film Festival
    San Jose
    United States
    October 13, 2023
    Official Selection
Director Biography - Jason Branagan

Jason is an award winning writer and director with bases in Ireland and the UK. His work is anchored in creating truthful performance and building characters that audiences can identify and engage with. He blends this with a considered, emotionally driven visual style.

His television directing credits include RTE’s long running drama series, FAIR CITY; Season 3 of the hit scripted comedy series, THE DOIREANN PROJECT, and EASTENDERS, the BBC’s flagship drama series.

His short drama, THE WALL, won the Clones Film Festival Short Bursary in 2021 and swept the boards at the 2022 Richard Harris International Film Festival earning 6 nominations and winning Best National Film.

His short crime drama, FOREVER HOLD YOUR PEACE won the inaugural Creative Ireland/SDCC Short Film Bursary, won Best Screenplay at the 2022 Underground Cinema Awards and was named runner up in Foyle Film Festival’s prestigious, Academy qualifying Light In Motion competition. Forever Hold Your Peace is continuing its festival run through 2023.

His award winning short horror film, TEMPVS, screened internationally before being acquired by RTÉ Shortscreen. Other credits include the viral horror short, MR. ECKLES, for Eli Roth’s CRYPT TV which has garnered over 1,000,000 views across their platform and earned Jason an Emerging Director Award nomination in 2019.

Jason is an alumni of the Reykjavik International Film Festival’s Talent Lab (2022). He is in development on his debut feature film, THEY DON’T BELONG HERE with Northern Ireland Screen and Liberty Video.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

When I made my last short film, Forever Hold Your Peace, I needed old photographs of a young boy from the early 90s. I wanted a level of authenticity so instead of designing photos or using stock images and ageing them the simplest solution was to use pictures of myself. As a result, I play a missing child in Forever Hold Your Peace. But digging through old photographs of myself as a kid was what inspired me to write Picture Day.

As children, we're beautifully unselfconscious. But through societal and cultural conditioning we loose this. Picture Day is about that moment when you become almost instantaneously aware of how you look and how you're being perceived. I thought of myself as a kid and tried to pinpoint when it happened to me and what that felt like. That's what lead to the creation of Alan, Milo's insecurity troll in Picture Day. I loved the idea of taking that internalised voice and turning it outwards.

But it was important to me in making this film that I didn't judge Milo or Alan. After all, they're really just two sides of the same person. But its Milo's film, so the story is told entirely form his perspective and we, as an audience, are invited into his world as he deals with his new found insecurity and a rather unpleasant troll who insists he's a friend.

I hope Picture Day feels a little familiar, somewhat magical and makes you laugh.