Grandad was inspiration behind Cork woman's new film

Inspired by her grandfather, who died at just 58, a young filmmaker’s new ten-minute film will screen at the 16th First Cut Youth Film Festival taking place at the Regal Cinema and the Mall Arts Theatre in Youghal this week.

Kyra Owers, 21, from Cloyne, loved watching movies growing up, and while at St Colman’s Secondary School in Midleton, took part in a young filmmakers’ workshop.

“Actually being able to make a film within that workshop made me realise I wanted to make films,” says Kyra.

“It was a really fun experience. The film was made in one day. It was a four-minute short about things being thrown at a teacher. The things keep getting bigger and bigger until, at the end, a student is thrown at the teacher.”

Kyra was 16 when she and some classmates made that short. It whetted her appetite for camera work.

“I started making films around the house to share with friends and family. I think the biggest inspiration for me was Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, directed by Edgar Wright. After seeing that, I saw a lot of short films on YouTube.”

Keen to develop a career as a filmmaker, Kyra attended the Cork College of FET (Further Education and Training) where she spent two years studying film.

“It was a course in film, television and video production. I learned so much because we were introduced to using industry-standard equipment.

“We learned about getting into the industry. I got so much work experience from being involved in so many film productions. I did work experience with A24 Films based in Youghal. They do videography. Last year, I was the camera assistant on a film of the highlights of the Midleton Arts Festival.

“I think when you’re a filmmaker, you’re always learning. The Cork College of FET gave me so many fundamentals that I will carry for the rest of my life.”

Now studying film at UCC, Kyra is “honing in on my craft. The course is really academic, breaking down and analysing films. We critiqued The Blair Witch Project. I’m currently doing a write-up on it.

“The academic approach is something I like and I don’t like. It kind of has its benefits. You can thoroughly understand a film by going to film studies at UCC. But it’s very heavy on theory and I struggle with that.”

As part of her studies, Kyra and her classmates are currently working on a short film with a crew of five and three in the cast. Her role is that of producer.

“I would like to be either a director or an editor. Not only do you have a lot of control as a director, but I get so much from my passion by being in the director’s chair. If I had a story that I was fixated on for years and saw it finally coming to life with a cast and crew, that would be a really surreal feeling.

“Editing was the first thing I fully engaged with when I was a teenager. So, even when I found it hard to make films completely on my own, doing home movies, I loved piecing the films together.”

Last year, Kyra was a production trainee for the making of a David Puttnam documentary.

“It was a one-day thing, work experience as part of the college course. I didn’t get to talk to David Puttnam but it was really inspiring to be in the same room as him. I remember taking so many notes from that day.”

Kyra, who has volunteered at the First Cut Youth Film Festival, has been involved in several films.

Her film, Better When You’re Dancing, to be screened at the festival, is her third to be released.

“It comes from the experiences that I had when I lost my grandfather in 2016. It had a massive impact on me and my family. It was a shock because it was unexpected.

“Gerard Owers was incredible. I used to help him make things and fix things. He made a waterslide in our back garden on a really warm summer’s day. He was caring and kind and if you ever asked him to do something, he would do it in a heartbeat.”

Losing a grandparent “when you’re young is hard. Everyone grieves in different ways. That’s what I wanted to express in the film. There’s a really nice story behind the title of the film. When I was 12, my favourite film at that time was the Peanuts movie with Snoopy and Charlie Brown.

“In that animation film, there’s a song called Better When I’m Dancing. I love that song and used to keep listening to it and analysing it, day in, day out. I changed ‘I’m’ to ‘You’re’ for the title.

“In the film, it is the main character, Ava’s grandfather’s heavenly birthday. That’s a birthday that is celebrated when a loved one has passed.”

Kyra has celebrated her grandfather’s heavenly birthday as part of her grieving process.

In the film, Ava’s grandfather had always encouraged her to dance. The grandfather is played by Austin Grehan who resembles him.

Kyra will attend the screening of her film with her grandmother, Eucharia Owers, her parents, and her two younger siblings.

It will be a proud moment for the family when they take their seats at the Regal Cinema on March 8.

First Cut Youth Film Festival Highlights:

• Director Brendan Canty (Christy, Hozier’s Take Me To Church video) will discuss his journey from music videos to feature films. Christy recently won the Grand Prix of the Generation 14plus International jury at the 2025 Berlin Film Festival.
• There will be a special screening of TG4’s documentary of Irish photography and cinema pioneers, the Horgan brothers, followed by a Q&A with its director, Darina Clancy.
• Athrú Amháin!/One Change! – First Cut’s Irish language environmental filmmaking competition returns supported by the new Micheál O Lionsigh Memorial Award.
• One of the festival’s flagship projects, Youth Music Video Competition, will pair emerging filmmakers with top Irish music acts, mentored by Brendan Canty, Bob Gallagher, Kate Dolan and Tara O’Callaghan.

See www.firstcutfilmfestival.com.