Recipient of inaugural Mayo County Council Film Bursary
Croía McDermott is the recipient of the inaugural 2026 Mayo County Council Film Bursary. The bursary has been awarded for the creation of the short film Jumpers for Goalposts.
Jumpers for Goalposts is a short film written and directed by Westport filmmaker Barry McNamara and produced by Croía McDermott, with production company Western Front Studios. Set in a rural Mayo community and centred around football, the film explores grief, young men’s mental health and the challenges young people can face in expressing what they are going through. At its heart, it is a story about community, connection and hope. The film will be shot in and around Westport, drawing on Mayo’s landscapes and local filmmaking talent.
Croía McDermott is a Mayo-based film producer working across independent film and television. Her debut short film as producer, MACHA, premiered at the Galway Film Fleadh in 2026 and recently won Best Irish Short Film at the Clare Island Film Festival. Croía has also worked across Screen Ireland-supported productions, RTÉ Storyland and independent feature films, and is currently developing and producing a number of projects through the west of Ireland. She is particularly interested in championing Irish stories, emerging filmmakers and filmmaking in the west.
The Mayo County Council Film Bursary Award is an award of €15,000 offered by Mayo County Council and Film Mayo to commission an original film by a Mayo-based filmmaker or filmmaking team. The award was launched alongside the new Film Mayo website, www.filmmayo.ie in June, and reflects Mayo County Council’s commitment to the county’s screen culture, its filmmaking talent, and its profile as a location for national and international production.
Chief Executive of Mayo County Council Kevin Kelly, speaking on the announcement of the Bursary recipient said: “It is wonderful to see the wealth of talent in the Mayo film sector, and the appetite for the Mayo County Council Film Bursary. The volume of high-quality applications received demonstrates the bright future of the film sector in Mayo, which Mayo County Council is delighted to support through Film Mayo and the Mayo County Council Film Bursary.”
Mayo County Council Arts Service and Film Mayo are excited to support Jumpers for Goalposts as it makes its way to the screen, and to mark this exciting milestone in the development of the screen sector in County Mayo.
For further information regarding the Mayo County Council Film Bursary and Film Mayo contact Saoirse Anton by emailing filmmayo@mayococo.ie