Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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1150. To ask the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the number of Irish language feature films the Irish Film Board funded over the past 20 years; the level of funding to each individual project; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42035/14]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Providing historical information over a 20-year period requires significant time and staff resources to check and collate. In the time available, I have been provided with the information for the period 2007 to 2013 by the Irish Film Board (see the table below) broken down between production funding, development funding and distribution funding. A further reply with the balance of the requested information will issue directly to the Deputy in due course.

The Irish Film Board has provided funding for ten Irish language feature length projects between 2007 and 2013 – five fiction features films and five feature film documentaries. Kings and An Brontannas were both put forward as the Irish entry for the Best Foreign Language Film category for the Academy Awards in the year that they were produced.

The Irish Film board has also provided support for a number of TV series with the aim to develop creative talent in the area of Irish language narrative fiction. Television drama plays a vital role in the continuing development of Irish language writers, directors and producers for film.

In terms of developing less established Irish language filmmakers, the Irish Film board also provides funding for Gearrscannáin - a specific Irish language short film fund, which funds up to two short films every year and often highlights the wide range of established and popular Irish actors who are fluent in the Irish language. The IFB works in partnership with the Irish Film Institute to ensure that the Gearrscannáin Irish language short films are used widely in schools as a teaching aid for the Irish language, a study guide is produced and distributed to schools for the Irish language shorts every year.

I should add that, in recent years, the information sought by the Deputy is published in the Annual Report of the Irish Film Board and is available on its website at .