Pictured at the 13th Underground Cinema Awards were actor Gerry Herbert, Director Paireac Keane, actor Eiiot James and production manager Grainne Carey.

Offaly filmmaker picks up two prestigious awards

Offaly filmmaker, Paireac Keane, won two prestigious film awards last weekend for his short comedy film 'Wormhole in the Washer'.

The Tullamore man, who is son of Roseanne and the late Dr Tony Keane from Church Road, won the awards for Best Comedy and Best Editor at the 13th Underground Cinema Awards ceremony held annually at the Royal Marine Hotel in Dun Laoghaire.

The film, shot in the Bridge House Hotel in Tullamore, Bracken Cottage in Clareen and Loughton House in Moneygall, is about a struggling science-fiction writer who discovers a portal to a parallel universe in his washing machine where he meets a better version of himself; or so it seems.

Speaking after the awards ceremony, Paireac said: “I’m delighted, not just for myself but for all the cast and crew. A lot of very talented people worked on this film, and this award (Best Comedy) is a win for all of us”.

The film picked up nine nominations in total, with the talented Tullamore filmmaker also receiving nominations for Best Screenplay, Best Director and Best Short Film.

‘Wormhole in the Washer’ has enjoyed a very successful run on the international film festival circuit to date, having already won Best Comedy at the Dublin Short Film Festival in addition to receiving nominations for Best Comedy at the Unrestricted View Film Festival (UK), Best Overall Short Film at the Richard Harris International Film festival (Ireland) and Best Sci-fi Short at Genreblast Film Festival (USA).

In addition to his work as a filmmaker, Paireac Keane runs his own production company, King Tree Media, producing video content for brands, businesses and creative video agencies.

He is also a certified drone operator with the Irish Aviation Authority. 'Wormhole in the Washer' will screen at two more festivals in early December, the Dublin International Comedy Film Festival and Another Hole in the Head Film Festival in San Francisco. Paireac received his early education in Ballinamere National School and later attended Killina secondary school.

He recently completed a Masters Degree in Feature Film Production at Staffordshire University/Filmbase and currently lives in Tyrrellspass with his partner, Gráinne Carey.