Irish animated film Late Afternoon nominated for Oscar

An Irish animated film has been shortlisted for next year's Oscar.

Late Afternoon, written and directed by Louise Bagnall, sees an elderly woman as she drifts back through her memories; existing between two states—the past and the present. Starring Fionnula Flanagan, Late Afternoon is produced by Nuria González Blanco for Cartoon Saloon.

It was funded under the Screen Ireland and RTÉ funded Frameworks short film scheme.

Ms Bagnall's previous credits as an animator include Song of the Sea and the Amazing World of Gumball.

A total of 10 films were shortlisted from all over the world and the final nominations will be announced in January.

Based in Kilkenny, the Cartoon Saloon has received three Oscar nominations for its three feature-length films - The Secret of Kells, Song of the Sea and last year’s The Breadwinner which told the story of an 11-year-old girl who lives under Taliban rule in Afghanistan.

The production house has also received a number of Golden Globe and Emmy nominations for its work.

Its Emmy nominated preschool series, Puffin Rock, is currently being broadcast worldwide on Netflix in over 25 languages and on Tencent streaming service where it is close to 100 million views in China alone.

Reacting to news of Cartoon Saloon's fourth Oscar nomination, chief executive of the Irish Film Board (IFB) James Hickey said the film had universal appeal.

I’m really delighted to see Louise and the Late Afternoon team make it through to this stage of the Academy Awards process. This film tells a universal story which has appealed to international audiences around the world and particularly in North America. We wish them the best of luck in getting through to the final line-up of nominees in January," he said.

The film received its New York premiere at Tribeca earlier this year, where it was awarded Best Animated Short, screening as part of a special animation programme curated by Whoopi Goldberg. Late Afternoon also won Best Animated Sequence in a Short Film at last year’s Galway Film Fleadh and took home an IFTA for Best Animated Short.

In November, it was confirmed that the new feature film from Cartoon Saloon co-founder Nora Twomey - My Father’s Dragon- has been announced as part of six all-new Netflix animated projects.

Based on the Newbery Honored children's novels by Ruth Stiles Gannett, the film tells the story of young run-away Elmer Elevator, who searches for a captive Dragon on Wild Island and finds much more than he could ever have anticipated.

Ms Twomey said "the kind of creative encouragement Netflix are providing is an incredible opportunity for our filmmaking team".

"We are all so excited to bind our skills together and begin My Father’s Dragon," she said.