Two years since announcing its first original short film in development following an in-house call for concepts, Irish animation prodco Lighthouse Studios is ready to debut Póg mo Pigeon at the upcoming Galway Film Fleadh. The film will make its World Premiere as part of the festival’s Animated Shorts Program on Sunday, July 14 at 12 p.m.
Póg mo Pigeon (a play on the Irish phrase, “póg mo thon,” meaning “kiss my a–”) is “entirely home-grown, and tells a decidedly Irish story,” the studio shares. Set in West Cork in the 1970s, the 2D piece tells the story of Mikey, a young boy who escapes the watchful eyes of Mammy’s Sacred Heart icon by escaping into the freedom of the forest. It’s here he meets Pidgey, whose free-spirited sense of adventure offers a welcome release for Mikey.
The film is directed by Clíodhna Lyons and based on a concept pitched by animator Polly Holland during Lighthouse’s in-house open call in 2021. Holland had joined the studio just a few months previously through the Graduate Traineeship Programme for Animation, VFX and Games, run by Cultural and Creative Industries Skillnet in association with Screen Ireland. Póg mo Pigeon is inspired by a story Holland’s father recounted to her about his childhood in rural Ireland.
“On the surface, Póg Mo Pigeon is about a young boy, Mikey, and his relationship with Pidgey, a bird he comes across in the forest one day. At its heart though, Póg is the story of Mikey’s relationship with his mother, and how religion impacts their lives,” Lyons points out. “The Ireland we see depicted in Póg mo Pigeon is a different place, and we aim to start a conversation about how far we as a nation have come since then.”
Claire Finn, the short’s executive producer and Lighthouse Studios Managing Director, commented, “Since the studio was founded in 2017, we’ve had the good fortune to work with some of the biggest names in the content world, including Netflix, Apple TV+ and Warner Bros. Animation. Póg mo Pigeon is our tentative first step into the world of original content, developed and produced entirely in-house by Clíodhna, Polly and the wider team of artists and crew. Its selection for this year’s Galway Film Fleadh is a great achievement for all who worked so hard to bring Polly’s story to life. We’re excited to continue development of our slate of originals, alongside our primary focus of delivering top-quality animated content for our partners.”
Lighthouse Studios is a BAFTA-winning animation studio based in Kilkenny, Ireland. Founded in 2017, the studio has provided animation services for many notable projects, including The Bob’s Burgers Movie (20th Century Studios), The Cuphead Show! (Netflix), Rick and Morty (Adult Swim), the multi-award winning El Deafo (Apple TV+) and Bug Diaries (Prime Video). Lighthouse is currently animating the 2D feature, Light of the World, for partners Pencilish and Epipheo, while also developing further original content including Savage Town, a gritty Irish tale for adult audiences set at the turn of the millennium; Showtime, a coproduction with Derry studio, Dog Ears, and a yet-to-be-announced series for young adults.
