Save The Irish Film Board

I am a very opinionated person, although admittedly I'm not usually one to stick my neck out. However, that changed a wee bit just over a month ago when I received an email from The Irish Film Board saying they were under threat from Ireland's 'Bord Snip' - basically a board set up to save Govt. funds during these trying times. When looking into the facts, it's quite easy to see this is a completely short sighted plan as any money saved would be lost again straight away with the resulting unemployment. And that's just one area of short-sightedness.

I quickly got to work setting up a Facebook group through 'Causes' and invited my friends. I've never been involved in lobbying, and wasn't sure setting up this group would have any actual impact on the decision. A good friend then mailed me today to let me know that Bord Snip's decisions were taking place this week and would I kindly inform the members of the group... well, I logged in to discover that our cause had become over 3,600 strong (Update: 3,707 by 6pm today!)

I promptly messaged the group to get proactive! And got proactive myself, emailing over 10 local Dublin TDs/Councillors with some facts and opinions surrounding the recommendations of Bord Snip. I encourage EVERYONE to get involved in this incredibly important cause. No matter how you feel about the IFB's policies, funding process & decisions, economically speaking this would have a huge negative impact on Ireland's economy.

If you want to look at the facts, you can find them on a recent Irish Audiovisual Content Production Sector Review, which has key facts about the value of the BSÉ/IFB. This report can be found here:
http://www.irishfilmboard.ie/about/Irish_Audiovisual_Content_Production_Sector_Review/24

We need to make our voices heard to support The Irish Film Board. A few simple steps could make a significant impact.

If you wouldn't mind joining the cause here:
http://www.causes.com/SavetheIFB

For information about who your local Councillor or TD is, visit this handy website: http://www.dublin.ie/dem.aspx - The simple practice of writing them a short email with your opinion on the matter is all it takes. And feel free to send me a message if you would like a copy of the letter I've written to my local Govt.

I encourage everyone to take into consideration the long-term effects of disbanding this very important cultural organization. Cutting the €18 million spent on the Film Board will destroy a 600 million Euro industry!