Jubilant scenes as Kilkenny’s Cartoon Saloon receives FOURTH Oscar nomination

THE talented team at Kilkenny’s world-famous Cartoon Saloon erupted with joy as the renowned animation studio received its fourth Oscar nomination.

The Academy Awards today confirmed the studio’s multi award-wining short film Late Afternoon has been nominated for Best Animated Short at this year’s star-studded event.

The crew at Cartoon Saloon posted video footage of the team cheering and punching the air in celebration as the studio’s latest Oscar nomination was confirmed.

Cartoon Saloon said this evening: “Holy moly – we are over the moon to be nominated, huge thank you to @TheAcademy ! It’s been an amazing journey and we couldn’t of done it without the support from the crew here in Cartoon Saloon, Screen Ireland and RTE. Thank you to the whole team, we are so excited to be heading to the Oscars but tonight we’re going to celebrate with the crew!”

It will be Cartoon Saloon’s fourth night out at the Oscars. The studio’s award-winning films – The Secret of Kells, Song of The Sea and The Breadwinner – also received Academy Award nominations.

The company now employs over 200 people in Kilkenny and its work has received several Academy, BAFTA, Golden Globe and Emmy nominations.

Late Afternoon was written and directed by Louise Bagnall and produced by Nuria González Blanco for Cartoon Saloon.

It tells the story of an elderly woman, voiced by actress Fionnula Flanagan, as she drifts back through her memories, existing between two states – the past and the present.

The film had its New York premiere at Tribeca earlier this year, where it was awarded Best Animated Short.

It also won Best Animated Sequence in a Short Film at the Galway Film Fleadh last year and the Ifta for Best Animated Short.

Ms Bagnall is an animation graduate of the National Film School at IADT Dún Laoghaire and is creative director at Cartoon Saloon.

She previously worked on the studio’s Oscar-nominated feature films ‘Song of the Sea’ and ‘The Breadwinner’.