Our Study Abroad Film Festival jury of study abroad and film enthusiasts is filled to the brim with talent: an Oscar nominee, human-rights documentarians, television screenwriters, and more.
Get to know each juror with our monthly Meet the Jury feature. This month we’re highlighting award-winning screenwriter and IES Abroad Dublin Center Director, Dr. Ashley Taggart.
Dr. Ashley Taggart
Writer & Screenwriter
Center Director – IES Abroad Dublin
Q: Which of your many film-related accomplishments do you feel the most proud of?
A: I wrote and produced over 25 short commissioned films in the last eight years—one of which (“Happy Hour”) shot on a minimal budget, made it into the Chicago Irish Film Festival, and the Cork film festival, in open competition.
Q: What is your favorite documentary? And why?
A: Favourite documentary is “Touching The Void”—Joe Simpson’s shocking, spectacular account of climbing expedition that goes disastrously wrong, and leads to a brutal moral choice.
Q: How would you condense the spirit of study abroad into one word?
A: Self-discovery
Q: What advice would you give to young filmmakers today?
A: My advice to young film makers is—Just do it. Don’t listen to “experts”, or “nay-sayers”, or wait for panels of funding bodies to assess your work. The new digital formats have democratised creativity—all that is needed is time, energy, and commitment.
Read the Film Festival jury bios, and keep an eye out for the next Meet the Jury feature!
Feeling inspired? Submit your film today.
