Brendan Canty’s Christy and Lisa Barros D’Sa and Glenn Leyburn’s Saipan lead the nominations for the Irish Film & Television Academy (IFTA) awards, which will take place in Dublin on February 20.
Cork-set care system drama Christy, which made its world premiere at the Berlinale in 2025, has garnered 14 nominations, including best film, director - film and lead actor for Daniel Power.
Saipan is next with 12 nominations, and is also nominated in best film, director – film and lead actor for both Eanna Hardwicke and Steve Coogan. The film is based on the 2002 clash between Irish footballer Roy Keane and manager Mick McCarthy, and world premiered at Toronto, starring Eanna Hardwicke and Steve Coogan.
Further frontrunners are Richard Linklater’s Blue Moon, which was shot in Ireland and has eight nominations, and Darren Thornton’s BFI London Film Festival 2024 award- winning Four Mothers with seven nominations.
Belfast and Is This Thing On? actor Ciarán Hinds will receive the lifetime achievement award.
Comedian and broadcaster Kevin McGahern is hosting the ceremony.
IFTA 2026 film award nominations
Best film
Aontas
Blue Moon
Christy
Four Mothers
Saipan
Steve
Director – film
Lisa Barros D’Sa, Glenn Leyburn - Saipan
Brendan Canty - Christy
Myrid Carten - A Want in Her
Lorcan Finnegan - The Surfer
Ruán Magan - Báite
Edwin Mullane, Adam O’Keeffe - Horseshoe
Script – film
Sarah Gordon, Damian McCann - Aontas
Maggie O’Farrell, Chloé Zhao - Hamnet
Alan O’Gorman - Christy
Sheena Lambert - Báite
Darren Thornton, Colin Thornton - Four Mothers
Enda Walsh - Die My Love
Lead actor – film
Steve Coogan - Saipan
Daniel Day-Lewis - Anemone
Colin Farrell - Ballad Of A Small Player
Éanna Hardwicke - Saipan
Cillian Murphy - Steve
Daniel Power - Christy
Lead actress – film
Jessie Buckley - Hamnet
Carolyn Bracken - Horseshoe
Carrie Crowley - Aontas
Fionnula Flanagan - Four Mothers
Eleanor O’Brien - Báite
Fiona Shaw - Hot Milk
Supporting actor – film
Liam Cunningham - Palestine 36
Jamie Forde - Christy
Paul Mescal - Hamnet
Diarmuid Noyes - Christy
Seán T. Ó Meallaigh - Aontas
Andrew Scott - Blue Moon
Supporting actress – film
Brid Brennan - Aontas
Kerry Condon - F1
Sarah Greene - Trad
Dearbhla Molloy - Four Mothers
Kerry Condon - Train Dreams
Emma Willis - Christy
International film
Bugonia
Hamnet
One Battle After Another
Palestine ’36
Sentimental Value
Sinners
International actor
Leonardo DiCaprio - One Battle After Another
Ethan Hawke - Blue Moon
Michael B Jordan - Sinners
James McArdle - Four Mothers
Sean Penn - One Battle After Another
Jesse Plemons - Bugonia
International actress
Chase Infiniti - One Battle After Another
Jennifer Lawrence - Die My Love
Margaret Qualley - Blue Moon
Renate Reinsve - Sentimental Value
Emma Stone - Bugonia
Teyana Taylor - One Battle After Another
George Morrison feature documentary
A Want in Her
The Essence of Eva
Listen To The Land Speak
Sanatorium
Testimony
Útoipe
Cheilteach
Cinematography
Bugonia - Robbie Ryan
Christy - Colm Hogan
Die My Love - Seamus McGarvey
Saipan - Piers McGrail
Severance - Suzie Lavelle
Casting
Christy - Amy Rowan
Four Mothers - Louise Kiely
The Rainmaker - Emma Gunnery
Ready Or Not - Maureen Hughes
Saipan - Aine O’Sullivan
Editing
Blue Lights - Helen Sheridan
Christy - Allyn Quigley
House Of Guinness - Ben Yeates
Saipan - John Murphy, Gavin Buckley
The Surfer - Tony Cranstoun
Make-up & hair
Blue Moon - Linda Gannon, Liz Byrne
Christy - Jennie Readman, Edwina Kelly
Saipan - Polly McKay
Trespasses - Natalie Reid
Wednesday - Lynn Johnston
Original music
Aontas - Daithí Ó Drónaí
Báite - Eimear Noone, Craig Stuart Garfinkle
Christy - Daithí Ó Drónaí
Saipan - David Holmes, Brian Irvine
Video Nasty - Die Hexen
Production design
Blue Moon - Susie Cullen, Kevin Downey
Christy - Martin Goulding
Saipan - John Leslie
Wednesday - Philip Murphy, Neville Gaynor
Video Nasty - Tara O’Reilly
Sound
Anemone - Steve Fanagan
Blue Moon - Hugh Fox
Saipan - Tim Harrison, Andrew Graham, Paul Maynes
The Surfer - Aza Hand
Video Nasty - Patrick Downey
VFX
Anemone - Tom Fagan
Foundation - Ed Bruce, Andrew Barry
House Of Guinness - Eoin O’Sullivan, David Sewell
One Battle After Another - Ed Bruce, Amrei Bronnenmayer
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