Canadian-based media group Amcomri Entertainment Inc is now the lead sponsor of the Limerick-based Richard Harris International Film Festival (RHIFF), and it has also launched a new film investment fund worth €10 million.

Both announcements were made during a launch event held on 16 August at King John’s Castle in Limerick. Amcomri has disclosed that the funds will be available to entrants to the 2022 RHIFF as well as previous entrants to the festival. Eligible projects include feature-length narrative films, documentaries and animations, whilst short films will not be eligible.

The group will not provide early-development funding, as “each project needs to be developed to the draft, script and budget stage as a minimum requirement”. Applications must be submitted no later than 31 December 2022.

Robert Price, chief executive officer of Amcomri, said: “At Amcomri, we work to encourage project dialogue for film financing, publishing and international distribution and sales, so we are thrilled to be sponsoring this year’s RHIFF. We want to continue to develop long-term relationships which can grow to multi-deal co-production activity and are eager to receive the applications to the AMEN Film Investment Fund.”

Eoghan Burke, vice-president of Sales at 101 Films International (the UK-based sales division of Amcomri Entertainment), added: “We are extremely proud to become the lead sponsor of the Richard Harris International Film Festival. We have been aware of the high calibre of submissions to the festival over the past few years, so we are excited to see the applications we receive in 2022 and going forward.”

Finally, Zeb Moore, Richard Harris International Film Festival’s director, commented: “We are delighted to be partnering with such a renowned and innovative organisation as Amcomri, to mark our tenth year. RHIFF and Amcomri are compatible, as we are both committed to discovering new talent and promoting emerging filmmakers. The proposed facility is a unique opportunity for independent filmmakers from all over the world to potentially access funding and/or distribution. The ambition is that this collaboration will find the next Scorsese or Sheridan.”

You can find out more about the initiative here.