By Sean Moriarty

A young Killarney filmmaker narrowly missed out on winning Ireland’s Young Filmmaker of the Year 2023 competition at Fresh International Film Festival.

Glen Bowler (16), took second place in the competition which was announced on RTÉ on Wednesday night.

The St Brendan’s College Transition Year student’s film ‘The Legend of Patrick Greenwood’ was one of many award recipients at the Ireland’s Young Filmmaker of the Year which were broadcast on national television this week.

The film, which is about a retired soldier turned gardener who considers what legacy he will leave behind, was filmed on location in Killarney National Park.

While the crew behind the short film knew the result of the national competition for nearly two weeks they were sworn to secrecy until the awards ceremony was broadcast on television.

“It was a long-kept secret but it was very exciting to finally see the film on television,” Glen told the Killarney Advertiser.

“My phone has not stopped with messages of congratulations.”

Glen is not the only Kerry award winner as 18-year-old Malachaí Ó Ciardhubháin from Dingle won Best Screenplay for his Irish language short ‘Nellie’ while Killarney’s Rachel Griffin saw her film shortlisted as a nominee for Best Art Direction.