The Silver Docs nominees in the World Feature and Short Film categories have been announced with the latter featuring three Irish projects; Aideen O’Sullivan and Ross Whitaker’s ‘Bye Bye Now’, Ken Wardrop’s ‘The Herd’ and Anna Rodgers’ ‘If These Walls Could Talk’.

The Silver Docs film festival will run this year from the 21st to the 27th of June. The event’s Sterling Short Competition features 40 shortlisted projects including three Irish works.

‘Bye Bye Now’ from Aideen O'Sullivan and Ross Whitaker offers a charming look at the gradual disappearance of phone booths in Ireland. With the advent of modern technology, the phone booth has all but vanished all over the world. In a loving tribute to this soon-to-be relic of the past, the film is a nostalgic reminder of yesteryear. ‘The Herd’ from director: Ken Wardrop (His & Hers) centres around a little fawn who finds herself out of place amid the sole company of cows, she attempts to fit in unnoticed but can she succeed? Finally, ‘If These Walls Could Talk’ by Anna Rodgers (Today is Better than Two Tomorrows) explores several desolate and abandoned psychiatric hospitals throughout Ireland. The voices of former long-term patients permeate the corridors, still struggling to understand the circumstances that brought them there.

The Short Film Jury comprises of Ben Fowlie, Founding Director of the Camden International Film Festival; Elena Fortes, Director of the Ambulante Documentary Film Festival and filmmaker Aron Gaudet (The Way We Get By).

Silver Docs artistic director, Sky Sitney praised this year’s nominees, saying: “This year we received more high-quality submissions than ever before, making it harder than ever to select the films for the 2010 program. This Festival slate represents the very best the documentary form has to offer, covering a wide range of issues and voices, and focusing on cinematic excellence.”

Now in its eight year the Festival, which takes place at the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center in the Washington, DC area, presents seven days of programming plus special screenings, music performances and panel discussions featuring hundreds of filmmakers, varied topics and media professionals. For a full list of nominees visit www.silverdocs.com

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