The 2026 Bingham Ray New Talent Award Nominees

Meghan O’Shaughnessy – Director, Moloch 

Meghan O’Shaughnessy is a director/writer hailing from Limerick, Ireland. Her creative voice leans towards genre driven storytelling, and she finds the absurdist lens an insightful way to explore the human condition in her filmmaking. Best known for her debut short film How to Skin a Cheetah, Meghan has received several accolades for her directorial work including two Emerging Directors Awards and a Young Directors Award nomination at Cannes Lions.   

Clinton Liberty – Actor, Feed   

Clinton stars as Addam of Hull, one of the new regulars in House of the Dragon. 
He is known for playing the lead role of Linus in Graham Norton’s Holding for ITV. He can also be seen in BBC drama Normal People, and as the regular role of Marcus in RTÉ’s Russian Election. Other credits include the role of Max in the family thriller Smother for BBC Studios/RTÉ, and the role of Jamie in feature film Touchdown. Clinton is a recent graduate of the BA Acting course at The Lir, Dublin. 

Niamh Bryson – Director, Newtown Boys

Niamh Bryson is an award-winning filmmaker whose debut short film, Trasna Na Líne, premiered at the Dublin International Film Festival, where it won the 2025 Sue Bruce-Smith Best Irish Short Award. Her second short film, Newtown Boys – a Heritage Film produced by Emily Power and written by Heather O’Sullivan, premiered at the Dublin International Film Festival 2026, where Niamh received a nomination for the festival’s Discovery Award. The film went on to win three awards at the Fastnet Film Festival in May 2026 and continues its festival run at the Galway Film Fleadh 2026. 

Ross McClean – Director, Magilligan

Ross McClean is a filmmaker from Belfast. He studied creative documentary in Canada, Hungary, Portugal and Belgium, graduating from the European documentary directing master’s programme DocNomads. Ross’ most recent film, No Mean City, premiered at Visions du Réel, won a Golden Frog for Best Short Documentary at Camerimage, Best Director at Cork IFF, and Best British/Irish Short Film at Leeds and Docs Ireland. It has also been nominated for an IFTA award. His debut feature-length documentary, Magilligan, supported by DocSociety, Screen Ireland and Arte, premiered in international competition at Visions Du Réel. 

Claire McCabe – Producer, All About The Money & Try! 

Claire has most recently produced Try!, a feature documentary by Oisín Mistéil that premiered at Sheffield Doc Fest. She produced All About the Money, which premiered at Sundance 2026, and Blue Road – The Edna O’Brien Story, which premiered at TIFF 2024. Both films are by Sinéad O’Shea. She also co-produced the BAFTA long-listed feature documentary The Ghost of Richard Harris by Adrian Sibley, which had its world premiere at Venice in 2022. In 2023, she was selected for Screen International Stars of Tomorrow UK and Ireland, and won an EDA for Best Emerging Producer. 

Oisín Mistéil – Director, Try! 

Oisín is an Irish writer/director whose debut feature documentary, Try!, premiered at Sheffield DocFest in June 2026. With a background in editing, Oisín directed the documentaries Ar Thóir na Crown Jewels and Go mBeirimid Beo for TG4. He won a Celtic Media Award for the comedy series Le Ceangal, which he co-wrote and directed. He recently co-directed and produced the feature doc I.D., slated for release in late 2026, and is passionate about bringing marginalised voices to the big screen. 

Liz Fitzgibbon – Actor, Fat & Lucy’s Boyfriend & Little Bitch 

Liz is an acclaimed actor form Youghal, Co Cork whose work spans theatre and screen. She won Best Supporting Actress at The Irish Times Theatre Awards in 2019 for her performance in the Abbey Theatre and Complex co-production Dublin Will Show You How by Tracy Martin. 

Liz co-created and starred as Anna in the short film All That’s Carried, which premiered at the Galway Film Fleadh in 2024 to critical acclaim. The film received the Donal Gilligan Award for Best Cinematography in a Short Film and won Best Irish Narrative Short at Kerry Film Festival. Her recent screen credits include Bad Sisters Series 2 for Apple TV+/Merman, The Vanishing Triangle for Virgin Media Television, Frank of Ireland, in which she appeared opposite Domhnall and Brian Gleeson, for Channel 4/Merman, Normal People for BBC/Hulu, directed by Lenny Abrahamson and Hettie Macdonald, and the feature films The Body Is Water, Herself, and Redemption of a Rogue.  

Ross Power – Cinematographer, NAXOS & Hollow Trees

Ross Power is an award-winning Irish cinematographer based in Belfast. A Cinematic Arts graduate of Ulster University, he first gained international recognition as co-cinematographer on An Taibhse, shot with director John Farrelly while they were still in college. The film screened at festivals worldwide, received a cinema release, and won multiple awards for its cinematography. He has since served as cinematographer on five independent feature films, including NAXOS, where he was Co-Director of Photography, and Hollow Trees, both premiering at this year’s Galway Film Fleadh. Alongside his narrative work, Ross is a Creative Producer at STATSports, creating commercial content with leading global sports brands and athletes. 

Heather Higgins – Producer, Learning to Breathe Underwater

Heather Higgins is a producer, film executive, and film entrepreneur based in Galway. She has served as Director of Development at the Academy Award®-qualifying Galway Film Fleadh for over a decade, a role she credits with inspiring her passion for Irish film and supporting emerging talent. Through Éiru Films, Heather is developing a growing slate of film and television projects, including the Irish-language series Ar Ais Arís with Tailored Films. She is also co-producer of Learning to Breathe Underwater, which is screening as part of this year’s Galway Film Fleadh. Her nomination for the Bingham Ray New Talent Award recognises her growing contribution to the Irish screen industry and her commitment to championing new voices and distinctive Irish storytelling. 

Peter Young – Writer/Director, Our House

Peter is a Northern Irish writer/director with a particular focus on thriller, horror, and comedy. His creative voice is defined by character-centred stories that deliver genre films with a social-drama flare. His work has screened with several prominent Academy affiliates, including the BFI’s London Film Festival, and he has shadowed under acclaimed directors in the thriller space, including Brad Anderson on Worldbreaker, and Chris Baugh on Channel 4’s In Flight. Peter has recently completed work on his debut feature film, Our House, produced by Village Films Ltd., and funded by Northern Ireland Screen.