BELFAST-FOUNDED CINEMAGIC MARKS 25 YEARS OF GLOBAL GROWTH UNDER CHIEF EXECUTIVE JOAN BURNEY KEATINGS MBE

From bringing young people together across a divided Northern Ireland to opening doors into film and television around the world, Cinemagic celebrates a quarter of a century of international expansion under its long-serving Chief Executive Joan Burney Keatings MBE is celebrating 25 years at the helm of one of Northern Ireland's most remarkable creative success stories, Cinemagic. The youth film charity chief has brought thousands of young people together here and across the world through the charity since she took the lead at the organization, annually working with over 40,000 young people. Joan joined Cinemagic in 2001, as Press and Marketing Officer following a role in the BBC Communications and Corporate Affairs Department. Within a year she was appointed Festival Director and became Chief Executive in 2003. She has developed Cinemagic from a Belfast film and television festival into an award-winning international initiative, using film both to break down barriers between young people and open doors into an industry that can be difficult to access without connections or opportunity. Founded during the Troubles almost 40 years ago (1989) Cinemagic's original purpose was to use film as a vehicle to bring Catholic and Protestant young people together. Thousands of young people from different communities, countries, abilities and circumstances have since worked side by side, developing skills, friendships and confidence. Joan has pioneered Cinemagic's international expansion, establishing programmes in Dublin, London, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Boston, Jordan and Barbados, while using its global profile to promote Northern Ireland, its talent and its growing film industry internationally. That reach has attracted the support of some of the biggest names in film and television, with patrons and supporters including Liam Neeson, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Farrell, Saoirse Ronan, Dermot O'Leary, Suranne Jones, Paula Malcomson and Oscar-winning writer and producer Julian Fellowes and many more. Other career milestones include bringing Jim Henson's Muppets to Northern Ireland for the first time in 2002 and Academy Award-winning animation studio Aardman Animations in 2003, as well as welcoming a host of Oscar-winning talent to Cinemagic over the years. A particularly memorable moment came during Cinemagic's 30th anniversary celebrations in 2019, when The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge visited the charity and met young filmmakers and children taking part in its skills development and outreach programmes. Cinemagic productions during under Joan's guidance have also given young people a platform to explore subjects including mental health, racial discrimination, consent, domestic and gender-based violence, drug addiction and the legacy of division. Among them is Abia, Cinemagic's first film made in Jordan and shot in Arabic. Created with young people in Amman and addressing gender-based violence, it was screened in New York on International Women's Day in 2023 and won Best Foreign Language Film at the British Short Film Awards. Joan subsequently received a Certificate of Appreciation from the City of Los Angeles in 2023 and 2024 in recognition of her work from the California State Senate. Another production, So What If It Rains, explored the legacy of the Good Friday Agreement and was screened in London at an event hosted by the UK and Ireland at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and Irish Embassy. The films form part of an extraordinary production record of more than 200 short films and behind-the-scenes documentaries, alongside two feature films and three televised behind-the-scenes feature documentaries. The two features, A Christmas Star and Grace and Goliath, broke further ground. A Christmas Star, the first Northern Irish and Irish children's Christmas movie, placed 40 young trainees on a professional set and featured Pierce Brosnan, Liam Neeson, Kylie Minogue, Paula Malcomson, Dermot O'Leary and Suranne Jones before being sold internationally. Grace and Goliath further developed the model, bringing young people from Los Angeles to Northern Ireland to work alongside their local counterparts. Joan's 25th anniversary comes as that international story continues to grow. Having returned from Los Angeles in June after taking 21 young people from Northern Ireland, Ireland and Canada to Cinemagic's 16th annual Los Angeles programme, she is now preparing to travel to Barbados for the premiere of 'Call Me Raven' this week (10 September 2026). The Call Me Raven short film about recovery, resilience and friendship and inspired by a true story is the result of Cinemagic's first Caribbean Youth Film Academy, a first-of-its-kind collaboration bringing 20 Barbadian young people together with a professional local film crew. Joan said: 'When I joined Cinemagic 25 years ago, I had huge ambition for what it could become. What we have achieved has exceeded even the strategic plans and dreams I had for it then. 'But the purpose has never changed. It is about bringing young people together who might never otherwise meet, giving them access to opportunities they might never otherwise have and using film to start conversations about issues that matter. 'I am enormously proud when I see a Cinemagic young person go on to work in the industry, but I am equally proud when I see young people from completely different backgrounds working together, forming friendships and realising what they are capable of. 'We have also always been ambitious about taking Northern Ireland to the world. Through our international work, we have been able to showcase our creativity, our young people and Northern Ireland as an important destination for the global film industry. 'To have had the opportunity to lead Cinemagic and work with so many extraordinary young people over the past 25 years has been the privilege of a lifetime. I never take for granted what a special job this is, or the trust placed in us to help young people discover their potential. 'And this is just the beginning. I still have so much more I want to do with Cinemagic, and I am incredibly excited about what the future holds. The charity boss says the Barbados film premiere this month marks another beginning for Cinemagic and anticipates further expansion of the model. Joan's contribution has earned recognition at home and internationally. She received an MBE from Queen Elizabeth II in 2012 for services to the Arts in Northern Ireland, making her the youngest-ever female recipient of the honour at that time. Other honours include BT Inspirational Woman of the Year, an Honorary Fellowship for her contribution to Arts and Media, a Business Innovation Award in Los Angeles and recognition from the California State Senate. The 37th Cinemagic International Film and Television Festival in association with Belfast City Airport runs in Belfast from September to November 2026 – https://cinemagic.org.uk/festivals/