‘The Cat Burglar’ wins in the Animation category at the RTS Student Awards
The prestigious annual event recognising the achievements of third level students from the Class of 2025 saw winners from IADT, City of Dublin FET College Ballyfermot, Dundalk Institute of Technology, Technological University Dublin and Griffith College Dublin. The animated short film ‘The Cat Burglar’ from City of Dublin FET College Ballyfermot was produced by animation students Saoirse Kelly, Ben Martin, Venetia Ellis, Michaela Bradley, and James McAlpin.
The RTS Ireland Student Awards 2026 were presented at a ceremony in Virgin Media Television on Tuesday 24 March, celebrating the best of emerging talent across the country’s third-level colleges.
The ceremony was hosted by Katja Mia, and the awards were presented by leaders from broadcasters, Virgin Media Television, RTÉ, Sky Ireland, TG4 and from Coimisiún na Meán.
All of the winning entries will now be submitted to compete in the overall RTS Student Awards in the UK this summer. Agnes Cogan, Chair of Royal Television Society, Republic of Ireland said,
“Congratulations to all of the winners this evening. We are now celebrating our 20th Student Awards presentation and I have to say that we have never failed to be astonished at the continuing creativity, exuberant imagination and fearless originality of our young content creators. Many of them have gone on from the Republic of Ireland finals to be major prize winners at the London Grand Finals of the RTS, against finalists from Scotland, Wales and England, and from there to pursue thriving careers in the industry. Irish creativity is certainly thriving and I’m sure a bright future awaits all of our young entrants this evening”.
The awards highlight the achievement of graduates and are a significant opportunity for young Irish filmmakers to have their work recognized by the Royal Television Society and the wider industry in Ireland and the UK as the winners go forward to the overall RTS Student Awards in the UK this summer.
