Tipperary actress nominated for Irish Film and TV Award for her lead performance

The nominees for 2025 Irish Film and Television Academy Awards were announced this week and Nenagh actress Carolyn Bracken is among the names.

Carolyn has been nominated in Lead Actress - Film category for her performance in ‘Oddity’ written and directed by Damian McCarthy.

Her fellow category nominees include Oscar winner Saoirse Ronan for her film ‘The Outrun’ as well as Jessie Buckley, Hazel Doupe, Saorise Ronan, Eileen Walsh and Alisha Weir.

Oddity is a 2024 Irish horror film, written and directed by Damian Mc Carthy. The film centers on a blind medium and curio shopkeeper who is still grieving the death of her twin sister a year prior.

A wooden mannequin from her cabinet of curiosities becomes crucial to her quest to uncover the truth about her sister’s murder.

The film premiered at South by Southwest festival in Texas on 8 March 2024, where it won the Audience Award in the Midnighter section of the festival.

The film has gone on to receive strong reviews with the Irish Times’ Tara Brady giving it 4/5 stars and writing “McCarthy’s directorial precision is complemented by wit and an imaginative backstory that deserves an expanded universe.”
Bracken grew up in Nenagh, Tipperary. She began acting at age four, as a member of local theater group The Nenagh Players. She also began attending speech and drama classes around the same time.

‘Oddity’ has received three further nominations. The film’s director, Damian McCarthy, has been nominated for Director - Film, Steve Wall has been nominated for Support Actor - Film and Aza Hand and Hugo Parvey have been nominated in the Sound category.

Carolyn’s nomination and the praise surrounding the film and her role in it are sure to garner more attention for her in the film and TV industry both here in Ireland and abroad.

We will see her on screen next in a film titled “Horsehoe” directed by Edwin Mullane and Adam O’Keefe and starring Love/Hate actors John Connors and Mary Murray.

Carolyn Bracken was not the only Nenagh actor to have a project featured in this year’s list of IFTA nominations, ‘Bad Sisters’ which stars Nenagh man Daryl McCormack has also been nominated in the categories Best Drama, Director - Drama, Script - Drama, Lead Actress - Drama, Supporting Actor - Drama, Supporting Actress - Drama and Editing.

Daryl was nominated for his role in the show in 2023 but unfortunately missed out this year.

Award winners will be announced at the 22nd anniversary IFTA Awards Ceremony taking place on Friday, February 14th, 2025 at the Dublin Royal Convention Centre. This prestigious event will welcome Irish and international industry luminaries, celebrating artistic and technical brilliance while spotlighting the profound impact of Irish filmmaking craft and storytelling both domestically and globally. This year, iconic actor Colm Meaney will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award, recognizing his extraordinary contributions to cinema and television.