Jameson® Unveils 2016 'First Shot' Winners

Jameson® Irish Whiskey has unveiled the three winners of the 2016 Jameson First Shot competition, an international short film competition giving aspiring writers and directors their 'First Shot' into the film industry. The three are now following their passion for film and are preparing to shoot in Los Angeles where they will receive expert guidance from Kevin Spacey and Dana Brunetti, President of Trigger Street Productions, to bring their script to life.

Working with a talented team of film professionals, the Jameson First Shot program is helping the winners – Cameron Thrower(California, USA), Kat Wood (Sheffield, UK) and Jason Perini (Sydney, Australia) – pursue their passion for film. The winners will also have the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to direct Maggie Gyllenhaal, one of Hollywood's most critically acclaimed talents. Gyllenhaal's appearance in Jameson First Shot sees her following the footsteps of Kevin Spacey, Willem Dafoe, Uma Thurman and Adrien Brody.

"I am so proud to be a part of Jameson First Shot. I am always looking for new, fearless voices in the world of film, so I'm excited about helping these talented writers and directors express their vision," said Gyllenhaal.

Rather than congratulating the winners directly, Jameson switched things up this year when enlisting the support of a close friend of each winner to personally surprise them in their home towns. Cameron was surprised when he saw his name and script written on the front of the cinema canopy as he walked past the iconic Fonda Theater in Los Angeles. Kat uncovered her announcement via a mobile van ad parked outside of the Sheffield train station. Jason was sitting on a terrace of a local coffee shop in Sydney when a Vespa zipped by carrying a mobile ad with his name on it. See how the winners were announced here.

Each winner was then amazed to learn that their scripts had been personally selected from the thousands of entries by Academy Award Winner Kevin Spacey, Dana Brunetti, President of Trigger Street Productions, and Oscar-nominated actress Maggie Gyllenhaal.

The winning scripts:

• Cameron Thrower directed Beauty Mark, a story profiling 'Beauty' salesgirl Valarie Williams, who finds an unlikely friendship in one of her customers, Mark, who teaches her that beauty isn't always skin deep.
• Kat Wood directed Home, a story of a homeless woman named Ruth, who lives alone in a tent near the beach. In the film, Ruth spends nearly a year in solitude, refusing to accept her charity worker's offer of a place in a shelter – too scared of being around strangers and the risk that it brings. But when her tent is destroyed, Ruth finally faces her fears and accepts her charity worker's help... discovering a gesture of kindness that will change her life forever. 
• Jason Perini directed The New Empress, the story of Olive, a woman whose heart gets broken by Angus at her podiatrist's local Chinese restaurant. A pair of missing wallets prove to be the surprise catalyst for Olive to take the situation and her love life into her own hands.

Trigger Street Productions, along with Maggie Gyllenhaal, led a rigorous judging process of 20 shortlisted contestants' short scenes and directors' treatment from the 2,700 scripts submitted, before selecting the winners.

"The world of film can sometimes be a hard one to break in to and it is our privilege to be able to open the door to some genuinely exciting new talents through Jameson First Shot. The films that Cameron, Kat and Jason create will be the first steps in what we hope will be long, ground-breaking careers," said Spacey. "Our winners will no doubt be slightly overwhelmed the moment that they step on set, but the key will be that they embrace their fears and harness their artistic spirit to create something truly original," added Brunetti.