The Ick & Magic Markers to Screen at Newport Beach Film Festival 2026

The Ick and Magic Markers, both featuring original scores by Irish composer Emer Landers, have been selected to screen at the Newport Beach Film Festival in California this October. The two films will screen together as part of the Irish Shorts with a Touch of Luck programme on Saturday, October 17, 2026 at 3:45pm at The Lot Theater in Newport Beach.

The screening will mark the international premiere of The Ick, following its original broadcast on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player in December 2025 as part of RTÉ’s long-running Storyland series. Produced by Playbook Media for RTÉ and Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland, the film was written and directed by Jason Branagan and produced by Aaron Chalke.

The Ick follows an image-obsessed dater who develops a disturbing condition that forces her to embody the worst traits of her previous romantic rejections. The film stars Sofie Vavasseur alongside an extensive ensemble cast and combines horror with a surreal, darkly comic tone.

Landers’ original score takes a dark hybrid sound-design approach, supporting the film’s horror elements while bringing lighter electronic and instrumental textures to its emotional core.

The international premiere follows further recognition for The Ick in Ireland. Earlier in 2026, the film was nominated for Best Short Film at the RTS Ireland Awards / Gradaim RTS, as well as being eligible for the RTS Audience Choice Award.

Also screening in the Newport Beach programme is Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland Focus Short Magic Markers, written and directed by Jason Branagan and produced by Emer Durcan. The cast includes James McGowan, Flynn Gray, Colman Hayes, Joseph Connolly, Jake Farmer, Dylan Bowe, Caroline Harvey, and Lochlann O’Mearáin.

The film features a thematic orchestral score by Irish film composer Emer Landers, drawing on the style of classic 1990s family films. Recurring melodic motifs and a warm, nostalgic orchestral palette reflect the film’s emotional arc and sense of childhood imagination.

Magic Markers made its world premiere at the 70th Cork International Film Festival, where it screened as part of the Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland Shorts programme at The Everyman. It was subsequently selected for the Dublin Film Festival in February 2026 before making its international premiere at the 50th Cleveland International Film Festival in April. The film also screened at the Fastnet Film Festival in Schull in May 2026.

Produced by Playbook Media with support from Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland, Magic Markers brings together a creative team including director of photography Brian Durcan and sound designer Nikki Moss, with post-production completed at First Element.

Both The Ick and Magic Markers will screen in Irish Shorts with a Touch of Luck at the Newport Beach Film Festival on Saturday, October 17, 2026 at 3:45pm at The Lot Theater, Newport Beach, California.