Westport Chamber of Commerce and Len Collin for Covies
The Business Challenge
How can a local community, including a group of local companies and a chamber of commerce come together to help counteract the effects of the recession, and promote their area as not only tourist destination but also a film and television production location?
The Solution
An alliance between Westport Chamber of Commerce and Writer/Director Len Collin created an online soap called Covies. From inception to completion, the eight-episode series was produced over a nine-month period on a budget that many would not think possible. Covies had a cast and crew of over seventy who worked on the project for free. The minimum funding required to produce the series was provided by a number of local partners including Westport Chamber of Commerce, Westport UDC, Fáilte Ireland, Mayo County Council, Tesco Westport and ESB. In-kind support to transport and house cast and crew was also provided by Iarnrod Éireann and local hotels.
Benefits to Stakeholders
The benefits of this imaginative collaboration are wide-ranging and can be viewed worldwide online. It has garnered ongoing national and international media coverage for Westport and Mayo. An episode of Covies has been shown as part of the Chicago Irish Film Festival, and it was voted second-best online drama in the world on New York-based website ‘We Love Soaps’. Covies is a imaginative initiative, which brought together the local community and businesses as well as professional actors and film professionals to develop a uniquely creative project to promote their town and region.
www.thecovies.com
How can a local community, including a group of local companies and a chamber of commerce come together to help counteract the effects of the recession, and promote their area as not only tourist destination but also a film and television production location?
The Solution
An alliance between Westport Chamber of Commerce and Writer/Director Len Collin created an online soap called Covies. From inception to completion, the eight-episode series was produced over a nine-month period on a budget that many would not think possible. Covies had a cast and crew of over seventy who worked on the project for free. The minimum funding required to produce the series was provided by a number of local partners including Westport Chamber of Commerce, Westport UDC, Fáilte Ireland, Mayo County Council, Tesco Westport and ESB. In-kind support to transport and house cast and crew was also provided by Iarnrod Éireann and local hotels.
Benefits to Stakeholders
The benefits of this imaginative collaboration are wide-ranging and can be viewed worldwide online. It has garnered ongoing national and international media coverage for Westport and Mayo. An episode of Covies has been shown as part of the Chicago Irish Film Festival, and it was voted second-best online drama in the world on New York-based website ‘We Love Soaps’. Covies is a imaginative initiative, which brought together the local community and businesses as well as professional actors and film professionals to develop a uniquely creative project to promote their town and region.
www.thecovies.com
COVIES - Online drama from Westport, Mayo