The Broadcasting Commission of Ireland (BCI) has backed four feature projects from the third round of its Sound & Vision Fund. The four projects will share a total of $1.7m (Euros 1.285m) between them from the BCI fund's $12m (Euros 9m) allocation to independent producers of television programming to be broadcast free-to-air in Ireland.

Following immediately on the decision Fastnet Films' Kisses, written and directed by Lance Daly, has started principal photography in Dublin. Kisses receives $440,550 (Euros 330,00o) - or 24% of its budget - from the BCI with the remainder coming from the Irish Film Board, Zentropa, Film I Vast, TV3, BCI and Section 481.

Kisses is produced by Macdara Kelleher and will film for five weeks in Ireland and one week in Sweden. A tale of two kids who run away from home together at Christmas, Kisses stars Kelly O'Neill, 10, and Shane Curry, 11, who were chosen from thousands of young hopefuls before Christmas.

The production team includes production designer Waldemar Kalinowski, costume designer Leonie Prendergast, locations manager Pat Nangle, casting director Nick McGinley and sound mixer Rob Flanagan.

The three other projects are all expected to go into production this year, two - Eden and Alarm - with additional backing from the Irish Film Board and RTE, among others.

Eden is Eugene O'Brien's adaptation of his own play, to be directed by Declan Recks and produced by Samson Films, who made Once. It has received $667,500 (Euros 500,000), 28% of its budget, from the BCI fund.

Alarm reunites writer/director Gerry Stembridge with Venus Film & TV Productions (About Adam) and has received Eu155,000 (11% of budget) from the BCI fund.

The last project, Hunger, written by Enda Walsh (Disco Pigs), is a dramatisation of the last days of IRA hunger striker Bobby Sands, MP. Produced by london-based Blast! Films, Hunger is to be directed by Steve McQueen and is backed by Film4. It has received $400,452 (Euros 300,000) - 13% of budget - from the BCI fund.

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