Emma Whelan, 18, from Finglas in Dublin has been crowned Ireland's Young Filmmaker of the Year for her film 'Abhaile' at the annual Fresh Film Festival.
Emma wrote, directed, edited and acted in the film.
The film explores identity, class, and belonging through the eyes of Aimee, a working-class teen navigating friendship across social divides.
The judges said that Emma told a "deeply personal story with honesty and heart".
She said the message of the film is that "home isn’t defined by postcode or status, but by the people who shape us".
"I can’t believe that I won. This was the film I always wanted to make and it really means a lot," she said.
"If you have something to say it’s so important to not be afraid to speak up," she added.
The festival holds junior (ages 7 to 12) and senior (ages 13 to 18) competitions.
Second place in the senior category went to Hugo Fearon from Belfast for 'Red Reverie’.
The winner of the junior category was 12-year-old Max Cummins from Carrigaline, Co Cork who was crowned Ireland’s Junior Young Filmmaker of the Year with his stop-motion film ‘Random Stories’.
Other awards include the Radharc Trust award which was presented to the Cahirsiveen youth film group for its documentary film 'Home from Home’.
The documentary tells the story of a group of Ukrainian children who, having fled the war in their homeland, suddenly had to rebuild their lives in Cahersiveen in Co Kerry.
"I've been here nearly three years now and making this film and taking part in it was such fun and it's been a dream to be here on the Red carpet," said 12-year-old Margarita Savynetska.
She was joined on the red carpet by her Ukrainian friends and fellow budding filmmakers Sofia laptenko 11, Mykhailo Horbachuk, 12, Barbara Fedorovska, 15, and Mark Fedan aged 11 all living in Cahersiveen.
Waterford Youth Arts took home the Best Group Award for their dystopian short called ‘Frequency 208.4’, which follows a rebel radio broadcast offering hope in a war-torn world.
It was written, performed, and produced using cutting-edge technology.
Karin Mbamba was at the awards with a group of supporters and told RTÉ News "I had a few spare tickets for friends to ask them to come along and cheer me on".
For friends Luke Power, Matthew Haskins, Zac McDonald and Michael Roche, they had travelled from their Ramsgrange School in Wexford to the awards.
Luke said that being involved in films was "a dream since I was young" and they all described the fun they had working on it together.
Other award winners included Grace Gonnelly from Dundalk, Co Louth who was awarded the RTÉ Factual Award for Cliff Edge, for a film about living with chronic pain.
This year marks the 29th edition of the Fresh International Film Festival Awards.
Director of Fresh Film Jayne Foley said: "The creativity on display was exceptional, and it's exciting to see talents like Max and Emma already producing such polished and entertaining work. We can't wait to see what’s next for them."
