Congratulations to UCD Alum, John Butler, on the release of These Sacred Vows, the new comedy-drama series airing on RTÉ.
Filmmaker, writer and director John studied a BA in English & Classics, and an MA in Film Studies at UCD. His work includes IFTA award-winning Your Bad Self, The Stag, and Handsome Devil.
These Sacred Vows follows the wild events of an Irish wedding on a Spanish island, sharing the perspective from different characters across six episodes. Starring Tom Vaughan-Lawlor, India Mullen, Mark O'Halloran and Justine Mitchell, the show is sure to keep viewers hooked on the mystery and the drama.
John has always been committed to sharing queer stories on screen; in an (opens in a new window)interview with GCN, Butler said, “I want to tell stories of gay representation, and I want to be in the mainstream”. In These Sacred Vows, one key storyline follows two men of different generations and their experience of being gay in Ireland.
John has returned to UCD in recent years as a celebrated Creative Fellow and as a guest lecturer for Cinema Creatives, a Stage One film module taught by Gráinne Humphries (Director of Dublin International Film Festival). Cinema Creatives, offered as part of the Creative Futures Academy offering at UCD, offers students an immersive dive into contemporary Irish cinema culture and introductions to key creative forces within film production.
Work from another UCD Alum, Irish stage and screen actor and director, Peter McDonald, will premiere at the Closing Night Gala of DIFF this year. (opens in a new window)Power Ballad, written by McDonald and acclaimed writer and director John Carney (Sing Street, Once), stars Paul Rudd and Nick Jonas.
The story follows Rick (Rudd), a past-his-prime wedding singer, who crosses paths with Danny (Jonas), a fading boyband star, during a gig. Bonding over music and a late-night jam session, the two strike up an unlikely friendship.
Peter McDonald graduated from University College Dublin with a BA and an MA in English and was part of UCD's Drama Society during his time in university. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film for his short film Pentecost in 2012. McDonald recently starred in Saipan (2025), This Town (BBC, 2024), and starred in John Butler’s The Stag in 2013.
Nick Jonas and Paul Rudd star in Power Ballad