Galway, Ireland — April 22nd, 2026. At Ardán's 2026 FÍS Games Summit, Alongside other excellent games created in Ireland, Limerick based indie studio Beyond the Bark received an award for their self-funded debut title, "Éalú". Given that their point and click adventure game was made entirely with old-school hand animated stop motion, the team was thrilled to receive recognition via receipt of Best Expirimental Game Runner Up.
Éalú is a highly interactive silent film, inspired by the works of animators such as Lotte Reiniger and Jan Švankmajer, in which players guide a clockwork mouse through a wooden labyrinth & help it to escape. Its themes center on the potential pitfalls of algorithm driven behavioral loops. The combination of its style and themes are a good fit for being categorised as expirimental.
The game is also a spiritual sequel of the video for Will Wood's "Tomcat Disposables" music video which was animated by Ivan Fisher-Owen of Beyond the Bark. Wood joined in the creation of Éalú by composing an emotionally evocative score for the game, completing the feeling of a silent film players can play like a game.
Éalú's official trailer:
Tomcat Disposables video:
About Beyond the Bark
Beyond the Bark is an Irish theatre, puppetry and animation studio specializing in handcrafted storytelling. Helmed by Emma & Ivan Fisher-Owen, the studio’s work spans set design, live performance, stop-motion, and digital interactivity — creating emotionally resonant experiences that celebrate art as storytelling.