The fairy godmother waved her magic wand and said: "You shall go to the ball". The fairy forgot to add "it's a ball but not in the Cinderella sense". The clock stuck nine as the Reel Film Ball, "a mardi-gras celebration of film, television, new media and animation in Ireland", kicked into gear.
Set in a darkened venue on Arran Quay called Voodoo, there is no feasting on seasonal fare. Nor are there squawking chickens squirting blood, but for some there are trays of chicken legs dripping in tomato sauce.
Film-maker Shimmy Marcus, the event's "vibe enhancer", is here to welcome us to the party where there's chocolate, Jameson whiskey and tarot card reading. He introduces Aidan Walsh, "master of the universe" who lives on the planet Venus. Is that where women are supposed to come from? "Yes, I am their king," says the lovable Walsh, majestic in a crown and a bejewelled suit, which is to die for, if you go to a lot of royal dos.
A man on stilts sits on the mantelpiece in order to give his name - Mick Eile - while Sharon Maria Greene creates a Hollywood Nail Bar for those of us who want to be pampered - for anyone looking for filmstar glamour, she's usually based at Robert Chambers Hair Studio on Grafton Street. Those in the queue for nail enhancement include Caroline Bateson of the Irish Film Archive; Carla O'Kelly from Foxrock; actor Deirdre Walsh and Parisian Silvie Medvedowsky, who is "studying the film industry for the French government".
At another remove, Rod Stoneman, chief executive of the Irish Film Board, is beaming because his son, Adam (12), has won a poetry competition in Galway. Milliner Claire Ann Lawler and copywriter Pat McArdle are chilling out at the party. At another table, Kevin McGee, scriptwriter and part-time DJ at Viva of South William Street, chats to Brigie de Courcy, another scriptwriter. Some party on, but the Cinderellas leave just as the clock strikes midnight.