Ireland has had a tough 'ol time of things over the last few years with this recession yoke but the Arthur Guinness Projects - launched today in The Guinness Storehouse - aims to brighten the future by championing the talent and creativity that Ireland is so well known for.

In the words of Guinness Marketing Director Stephen O'Kelly: "A programme to make dreams a reality."

That all sounds lovely and rosey but what does it add up to in reality? €3 million to be exact. The Arthur Guinness Projects is putting the call out to all you creative souls across four strands (arts, music, sport and food) and they're offering a platform and more importantly the funds to launch the 20 best ideas.

On hand to launch the initiative today were four lead mentors for each category: Chris O'Dowd (arts), The Script (Music), Jim McGuinness (sport) and Dylan McGrath (food) - all innovators in their chosen field. These mentors will be joined by three other panelists who will help in the mentoring and promotion of the successful projects, providing them with an invaluable support network.

Speaking on his role as a mentor Chris O'Dowd said: "You don’t have a clue when you’re starting out and neither did we... but we do now". He added: "During a recession people create... when people are rich they masticate and masturbate."

Each category is very broad in scope with Donegal Football Manager Jim McGuiness saying "the exciting thing about this project is the unknown".

The Script got the audience pumped with a short set closing with the apt Hall Of Fame before they drilled home the fact that the music category is "not a song contest!": "It's a chance to put musical ideas forward, not just songs and lyrics". Adding that this sort of project could find the "next iTunes".

Chris O'Dowd also joked about the scope of his category: "It could be anything from a children’s theatre group in Castlerea to people covering the needle on O'Connell street with graffiti to a short about those people being arrested." But also suggested that projects with a cultural impact might work best.

Submissions for the Arthur Guinness Projects open from 12 noon today (26th June) and will remain open until the 9th August. Submitted projects will be available online for the public to review and vote on, with the top 10% then progressing forward for review by the panel. 20 winners will be announced on the 23rd September with each project standing to gain between €5,000 - €50,000 in funding and will be showcased at this years Arthur's Day celebrations.

Here's the full list of panelists:

Arts: Chris O'Dowd, Angela Scanlon, Ben Readman, Róise Goan.

Music: The Script, Brian Spollen, John Kelly, Stuart Clark.

Sport: Jim McGuinness, Sarah O'Connor, Matt Cooper, Bob Hartnett.

Food: Dylan McGrath, Colin Harmon, Michelle Darmody, Barry Broderick.

For more information on Arthur Guinness Projects go to www.arthurguinnessprojects.com