Joe Loftus

Joe Loftus is an award-winning Film maker, Animator and Lecturer from Mayo based in Galway. He has worked in animation for over 14 years on projects for Disney, BBC, Hasbro, and RTE. Alongside this he has written/directed/produced several award-winning short films, including ‘Still Up There’, ‘Girl and Robot’ and ‘Eldritch Karaoke’. He is currently working…

Rory Bresnihan

Following the success of The Chameleon (Rory’s first film, which won best Irish Animation at the Galway film Festival.), Rory auditioned for and was accepted by Aardman Animations. He trained under four-time Oscar-winning Director Nick Park. He progressed to work on such projects as, “Chicken Run”, the BAFTA-award-winning “Robbie & the Reindeers”, Tim Burton’s “Corpse…

Ira Elshansky

Ira Elshansky is an animation director and storyboard artist with extensive experience in animation production. She has led and managed large creative teams, working as a director, storyboard artist, and animatic director on numerous projects. Alongside her directing work, she has been deeply involved in story development and writing — developing original scripts, leading writers’ rooms, and creating multiple synopses and story concepts. She has collaborated with…

John Michell

Paul McGrath

Hey, I’m Paul McGrath, Animation Director – Filmmaker – Illustrator and terrible net-worker. Based in Dublin, Ireland. I’m also a partner in boutique  production company Whackala, we make Film’s.

Skye Mann

Skye Mann is an honorary graduate of the University of Wolverhampton, where she earned a 1:1 Distinction B.A. (Hons) in Video and Film Production. She graduated with the highest academic achievement award, officially recognized by the Transatlantic Academic Board. Her graduate film, La Doulour Exquise, was featured at the Kerry International Film Festival in 2017.…

Adam Rael

Adam Rael is an Irish director, writer and producer, and co-founder of Cassette Vision. Working across narrative, documentary, animation and commercial filmmaking, he develops original projects while directing campaigns for leading brands through Cassette’s commercial sister company, Conker Cuts. After studying directing at the National Film School Adam has gone on to produce and direct…

Eoghan Kidney

I studied in IADT, and I’m one of the founding members of the pioneering Irish animation collective, Delicious 9 (2001-2006). During five years working with this group I collaborated on over 50 different projects, ranging from video installations, design, live audio-visual performances, visual sets, curation, children’s workshops and 25 indie music videos. With multiple screenings…

Gary Kenneally

James Doherty

I’m a Donegal writer/director making films about family, masculinity-in-crisis and characters living on the fringes of society. My television drama debut is Airing on Channel4 and on the Channel4 player now: THE FINAL COUNTDOWN for Channel 4’s 4Stories / OnTheEdge emerging talent strand  Nominated for BEST SINGLE DRAMA at the Broadcast Awards 2025  Nominated…

Kev Cahill

Kev Cahill is a director who comes from a VFX background. His VFX credits include Star Wars VIII, Chernobyl and The Green Knight. He won an IFTA for his work on The Green Knight. He has directed 2 multi award-winning short films and a bunch of commercials. He currently has a feature film in development…

Irina Maldea

Irina Maldea (Ireland/Romania) – film director, editor. Her works spans a variety of roles and genres. Irina worked as a film editor in the Romanian national film studios. In Ireland, she continued to edit drama and documentary and began directing documentaries for broadcast and cinematic distribution, working with the Irish language TV station TG4, the…

Alan Holly

Alan Holly is an artist and animation filmmaker. He is founder of and maps and plans an artist led studio specialising in 2D hand drawn animation. As well as working as an animation artist he directs and produces for himself and others, his work continues to screen at festivals at home and abroad and has…

Darragh O’Connell

In 1994, at the age of 21, Darragh established Brown Bag Films with Cathal Gaffney and wrote and directed their first TV Series, Peig, for RTÉ. Darragh produced Give Up Yer Aul Sins which was nominated for an Oscar at the 74th Academy Awards in 2002 and went on to direct six new episodes in the series. Darragh also…

Fergal Reilly

Fergal Reilly is a director and longtime story/concept artist who is based in Los Angeles, California. He originally hails from Ardee, County Louth, Ireland. After studying Design Communications at D.L.C.A.D, now The National Film School at I.A.D.T he arrived in Hollywood at the age of nineteen to work as an animation apprentice for Walt Disney…

Jason Tammemagi

Jason Tammemägi is best known for his preschool children’s television work, creating and driving enriching content that is enjoyed across the globe. Positive entertainment with a fun spark that speaks to children and parents everywhere. Jason is Creative Director of MOOSHKU. A writer/director/producer of children’s content, he has written four children’s theatrical feature films, written 150…

Kealan O’Rourke

Kealan graduated from The National Film School, Ireland.  He went on to write and direct a series of award winning live-action and animation short films including Before Sunrise, the IFTA nominated The Lost Letter starring Kate Winslet and The Boy in the Bubble, narrated by Alan Rickman, which went on to win the IFTA for…

Simon Gibney

Simon is an award-winning director known for his work across the drama, comedy and multi-camera productions in the US, UK & Ireland. With over twenty five years experience, Simon works on an ongoing basis for many international productions. Currently, Simon is creative producer on comedy animation projects in the US with Bento Box / Fox…

Nora Twomey

Nora Twomey is one of the founding members of the studio Cartoon Saloon, an Academy Award nominated animation studio. Over the years Nora has directed award winning shorts like ‘From Darkness’ and ‘Cúilín Dualach’ (Backwards Boy). She also co-directed with Tomm Moore the Oscar nominated feature animation ‘The Secret of Kells’. Nora has also directed…

Louise Bagnall

Louise Bagnall is an Irish filmmaker and director at the animation studio Cartoon Saloon in Kilkenny, Ireland. Bagnall wrote and directed the Oscar® nominated short animated film Late Afternoon. Her debut feature film Julián, about a boy who wants to be a mermaid, is coming soon. She has also directed several other shorts including Cúl…

Lorcan Finnegan

Lorcan is a multi award winning live action and animation director living and working in Dublin. He is signed as a commercials director with Blinder and directs films, music videos and other projects through his own company Lovely Productions.

Steve Woods

Steve Woods works in animation, documentaries and dance films. In 1989 he helped set up the Galway Film Fleadh. He also programmed the festival’s animation for many years. Steve was on the board of the SDGI for many years as well. Steve’s company is Cel’ Division which specialises in short films.  As well as producing…

Paul J Bolger

Paul J. Bolger is an award-winning artist, animator, designer, writer, producer and director. Paul began his film career in the late 1980’s at Sullivan Bluth Studios on animated movies such as ‘The Land Before Time’ and ‘All Dogs Go to Heaven’. He then went onto work internationally as a lead animator on Richard Williams’s classic…

Maria-Elena Doyle

“As a director and artist, the journey towards making a film is in part a journey towards self-discovery, giving me the opportunity to delve deep within and reveal a part of myself and express that through my unique creative vision for a film. I am excited about the power of film to unite people and…

Laura Robinson

An experienced Director and Creative Producer of animated 2D and CG content. I have worked on productions for broadcasters such as RTE jr, Netflix, CBeebies, CBBC, BBC, Universal Kids, and HBO Europe, as well as YouTube.

Hugh O’Conor

A prolific, award-winning actor since childhood, Hugh has gone on to write and direct a striking Series of projects in a variety of mediums—live action, animation, opera—as well as experiencing great success as a still photographer. Hugh appeared in his first feature opposite Liam Neeson in ‘Lamb’ in 1985. He went on to play the…

Dylan Dreher

Dylan Dreher is an independent stop motion animation filmmaker from county Kerry. I have made festival selected work including ‘Subconscious Voyage’, ‘Fate’s Game’ and ‘Blossom’ to name a few. Festivals that my films have been selected in include Kerry International Film festival, 12th Underground Cinema, IndieCork and Galway Film Fleadh for which my graduation film…

Aidan McAteer

Aidan McAteer has worked in Dublin, London, Vancouver and Singapore as an animator, storyboard artist, writer and director for the past 20 years. He wrote and directed on the three time Emmy-nominated comedy series “Oddbods” and was nominated for a BAFTA for directing the recent CBBC reboot of “Danger Mouse”. Since then he has worked…

Richard Keane

Richard Keane is an award-winning filmmaker specialising in both animation and live-action as a writer, director, and producer. With a career spanning over two decades, Richard has worked at several high-profile studios in Ireland and the UK on numerous acclaimed projects for clients such as Amazon Studios, BBC, Disney Junior, Nickelodeon, RTÉ, and Screen Ireland.…

Tomm Moore

Co-founder and Creative Director of Cartoon Saloon Over Cartoon Saloon’s history, Tomm has worked as Director, Art Director, Storyboarder, Animator and Illustrator across a range of the studio’s projects . Tomm has directed 3 universally successful feature films. All three were nominated for Best Animated Feature at the ACADEMY AWARD® The Secret of Kells in…