Screen Ireland productions contribute €544m to Irish economy

The total represents investment in local jobs and services across film, television, documentary and animation, all of which is eligible under the Section 481 tax incentive scheme, rather than production spend.

The €544m figure represents an increase of 26% on 2024 despite a backdrop of significant challenges and disruption to the global screen industry.

Ireland continues to grow both in terms of inward international production and domestic indigenous production, with the help of ongoing government investment and targeted funding and training across all areas of the industry.

Screen Ireland made specific reference to significant improvements in tax incentives across large-scale production, lower-budget independent film, visual effects, unscripted and digital games.

“The Irish screen industry continues to go from strength to strength. This is due to the talent and hard work of our actors and filmmakers, and the support provided to the industry by sustained government investment," said Ray Harman, chair of Screen Ireland.

"Despite challenging industry conditions internationally, production figures in Ireland are at an all-time high, and the positive impact of that is being felt by people working in the industry and beyond.

"Resilience is earned, and Screen Ireland is focused on continuing to work collaboratively with partners across the screen industry, and on the provision of strategic support across film, TV, animation and documentary, to ensure that the environment for screen talent remains competitive and supportive.”

The agency has invested €29.5m in production and development of television drama since its remit was expanded to include the form in 2015.

Included among the 250 projects supported are Normal People, Kin, The Walsh Sisters, The Dry and Obituary.

Screen Ireland also works closely in partnership with Virgin Media and TG4, as well as international broadcasters from BBC to Netflix to Hulu.

This year, Screen Ireland has backed 87 projects, including 22 feature films, 17 documentaries, 13 TV dramas and animated series, and over 30 short films.

Notable titles include the Paul Rudd-starring "Power Ballad" from "Once" and "Sing Street" director John Carney, and "The Lost Children of Tuam", Frank Berry's dramatisation of Catherine Corless' campaign to uncover the truth about the Tuam Mother and Baby Home.

Other feature films coming to the international market this year are "The Last Days of Rabbit Hayes", featuring Niamh Algar, and the coming‑of‑age story "Skintown", starring Jamie Lee O’Donnell. 

RTÉ's "These Scared Vows" leads the TV drama slate, and documentaries include Sinead O’Shea’s "All About the Money", which was selected for the Sundance Film Festival this month; "Guggi and The Slightest Touch", a documentary looking at the close friendship between Colin Farrell and Emma Fogarty, who lives with Epidermolysis Bullosa.

Major international productions include the new Netflix action thriller, "Mercenary: An Extraction Series", Amazon Prime Video’s new series "Bloodaxe", along with the feature film "The Mummy" directed by Irish director Lee Cronin and produced by Atomic Monster/Blumhouse for New Line.

The major TV series Wednesday, produced by MGM Amazon for Netflix, is also the largest production to have ever filmed in Ireland in recent years. 

The launch event took place at Trinity College Dublin in the wake of last week's Academy Awards nominations, which saw 10 Irish professionals and Irish-produced films selected, including a Best Actress nod for Jessie Buckley.

“The recent global acclaim for Irish talent and filmmaking, alongside record-breaking production activity, has highlighted an exceptional achievement for Ireland's cultural and economic growth in screen production," said Désirée Finnegan, Chief Executive of Screen Ireland.

"With record-breaking production figures for the Irish screen industry in 2025, we believe this success reflects the passion, dedication and talent of those working across the screen industry; the consistent support of artistic talent; the development of world-class crew; and decades of public investment.

"Screen Ireland remains deeply committed to supporting filmmakers and building a resilient, ambitious screen sector for the future,” she said.

* This article was originally published on BusinessPlus.