Screen Directors Guild of Ireland

The animation scene in Ireland is notably different from its international counterparts. It is very young, both in the length of time it has developed and in the average age of the directors, producers and animators working within it.

Both big studio productions and smaller individual projects are growing simultaneously here. However this growth is not fully recognized either at home or abroad. Animators need to raise their profile.
The pattern for the film sector in Ireland is to organize itself into different lobby groups. There is one for writers, one for producers, there are resource centres and finally, a directors organization – the Screen Directors Guild of Ireland.

Up until now the mantle to promote animation has fallen to the animation producers. But filmmaking and animation must be promoted on all fronts. Through its Animation Sub-Committee, the Screen Directors Guild of Ireland hopes to promote animation as an art form in its own right and a vital part of the film industry.

This section is a part of a programme to showcase the people and styles that make up our sector of the film industry. We believe it is only a matter of time before Irish animation gets the recognition it deserves and begins to take a more central role in both the indigenous and international arena.

In this section, dedicated to Animation Directors only, will contain information, reports, reviews and updates which concern all things animation. While we will be continuing to add and improve this section, first off the starting blocks is the SDGI Animation Blog, keeping you up to date with everything that's going on in the world of animation in Ireland and around the world.

The SDGI Animation Directory lists over 60 directors working in the medium of animation.

This directory represents a very fine collection of animation directing talent in Ireland. In the very near future you will be able to view samples of the directors work on this website. Our live action directors will be represented there also. So well done to Steve Woods in particular for getting this organised and I hope it acts as a catalyst in the recognition of animation directors in Ireland.

Ciaran Donnelly
Chairman
Screen Directors Guild of Ireland

The film director is the primary creator of the audiovisual work. Whether fiction, animation, documentary short or feature length, screened on the big theatre screen, laptop or small mobile phone, the director is the artist that gives life to ideas and written words (or the director is the creator of the final audiovisual work)

Or the director is the creator of the final audiovisual work that you watch whether it is on the big screen, laptop or small mobile phone

The director is a creative artist. The director’s talent is used to emotionally capture the audience through the portrayal of the subject by the combined manipulation of performance, light, framing, words, tone, sound and time.

The unique style of the work of an individual director is recognised and celebrated much as the unique style of the work of a painter or sculptor. It is the director’s expression of the subject that differentiates the vision of the artist.

The director channels the skill of the cinematographer, designer, editor, musician, performer and scriptwriter to create a work of unified vision.

The unique style of the audiovisual work draws the audience to follow the work of a particular director and draws the creative team to work with the director.

The creative decisions that directors make can impact on the economic reality of the production.

Directors often initiate projects; their style dictates the level of budget, the final working of the script, the location of the production, the length of production and the cast and crew requirements.

The director’s style and reputation is a decisive factor in raising finance for audiovisual works and in the promotion of the finished work.