04/02/2026 - The local film and TV sector’s expenditure rose by 26% year on year, confirming the Emerald Isle’s position as one of Europe’s most resilient and internationally connected production ecosystems

Irish film and TV production spend rose by 26% year on year to reach a record high of €544 million in 2025, according to figures published by Screen Ireland last week.

The total represents overall expenditure across film, television, documentary and animation projects that were eligible to access the Section 481 tax incentive during the year, underlining the Emerald Isle’s continued attractiveness as both an international production hub and a base for domestic filmmaking.

Among the Irish-backed titles that shot in the country in 2025 was Everybody Digs Bill Evans, the Berlinale competition title helmed by Grant Gee. The year also saw a significant volume of inward production, with high-profile international shoots including The Mummy, directed by Lee Cronin and produced by US company Atomic Monster/Blumhouse for New Line; Netflix’s action series Mercenary: An Extraction Series; and the Amazon Prime Video series Bloodaxe.

Zooming in on Irish features, several titles shot in 2025 are now targeting a 2026 release. These include Vicky Wight’s The Body of Water, set between Texas and Cork, and produced by Ireland’s Redhead Media and Dark Day Entertainment.

Also on the slate is Frank Berry’s The Lost Children of Tuam, staged by Element Pictures and sold by mk2. Louise Bagnall’s animated feature Julian is being produced by Ireland’s Cartoon Saloon alongside Denmark’s Sun Creature Studio, Canada’s Aircraft Pictures and Luxembourg’s Mélusine Productions. Meanwhile, Jim O’Hanlon’s The Last Days of Rabbit Hayes is produced by Feline Films and Forty Foot Pictures alongside the Netherlands’ Bind Film, and Stephen Burke’s Changing Millions is produced by Mammoth Films together with Australia’s Invisible Republic, and is sold by LevelK.

Further films include Kieron J Walsh’s Skintown, produced by Keeper Pictures and Belfast-based Cyprus Avenue Films and repped by Visit Films; Dallas Shoiny’s You’ll Never Believe Who’s Dead, staged by Wildcard and Belfast-based Fine Point Films; and Fergal Costello’s Kung Fu Deadly, produced by Spellmaker Productions and Australia’s Project Arc Productions, and sold by Essential Film Group.

Meanwhile, the documentary sector also remained active, with projects such as David Turpin’s Ancestors, produced by Samson Films and the UK’s Lunatica, with sales handled by Mister Smith Entertainment; Fatmeh Ahmadi’s Daughter of Eden, from Newgrange Pictures and the UK’s Shudder Films and Lunapark Pictures, sold by Lucky Number; and Niama Mohamud’s Finland-set Halima, produced by Vico Films, and Finland’s It’s Alive Films and No-Office Films.

Commenting on the results, Screen Ireland chief executive Désirée Finnegan said: “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 crews, and decades of public investment.”

She added, “Despite the challenges experienced across the international industry, Ireland has experienced continued growth - both in terms of inward international production and domestic indigenous production.”

The figures confirm Ireland’s position as one of Europe’s most resilient and internationally connected production ecosystems, balancing large-scale inward investment with a steadily expanding slate of indigenous film, animation and documentary projects.