Butter

What Butter does

Butter is a Dublin-based, private commercial production company providing video production, music composition, and post-production services for brand advertising campaigns. Founded in 2013 by Michael Duffy, who serves as Founder and Managing Director, the company operates as a boutique creative house with a roster of twelve directors (including Lorcan Finnegan, Guy Manwaring, and others) and a headcount of 11–50 employees. Its core offering centers on delivering end-to-end commercial film production for enterprise brand clients and advertising agencies, with a demonstrated client portfolio spanning healthcare (Edwards Lifesciences), retail (Sainsburys), financial services (Bank of Ireland), and nonprofit/research organizations (SPARK). The company presents itself as a multi-award winning production company and maintains a public-facing website (butterfilms.com) that serves as its primary commercial surface, with client and project engagement handled directly via the site and email ([email protected]).

Butter generates revenue on a project-based, professional services model. Projects are typically commissioned by brand advertisers or their agencies, with services delivered through direct client engagement and select agency partnerships. The firm self-describes as horizontally segmented, targeting large brands and organizations needing high-quality creative video content for marketing, awareness, and corporate campaigns. Production scope includes directing, post-production, and original music composition. Recent activity (2026-04-14) includes the SPARK "Step By Step" autism awareness film, which was co-produced with post-house ARC, director partner One Free Play, and agency partner Agency Bootstrap, and became the top-performing recruitment creative for SPARK. The firm operates from its headquarters at 13 Warrington Place, Dublin, primarily serving clients in Ireland and broader Europe, and maintains dedicated sustainability and "giving back" positioning that signals ESG-oriented brand posture to prospective enterprise clients.

Name

Butter

Legal name

Butter

Website

https://thisisbutter.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Butter is a Dublin-based commercial production company providing video production, music composition, and post-production services for brand advertising campaigns, serving enterprise clients in healthcare, retail, financial services, and nonprofit sectors via a twelve-director creative roster.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Dublin

HQ country

Ireland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Production Services: Butter generates revenue by providing video production services, music composition, and post-production work to brand clients and advertising agencies. Services appear to be project-based, working on specific creative campaigns such as commercials and branded content.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

Butter is a Dublin-based production company that provides commercial video production, directing, music composition, and post-production services to brand advertisers and advertising agencies. The company operates a roster of established creative directors and delivers project-based production work for advertising campaigns and branded content across sectors including healthcare, retail, and financial services.

Product overview

Butter is a multi-award winning production company based in Dublin, Ireland, providing professional directing and production services for commercial film projects. The company features a roster of individual directors offering creative services across various sectors including healthcare, retail, and financial services. Their portfolio includes notable client projects for Edwards Lifesciences, Sainsburys, and Bank of Ireland, among others.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Commercial Video Production

Named customers4 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ARC (Post-house)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 April 2026ARC served as the post-house for the SPARK 'Step By Step' autism awareness film. Butter provided music composition services while ARC handled post-production work for this collaborative project released for World Autism Day.
• One Free PlaycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 April 2026One Free Play directed the SPARK 'Step By Step' film in collaboration with Butter (music) and Agency Bootstrap. Anthony Frattolillo of One Free Play directed the film featuring three young people with autism.
• Agency BootstrapminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 14 April 2026Agency Bootstrap collaborated on the SPARK 'Step By Step' film project for World Autism Day awareness campaign. The film became the top performing recruitment creative for SPARK.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Partizan: Global commercial and music-video production company with offices including London and a large director roster. One of the most direct competitors for European commercial production projects.
• Hijack: Boutique Dublin-based commercial and content production company operating in the same Irish market as Butter with a similar director-led model serving brand and agency clients.
• Antidote: Dublin-headquartered production house producing commercials, branded content, and short film for Irish and international clients; a close geographic peer to Butter in the Dublin production ecosystem.
• Epoch London: London-based commercial production company with a director roster serving brand advertisers; comparable scale and business model to Butter, often competing for the same UK/European briefs.
• Anonymous Content: Globally recognized commercial film production company with a roster of feature-film directors who also direct brand advertising — the same operating model (director-based bench, awards-led reputation) that Butter pursues from its Dublin base.
• Smuggler: London/New York-based production company with a director-driven roster producing commercials and branded content for global brands. Direct peer on competitive pitches for enterprise advertiser work.
• RSA Films: London-headquartered commercial production house with a multi-director roster serving global brand advertisers across video, content, and post. Direct competitor for the same UK/Ireland and European brand budget pool Butter targets.

Emerging players

• Unit9: London-based production and innovation studio producing commercial, interactive, and AR/VR content for global brands; overlaps with Butter's commercial production work but with stronger capabilities in emerging-format digital content.
• Resn: Award-winning creative production studio focused on digital, interactive, and brand-film projects for global advertisers; comparable boutique scale and digital-first production orientation.

Broad incumbents

• Wieden+Kennedy: Large global creative agency that frequently produces commercial content in-house or commissions production companies like Butter; represents both a buyer and an indirect competitor for end-client production budgets.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/butterfilms
• Facebookfacebook.com/thisisbutter

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Butter