Shinawil
ShinAwiL is a Dublin-based independent film and television production company founded in 1999, producing non-scripted entertainment and scripted drama for RTÉ, ITV, PBS Masterpiece, Paramount+ UK, A+E Networks, ZDF, MGM+, and Lionsgate, with co-ownership of Fonthill Studios and deep expertise in Ireland's Section 481 tax credit.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1999
- HeadquartersDublin, Ireland
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Shinawil does
ShinAwiL Productions Ltd. is a privately held, Dublin-based independent film and television production company founded in 1999 by Larry Bass, with secondary offices in Belfast and co-ownership of Fonthill Studios, one of Ireland's four first-class sound stages. The company operates across two core service lines: non-scripted entertainment, lifestyle, factual and music programming for domestic broadcasters (principally RTÉ and BBC NI), and scripted drama and feature film production delivered as executive producer, co-producer or Irish service-producer for international broadcasters, streamers and production companies (including ITV, Channel 5, PBS Masterpiece, Paramount+ UK, A+E Networks International, MGM+, Roku, ZDF, NPO and Lionsgate Television). Its non-scripted slate includes long-running franchise adaptations such as Dancing with the Stars Ireland (8 seasons since 2017), Home of the Year (11 seasons), The Voice of Ireland (5 seasons), MasterChef Ireland, Dragons' Den Ireland, and The Apprentice; its scripted slate includes Miss Scarlet and the Duke (2020), The Cured (2017), Clean Sweep (2023), The Miracle Club (2023) and Borderline (2024). The company is run by Founder/CEO Larry Bass alongside a specialised leadership team (Mary Callery as Head of International, Aaron Farrell as Head of Drama, Alan Gillespie as Head of Development, Eugenia Cooney as Senior Series Producer, Catherine Bass as Production Accountant/Head of HR) and an advisory board that includes former Screen Ireland CEO James Hickey.
Revenue is generated primarily through broadcaster commissioning fees for non-scripted formats, service-production fees for international productions shooting in Ireland, co-production equity and distribution proceeds on scripted drama and feature films, format licensing and distribution royalties (handled through partners such as ZDF Studios, All3 Media, ITV Studios, Cineflix Rights, Embankment Films), and a smaller adjacent revenue line from the VAAS (vaas.video) corporate-video sub-brand. Project economics are materially supported by Ireland's Section 481 film/TV tax credit (32% standard, 37% regional uplift, capped at over $80m per project), a financial lever ShinAwiL both benefits from in its own productions and administers as a service to incoming international clients. The company is privately held with no disclosed revenue, funding, or external institutional shareholders, and operates with what is publicly described as a compact 11-50 employee core team augmented by production crews per project. ShinAwiL has accumulated multiple industry awards (IFTA Entertainment Award 2017 for Dancing with the Stars, IFTA Best Entertainment 2010, TV Now Awards 2009, Diageo Marketing Brilliance Award 2011) and maintains active participation at international content markets including MIPCOM, MIPTV, Rose d'Or and BANFF.
Shinawil firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Shinawil
- Legal name
- ShinAwiL Productions Ltd.
- Website
- https://shinawil.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1999
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- ShinAwiL is a Dublin-based independent film and television production company founded in 1999, producing non-scripted entertainment and scripted drama for RTÉ, ITV, PBS Masterpiece, Paramount+ UK, A+E Networks, ZDF, MGM+, and Lionsgate, with co-ownership of Fonthill Studios and deep expertise in Ireland's Section 481 tax credit.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where Shinawil is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Dublin
- HQ country
- Ireland
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices3 records
Markets served
Shinawil business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Broadcaster Commission Fees & Format Production: Revenue from producing commissioned entertainment and lifestyle series for broadcasters such as RTÉ (Dancing with the Stars, Home of the Year, Last Singer Standing), under programme commissioning agreements (essentially production-for-hire contracts with broadcaster fees).
- Scripted Drama Production & Co-Production Revenue: Revenue from producing original and co-produced scripted dramas (Miss Scarlet and the Duke, Borderline, Clean Sweep, The Miracle Club, The Cured, Cry From The Sea), funded through broadcaster pre-sales, Screen Ireland slate funding, distributor advances and co-producer equity shares.
- Production Services Fees (Service Production): Fee income from providing Irish/UK production services for incoming international productions (The Catch for Channel 5/Propeller, Maryland for ITV, The Doll Factory for Paramount+ UK/Buccaneer, Miss Scarlet and the Duke for Element 8/A+E Networks), leveraging Irish tax credits and crew.
- Format Licensing & Distribution Rights: Revenue from acquiring/licensing international formats (Strictly Come Dancing → Dancing with the Stars, The Voice, MasterChef, Shark Tank/Dragons' Den, Say Yes to the Dress, The Apprentice) for Irish adaptation, plus distribution rights on own IP through partners such as ZDF Studios, All3 Media, ITV Studios, Cineflix Rights, Embankment Films.
- Corporate Video Production (VAAS): Revenue from corporate video production services delivered through the adjacent VAAS platform (vaas.video), serving corporate clients with short-form video content.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Multi-year contract | Project-based quote pricing funded by Irish Section 481 tax credits, broadcaster commissions and co-producer splits |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels8 records
Shinawil product offering
Product offeringCore offering
ShinAwiL is an independent Irish film and television production company that develops, produces and delivers scripted drama, non-scripted entertainment, lifestyle, factual, music and corporate video content for broadcasters, streamers and co-production partners. The company operates end-to-end across pre-production, production and post-production, providing production management, cast and crew, sound-stage access via co-owned Fonthill Studios, location scouting, and Irish Section 481 tax-credit advisory for both domestic commissions and inbound international productions.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- VAAS: Corporate video production service operated by ShinAwiL, accessible via vaas.video.
Products and services
- Non-Scripted Production End-to-end non-scripted television production service covering reality, entertainment, lifestyle, factual, documentary and music programming; includes format adaptation, casting, studio and location production, and post-production for major Irish broadcasters such as RTÉ.
- Scripted Production Scripted drama, series and feature film production service, delivered either as lead producer or as Irish/UK production-services partner for international productions; spans development, co-productions with bodies such as Screen Ireland and broadcasters like ITV, Channel 5 and Paramount+, plus distribution via partners such as Lionsgate Television, All3 Media, Cineflix Rights and ZDF Studios.
- Corporate Video Production (VAAS) Branded corporate video production offering operated as a separate sub-brand (VAAS) for business clients, distinct from ShinAwiL's broadcast TV and drama work; provides short-form corporate video content from an experienced production team.
- Production Management Services Pre-production management offering including drafting budgets and schedules, providing initial Irish tax credit estimates, and advising on which of the top 5 post-production companies in Dublin best fits a project.
- Cast and Crew Services Access to Ireland's experienced cast and crew base, with ShinAwiL selecting the team best suited to each production across varied scales of work.
- Studio Access (Fonthill and other sound stages) Coordination of access to Irish sound stages including Fonthill Studios (of which ShinAwiL is a co-owner), Ardmore Studios, Ashford Studios and Troy Studios, plus guidance on additional sound stages coming online from 2021 onwards.
- Location Scouting Services Provision of Irish filming locations including contemporary urban settings, period London looks, regional UK urban centres, forests, woods, lakes, hills, beaches, plus Dublin's Georgian, Victorian and Edwardian architecture for period British looks.
- Irish Tax Credit Advisory (Section 481) Advisory service on Ireland's Section 481 film tax credit, worth up to 32% of eligible spend on up to 80% of a production budget capped at over $80m per project, with a regional uplift to 37% available for productions shooting outside Dublin.
- Dancing with the Stars Ireland Irish adaptation of the global Strictly Come Dancing / Dancing with the Stars franchise produced for RTÉ One, hosted by Jennifer Zamparelli and Doireann Garrihy; awarded the 2017 IFTA Entertainment Award.
- Home of the Year Long-running Irish home design competition produced for RTÉ in which homeowners across Ireland compete over 8 weeks for the Home of the Year title judged by three expert judges.
- The Voice of Ireland Irish edition of the international Voice franchise for RTÉ, in which a panel of four coaches critique artists' performances and guide their teams through the season.
- Dragons' Den Ireland Irish adaptation of the Dragon's Den / Shark Tank business-pitch format, in which entrepreneurs pitch to multimillionaire investors; hosted by Richard Curran.
- MasterChef Ireland / Celebrity MasterChef Ireland Irish adaptation of the MasterChef television cooking competition format created by Franc Roddam, in both standard and celebrity versions.
- Last Singer Standing Original singing game-show format produced for RTÉ One, hosted by Nicky Byrne with pop-panel judges Nadine Coyle, Joey Fatone and Samantha Mumba, offering a €25,000 grand prize.
- Miss Scarlet and the Duke Drama series; ShinAwiL's first TV drama credit. Produced for A+E Networks International as Irish service producers of an Element 8 production; aired on PBS Masterpiece in the US in January 2021 and on Alibi in the UK; tripled the Alibi UK slot average.
- Borderline Scripted drama series co-produced with Further South Productions in association with Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland and Lionsgate Television; produced for ZDF (Germany) and Roku (USA), streaming on MGM+ (UK), Roku (US) and ZDF Germany.
- The Miracle Club Feature film co-produced with Zephyr Films (UK) and City Films (USA); sales by Embankment Films (UK). A drama about working-class Dublin housewives in 1968 who win a trip to Lourdes.
- Clean Sweep Family crime drama co-produced with Incendo (Canada) in association with Element8 (USA); distributed by ZDF Studios. Tells the story of a killer hiding in plain sight as a wife, mother and homemaker.
Quantifiable outcome
- Up to 32% Irish Section 481 tax credit on up to 80% of a production budget (37% regional uplift outside Dublin), capped at over $80m per project
- +5 more outcomes
Companies that use Shinawil
Customer profileNamed customers11 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Shinawil technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Shinawil partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
21 partnerships are on record, tiered minor, flagship and core.
- Banijay Global GroupminorBanijay Global Group Board — Founder & CEO Larry Bass served as a board member of Banijay Global Group, indicating a governance-level relationship with the global content producer-distributor.
- Screentime GroupminorScreentime Group Board — Founder & CEO Larry Bass served as a board member of Screentime Group; the ShinAwiL LinkedIn page is also branded "screentime-shinawil", evidencing an ongoing group/affiliation relationship.
- Fonthill StudiosflagshipShinAwiL is a co-owner of Fonthill Studios, one of Ireland's four first-class sound stages. The partnership gives ShinAwiL privileged, in-house access to large-scale physical production infrastructure for its own productions and those of third-party clients.
- Ardmore StudioscoreArdmore Studios is one of Ireland's four first-class sound stages; ShinAwiL references Ardmore in its list of recommended studio partners for inbound productions requiring stage capacity beyond Fonthill.
- Ashford StudioscoreAshford Studios is one of Ireland's four first-class sound stages; referenced by ShinAwiL in its list of recommended studio partners for inbound productions.
- Troy StudioscoreTroy Studios is one of Ireland's four first-class sound stages; referenced by ShinAwiL in its list of recommended studio partners for inbound productions.
- Further South ProductionscoreCo-production partner with ShinAwiL on Borderline (a gripping detective drama at the Irish border), in association with Screen Ireland and Lionsgate Television for ZDF Germany and Roku USA.
- Lionsgate TelevisionflagshipCo-production partner with ShinAwiL and Further South Productions on Borderline, in association with Screen Ireland. Streams on MGM+ (UK), Roku (US) and ZDF Germany.
- Incendo (Canada)coreCo-production partner with ShinAwiL on Clean Sweep (a family crime series), in association with Element8 (USA); distributed by ZDF Studios.
- Element8 (USA)coreCo-production partner with ShinAwiL on Clean Sweep alongside Incendo (Canada), and production principal on Miss Scarlet and the Duke for which ShinAwiL served as Irish service producer for A+E Networks International.
- Zephyr Films (UK)coreCo-production partner with ShinAwiL on The Miracle Club feature film, alongside City Films (USA); sales handled by Embankment Films (UK).
- City Films (USA)coreCo-production partner with ShinAwiL on The Miracle Club feature film, alongside Zephyr Films (UK).
- Sepia Films (Canada)coreCo-production partner with ShinAwiL on the historical drama Cry From The Sea (starring Dominic Cooper, Aidan Quinn, Sarah Gadon and Sarah Bolger), directed by Vic Sarin.
- Buccaneer MediacoreUK production principal that engaged ShinAwiL as Irish production-services partner on The Doll Factory for Paramount+ UK; distributed internationally by Cineflix Rights.
- Propeller ProductioncoreProduction company that engaged ShinAwiL as production-services partner on The Catch for Channel 5; distributed by All3 Media.
- Pupkin (Netherlands)coreCo-production partner with ShinAwiL on The Spectacular (4×1-hour drama) for Dutch broadcaster NPO; ShinAwiL handles Irish and UK production-services elements.
- ZDF StudioscoreWorldwide distribution partner for ShinAwiL's Clean Sweep co-production; parent ZDF is also a German commissioning broadcaster on Borderline.
- All3 MediacoreInternational distribution partner for The Catch (production services supplied by ShinAwiL for Propeller/Channel 5).
- ITV StudioscoreInternational distribution partner for Maryland, the drama for which ShinAwiL provided production services for ITV.
- Cineflix RightscoreInternational distribution partner for The Doll Factory (production services supplied by ShinAwiL for Buccaneer Media / Paramount+ UK).
- Embankment Films (UK)minorSales agent for The Miracle Club feature film co-produced by ShinAwiL with Zephyr Films and City Films.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Shinawil competitors and assessment
Company assessmentRegional players
- Ardmore Studios: One of Ireland's four first-class sound stages, listed by ShinAwiL as a recommended studio partner. Comparable as a Dublin-based production-services facility competing for the same inbound international shoots, though operates as a facility rather than a producer.
Direct peers
- Parallel Films: Irish scripted production house (Sing Street, The Breadwinner). Directly comparable on genre (scripted drama/features), territory (Ireland) and customer set (international co-producers); also shares former-employee overlap (Mary Callery).
- Treasure Entertainment: Irish independent production company producing drama, factual and entertainment content. Comparable as a Dublin-based indie competing for similar RTÉ, Screen Ireland and international co-production mandates.
- Element8 (US): US production company that co-produces scripted drama with ShinAwiL (Miss Scarlet and the Duke, Clean Sweep). Closest direct peer in terms of format, transatlantic co-production model and scripted genre.
- Buccaneer Media: UK scripted producer (The Doll Factory) that engages ShinAwiL as Irish service producer. Comparable UK indie competing for similar international scripted commissions.
- Tyrone Productions: Long-established Irish independent producer of scripted drama and entertainment (Roots, Pure Mule). Directly comparable on Irish territory, scripted plus non-scripted slate and broadcaster customer base.
- Pupkin (Netherlands): Dutch production company co-producing The Spectacular (4x1hr) with ShinAwiL for NPO. Comparable as a European indie scripted producer partnering with ShinAwiL on international co-productions.
Broad incumbents
- ITV Studios: Global production and distribution arm of ITV, a ShinAwiL customer and distribution partner (Maryland). Comparable as both a customer and a scaled incumbent producing scripted and non-scripted content internationally.
- Shine Group / Endemol Shine (Banijay): Banijay-owned global production and distribution group; comparable as a scaled scripted and non-scripted producer/distributor. Founder Larry Bass's board seat at Banijay Global makes it the most relevant broad incumbent peer.
- All3Media: Global production/distribution group that distributes ShinAwiL-co-produced titles (The Catch). Comparable broad incumbent with deep catalogue and international rights reach.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Shinawil social profiles
Digital presenceShinawil financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Shinawil leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles7 records
Shinawil subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Shinawil funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Shinawil M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Shinawil
What does Shinawil do?
ShinAwiL is an independent Irish film and television production company that develops, produces and delivers scripted drama, non-scripted entertainment, lifestyle, factual, music and corporate video content for broadcasters, streamers and co-production partners. The company operates end-to-end across pre-production, production and post-production, providing production management, cast and crew, sound-stage access via co-owned Fonthill Studios, location scouting, and Irish Section 481 tax-credit advisory for both domestic commissions and inbound international productions.
Is Shinawil a public or private company?
Shinawil is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Shinawil founded?
Shinawil was founded in 1999. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Shinawil based?
Shinawil is headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, in the Europe region.
How does Shinawil make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Broadcaster Commission Fees & Format Production is the primary driver. The others are scripted Drama Production & Co-Production Revenue, production Services Fees (Service Production), format Licensing & Distribution Rights and corporate Video Production (VAAS).
Who are Shinawil's main competitors?
Ardmore Studios is listed as a regional player. Direct peers are Parallel Films, Treasure Entertainment, Element8 (US), Buccaneer Media, Tyrone Productions and Pupkin (Netherlands). Broad incumbents are ITV Studios, Shine Group / Endemol Shine (Banijay) and All3Media.
Does Shinawil have an API?
No public API is recorded for Shinawil.