Shinawil

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.

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

Headquarters

HQ city

Dublin

HQ country

Ireland

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. 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).
2. 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.
3. 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.
4. 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.
5. 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

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core 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

Named customers11 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

21 partnerships are on record, tiered minor, flagship and core.

• Banijay Global GroupminorOthersBanijay 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 GroupminorOthersScreentime 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 StudiosflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerShinAwiL 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 StudioscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerArdmore 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 StudioscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAshford 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 StudioscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTroy 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 ProductionscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-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 TelevisionflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-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)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-production partner with ShinAwiL on Clean Sweep (a family crime series), in association with Element8 (USA); distributed by ZDF Studios.
• Element8 (USA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-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)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-production partner with ShinAwiL on The Miracle Club feature film, alongside City Films (USA); sales handled by Embankment Films (UK).
• City Films (USA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-production partner with ShinAwiL on The Miracle Club feature film, alongside Zephyr Films (UK).
• Sepia Films (Canada)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-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 MediacoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerUK production principal that engaged ShinAwiL as Irish production-services partner on The Doll Factory for Paramount+ UK; distributed internationally by Cineflix Rights.
• Propeller ProductioncoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerProduction company that engaged ShinAwiL as production-services partner on The Catch for Channel 5; distributed by All3 Media.
• Pupkin (Netherlands)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-production partner with ShinAwiL on The Spectacular (4×1-hour drama) for Dutch broadcaster NPO; ShinAwiL handles Irish and UK production-services elements.
• ZDF StudioscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorWorldwide distribution partner for ShinAwiL's Clean Sweep co-production; parent ZDF is also a German commissioning broadcaster on Borderline.
• All3 MediacoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational distribution partner for The Catch (production services supplied by ShinAwiL for Propeller/Channel 5).
• ITV StudioscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational distribution partner for Maryland, the drama for which ShinAwiL provided production services for ITV.
• Cineflix RightscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational distribution partner for The Doll Factory (production services supplied by ShinAwiL for Buccaneer Media / Paramount+ UK).
• Embankment Films (UK)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSales 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

Regional 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

• Xx.com/shinawiltv
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/screentime-shinawil
• Instagraminstagram.com/shinawil_ltd/?hl=en
• Facebookfacebook.com/shinawiltv

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Subsidiaries1 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 Shinawil