Galway’s role as the crucial meeting point for the Irish Film and TV industry to plan and prepare for the challenges facing the sector was reinforced by the 2026 FÍS Film and TV Summit – the largest and most expanded in the event’s nine-year history.
Hosted by Galway-based screen industry development body Ardán across two days (26–27 February ), the dominant theme was how and why Ireland’s screen industry is turning the constraints of limited resources into a competitive advantage on the world stage.
Summit 2026 drew producers, commissioners, broadcasters, and emerging talent from across Ireland for a series of major panels, workshops, and industry networking, with one of the most significant moments being the inaugural presentation of the FÍS TV Summit Síol Award – a new accolade recognising female producers who have made an outstanding contribution to the Irish screen industry.
The new award, presented in memory of the late Máire Ní Thuathail, Executive Producer of TG4’s long-running series Ros na Rún and Galway City of Film/Ceantar Scannán Awardee 2016, was conferred on Siobhán Bourke of Saffron Pictures by TG4 Commissioning Editor Máire Ní Chonláin, a great friend of Ms Ní Thuathail.
Ms Bourke co-founded Saffron Pictures with Kathryn Lennon in the late 1990s, producing IFTA Best Drama winners Love is the Drug (2005 ) and Whistleblower (2009 ), as well as Acceptable Risk (2017 ) and the internationally successful Hidden Assets, now in its third season.
The award was also an opportunity to celebrate the legacy of Máire Ní Thuathail, described by Loretta Ní Ghabháin of Galway-based Lorg Media as “a champion of Irish language TV” and “a trailblazer in her efforts to support and provide opportunities for on-set training and shadowing for new entrants”.
Introducing the award, Ms Ní Ghabháin noted that 2026 carried special significance, marking the tenth anniversary of Ms Ní Thuathail’s passing. “Máire’s legacy extends far beyond the screen,” she said. “Her values of leadership, opportunity, and community are ones so many of us were inspired by.”
The summit devoted significant attention to Hidden Assets, the RTÉ crime drama that has emerged as a model for sustainable, internationally exportable Irish television.
The Irish, Belgian, and Canadian co-production — filmed in Dublin and Bilbao and co-produced with Potemkino Port, Belgium — demonstrated how broadcaster commissions, EU funding, and tax incentives can be combined into a repeatable production framework with genuine global reach. “The best co-production is something that works in its own territory,” said RTÉ Head of Drama David Crean. “If the story is good, it will travel.”
The series success is driven in no small part by Galway talent, with Galway-born actor Nora-Jane Noone in the role of Detective Sergeant Claire Wallace; several episodes were directed by Galway native Mia Mullarkey; and the series was co-written by Galway-based screenwriters Marty Thornton and Mary Fox.
A sign of the respect in which Ardán and the FÍS Summit is held came with the keynote panel examining Adolescence, the Stephen Graham-led drama that has become one of the most talked-about television events of recent years. Netflix Commissioner Toby Bentley and WARP Films CEO Mark Herbert reflected on how bold creative risk-taking and tight producer-commissioner collaboration can produce award-winning television at streamer scale. “Every single element, every single person, had to be on their A-game,” said Herbert. “And that’s in our DNA.”
Galway voices were prominent throughout the programme, with writer/director/producer Ursula Rani Sarma, TG4 Commissioner Proinsias Ní Ghráinne, NTA Film and TV Director Eibh O’Brien-Collins, NTA Crew West Director Lorraine Higgins, producer Heather Higgins, and award-winning composers Sarah Lynch and Jake Morgan among the speakers.
Ardán’s WRAP Fund & Commission Executive Gar O’Brien-Collins said the summit’s expanded format was designed with the next generation in mind. “We want to welcome a diverse cohort of emerging talent and equip them with the skills to shape the future of the TV industry.”
