Skills shortages in Irish screen industry puts growth at risk, report finds

As the high of Oscar night fades, the hard work has begun again for Ireland’s filmmakers, amid a warning that a shortage of key skills and crew is inhibiting further development, while other talent is being “lost” to the industry.

A new report published by State development agency Screen Ireland has found “clear scope for Ireland to respond to the global content opportunity” and build on recent momentum, but only if it can offer sustainable support to production companies, talent and crew.

It calls for the establishment of a taskforce to improve links between industry and education and recommends that Screen Ireland should convene a high-level sectoral stakeholder group to develop a 10-year strategic plan.

“A critical question that needs to be addressed in the context of this growth opportunity is: what does Ireland want to be renowned for and what is the appropriate scale to support this?” the report asks.

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The report, written by consultant David Duffy of the Governance Company, finds that collaboration between the education sector and the Irish screen industry is “unstructured and ad hoc” at third level, graduate level and for ongoing professional development.

[ Oscars 2023: Michael D Higgins praises ‘fantastic achievement’ of Irish film industry ]

“To be workplace ready one needs ‘flying hours’ to gain experience, but these flying hours are hard to access,” it states. “The perception is that many students are not successfully transitioning from college to gainful employment, and consequently, many are lost to the industry.”

More bridging programmes are required to prepare graduates for the workplace, it recommends. But it also observes a “lack of investment” by employers in long-term professional development because of the cyclical nature of project-to-project work.

Producers need “to be more forthcoming with information” on the potential dates for upcoming projects to help avoid a “classic chicken-and-egg situation” in which productions find it difficult to source crew – especially experienced crew – because workers unable to plan ahead migrate instead to the UK or the US in search of more continuous employment.

“Despite the skills shortages, there is no effective and efficient way to identify crew who are available for jobs or for crew to be able to identify what positions are available,” the report notes.

“For many, the industry is vocational rather than professional. For the industry to succeed, the dial needs to move to a more professional mindset with the appropriate infrastructure and support, otherwise the industry will not be able to scale in a sustainable manner, despite the apparent global opportunities.”