Announcement from Telegael:
Telegael is one of Ireland’s leading live action and animation production studios. Established in 1988, the company has shown strong growth in recent years with employment in Ireland on its various productions exceeding 175 in 2011. The role of Chief Operating Officer (COO) is a new position within the company and in this new role Siobhán will be responsible for the day-to-day operations of Telegael and its subsidiary companies.
Under the new structure, CEO Paul Cummins will focus on further developing the external potential of the company, building and managing strategic relationships globally and identifying new business opportunities and partners.
“The appointment of COO is an important strategic move for the company at this point in time,” said Paul Cummins, Telegael’s CEO. “In excess of 90 percent of our output is for the global market, which is reflected in the establishment of overseas offices in London and Los Angeles in recent years. We have also grown our activities to include the development and production of long run live-action television series as well as childrens’ animated series. As Telegael’s Head of Production for the last twelve years, Siobhán has a wealth of experience in all aspects of live action and animation production and I look forward to her bringing this experience as well as her strong inter-personal and organizational skills to her new role as COO.”
Speaking of her new appointment as COO, Siobhán Ní Ghadhra said: “I am truly honoured to be given such an opportunity and also to be in a position where I can continue to work with our amazing team here at Telegael. I am really looking forward to embracing the new role.”
About Siobhán Ní Ghadhra
Having begun her career at Roger Corman’s Irish film studios in 1998, Siobhán was appointed Head of Production at Telegael in 2000. In that role she had responsibility for all Telegael productions and international co-productions, working with numerous partners including Disney, Discovery Kids, Moonscoop, BBC, France 3, Super RTL, ITV, ZDF, Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon, TF1, Kids Warner Bros and KiKa.
Siobhán was also responsible for Telegael's reversioning into Irish of approximately 100 hours of television annually for RTÉ and TG4 including such series as Dora the Explorer, Arthur and Elmo and Friends and also worked on the development of numerous projects for the home and international market. She also oversaw the establishment and operation of Zoogon, Telegael’s subsidiary company based in Belfast.
Siobhán is a two-time EMMY Award Winner (2004 and 2007) as Irish Producer of the TUTENSTEIN animation series for Discovery Kids. She was also a producer on the IFTA winning series Skunk Fu! and on the BBC series Zombie Hotel which won an Annecy International award in 2006. During her career, Siobhán has received a total of seven EMMY Nominations, as well as BAFTA, KidScreen and Puncinella nominations.
A member of the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland, Siobhán is also a member of the US Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and of the Irish Film and Television Academy. She sits on the Steering Committee of Greasán na Meán, a Skillsnet training scheme. Siobhán has degrees in Economics, Irish and Law from NUIG and lives in Indreabhán, Co. Galway with her husband and two young daughters.