A number of Irish agencies including THINKHOUSE, Bricolage and FUEL will be flying the Irish flag at SXSW in Austin, Texas this week as part of an Enterprise Ireland-led delegation to take part in the popular week-long festival of music, creativity, film, culture and innovation.
THINKHOUSE, Fuel and Bricolage will join Roblox on stage next Monday in Ireland House at an event hosted by Enterprise Ireland.
Ireland House SXSW 2025 is a Global Ireland collaboration between the Department of Foreign Affairs, IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland and Screen Ireland.
The panellists will discuss “Youth Powered Disruption” and will feature Jane McDaid from THINKHOUSE, Viv Chambers from Bricolage and Johnny Boyle from FUEL. They will be joined by Mark Bambury of Roblox.
Speaking about the event, Jane McDaid said, “Youth and sustainability are passion points of mine and I look forward to bringing THINKHOUSE’s perspective to this important talk. For THINKHOUSE, and the Irish commercial creative sector, it’s important to showcase our exporting capabilities. We have, as an industry, the potential to deliver as much success as other heavily funded sectors such as screen and film. I often say, ‘Ireland is so hot right now’ and I genuinely believe that; with the right support and momentum, Ireland’s independent agencies have an opportunity to really thrive internationally.”
This is the second year of Ireland House. Taoiseach Micheal Martin will also visit SXSW as part of his St Patrick’s Day series of meetings and engagements in the USA.
“Enterprise Ireland values the strong economic ties we have with Texas and are proud to celebrate and showcase Irish technology at this years’ SXSW Ireland House Activation,” says Kevin Sherry, chief executive of Enterprise Ireland.
“These innovative Irish companies are exemplar leaders in their chosen sectors and with the support of the Enterprise Ireland Austin office, they continue to invest in their US operations and strengthen the partnerships that we seek to celebrate this week, as part of the St Patrick’s Day Programme.”
Désirée Finnegan, chief executive of Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland adds: “Screen Ireland is delighted to support Ireland House at SXSW this year, and to showcase the Irish film and television projects premiering across the festival’s programme. It’s a fantastic opportunity to highlight the strength of Irish filmmaking, which supports Ireland’s overall offering as a global hub for innovation and creativity.”
