On Saturday, May 24th, 2025, Ireland’s globally renowned animation sector gathered together at The Galway Bay Hotel, in Salthill, Galway to celebrate creativity and innovation at the 2025 Irish Animation Awards ceremony. We’re absolutely thrilled to share that Brown Bag Films brought home two incredible honours at this year’s awards!

First up, our homegrown series Lu & The Bally Bunch took home the award for Best Script for a Feature Film or Special for episode 'Bug Nollig', a 22-minute holiday special which was the last episode in the first season.

Produced by 9 Story Media Group and our Brown Bag Films studios in Dublin and Toronto, Lu & The Bally Bunch was created and directed by Brown Bag Films’ director Nicky Phelan (Vampirina, Bing, Octonauts), Oscar®-nominated for his short film Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty.

Accepting the award on behalf of Nicky Phelan and the Lu team was Jennie Stacey, VP Development & Production, who developed and exec produced the series.

Lu & The Bally Bunch was also nominated in three other categories at this year’s awards including Best New IP, Best Feature Film or Special and Best Voice Acting for Freya McLaughlin who voices the character of Lu. A massive shout-out to everyone involved in bringing Lu’s world to life.

Lu & The Bally Bunch follows Lu, a little ladybird who has just started preschool with her new friends. Together they explore their brand new social lives though play, music, big feelings and even bigger fun. The series, which was inspired by Nicky’s mother’s experience running a preschool, celebrates the messy reality of preschool and explores the everyday dramas of first friendships. Lu & The Bally Bunch is a funny and affectionate look at Lu and her friends as they learn to get along. Featuring original songs and grounded in a curriculum of preschool empowerment, stories are rooted in authentic interactions and experiences, inspired by conversations with preschoolers, their parents and teachers.

You can watch Lu & The Bally Bunch around the world on Cartoonito (UK, LatAm), CBeebies (UK), CBC Kids (CND), ABC (AU), TVNZ+ (NZ), and RTÉ (Ireland).

We were also thrilled to find out that both Lu & The Bally Bunch (9 Story Media Group, Brown Bag Films) and Eva the Owlet (Apple TV+, Scholastic Entertainment) made this year’s short list for the IAA’s Kids Choice category for Best Animated Preschool Series (Under 6 Years Old). Congrats to the team at Studio Meala whose hit series Doodle Girl took home the win this year.

The Irish Animation Awards celebrate the best of animation across Ireland. This year’s event was supported by Primary Sponsor Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland. More than 328 entries were viewed and considered by an extensive Irish and international jury. Winners in each category received awards resembling a Phenakistoscope, an early animation device used to create an illusion of motion, created by filmmaker, animator, and illustrator Eimhin McNamara.

The Irish Animation Awards are a biennial event, celebrating more than 2,500 highly skilled animation professionals who make and create across the island of Ireland, from Dublin to Galway, Belfast to Cork. Irish animated films and series are enjoyed by children and adults in 182 countries worldwide, with Irish animation studios and their workforces in huge demand internationally, valued for their creativity, craft, professionalism and commitment.

A huge thank you to the Irish Animation Awards, Animation Ireland, our fellow nominees, and, of course, the entire Brown Bag Films team. We’re honoured to be recognised among such inspiring talent. These wins are a reminder of what’s possible when creativity, collaboration, and community come together.

Check out some of our winning moments and more from the night here:

We are incredibly proud to share that Brown Bag Films has won this inaugural award, recognising the outstanding efforts of our Industry & Community Outreach Committee.

Accepting the award were Industry & Community Outreach Committee members Matthew Lloyd (Head of Environments, Layout & FX), Anahita Tabarsi (Marketing Director, Digital & Social), Sinead Costello (Global Learning & Development Manager) and Aidan Murtagh (Director, Workplace Operations and Environment).

Established in 2024, the committee, which also includes Brown Bag's Co-founder and Creative Director Darragh O'Connell, was created to address the gaps identified in the Animation Ireland Skill Gap Analysis report and to support the initiatives championed by Animation Ireland’s Sustainability, Education, and Industry Committees. As part of our broader ESG commitment, the committee leads both internal and external outreach efforts, aiming to drive meaningful change by empowering future creatives through education and community engagement, while strengthening the studio’s positive impact within the Irish animation sector and the wider local community.

This year the Irish Animation Awards introduced a brand new category—Industry Sustainability Champion (Impact and Awareness)—to honour studios, groups, or individuals leading the way in sustainability through partnerships, outreach programs, social impact, and educational or charitable initiatives.

We are incredibly proud to share that Brown Bag Films has won this inaugural award, recognising the outstanding efforts of our Industry & Community Outreach Committee.

Accepting the award were Industry & Community Outreach Committee members Matthew Lloyd (Head of Environments, Layout & FX), Anahita Tabarsi (Marketing Director, Digital & Social), Sinead Costello (Global Learning & Development Manager) and Aidan Murtagh (Director, Workplace Operations and Environment).

As part of our broader ESG commitment, the committee leads both internal and external outreach efforts, aiming to drive meaningful change by empowering future creatives through education and community engagement, while strengthening the studio’s positive impact within the Irish animation sector and the wider local community.

To learn more about the Irish Animation Awards and view the full list of honourees, visit: Irish Animation Awards