The Irish Industry Trust for IP Awareness for IP Awareness has announced the appointment of a new co-chair who will help deliver growth and guidance across the ongoing challenges of Film & TV Copyright Infringement.
Martin O’Grady, Senior Manager, Theatrical Sales & Operations of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, Ireland, has been appointed as the organisation’s new Co-Chair with immediate effect.
Martin will serve as Co-Chair alongside existing Chair, Stephen McConkey, Senior National Account Manager at Warner Media UK & Ireland.
Together they will lead the Irish Industry Trust in developing and delivering the next phase of public awareness and educational strategies to inspire Irish audiences to respect creative content by demonstrating that film, TV, and VOD have an entertainment value worth paying for.
“I am delighted to accept this role as Co-Chair for the Irish Industry Trust,” said Martin, when speaking about his appointment. “My aim in conjunction with my Irish Industry Trust colleagues is to address the ongoing challenge of film and TV copyright infringement, especially during these unprecedented times by inspiring Irish audiences to value great movie moments and choose to watch film, TV and video via legitimate sources.
“Especially when it is affecting the livelihood of over 18,000 people working in film and film-related industries in Ireland,” Martin added.
His present core role is theatrical sales responsibility for all WDSMP titles (Walt Disney Pictures, Walt Disney Animation Studios, Pixar, Marvel Studios, Lucasfilm, 20th Century Studios and Searchlight Pictures) in the Republic Of Ireland & Northern Ireland. As part of the UK and Ireland sales team, Martin also works across some UK accounts as needed and also has temporarily managed Non-Theatrical sales for EMEA recently.
Before moving to WDSMP Ireland in 2007, Martin O’ Grady held the position of Theatrical Film Salesman at WDSMP UK in London for five years. His film industry career began as a Theatrical Technical & Sales Executive with FilmFour in 1996 and before joining FilmFour, he studied for a BA in Media & Communications at Goldsmiths (University Of London). A proud Clare man, Martin hails from Ennis, Co. Clare, where he lived before moving to London to study in 1993.
Speaking about Martin’s appointment to Co-Chair, Stephen McConkey said: “Martin’s Co-Chairmanship will prove instrumental in driving key campaigns, strategies and new projects to successful outcomes. 2021 is a year of challenges and now the Irish Industry Trust is well-placed to find growth opportunities, that support the category.
“Martin has been an active member of the Industry Trust Committee for many years, and I look forward to working with him on the next phase of our progression,” McConkey added.
“The key focus of the Irish Trust is to educate and inform the public about the detrimental impact of piracy on Irish jobs, our film industry and the economy. Together with Martin and the other Trust Committee members, we hope to increase our reach and start new conversations about film piracy in Ireland’.