Voting for Imirt's new board members is now open and will take place until midnight on Wednesday the 27th of December. Details of how to vote and links needed to vote will be sent to members by email.

This year, we will once again be using Opa Vote. This system ensures a secure and unbiased voting process. (make sure the email address for noreply@opavote.com is in your contacts so it’s not sent to your spam folder)

There are 5 seats open this year, with Paul Fahey, Brendan Dillon, and Darren Kearney stepping down from the Board. Alanna Kelly and Maria O'Brien are running for re-election.

Thanks to Darren for being an absolutely amazing representative of the industry this year and an extra special thanks to Brendan Dillon who has devoted a truly heroic amount of time to serving on the Board.

An email has been sent out to all active subscribers with an OpaVote link. Voting will be open until Thursday the 28th of December.

Best of luck to all our candidates!

The Candidates

Emmet Byrne

Emmet is a game designer, writer, and producer with experience in animation, videogames, and tabletop games. He is the creative director at Cubicle 7 Games, and was lead designer on Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Soulbound and Broken Weave, and has been involved in the creation of dozens of tabletop roleplaying games and books.

Emmet has been designing roleplaying games ever since he reverse engineered the AD&D rules from the original Baldur's Gate videogame 25 years ago, and he hasn’t looked back since. He lives with his partner, two kids, two dogs, and too many tabletop games.

What I Hope to achieve

Ensure Imirt supports tabletop game designers through mentoring, workshops, and in any other ways it can.
Create a greater awareness of the strength of the Irish tabletop industry, and the opportunities available.
Seek support and advice for tabletop creators through local and national funding and guidance.

Sean Carton

Sean is a founder and CEO at Kybolt — an independent Irish game studio where their vision is “a world where gamers recognise leadership as a learnable skill”. They make fun commercial games which are inclusive, values-driven, and develop future leaders.

Sean’s roots are in modding, specifically for lane-pushing / MOBA games. He was lucky enough to be playing Warcraft III back in 2003, and ended up making one of the original DotA maps. Since then, he has documented the design and history of lane-pushing games, as well as interviewing many other creators.

Sean is a Women in Games Ambassador championing a more inclusive industry, and associate member of the Esports Research Network. Outside games, he enjoys international culture and exchange. He is a committee member at Experience Japan, and has been a scout leader for 10+ years.

What I Hope to achieve

IMIRT has been an invaluable network for developing my own skills and knowledge. I want to pay that forward, and will:

Help us transition to represent the wider games sector: including games tech, localisation and support, AAA studios, and academic/XR applications.
Continue proactive engagement with government, IDA, Screen Ireland, Skillnet, and the EU on our behalf.
Advocate for an early-prototype fund for games.
Advocate for a games accelerator or similar model to support the skills and training to turn games into a business success.
Champion games as an inclusive and viable career path, to ensure a sustainable and growing pool of talent.
Support the Board as a servant leader and experienced volunteer.

Carlo Azzari

Carlo is a Game Designer who’s been part of the Irish Game Dev community for a long time. Starting his career at Simteractive and then continuing as a Level Designer in Black Shamrock. He’s been in Sweden for a little over two years as a Content Designer in Paradox, but is now back at Black Shamrock as a Senior Game Designer. Through all those years he’s been active as an IMIRT member from the start, and co-host of the Games Co-Op monthly meeting and community since 2019.

What i hope to achieve

While the new tax benefits for games companies have the potential to bring investment from abroad and foster the domestic scene, there’s still a lot to do. My main goal is to help Irish developers to get the funding they need to ship their games and improve their chances of commercial success. I hope to achieve this by establishing connections with publishers to put Irish games on their radar, push the government for more grants that can help spur indie development, and creating a network of support and mentorship so we can all help each other towards the goal of a thriving, sustainable and healthy industry.

Maria O’brien

Maria is a researcher and lecturer in Queen's University Belfast with extensive experience on tax credits for Irish creative industries. Initially trained as a lawyer, Maria brings her legal knowledge to bear on the creative industries in Ireland. Maria has had one term of 2 years on the Imirt board, and has been central to policy discussions with key stakeholders during this time.

What i hope to achieve

I want to continue my work on the Imirt board to engage with the industry and policymakers. Imirt as an organisation is at the cusp of transforming into an important trade organisation, with the support of the industry and government agencies. I believe that a strong Imirt board will help develop all aspects of the Irish games industry, including both the indigenous industry and incoming studios. If re-elected to the board, I will further engagement with industry and policy stakeholders to raise the profile of Imirt as a trade organisation.

If elected to the board, I intend to work in the following areas

Support an incoming Chief Executive Officer
Continue to work with contacts in Irish government to develop new supports and expand existing supports for the games industry
Campaign to improve Section 481A tax credit regime for Irish industries
Secure a prototype fund for the indigenous games industry
Continue to develop Imirt's online and in-person workshop series

josh loveridge

As the Managing Director of Stratton Studios and Loveridge Digital, Josh’s expertise lies in scaling and growing A-AAA game companies. With over eight years in the industry, he has collaborated with top-tier studios, Fortune 500 companies, and SMEs, leading teams of hundreds in developing cutting-edge games and technologies.
Josh’s proficiency in various software suites, coupled with a strong foundation in both the engineering and business aspects of game development, has been instrumental in delivering large-scale, high-quality gaming projects. He has a proven track record in creating software solutions that meet the diverse demands of the gaming industry, from indie ventures to complex, high-budget AAA titles.
Josh is recognized for his ability to exceed expectations, combining his technical acumen with leadership prowess to steer teams towards delivering exceptional value. His commitment to continuous learning keeps him at the forefront of software and development techniques, ensuring that he is always equipped with the latest tools and knowledge to drive growth and success in the gaming industry.
Josh’s comprehensive background in game development, marketing, and creative industries has honed his skills in both business and software development. This, along with his experience in engineering and business growth management, positions Josh as a valuable contributor to any game development project, particularly in the high-stakes, fast-evolving world of AAA gaming.

What i hope to achieve

In recent years, the Irish gaming community has seen notable successes, yet these achievements are sporadic. The ultimate goal is to transform Ireland into a powerhouse in the gaming industry through a strategic expansion of resources and mentorship programs. My plan includes establishing a comprehensive program within IMIRT, designed to empower the development community, enabling them to overcome the increasing challenges and financial pressures of breaking into the industry.
A key component of my strategy is to significantly scale up networking opportunities, both virtual and in-person, as circumstances allow. The value of the insights and relationships forged at such events is immense, often catalyzing long-lasting business collaborations. By hosting more of these events locally, we can enhance Ireland's appeal to prominent figures in the gaming world, thereby accelerating the growth and visibility of the Irish gaming industry on a global scale.
Increased exposure and support for the gaming sector in Ireland will spur rapid expansion and innovation. My commitment to these goals, coupled with my understanding of the industry's dynamics, makes me an ideal candidate for the Imirt board. I am dedicated to driving a transformative agenda that will scale the Irish gaming community to new heights.

Alanna Kelly

Alanna wrote her first game, an implementation of Hangman on her father's ZX81 that had been fished out of the attic in 1991. Alanna developed a strong interest in game development, technology and computer programming. In 2005, Alanna started working in Dublin as a programmer for PopCap Games International. In 2012, she moved to Galway and has since worked in diverse fields such as Computer Vision, Academia, 3D/Bio Printing and Telecommunications.

What I hope to achieve

She is interested in driving community projects to encourage game development related learning, collaboration and entrepreneurship. She established Galway Game Jam in 2013 to further this end, which, this year, celebrated 10 years of encouraging people to get into game development in Galway!

justin o’connor

As Head of Finance at StoryToys, Justin works very closely at group level with their parent company Team17, this gives him access to extensive games industry knowledge, not just in Ireland, but further afield too.

Through his role in StoryToys, Justin has gained valuable experience in strategic financial management. Notably, he played a pivotal role in securing and successfully implementing the Digital Games Tax Credit (DGCT) for StoryToys, marking it as the first company in Ireland to adopt this credit. This experience showcases his ability to navigate and leverage government incentives to support and elevate the Irish game development industry. Justin continues to highlight the critical importance of the DGTC to the games industry, engaging with stakeholders in IDA, government departments to improve and expand the depth and scope of the credit. Justin has a BA in Accounting and is a Fellow with the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA).

Utilising the platform provided by Team 17, Justin and his colleagues in StoryToys use every opportunity to promote the Irish gaming industry in the UK and further afield.

Imirt's emphasis on inclusivity, diverse representation, and collaboration resonates with his values. Justin is excited to contribute to the organization's success by bringing a strategic financial perspective, particularly with insights gained from navigating government incentives like the Irish gaming tax credit.

what i hope to achieve

Improve governmental support for the gaming industry, seeking improved government incentives and advocating for the continued growth Imirt’s activity.

To broaden the scope of the Digital Games Tax Credit (DGCT) making it more widely available to members of Imirt and the broader community.
Support strategic decision-making and contribute to the overall success of the Irish game development community.
I believe that Ireland is only tapping into a tiny portion of the overall potential of the games industry. We have the creativity, talent, and people to become an international centre for gaming and game development. I want to contribute and support Imirt to achieve this.

Thomas cashman

Thomas is Director at Viridian Software and has over a decade of expertise as a programmer. At 6 years old, he was inspired to become a game developer and in 2017 he founded Viridian Software. Viridian has since grown into a development, porting and publishing studio supporting many developers and publishers worldwide. Thomas has open-sourced many frameworks and libraries and continues to contribute to several game development community efforts such as SDL and FNA.

what i hope to achieve

I believe Ireland has great potential to become a key location for game development in Europe. Having lived in other EU countries for many years, I've seen how they encourage industry growth and how large game communities help each other grow and succeed. As someone who has bootstrapped their studio from zero, I understand the challenges new developers and teams are up against when getting off the ground.

If elected to the board, I intend to work in the following areas to help support developers:

Re-introduce in-person events and foster community engagement
Lobbying government to improve supports for new developers/studios
Establish a mentorship programme that Imirt members can apply to and have the opportunity to learn from experienced industry professionals

Mariano Di Murro

I am an award-winning entrepreneur and games developer with over 10 years of experience in the games industry. I started off as a QA and localization tester for a large Canadian game publisher. After that, I started and ran my own successful gaming startup where I raised venture capital funding for games startups here in Ireland, as well as in America, Italy, and the United Kingdom.
I have worked to deliver branded gaming products for international brands including Paramount Pictures, Universal Music, Netflix, Miller Beer, Aldi, Lidl, PwC, The Irish Rugby Team, Curry’s PC World, Lucozade, Kia, Ford Motors, and many more.
I have pitched my gaming ideas everywhere from in front of some of the biggest venture capital funds in Palo Alto Silicon Valley San Francisco, to the main stage at the web summit. I won the most entertaining at Google Start-up Weekend and led my last start-up to be adopted by Google here in Ireland.
During my gaming career I have also been part of the TechStars entrepreneur empowerment program, New Frontiers entrepreneur Program, National Digital Research Centre Gamepad, and Games Ireland's first-ever accelerator.
Recently I took part in the Dogpatch Labs Founders program, Ireland first first-ever Talent accelerator. I worked as a Games Engineer and go-to-market specialist at Google here in Dublin. Where I was able to attend international gaming conferences like Gamescom and work closely on partnerships with the biggest game engines and publishers in the world.
My Current role is head of Gaming and partnerships at Teuteuf Games the developers of the smash hit web games Worldle and Wheretaken, which have over 30 million monthly players. In this role help manage an International team of highly talented developers to work on our titles. I also get to secure partnership agreements with international media brands.

What i hope to achieve

● Offering advice and best practices guidance to any independent Irish game

developers on securing government funding or raising venture investment.

● Help organize community events and networking opportunities that will grow

Imirt's membership and create solid industry links.

● Creation of a workshop to highlight the Irish new tax credit and the opportunities

for growth in the gaming sector.

● Exploring the possibilities of Imirt funding and sponsorship of an Irish games

industry stand at international gaming events like GDC, Gamescom, and

Develop.