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A Day in the Life with Black Shamrock

What goes on behind the scenes in the gaming studio co-developing and collaborating on major titles with studios from all around the world? Founded in the GEC in 2015, Black Shamrock, the gaming studio located in the Guinness Enterprise Centre in Dublin, Ireland, is giving us the inside scoop. Black Shamrock specialises in the creation of AAA RPG and action-adventure titles for PC and consoles. The studio was acquired in 2017 by Virtuos, the global leader in video game content production.

We sat down with Molly O’Grady Bressan, Video Game Producer for Black Shamrock – a Virtuos Studio, to see what Molly’s day-to-day looks like working in this exciting role in the heart of Dublin 8.

Pictured: Molly O’Grady Bressan, Video Game Producer for Black Shamrock

Describe Black Shamrock.

Black Shamrock has an incredibly creative environment. We work alongside the
entire Virtuos company on multiple projects across multiple time zones,
specialising in engineering, game design, audio, and art for some of the biggest AAA
publishers across the world. With all our projects, events, and visitors, there is
always something going on every day. The best days are when Lukas, our GM,
makes biscuits for everyone, but you need to run fast before they are all gone.

What is your role as Video Game Producer?

My job is to ensure every engineer, designer, artist, animator, and technician on my project has everything they need to complete their work, that the client is happy, and that if anything blocks either of those things from happening, I do not rest until it is resolved.

How long have you been in this role?

I joined Black Shamrock in August 2022 and just recently passed my probation, so I
am officially going 6 months and strong.

Black Shamrock employees in Guinness Enterprise Centre office. — Black Shamrock employees in their Guinness Enterprise Centre office.

What does your day to day look like?

After I drag myself out of bed, I hop on my bike and make my way to the GEC, park my bike in the shed, then head to the 4th floor to make coffee. If there are snacks in the kitchen, I make sure to take enough to get me through the morning. Start of the day means stand ups, syncs, and check-ins. Most days I will meet with all the teams I manage to ensure they are able to continue with their assigned tasks, and that they are clear on their mandates. If there is anything preventing that from happening, I note it down and find the information they need or find someone who can help them, escalating it to the relevant department. The rest of the day depends on what is going on – we may have review sessions, client calls, brainstorms, production syncs, reports to write, or backlogs to breakdown and populate. When the day ends, I make a list of follow-up tasks for myself to take care of the next day, and either head home to play games or go for dinner and drinks in a local tavern with the rest of the studio. If I am incredibly lucky, there will be clients or guests that we need to take out, so we get a fancy dinner with drinks instead.

How has it been adjusting to working in office again?
I love it.

Are you a morning or an evening person?

I’m not so much an evening person as much as I am anti-mornings.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

I wanted to make cartoons and games, so I am extremely relieved that it worked
out or my inner child would live in constant humiliation.

What is your education and job history?

I studied film in college, then went back to study game design. When I began my
career, it was in animation production, and up until last year, I had not worked in
games outside of internships.

Why did you choose this career path?

Media production is what I have always been good at; I have a natural talent for telling people what to do and the best order to do it in. Couple that with an unnatural aptitude for comprehending the mathematics of time and space and there really is not anything else I would rather do.

What do you like most about working with Black Shamrock?

The people. Don’t get me wrong, the projects are great, and the facilities are wonderful (thanks GEC!), but people are always what makes a job worth it and
Black Shamrock only hires the best, if I do say so myself.

Why did you choose Black Shamrock over other companies?

I was recommended by someone who works here when the recruitment team were hiring producers last year. They gushed so much about how great it is and how much they thought I would enjoy it that I could not say no. It was a big consideration leaving animation for video games – despite studying game design, I would be walking into a project management scenario I had not dealt with before, but thankfully it turns out “transferable skills” is my middle name.

What has your greatest challenge been in this role?

Getting up to speed with the company structure as a part of a global network rather than the typical studio/parent company relationship I am used to in animation.

Do you have a favourite project you have worked on?
Eureka! for Disney Junior – it was a real bucket list moment to see my name in the credits.

Do you have any advice for someone looking to get into a similar role?

There is no upper limit to the amount of production or project management courses (agile methodologies are essential) or qualifications you can do, even if it is just YouTube videos and LinkedIn Learning.

Before my current role at Black Shamrock, I would come to the GEC at least once a year to top up my knowledge by attending courses run by Animation Skillnet in everything from project management to pipeline systems to 2D background layout.

As a producer, I do not necessarily need to know how everyone does their work, but it is essential I understand what they are doing. The biggest challenge for a producer is to see the strings and domino effect between different departments, who needs to be talking to each other and how much information needs to be flowing between teams. That is always going to be a challenge no matter how experienced you are because technology changes, markets change, people change, and you need to keep re-educating yourself constantly or you will fall behind. If you always understand what your team is doing you can plan better for them, and if you do not understand then have someone explain it to you until you do.

How has it been adjusting to working in office again?

I am not a fan of working from home, so my answer to this question is that I love it. I
love that there is a machine 60 seconds from my desk that spits out coffee and hot chocolate. I love that my commute is cycling so I am guaranteed exercise every day. I love that there is a restaurant in the building where I can get a hot lunch if I’m too lazy to bring something in. And if I do venture out, I get to go with people I work alongside to a nearby café or restaurant on Thomas St. Most of all, I love my fast computer and internet connection.

How has working in the GEC been for you?

It has been strange because for years, this place was more of a school to me than an office because of all the Animation Skillnet courses I did here. When I started, I had never been to the new floors where Black Shamrock lives now. The staff here are incredibly lovely and helpful – especially the facilities crew (shout out to Paula for always making me laugh). The place is always spotless and well stocked, and I am sure it is because of a couple dozen people constantly running around and making sure everything is operating smoothly, that we’re all well fed, or dragging carts of cleaning essentials between floors. I am grateful for how much work the GEC team does, and I probably don’t even know the half of it.

If you could eat one meal at lunch for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Lasagna, chips, and coleslaw. The only perfect meal. I have also been converted to the Quorn lasagna they make in GEC’s ground floor restaurant. But for the record, I will eat all lasagna variants.

The café in the Guinness Enterprise Centre.

If you could sit down for lunch with anyone you want (living or dead), who would you choose?

Anthony Bourdain, for no other reason than he made an entire entertainment career out of sitting down and having meals with people, in addition to being an actual chef and humanitarian icon. I know he would pick the best place to eat, the best wine to drink, and would tell me a ton of delightful stories.

If you could be any animal, which would you be and why?

Cat. Eat, sleep, play, repeat.

Black Shamrock - A Virtuos Studio logo

Want to learn more about Black Shamrock? Check out their website. If you are interested in starting a career at Black Shamrock and working with Molly, check out their job opportunities.

Learn more about the wider Virtuos global network here.

Learn more about the Guinness Enterprise Centre’s community of creators, innovators and entrepreneurs.

Follow Black Shamrock on social media: LinkedIn | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook

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A Day in the Life with Black Shamrock

My job is to ensure every engineer, designer, artist, animator, and technician on my project has everything they need to complete their work, that the client is happy, and that if anything blocks either of those things from happening, I do not rest until it is resolved.

I joined Black Shamrock in August 2022 and just recently passed my probation, so I
am officially going 6 months and strong.

How has it been adjusting to working in office again?

I’m not so much an evening person as much as I am anti-mornings.

I wanted to make cartoons and games, so I am extremely relieved that it worked
out or my inner child would live in constant humiliation.

I studied film in college, then went back to study game design. When I began my
career, it was in animation production, and up until last year, I had not worked in
games outside of internships.

Media production is what I have always been good at; I have a natural talent for telling people what to do and the best order to do it in. Couple that with an unnatural aptitude for comprehending the mathematics of time and space and there really is not anything else I would rather do.

The people. Don’t get me wrong, the projects are great, and the facilities are wonderful (thanks GEC!), but people are always what makes a job worth it and
Black Shamrock only hires the best, if I do say so myself.

Getting up to speed with the company structure as a part of a global network rather than the typical studio/parent company relationship I am used to in animation.

Do you have a favourite project you have worked on?

There is no upper limit to the amount of production or project management courses (agile methodologies are essential) or qualifications you can do, even if it is just YouTube videos and LinkedIn Learning.

Before my current role at Black Shamrock, I would come to the GEC at least once a year to top up my knowledge by attending courses run by Animation Skillnet in everything from project management to pipeline systems to 2D background layout.

Cat. Eat, sleep, play, repeat.

Start your story at the GEC

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Subscribe to our newsletter

My job is to ensure every engineer, designer, artist, animator, and technician on my project has everything they need to complete their work, that the client is happy, and that if anything blocks either of those things from happening, I do not rest until it is resolved.

I joined Black Shamrock in August 2022 and just recently passed my probation, so I am officially going 6 months and strong.

How has it been adjusting to working in office again?

I’m not so much an evening person as much as I am anti-mornings.

I wanted to make cartoons and games, so I am extremely relieved that it worked out or my inner child would live in constant humiliation.

I studied film in college, then went back to study game design. When I began my career, it was in animation production, and up until last year, I had not worked in games outside of internships.

Media production is what I have always been good at; I have a natural talent for telling people what to do and the best order to do it in. Couple that with an unnatural aptitude for comprehending the mathematics of time and space and there really is not anything else I would rather do.

The people. Don’t get me wrong, the projects are great, and the facilities are wonderful (thanks GEC!), but people are always what makes a job worth it and Black Shamrock only hires the best, if I do say so myself.

Getting up to speed with the company structure as a part of a global network rather than the typical studio/parent company relationship I am used to in animation.

Do you have a favourite project you have worked on?

There is no upper limit to the amount of production or project management courses (agile methodologies are essential) or qualifications you can do, even if it is just YouTube videos and LinkedIn Learning.

Before my current role at Black Shamrock, I would come to the GEC at least once a year to top up my knowledge by attending courses run by Animation Skillnet in everything from project management to pipeline systems to 2D background layout.

Cat. Eat, sleep, play, repeat.

Related articles

Sustainability@GEC company, Astatine, secures funding to accelerate decarbonisation solutions for Irish businesses

Guinness Enterprise Centre invests €500K in going green and creates sustainability cluster

Health@GEC innovator & medical device company, Selio Medical, is revolutionising lung cancer diagnosis

Health@GEC innovator, RedZinc, is bringing video communication solutions to the healthcare industry

Subscribe to our newsletter

I joined Black Shamrock in August 2022 and just recently passed my probation, so I
am officially going 6 months and strong.

I wanted to make cartoons and games, so I am extremely relieved that it worked
out or my inner child would live in constant humiliation.

I studied film in college, then went back to study game design. When I began my
career, it was in animation production, and up until last year, I had not worked in
games outside of internships.

The people. Don’t get me wrong, the projects are great, and the facilities are wonderful (thanks GEC!), but people are always what makes a job worth it and
Black Shamrock only hires the best, if I do say so myself.