Personal details
- Professions: Editor, Editorial Department, Director
Úna Ní Dhonghaíle ACE, BFE. Yeah, if you’re into film editing, you know that name. She’s collected more awards than most people have coffee mugs—her fingerprints are all over heavyweight projects like BELFAST (yep, that Oscar-winner), DEATH ON THE NILE, STAN AND OLLIE, and MISBEHAVIOUR. But that’s just scratching the surface. She’s got serious TV cred too, having shaped up THE CROWN (the first two series, no less), THREE GIRLS, WALLANDER, and THE MISSING, among others. She’s a Dublin native and totally crushed her Film and Media Studies degree before heading over to the National Film and Television School for editing. Fast forward, and she’s working with big-name directors—think Sir Kenneth Branagh, Phillippa Lowthorpe, Tom Shankland, Hettie Macdonald, Joachim Rønning... the list genuinely keeps going. Her trophy shelf is wild: 5 BAFTA noms (2 wins), 3 RTS noms (2 wins), and 7 IFTA noms (3 wins). Not to mention, she picked up the BAFTA in Editing for THREE GIRLS, which also scored her a handful of other industry accolades. She even co-directed the documentary INVISIBLE MAN and snagged an IFTA for that too. This year, Úna’s editing work is making waves again—she’s just finished up YOUNG WOMAN AND THE SEA (with Joachim Rønning and Jerry Bruckheimer) and PADDINGTON IN PERU, which is a dream come true for her, being a huge fan of the bear’s previous adventures. Oh, and if you’re wondering, her name’s pronounced Oona Nee Gon-eel-a.
BFE and ACE—those acronyms might sound like some kind of secret agent code, but nope, they stand for British Film Editors and American Cinema Editors, two heavy-hitter organizations in the film world. Being a member? Not just anyone strolls in. You’ve gotta prove you know your way around the editing suite—like, really know. These are the folks who turn hours of random footage into something that actually makes sense, pacing and all. It’s more than just cutting and pasting scenes; it’s about shaping the whole story, making every beat count, and, honestly, saving some movies from becoming a total snoozefest. Editors in these clubs often work on some of the biggest titles out there. Plus, there’s a dash of prestige—like, you’re rubbing elbows with Oscar nominees and industry legends. So, if someone’s rocking both BFE and ACE membership, you know they’re basically editing royalty.
Konidela Ram Charan