Bio
TJ O’Grady-Peyton’s Screen Ireland-funded short film Room Taken, executive produced by Colin Farrell, was shortlisted for the 2025 Academy Awards, featured on Variety’s The Shortlist and is currently streaming on Disney+.
TJ first gained industry recognition at the Young Director Awards at Cannes. His commercial work includes campaigns for Guinness, Under Armour, UEFA, Asics, Volkswagen, BMW, the Premier League, and the European Union, recognised by the Webby Awards, Clio Awards, Art Directors Club, Kinsale Shark Awards, 1.4 and AICP.
His short film Wave – in which he also acted – won an Irish Film and Television Award for Best Short and was featured in The New Yorker. After premiering at Tribeca, Wave screened at 75 festivals, including BFI London, Melbourne, and Clermont-Ferrand, winning over 20 awards. He received the Discovery Award from the Dublin International Film Festival and the Bingham Ray New Talent Award at the Galway Film Fleadh.
He was invited to participate in a Werner Herzog masterclass in the Amazon and selected for Les Nuits en Or, a touring programme of the year’s standout short films hosted by the French Academy of Film in partnership with UNESCO in Paris. He is a member of the Directors Guild of America and is represented for film and television by New Story Management in Los Angeles.
Awards
Young Director Awards, Cannes
Best Spec Shortlist 2013
Kinsale Shark Awards
Best New Director Shortlist 2014
Young Director Awards, Cannes
Best Online Content Shortlist 2015
Webby Awards
People’s Voice Award Winner Gatorade
2016
AICP
Best Editing Shortlist
Asics 2017
Clio Awards
Judge 2017
Galway Film Fleadh
Best Short Winner Wave 2017
Cork International Film Festival
Best Short Winner Wave 2017
Aesthetica
Best of the Fest Winner Wave 2017
Art Directors Club
Bronze Winner Volkswagen 2018
Webby Awards
People’s Voice Award Winner
Volkswagen 2018
Irish Film and Television Award
Winner Best Short Wave 2018
Discovery Award
Dublin International Film Festival Winner 2018
Clio Awards
Best Experiential Winner Good Year 2019
Kinsale Shark Awards
Best Cinematography Winner Why Wait 2019
Kinsale Shark Awards
Best Direction Shortlist Why Wait 2019
Kinsale Shark Awards
Best Music Video Shortlist Why Wait 2019
Realscreen Best Non-Fiction Series, Overall Excellence 2019
Galway Film Fleadh
Bingham Ray New Talent Award 2021
Irish Film and Television Award
Nominee Best Short Silence 2022
Room Taken
55 awards
Dublin International Film Festival
Best Short Winner Room Taken 2024
Cleveland International Film Festival
Best Short Winner Room Taken 2024 (Oscar qualifying)
2 x Kinsale Shark Awards
Gold Best Direction + Short Film Room Taken 2024
Irish Film and Television Award
Gold Winner Best Short 2025
1.4 Awards
Gold Winner Best Short 2025
AICP
Best Colour Shortlist Kaspi.kz 2026