I am Dee (Dominika) Stoppa, a creative entrepreneur with over a decade of full-time experience across fine arts, documentary filmmaking, and arts & health.
My career background is diverse. Looking back, a common thread appears to be a love for visual storytelling and a commitment to positive community impact.
While I grew up around my dad’s analogue cameras, my own passion for working with lenses arrived rather late. Until a few years ago, my camera was a respected work tool used regularly to create my ongoing brand visuals, as I was running a busy studio shop. In 2022, around the time I was heavily pregnant with my third child, somehow restricted by external circumstances, photography and filmmaking became a (healthy) obsession. You can explore the results of my work on Instagram: @atelier.stoppa and explore my short documentaries: @innlyte | Substack: InnLyte: Creative Wellbeing
If you love bullet points and condensed facts, the section below is for you.
Background & Credentials:
Award-Winning Track Record: I’m a National Winner of Businesswoman of the Year 2020 (Power Within), and a winner of multiple Network Ireland regional awards, including Solo Businesswoman, Creative Businesswoman, Emerging Businesswoman, and Networker of the Year 2025.
Creative Enterprise: I founded and ran a successful physical studio/ shop in Castlecomer Craft Yard for many years, while building a strong local and digital presence from scratch for the community of artists and makers around me @castlecomercraftyard.
Documentary Filmmaking & Media: I recently produced the InnLyte Studio Series, and over the years, I’ve been featured across national and local media, including RTÉ Nationwide, The Sunday Times, The Irish Independent, and various radio stations.
Dee Stoppa (left) and Sam Gleeson (right). Behind-the-scenes photo: Gerard Ryan. Arts & Health: During lockdowns, I co-produced and illustrated the sold-out Creativity for Wellbeing Workbook with Mental Health Ireland. I’ve facilitated creative wellbeing workshops, spoke at national conferences, and collaborated with organisations like Amber Women’s Refuge and local family resource centres.
Academic & Professional Background: I come from a multigenerational tradition of crafts and visual arts (roots in Milan, Italy, and Tricity, Poland). As a teenager, I spent six years studying fine arts (sculpture, painting, printmaking, photography, and art history). Trying to avoid becoming a starving artist, I decided to pursue my other interests, and got a degree in National Security (modules on Crisis Management, Leadership and Diplomacy were my favourites, no regrets). This career path brought me to Ireland in 2012, at the age of 23. My corporate career in Dublin led me to get qualified in coaching and training (Kingstown College, 2017). In recent years, I gained postgraduate qualifications in Arts and Health (pilot group at NCAD, 2024) and Workplace Wellbeing (Trinity Business School, Distinction, 2025).
Wide Network: I’m an active member of Women in Film & TV Ireland, Documentary Association of Europe, and Visual Artists Ireland (professional artist status).
Let’s work together.
I offer a transparent, straight-to-the-point approach to brand strategy and creative direction:
1:1 Brand Persona & Presence Session: A 60-minute intensive to get unstuck, align your voice, and prepare for upcoming photoshoots or launches.
3-Session Presence & Strategy Package: A complete roadmap covering Persona Alignment, Visual Identity, Brand Shoot Preparation and PR Positioning.
Brand & Lifestyle Photography: On-location visual direction and photography designed to bring your story to life.
Keynotes & Workshops: Tailored talks for semi-state bodies (LEO), business networks, and corporate events on AI-proof personal branding and digital presence.
Connect & Explore
Read the Publication: Subscribe to this Substack for regular essays on visual direction, personal branding, and anti-AI-fatigue strategy.
Studio Instagram: @atelierstoppa
Personal Instagram: @deestoppa
