21: Tommy Murphy (Holding The Man)

Tommy Murphy started as a playwright, with a residency at Sydney's Griffin Theatre where he wrote Strangers In Between and Holding The Man, which won the NSW Premiers Literary Award for Best Play two years running.  It was Holding the Man which would divert his career to screenwriting.  After many drafts and years of development, the film was released in 2014 to much acclaim.

 

Tommy discusses his journey from playwright to screenwriter, the reason his wi-fi doesn't stretch to the room out the back and how he came to write both the stage screen versions of Holding The Man.

Direct download: Tommy_Murphy_Complete.mp3
Category:TV & Film -- posted at: 11:54pm AEDT

20: Shaun Grant (Snowtown)

My guest this Episode is Shaun Grant.  He won an AACTA award in 2012 for his first screenplay, the chilling Snowtown and since then has worked on acclaimed TV shows Killing Time and Deadline Gallipoli.

 

In the podcast Shaun talks about why he had to quit his school teacher job on a Friday to start work on Killing Time the following Monday, how he came to write Snowtown and projects he's working on now, amongst other topics.

Direct download: Shaun_Grant_Complete.mp3
Category:TV & Film -- posted at: 11:45am AEDT

19: Margot Nash (UTS Screenwriting Lecturer)

Margot Nash is a very accomplished screenwriter and director.  Her feature films have been nominated for many AFI awards and the NSW Premiers Literary Award.  She's run documentary training workshops for Pacific Island women and mentorships for Indigenous filmmakers.  She currently teaches screenwriting at University of Technology in Sydney while her latest film 'The Silences' is a personal account of repressed and hidden histories in Margot's family.  Not only do we discuss her career, but Margot educates us with some great writing concepts and methodologies.

Direct download: Margot_Nash_Complete.mp3
Category:TV & Film -- posted at: 8:00am AEDT

18: Andrew Anastasios & Andrew Knight (The Water Diviner)

Andrew Anastasios co-wrote the hit film The Water Diviner and is currently working on the Jack Irish TV series as writer and Producer.

We begin talking about how one small line in a war diary prompted him to create this story.  We're soon joined by his co-writer of the film Andrew Knight.

We learn heaps about the background of the Water Diviner before the discussion turns to all aspects of the industry and how writers benefit from getting away from their desks and learning to collaborate with all areas of a production.

Direct download: Andrew_Anastasios-Knight_Complete.mp3
Category:TV & Film -- posted at: 12:12pm AEDT

17: Awgie Awards 2015

This Ep is something very different.  Instead of a sitdown interview, thanks to the AWG I was lucky enough to interview winners backstage at the 48th Annual Australian Writers Guild Awards (Awgies) last Friday night, 11th September 2015.  There are 21 short clips which encompass most of the winners on the night.  

  1. Andrew Anastasios
  2. Tommy Murphy
  3. Brendan Cowell
  4. Dave Wade
  5. Tim Pye
  6. Aden Rolfe
  7. Josh Thomas (for Kate McCartney & Kate McLennan)
  8. Bruce Griffiths
  9. Sandy Cameron
  10. Joel Slacksmith & Nazeem Hussain
  11. Josh Thomas
  12. Michael Lucas & Stuart Page
  13. Louise Bowes
  14. Nicole Ash (for Alan Seymour)
  15. Charlotte Rose Hamlyn
  16. David Witt
  17. Nicki Bloom
  18. Katherine Thomson
  19. Jan Sardi & Mac Gudgeon
  20. Shaun Grant
  21. Andrew Anastasios

 

 

 

 

Direct download: Awgies_Complete.mp3
Category:TV & Film -- posted at: 9:19pm AEDT

16: Sigrid Thornton (Peter Allen: Not The Boy Next Door)

The Sullivans, Prisoner, The Man From Snowy River, All The Rivers Run, The Far Country, Seachange and Underbelly, to name but a few.

This episode of the podcast we take a look at screenwriting from a different perspective.  That of the actress.  I was privileged to talk to acting legend Sigrid Thornton.  We talk about what she looks for in a script and find out some favourite memories from her career. 

Direct download: Sigrid_Thornton_Complete.mp3
Category:TV & Film -- posted at: 10:51pm AEDT

15: Peter Gawler (Underbelly)

Senior Drama Producer at Screentime Peter Gawler has had a long and successful career writing and producing numerous shows, most notably the Underbelly franchise.  Peter talks about his path into the industry via some less than safe stunt shooting and then as a trainee at Crawfords.  He also discusses how the upcoming Wolf Creek series came about and his enjoyment of writing in the horror genre.

Direct download: Peter_Gawler_Complete.mp3
Category:TV & Film -- posted at: 12:00pm AEDT

14: Tom Hegarty (Crawfords Legend)

This episode is something a bit different than normal in that my guest is a living legend of Australian Screenwriting, Tom Hegarty.

Tom was a writer during the glory years of Crawfords during the 60's, 70's and 80's, working on such influential shows as Homicide, Division 4, Matlock Police, Eureka Stockade, A Town Like Alice. Tom also worked through the 90's on E Street, Stingers and Blue Heelers.

Tom talks about his journey into screenwriting (via theatre and BBC radio plays) and tells some great stories of working at Crawfords and especially with Hector Crawford himself.  

Direct download: Tom_Hegarty_Complete.mp3
Category:TV & Film -- posted at: 6:35pm AEDT

13: Debra Oswald (Offspring)

Debra Oswald has written on many local shows, Police Rescue, Wildside and even Bananas in Pyjamas to name but a few.  She has also written numerous plays, young adult novels and has another novel Useful, out now.  But it's as creator and head-writer of the highly successful Offspring that she is best known.

 

We delve into all things writing; Debra talks about tips and tricks to get into writing each day and of course we discuss Offspring. 

 

 

Direct download: Debra_Oswald_Complete.mp3
Category:TV & Film -- posted at: 9:29pm AEDT

12: Kelly Lefever (Prisoner, The Circuit)

Kelly Lefever comes from a long line of screenwriters and got her start on Prisoner as a 17 year old.  From there she has written for numerous productions including Neighbours, Blue Heelers, The Circuit and Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries to name but a few.  

In this episode Kelly discusses many topics including her writing routine, dealing with the anxiety of delivering scripts, the benefits of the Writers Guild and her life-changing experience working on The Circuit. 

Direct download: Kelly_Lefever_Complete.mp3
Category:TV & Film -- posted at: 12:00pm AEDT

11: Peter Mattessi (Eastenders)

How do you get a job working on the biggest soap in the UK?  Tell the truth and admit you’ve never seen the show!  It worked for Peter Mattessi, but he’s also a talented, hard-working writer.  While writing for Neighbours here in Australia, Peter still writes for Eastenders and Holby City back in England.  Peter talks about writing those popular shows, the pitching and development process in England and he also shares some great insights into balancing such a demanding workload in both Australia and the UK.

Direct download: Peter_Matessi_Complete.mp3
Category:TV & Film -- posted at: 12:22am AEDT

10: Adam Zwar (Wilfred)

Adam Zwar has appeared on our screens since the late 90's, but it was when his sitcom about a man in a dog suit (Wilfred) first aired in 2007 that his profile exploded.  Since then, he has been a constant in the comedy scene in Australia with The Agony... series of shows, Lowdown and even a US adaptation of Wilfred.

 

We talk about how Adam writes, how Wilfred and Lowdown came to be and what his next projects are.

Direct download: Adam_Zwar_Complete.mp3
Category:TV & Film -- posted at: 3:13pm AEDT

9: Kristen Dunphy (East West 101)

Kristen Dunphy started her career in the ABC script department, back when broadcasters did everything in-house.  She quickly moved up the ranks and got her first script on GP.  Over the years Kristen has written for numerous crime dramas including White Collar Blue, the acclaimed Wildside and East West 101 amongst many more.  

In this podcast, Kristen relates stories of her days at the ABC, the encouraging words given to her by a mentor after she won an AWGIE and like all writers, she still gets insecure about her scripts once she’s turned them in.

Direct download: Kristen_Dunphy_Complete.mp3
Category:TV & Film -- posted at: 12:02am AEDT

8: Sam Meikle (Home & Away, Neighbours)

Prolific screenwriter and AWGIE winner Sam Meikle may well be the most versatile writer we’ve had on the podcast.  Not only is he a prolific writer of Home & Away and Neighbours, but he’s written a documentary, numerous hour-long dramas, kid’s animation and currently has a feature film in the works.

Amongst other things, Sam outlines his technique for writing feature film screenplays and we find out he turned an early setback on All Saints into a great learning experience that helped him become the award-winning writer he is today.

 

Direct download: Sam_Meikle_Complete.mp3
Category:TV & Film -- posted at: 4:10pm AEDT

7: Niki Aken   (Anzac Girls)

This is a must listen for all aspiring screenwriters.  Emerging Writer Niki Aken shares her experience of breaking into the industry and gaining her first professional script.  We also delve deep into her writing process, learn that she did so much research for Underbelly she could have consulted back to the Police about their cases and how she managed to write the criminal characters who inhabit a very different world to herself.

Direct download: Niki_Aken_Complete.mp3
Category:TV & Film -- posted at: 1:14am AEDT

6: Zak Hilditch (These Final Hours)

Zak Hilditch is a Perth based Writer/Director who released his first feature film These Final Hours to much acclaim last year. 

On the podcast Zak discusses writing the film, how he obtained funding from ScreenWest and Screen Australia, being introduced to Rob Connolly, alternate endings and how he bounced back from the disappointing Australian box office.

Direct download: Zak_Hilditch_Complete.mp3
Category:TV & Film -- posted at: 1:16pm AEDT

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