Australians in Film (AiF), in partnership with Screen Australia, has today announced the 2026 participants in its internationally recognised Talent Gateway and Global Producers Exchange initiatives.
These highly competitive programs are designed to elevate Australian screen creatives by strengthening their professional capabilities and expanding their access to the global market.
Running online since 2021, Talent Gateway supports Australian writer/directors who have demonstrated recent international success, equipping them with the tools, industry access and strategic relationships needed to compete and collaborate in the global market.
The Global Producers Exchange, also established in 2021, focuses on strengthening the skills, knowledge, access and relationships necessary for Australian producers to succeed in the global market and to attract investment and market partnerships for Australian scripted content.
Peter Ritchie, Executive Director of Australians in Film, said: “For five years, AiF has proudly partnered with Screen Australia to open global pathways for Australia’s most exciting screen talent, both emerging and established. We are thrilled again to be working with Screen Australia, and to welcome the 2026 cohort.”
Through Talent Gateway and Global Producers Exchange, AiF are investing in a creative, globally competitive Australian screen sector that is recognised both internationally and at home.”
Screen Australia Chief Operating Officer Grainne Brunsdon said, “The 2026 cohort reflect the exceptional calibre, ambition, creative range and distinctive voices that are defining the future of Australian screen storytelling. Through these initiatives, Australian screen practitioners are able to foster international pathways, establish meaningful creative relationships and continue championing local stories on the world stage.”
The programs play an important role in building bridges between the Australian and international screen industries, providing participants with access to leading executives, producers and creative collaborators across key global markets.
Talent Gateway 2026 Participants:
- Jo-Anne Brechin (Qld)
With a Top 10 Most Watched Film on Amazon Prime US, Jo-Anne is an award-winning, queer, neurodivergent filmmaker who brings stories to life with humour and heart. With a slate of high-concept genre feature films, she thrives in the space where creativity meets commerce. Her latest Lionsgate creature-feature Killer Whale stars Virginia Gardner (Fall, Halloween, 1923) and as an AFTRS alumni, Jo-Anne’s work has screened on Netflix, Prime, iTunes, The Hallmark Channel, Great American Channel, ABC, SBS and at film festivals the world over, including GBiennale21, Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF), CinefestOz, Byron Bay and the Academy-Accredited Flickerfest. - Ra Chapman (Vic)
Ra Chapman is a multidisciplinary writer, actor and filmmaker working across film, television, documentary and theatre. Recognised as one of IF Magazine’s 2024 Rising Talents and selected for Screen Australia’s 2025 Talent USA: NY, she received a 2025 Australian Writers’ Guild (AWGIE) Award nomination and was shortlisted for the Betty Roland Prize for Scriptwriting for her series White Fever, which she created, wrote and starred in. She recently undertook a VicScreen Director’s attachment on the ABC series Separated at Birth and attended the 2025 Platform Busan Filmmaker Program. Her award-winning play K-Box premiered at Malthouse Theatre, and other notable work includes SBS series Night Bloomers, docu-series Adoptee Voices: Women of Melbourne and Hamlet play adaptation Because the Night. - Alberto Di Troia (Vic)
Alberto Di Troia is a writer and script producer working across stage and screen. Recently, he co-wrote Episode 2 and served as script producer on the crime drama The Survivors (Tony Ayres Productions/Netflix), based on the bestselling novel by Jane Harper. The series reached #2 on the global Netflix charts and the Top 10 in 85 countries. Alberto also wrote on the hit children’s TV series Spooky Files (Tony Ayres Productions/ABC) and is the co-director of award-winning independent theatre company Stage Mom. Alongside a slate of original film and television projects, he is currently developing a new play with Queensland Theatre Company. - Alexei Mizin (Vic) & Ryan van Dijk (NSW)
Alexei Mizin & Ryan van Dijk are the creators and writers of the Stan Original erotic thriller Watching You starring Aisha Dee. Watching You was nominated for Best Lead Actress at the 2026 AACTA awards and has been released globally on Hulu and Disney+. Alexei & Ryan are also writers on The Dispatcher for 60Forty Films and Apple TV+. They are currently developing numerous projects including a feature adaptation of Web, a classic John Wyndham sci-fi novel for Route 24 (UK) and Brouhaha (AU). Known for their propulsive concepts and intricate world-building, Alexei & Ryan collaborate with Australia’s leading production companies and have sold and developed high-end original projects for Apple TV+, Disney+ and the AMC Network. - Zoe Pepper (WA)
Zoe Pepper is a writer and director. She tells big-hearted, dark and irreverent stories. Her debut feature film Birthright had its world premiere at the 2025 Tribeca Film Festival before screening at Sydney Film Festival (SFF) and MIFF. Zoe worked as a writer on Jungle Entertainment’s thriller/comedy series Population 11 for Lionsgate and Stan. Zoe’s short form content has earned her a Directors’ Guild Award and an AWGIE award. She also has a long career writing and directing theatre. Zoe’s work is Helpmann-nominated and has played at the Sydney Opera House and Dark Mofo Festival. - Vic Zerbst and Jenna Owen (NSW)
Jenna Owen and Vic Zerbst (Freudian Nip) are award-winning comedy actors, writers and directors working on Gadigal land. They recently co-wrote, executive produced and starred in the Logie-nominated narrative comedy TV show Optics on ABC. They also starred in and wrote the film Nugget is Dead for Stan and CBS, which marked their debut as feature writers, associate producers and dual Logie nominees for Best Actress in a Comedy. Jenna and Vic sharpened their comedy teeth working for The Feed on SBS for five years, garnering them three AWGIE Awards and amassing over 90 million views online.
Global Producers Exchange 2026 Participants:
- Film Depot – Louise Smith (NSW)
Founded by award-winning producer Louise Smith, Film Depot is a film and television production company based in Sydney. Committed to producing compelling stories, they believe that collaboration is the heartbeat of creativity and love working alongside writers, directors and artists to ensure their vision remains at the
centre of every frame. Louise was Executive Producer of Studiocanal’s Kangaroo and producer of the TIFF-premiered documentary Whistle. At the ABC, she commissioned and executive-produced series such as Plum, Bay of Fires and Ladies in Black. Her producing credits include The End, The Square and the AACTA-winning Riot. - LateNite Films – Nicholas Colla (Vic)
LateNite is an independent production studio committed to investing in emerging creatives with strong, unique voices, helping tell their stories in a creatively supportive and collaborative environment. Their work uses humour to explore outsider stories that are unmistakably human and straddle the line between light and dark. Credits include fantasy comedy The Wizards of Aus (SBS) featuring Guy Pearce, children’s adventure comedy The Legend of Burnout Barry (ABC), Munch Rexford: Legendary Poacher!! (Adult Swim), Ruby Rai P.I. (ABC) and the AACTA-nominated Rebooted, which had its world premiere at Annecy. Their work has been nominated for multiple AACTA, Screen Producers Australia (SPA), ADG and AWG awards. - Mad Ones – Liam Heyen and Cyna Strachan (NSW)
Mad Ones was founded by Producers Cyna Strachan and Liam Heyen in 2020. In 2026, Mad Ones released their first feature Jimpa, directed by Sophie Hyde and starring Olivia Colman and John Lithgow. Jimpa had its World Premiere at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. Mad Ones are currently finishing their second feature film It’s All Going Very Well… written and directed by Tilda Cobham-Hervey and produced alongside Dev Patel’s production company Minor Realm, starring Cobham-Hervey alongside Academy-Award nominee Jonathan Pryce. Mad Ones also produced the award-winning short form series Latecomers (SBS) and are about to release Homebodies, which premiered at Series Mania before going to air on SBS in March 2026. - Magnetic Stories – Melissa Kelly (WA)
Headed by Producer Melissa Kelly, Magnetic Stories is a Western Australian-based production company committed to producing screen content that engages, entertains and enlightens audiences worldwide. The company’s focus is scripted TV series and feature films. Recent productions include the 12-part series Population 11 with Jungle Entertainment, the feature documentary Laura’s Choice, and the 6-part SBS Digital Original Iggy & Ace. Magnetic Stories’ productions have screened theatrically and at major international film festivals worldwide and won numerous Australian and international screen awards. The company won the Screen Producers Australia (SPA) Award for Breakthrough Business of the Year in 2017. - Máximo – Liliana Muñoz (NSW)
Máximo is a Sydney and Los Angeles–based independent studio founded by Chilean-Australian producer Liliana Muñoz, developing premium scripted series with global appeal through international co-productions. The company champions ambitious Australian writers and strategically packages their projects with global partners, attaching leading directors and cast to maximise worldwide reach. Máximo’s slate includes Blood on the Ironwood by Kodie Bedford with FilmNation (Anora, Conclave) and SBS; Oh, Baby by Keir Wilkins with A+E Studios (The Lincoln Lawyer, UnREAL); and Stone Ponies by Dave Paterson with Mojo Global (Murder in a Small Town). Máximo produced the AACTA Award-winning ABC series All My Friends Are Racist with Hoodlum, which premiered internationally at Series Mania. - Speech&Drama – Nick Waterman and Meg Washington (Qld)
Speech&Drama Pictures is an innovative Australian production company founded by award-winning filmmakers Nick Waterman and Meg Washington. Working at the intersection of film, music and theatre, they are known for emotionally resonant, visually striking storytelling. Their film How to Make Gravy, inspired by the classic Paul Kelly song, earned a record-breaking 15 AACTA nominations in 2025 – the most ever for a debut feature film. With a diverse slate of projects in film, animation and opera, Speech&Drama places the audience at the heart of everything, believing that artistic excellence and commercial success go hand in hand.
Presenting Partners:
Australians in Film and Screen Australia
Supporting Partners:
Screen NSW, Screen Queensland, Screenwest and VicScreen
Industry Partners:
Australian Directors’ Guild, Australian Writers’ Guild, Screen Canberra, Screen Producers Australia, Screen Tasmania, Screen Territory, South Australian Film Corporation, Screenworks
Media Enquiries
Jane Lunn
+61 402 248 811 | [email protected]
All other general/non-media enquiries
Sydney + 61 2 8113 5800 | Melbourne + 61 3 8682 1900 | [email protected]
Media Enquiries
Kellie Adcock | Senior Publicist
+ 61 2 8113 5800 | [email protected]
All other general/non-media enquiries
Sydney + 61 2 8113 5800 | Melbourne + 61 3 8682 1900 | [email protected]
