Gender Matters
Brilliant Stories funding
BIographies
Sixteen
Nick Batzias Producer
Nick Batzias brings 14 years of experience in the Australian film industry to his role, working with acquisitions and distribution for Madman Entertainment for over a decade. He established the production and development arm of Madman, producing projects including the AACTA and SPA award-winning That Sugar Film (now the most commercially successful Australian documentary of all time), Matthew Saville's A Month of Sundays, sports comedy Save Your Legs! and ABC web series Wastelander Panda.
Virginia Whitwell Producer
Hailing from a production background, Virginia Whitwell is the in-house producer for Madman Production Company, where she has co-produced projects including A Month of Sundays, That Sugar Film and Save Your Legs!
Amy Gebhardt Director
Amy Gebhardt inhabits the two worlds of art and filmmaking, having created award-winning works in drama, documentary and experimental film. In 2016, Gebhardt launched a series of video artworks at MONA FOMA, as well making the visuals for Kate Miller- Heidke’s concert with the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra which was recently nominated for a Helpmann Award. Gebhardt held a major solo exhibition at Gertrude Contemporary which comprised a 5 screen installation entitled, There Are No Others, which explores the nature of being through a series of portraits of people who identify beyond traditional gender binaries. Gebhardt has directed several documentaries for ABC and SBS, including Heart as part of the Matchbox Films’ Anatomy Series which follows the storms of love between artist and muse, winning won Best Short Documentary at MIFF. Gebhardt’s film We Were Here, was a unique project commissioned by Screen Australia and Youtube using 100% user-generated content depicting a dark journey into the Australian psyche. We Were Here was nominated for the IF Award for Best Short Documentary. Through this project, Gebhardt was awarded a mentorship with director, Dr George Miller. In acknowledgment of exceptional multi-dimensional screen work, Gebhardt was awarded Kodak Australia’s New Director of 2008 and nominated for the Rising Talent Award at the IF Awards after graduating from a Masters in Directing at AFTRS. In 2008, Gebhardt also won the Australian Film Commission award for Excellence in Directing in recognition of films created at AFTRS. Gebhardt recently directed Second Unit on Macbeth starring Michael Fassbender, which premiered in competition at Cannes Film Festival 2015.
Veronica Gleeson Writer
Veronica Gleeson is Head of Creative at Madman Production Company, where she oversees the commissioning and development of feature film, documentary and television projects. Before Madman, Veronica was the Creative Director at Screen Australia, starting out as a development executive in 2009 and ultimately managing the Development unit’s funding decisions, 100+ feature slate, guidelines, staff and policy – as well as shepherding the ongoing creative journey of feature films greenlit by the production department, and assessing & making recommendations for feature film production investment. Veronica has worked for the Icon Films, Screen NSW, the AWG and freelanced as a film critic (IF Magazine, Ninemsn, Rotterdam IFF) and playwright (Sydney Festival, Griffin Theatre Company, The Production Company New York). Her short fiction has been published in various literary journals and online. She has assessed and worked on thousands of screenplays, and a large, diverse range of acclaimed Australian films. Her feature comedy Fox and Faun is in development with UK company Duck Soup, and she is the co-writer of theatrical documentary Spookers. Veronica is also the series creator and writer of a number of major television dramas in development with Madman. She is represented by Shanahan Management.
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