Breaking Screen

Today’s episode features Danielle Redford, a producer and the founder of Contra Stories whose latest project is the six-episode online series Ina , which is written and directed by Rachel Maxine Anderson and available to watch on YouTube now https://www.youtube.com/@ina.series Throughout the episode, Danielle talks about how working in distribution has influenced her as a producer, her experience...

Joining the podcast is Ben Jenkins, the creator and one of the writers of the new six-part Stan Original series The Killings at Parrish Station, a cosmic horror drama that releases on the streamer on June 24. Set across two time periods – 1987 and present day – it begins when a gruesome massacre at a remote research station plunges a detective (played in the past by Mia Wasikowska and in the prese...

Writer/director Tin Pang joins the podcast to talks about drawing from his own life for his projects, takeaways from taking his series Sell-Out to market, key learnings from directors’ attachments on A Place to Call Home and Home and Away , breaking down what a 1st, 2nd and 3rd assistant director (or AD) does, and how his work in those roles – and others – has set him up to be the director he is t...

On today’s episode is lawyer Eve Foreman, who’s the principal of entertainment law practice Macleay William. Eve talks through whether legal requirements differ if your project is low budget or big budget, some of the legal jargon people might encounter, what to do if you need clearances for things like video game characters or songs, terms to expect or look out for if you’re selling your project,...

SBS Head of Scripted Nakul Legha talks about how to pitch to SBS, the types of series they are and aren’t commissioning, and advice for Digital Originals. Applications are now open for the Digital Originals initiative from SBS, NITV and Screen Australia, and Nakul runs through who is eligible, what they’re looking for, how to make your application stand out and many more Frequently Asked Questions...

On the latest episode of Breaking Screen is Christopher Kam, the Head of Development at Typecast and a freelance story producer through his label Kameo Scripted. Christopher has more than 15 years of experience in the film and television industry, working in both Australia and the UK. Throughout the podcast, he talks about the differences between developing television in Australia compared to over...

Screen Producers Australia (SPA) CEO Matthew Deaner joins the podcast ahead of the annual conference Screen Forever, which takes place in late April 2026. The conference is made up of two parts – the online Global Market, and the in-person conference and market, which runs for three days (April 28-30) on the Gold Coast. Throughout the podcast, Matthew gives tips for anyone planning on attending Sc...

AP Pobjoy joins the latest episode to talk about the SBS Digital Originals series Homebodies. AP is the creator, lead-writer and one of the directors on the series, which is streaming on SBS on Demand now. Throughout the podcast, AP talks about the journey of Homebodies – from pitching the idea to Mad Ones producer Cyna Strachan, through to writers’ rooms with people like Charlotte Mars, working w...

On today’s episode of Breaking Screen is Lee Naimo. As the Head of Creative for Grouse House, Lee works for Haven't You Done Well Productions, the production company of comedy group Aunty Donna. As Grouse House says: “Grouse House connects Australia’s most cooked comedians with the freaks who froth it. Curated by Aunty Donna, we produce and showcase internet videos, podcasts and live shows. It’s t...

Screenwriter and director Hannah Lehmann joins the latest episode of Breaking Screen to talk about her writing process, how making a vertical series prepared her for feature film and TV, dealing with rejection, exploring the realities of working in the screen industry through her writing, and much more. For her digital series Two Sides , Hannah won an Australian Directors Guild award and a Streamy...

Jimpa producer Liam Heyen joins the latest episode of Breaking Screen ahead of the film's  release in Australian cinemas on February 19th. Directed and co-written by Sophie Hyde, Jimpa stars Olivia Colman as a filmmaker who is forced to reckon with the past when her teenager (played by Aud Mason-Hyde) declares they want to move to Amsterdam to live with their gay grandfather, “Jimpa” (played...

We're joined on Breaking Screen by Michelle Law, a writer and actor who writes for print, theatre and screen. Throughout the episode, Michelle talks about the differences in writing for those three mediums, her writing process, managing her time as a freelancer to avoid burnout, juggling parenting and working in the industry, and much more. Michelle has been published in numerous Australian books,...

We’re joined on Breaking Screen by screenwriter Gretel Vella and Jungle Entertainment’s Chloe Rickard, who both executive produced the new Stan original series He Had it Coming , which launches on November 20.  Throughout the podcast, Gretel and Chloe talk about the journey of He Had it Coming from horror feature to buddy comedy/murder mystery, their approach to writing – and selling – a half...

We're joined on Breaking Screen by Alexei Mizin and Ryan van Dijk, the creators, writers and script producers of Stan’s original six-part series Watching You, which is based on the J.P. Pomare novel 'The Last Guests’ and is produced by Lingo Pictures in association with ITV Studios. The series stars Aisha Dee as Lina, who, after her affair is captured by hidden cameras, sets out to unmask an insid...

We’re joined on Breaking Screen by Amie Batalibasi and Nikki Tran, the producers of 18 x 1 minute series Ceebs , which was written by and stars Betiel Beyin & Leigh Lule. Throughout the podcast, Amie and Nikki share their insights on developing and creating an online series, what vertical storytelling actually is, learnings from their marketing and release strategy, unexpected hurdles with the...

We're joined on Breaking Screen by Leela Varghese and Emma Hough Hobbs, the co-writer/directors of the award winning animated feature film Lesbian Space Princess, who talk about splitting responsibilities during development and production, the differences in writing for live action versus animation, and tips for working in low-budget animation. Lesbian Space Princess premiered at the 2025 Berlin I...

We’re joined on Breaking Screen by Vanilla Tupu, a director, writer and development manager who talks about takeaways from being in the development team at Wooden Horse; working across projects that bridge music, film and Pacific culture; and some crucial advice for any freelance creatives, but particularly emerging ones. In the music world, Vanilla has directed and produced acclaimed music videos...

We’re joined by filmmaker Josh Sambono, a Jingili man who is known for his expertise in the action and horror genres, who talks about how his early training in sound recording influenced him as filmmaker, working as a director's attachment with Taika Waititi on Thor: Love and Thunder , and how the years of effort, note-taking, small steps and seeming dead-ends all came together when he pitched to...

Award-winning screenwriter and director Yolanda Ramke joins this 'mini-break' episode of Breaking Screen - a shorter episode than usual - to talk about her methodical approach to writing Australian television and advice for writers and directors trying to get a foot in the industry.  Yolanda first found success when she wrote, and co-directed the 2013 viral short film Cargo with frequent coll...

We’re joined on Breaking Screen by Monica Zanetti - an award-winning screenwriter and director, who talks about how she shifts between working on her own IP or being a gun for hire on film and television, her writing and directing process, how being a Catherine Hardwicke fan led her to filmmaking, and why the Notes app has become a crucial part of development. Monica is the co-creator of the SBS s...

We’re joined on Breaking Screen by Charles Williams, an acclaimed Australian film director, writer, and producer, who talks about what winning the short film Palme d’Or in 2018 meant to him, how the films he grew up watching inspired his debut feature Inside , and how his work in short filmmaking prepared him when it came to directing a feature. Charles has won more than 60 international awards, i...

We’re joined on Breaking Screen by writer Melissa Lee Speyer, who talks about what her time as both a lawyer and development executive taught her about writing, how to interpret notes, her writing process, why her career path hasn’t been a linear one, and much more. Melissa's credits include episodes of television series The Heights for Matchbox Pictures and season two of Random and Whacky and for...

We’re joined on Breaking Screen by Sam Meikle, a writer and creator with hundreds of hours of produced credits that range from television comedies, dramas, animation, and web series. Sam was a co-creator, head writer, and Executive Producer of the 2022 ABC/Netflix series MaveriX and the previous year he was a writer, executive producer and co-showrunner of the series Wakefield for the ABC, BBC Stu...

This episode of Breaking Screen features Maria Lewis, a best-selling author, screenwriter, and film curator who has an Encyclopaedic knowledge of pop culture and genre specifically. After starting out as a journalist, Maria has gone on to write eleven books (including novels for Marvel and Assassin’s Creed), win an AWGIE for her podcast The Phantom Never Dies w hich was produced by Nova Entertainm...

The first episode of Breaking Screen features Yingna Lu of Spaceboy Studios, a creative producer who discusses everything from festival strategies for short films, to her advice when it comes to applying for grants and initiatives, and different takeaways from producing online series, short films, television and features. Yingna has worked across a variety of formats - on online projects including...