The Long Game: How Acting School Grads Can Build and Sustain a Performing Career (September)

Host(s)

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  Michael McCall

  Michael originally hails from Glasgow, Scotland, but spent his formative years in Western Australia. He is a graduate of Curtin University (1997), with BA English (Theatre Arts/Creative Writing), as well as a graduate of the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) Acting Course (2001). In 2008, he completed Honours in Performance Studies, looking at the role the media plays for emerging playwrights, again at Curtin. He completed a Masters in film and television directing and screenwriting at the WA Screen Academy (2008-09). He completed a PhD at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA) in 2018, examining the methods of director, Mike Leigh. Michael has worked as a professional actor, director, writer, producer, dramaturg/script editor and arts educator for over 20 years.
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  Bert LaBonté

  One of Australia’s leading men, Bert’s Melbourne Theatre Company credits include: The Truth, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Lungs, Rupert, Birdland, The Mountaintop, Elling, A Behanding in Spokane, Clybourne Park, Richard III and others. For Sydney Theatre Company, he has performed in A Raisin in the Sun, All My Sons, The Grenade and Spelling Bee, and his Malthouse Theatre credits include: Cloudstreet, I am A Miracle, Time Share. Musical theatre credits include: The Book of Mormon (Watchtower Productions), Helpmann Award Winner An Officer and a Gentleman (Gordon Frost Organisation), Chess (The Production Company), Grey Gardens (The Production Company), Pippin (Kookaburra Theatre), Full Monty (IMG / David Atkins), Jesus Christ Superstar (Really Useful Group), Showboat (Livent/Marriner Productions), Guys and Dolls (Ambassador Group). Screen credits include Five Bedrooms (Networks Ten), Pieces of Her (Netflix), Lie With Me (Fremantle), FISK (ABC), The Newsreader (ABC), Surviving Summer (Netflix/Werner Film Productions), More Than This (Baby Banksia), Jack Irish (ABC), Wentworth (Foxtel), Playing for Keeps (Network Ten), Upper Middle Bogan (ABC), Tomorrow When The War Began (ABC), Lowdown (ABC), Wilfred (ABC), The Let Down (ABC/Netflix), and Squinters (SBS). Film credits including Animal Kingdom (Porchlight Films) and The Very Excellent Mr. Dundee (Kathy Morgan International).
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  Dave Newman

  Dave has worked in various aspects of the industry for the last 35 years, the last 25 years in Casting. In 2012, Dave joined forces with fellow casting director Tom McSweeney to form McSweeney Newman Casting, covering Australia and New Zealand for international and local projects, also participating in major international casting searches (CBS, HBO, Showtime, Paramount +, Disney+/AMC, MGM, Amazon, Netflix and more) Dave’s journey in casting began with hundred’s of commercial projects, helping lay the foundation for the transition into high profile feature films and long form drama. Dave calls his time as the Casting Associate (15 months) on THE PACIFIC as his degree in casting, having personally conducted over 3000 auditions on that project alone. Dave has won four Casting Guild of Australia (CGA) awards and was proud to hold the position as President of the CGA 2020-2022. Credits Include: Blacklight, Love and Monsters, Dora and the Lost City of Gold, Nautilus, Darby & Joan, The Castaways, No Escape - The Blue, Rock Island Mysteries, The Family Law, Australia Day, The Inbetweeners 2, Mako Mermaids, The Pacific & East West 101 Having spent many years conducting auditions, Dave realised long ago, that it’s not about perfection (that’s completely unachievable and a recipe for bad mental health & wellbeing - an audition will always be far, far away from a final performance), it's about helping actors find ways to trust that their interpretation of life, their sense of humour, their translation of love, anger, hate or whatever a scene may throw at them - is the one thing that actually sets them apart from anyone else. An actors greatest competition isn’t other actors, it’s usually within themselves and that inner battle to be honest, open, unfiltered and being brave enough to allow the world to see it - there’s beauty in the imperfections and the messy.

• Monica Keightley

  Mollison Keightley Management enables the creation and development of careers in the performing arts. Our highly experienced team come from diverse backgrounds including law, producing, marketing/PR and performing. We work in close partnership with our clients to help them achieve their artistic and career goals, whether locally, nationally or globally. Monica Keightley has an arts/law degree and has worked at law firms Purves Clarke Richards (now Gadens) in Melbourne and Ashurst in London. Though artist management has occupied the greater part of her working life, past gigs include fronting a jazz trio in Melbourne, touring and producing children’s theatre as a university student, helping run and write for an indie theatre magazine, and performing in Australia, Europe and the UK. She began running MKM (then Barbara Leane and Associates) in 2003.

• Andy Walker

  Andy Walker has produced over 130 hours of drama and narrative comedy for Australian and international audiences. He is currently in post production on Kate McCartney & Kate McLennan’s comedy mystery series DEADLOCH (Guesswork Television/Amazon Prime). Recent credits include SPREADSHEET (Northern Pictures/Paramount+) , Season 2 of FIVE BEDROOMS (Hoodlum/Paramount+) and all five seasons of Celia Pacquola & Luke McGregor’s hit comedy series ROSEHAVEN (Guesswork Television/ABC-TV). Walker was also the Casting Director on ROSEHAVEN. Other drama and comedy credits include TRUE STORY WITH HAMISH & ANDY (Radio Karate/Nine Network), Season 1 of WANTED (Matchbox Pictures/Seven Network) and Anne Edmonds’ THE EDGE OF THE BUSH (Guesswork Television/ABC-TV). Walker co-produced Seasons 1 and 2 of THE FAMILY LAW (Matchbox Pictures/SBS) and was one of the producers of the multi-award winning THE KETTERING INCIDENT (Porchlight Films/FOXTEL/BBC Worldwide). Earlier credits include drama series WONDERLAND and MR & MRS MURDER (both for FremantleMedia/Network TEN) and SATISFACTION (LoneHand/FOXTEL). Narrative comedy credits include A MOODY CHRISTMAS (Jungle/ABC-TV), LAID Season 2 (Porchlight Films/ABC-TV) and WOODLEY (Guesswork Television/ABC-TV).