Alumni Action

Participate Film Academy is all about delivering hands-on experience that will open doors to an exciting career. We aim to inspire our students to be entrepreneurial, to create opportunities for themselves – to be movers and makers in the film industry. We are constantly delighted by their achievements.

Angela Pezzano and fellow Participate alumni, Paul Kleynjan and Dulce de Guzman, have founded a production company called Nuh! Productions. The trio are busy producing a feature, Who Knew, with Angela writing and directing, Paul producing and acting, and Dulce producing. Since Participate, Angela has also been stage manager for a play, The Girl From the West of the City by Wayne Tunks, and had a production role on the feature, The Hunt.

When not working as a national agency creative director at Nova 969 in Sydney, Andrew Bettridge is scripting his first feature as writer/director. Andrew’s role at Nova includes creating multimedia presentations using skills he learnt at Participate.

Ashleigh Cummings continues to perform in TV commercials, while she completes high school. Ashleigh, who was a best actress nominee at the 2008 AFI Awards for her role in Green Fire Envy, looks forward to a career as an actor.

Benjamin Hanly is one of the latest actors to join Class Act Theatre Inc's Bully Busters! production, a touring group of actors who promote anti-bullying through performances in schools around Australia.
 
Bradley Tomlinson has appeared in two features: Lovely Scary Wolves, directed by Rohan Michael Hoole, and The Gates of Hell. He has stretched his legs on stage too, playing Gus in Cats and appearing in a second production, The Producers. Bradley also made an appearance in the feature, The Day Hollywood Died.

Catherine Neasbey assists new Participate classes with their film productions and juggles this with her role as a project manager for Art of Multimedia, working on TV commercials and other productions. Catherine appeared as an extra in the feature, The Combination, alongside other Participate graduates.

Chester Ferro is involved in music video production. He has produced, directed and edited a video for Australian Idol 2007 top-12 contestant, Joseph Gatehau, for screening on ABC’s rage, Channel V, MTV and Network Ten.

After working on editing and sound for corporate productions, Christophe Delhaze has landed an editing role in the Network Ten newsroom. TV is providing a very different, very fast-paced experience. Christophe loves it!

Cory Colby has worked on several productions since Participate: features The 7th Hunt, as a grip, and Posthuman and The Day Hollywood Died, as a camera operator; short film The Hold Up, as a director of photography and in post–production; film festival Stinkwater 24, as a camera operator; corporate videos; and a cooking show for Foxtel.

Dana Newell has appeared on Criminal Investigations.

Daniel Madaniis has been busy working in advertising and marketing.

Elizabeth Cornwall has appeared in the TV series, Out of the Blue. She is also co-producing and directing a children's film with her daughters, who were inspired by the Participate film, Battle Therapy. Together they have picked up a CD/DVD contract with a major record/film company.

Elizabeth Hamilton did costumes for the feature, The Hunt, and has been studying at The Make-up Technicians.

Erik Rizk not only gained some brilliant friends, but also landed a role in the feature, The Day Hollywood Died, through the contacts he made at Participate. This has led to more roles in the short films, Posthuman and The Hold Up, and more recently a stage show performed at NIDA.

James Peniata has worked on two short films and is preparing to shoot a third. He has appeared in a music video and as an extra on The Cedar Boys, and is working with fellow Participate graduates Aleksei Vanamois, Jacqueline Murray, Jessica Arapi and Tracey Maxwell on a short film, in which she has a lead role.

Jessica Lytton has continued her studies. She’s now a full-time student at the International Film School Sydney. Jessica has also made a number of short films, is working on a major school project and plans pursue a career in Bollywood.

John Alexander did the sound and lighting design for two Pulse Group Theatre productions, Five Women Wearing the Same Dress and Spiked Heels.

John Clark has continued his studies. He is building his editing, directing, producing and technical skills at the International Film School Sydney, where he worked on 16 six-minute short films shot over a four-week period. John loves telling stories and plans to travel to Europe to try his hand at some classic European cinema.

Joseph Chan is all about furthering education and is completing a law degree.

Kieran G Donovan wrote and co-directed the feature, The Day Hollywood Died, and is working on a screenplay for the production company, Destria Entertainment, scheduled to begin production in 2009. Completed scripts Funshine, Klobbers and The Teddy Soul are either in production or scheduled to start in 2009.

Leigh Murray is working at Network Ten as a promotions production coordinator and junior producer, editing promos and graphics for TV shows. He has been cast in a supporting role in the feature, My Mate Mick, and is working with other Participate students on a short, Before Dark. Leigh is also writing a feature film script.

Lidia Dimoska attends drama classes, while she completes high school.

Magali Gillon has moved back to Montreal, Canada, where she works full-time as a production manager and project developer for short TV programs at Match Prod. The business is expanding across Canada, and into France and England. Magali is also working on various feature and short film projects as writer/producer/director. She says she’s into this industry more than ever and can't wait for what’s coming up next!

Maroun Joseph is in the feature, The Day Hollywood Died, and intends to continue his film studies in the US.

Melissa Hanes has appeared in a feature directed by Rohan M Hoole, with Sam Noble, in another feature called The Makeover, with Martin Dingle-Wall, and in a short called Ride, in which she played the lead. She has been cast in a support role in a new feature called Vanity, got herself an agent and is working toward travelling to the US.

Millie Zinner performed in Hell Hath No Fury, written and directed by award-winning playwright Wayne Tunks. The play, set in a hairdressing salon, is all about bitter women seeking revenge on men. Millie plans to move to the US.

Monica Kade and Tristan Velasco are the managing director and creative director respectively of a fresh, new magazine for rising artists, Mink Potential (www.minkmagazine.com).

Nenif David also appears in The Day Hollywood Died and is looking for an agent.

Paul Kleynjan performed in Eyes of Hope, an adolescent mental health charity concert, at Campbelltown RSL.
 
Stephanie Mak has taken up full-time work in marketing and visual merchandising since her cameo appearance in Battle Therapy, as well as video editing from home.

Tracey Maxwell has written and produced a short film, Before Dark, for entry into the Flake Film Festival. She has also been an extra in two features, The Cedar Boys and The Combination, and appeared in four short films and a Cass Eager music video.

Since graduating from Participate, Tristan Velasco has taken up freelance work in editing and post-production for corporate videos and TV commercials, and as a graphic artist. He appeared in the Participate cinema commercial and has also worked on two short films with fellow graduates.