Impact Project Lab
Meet the people and the projects behind Dame Changer’s six-week Impact Project Lab led by Jackie Turnure.
Meet Jackie Turnure
JACKIE TURNURE
BIO
Jackie Turnure is a triple Emmy award winning Impact Producer with over 15 years experience producing impact campaigns for producers and production companies, connecting their films and television shows with audiences who care about the issues at the heart of their work.
Jackie’s documentary impact projects include the women in STEMM feature doc, THE LEADERSHIP, migrant documentary, ROSEMARY’S WAY, adult survivors of childhood trauma doc and podcast, GHOSTHUNTER, 3 part ocean series, AUSTRALIA’S OCEAN ODYSSEY, mens’ mental health series, MAN UP, and asylum seeker feature film, SANCTUARY. Her drama impact projects include detention centre series STATELESS, social housing television series, THE HEIGHTS, modern slavery feature BUOYANCY, Muslim comedy feature ALI’S WEDDING, and Indigenous feature film, SWEET COUNTRY.
Before returning to Australia in 2015, Jackie headed up the Los Angeles office of Think Jam, a digital marketing agency for major entertainment clients including Sony Pictures, Warner Brothers, Paramount, Lionsgate, MGM and Twentieth Century Fox.
EMMY AWARD-WINNING
IMPACT PRODUCER
Meet the teams and their projects
Click the name beneath each image to read bio
KATE SEPAROVICH, GROWING THE POT
BIO
Kate Separovich is a producer who hails from Western Australia. She co-produced the documentary GIRT BY SEA, a cinematic love letter to the coast line of Australia, commissioned by ABC with the Perth International Arts Festival and was select for Sheffield DocFest. Kate’s short drama’s include RONAN’S ESCAPE (1.2million Youtube views, and 10 international awards), TIDE, which premiered at Vancouver International Film Festival and GRADUATION AFTERNOON A Stephen King Adaptation that was selected to Rhode Island International Film Festival.
Kate was selected by Screen Australia to attend the Rotterdam Film Lab in 2014 and was selected to be part of the 2015 Emerging Producer $100k initiative offered by Screenwest. In addition to her producing credits Kate is a production co-ordinator and production manager with more than 10 years of experience in the industry working for the likes of MTV, Cordell Jigsaw Zapruder, Electric Pictures, Essential Media and Entertainment as well as many iconic West Australian dramas like Red Dog: True Blue, Paper Planes and Son of a Gun. She most recently worked as the Associate Producer on the adaptation of the Tim Winton novel Dirt Music, Produced by Oscar nominated Producers Finola Dwyer and Angie Fielder.
Kate is a dedicated advocate for sustainability of and in the screen industry through her previous role as deputy chair of the Film and Television Institute and continuing now as an advisory board member of Raising Films Australia and is a trained Contact Officer and has basic Safety Officer Training.
PROJECT SYNOPSIS
A coal mining town is transforming from black to green, but not everyone agrees on cannabis being one of the industries.
CAROLE MCKEE, GROWING THE POT
BIO
Emerging Impact Producer with local government project management, community development skillset. Portfolios included the arts, media, sport & recreation, community engagement/safety, diversity/inclusion & funding. Network includes screen, theatre, government, commercial & not for profit sectors.
Passionate about enabling stories to engage audiences, inspire action & relationships which continue to make a difference. Keen to expand skills, experience & toolkit (spreadsheets & DS Impact Field Guide).
PROJECT SYNOPSIS
A coal mining town is transforming from black to green, but not everyone agrees on cannabis being one of the industries.
GROWING THE POT
CLAIRE LEACH, GROWING THE POT
BIO
Claire Leach has been in the film industry, locally, nationally and internationally for over 20 years.
For the last 15 years, Claire has been lucky enough to work with regional communities around Western Australia within the Pilbara, Central Australia and South Western Australia. Claire’s work has seen her film documentaries and cultural projects while also facilitating community film making workshops both in documentary and drama production. She has worked in regional communities such as Yindjibarndi, Ngarlama, Nyiyaparli, Banyjima and
Ngaanyatjarra.
Her most recent project has been filming and directing for the SBS observational documentary series Our Law which has been given unprecedented access into the WA police department following indigenous police officers in the line of duty.
Claire has experience working within multiple formats of film production such as documentaries, TV series and TVC’s. Claire has also worked with various NGOs, Arts groups and Aboriginal corporations as well as Anthropological companies.
Claire’s passion for filming is about exploring peoples truth, what binds us together as a community, to help us understand the complexities of our place in this world.
PROJECT SYNOPSIS
A coal mining town is transforming from black to green, but not everyone agrees on cannabis being one of the industries.
GROWING THE POT
KAYE HARRISON, MUSIC CENTRAL
BIO
Kaye Harrison is an independent documentary filmmaker who explores difficult topics in an engaging and illuminating way. Working mostly as an observational DOP/director, Kaye develops strong relationships of trust with her participants and this translates into a powerful intimacy in her films. Her vision is to represent her subject’s with integrity and compassion so that their stories might open the hearts and minds of the audience. Kaye was director/DOP of the award-winning documentaries Crossing the Line (2005 ABC) and The Long Goodbye (2010 ABC). Her acclaimed feature documentary The Sunnyboy (2013 ABC) premiered at the Vivid/Sydney Film Festival as a finalist in the Documentary Australia Foundation competition for Best Australian Documentary. The Sunnyboy also had a successful cinema release and outreach campaign around the country. Kaye’s documentary feature, Sanctuary, an intimate portrait of a young Iraqi man who traverses the world in search of asylum had its world premiere at the 2019 Sydney Film Festival where it also screened as a finalist in the Documentary Australia Foundation competition for Best Australian Documentary. Kaye’s current documentary, Music Central explores the impact of music on the wellbeing of individuals and communities on the NSW Central Coast.
PROJECT SYNOPSIS
Music Central explores the power of music to improve youth mental health and build strong and cohesive communities on the NSW Central Coast. Be it primary school students seeking to engage in education, homeless youth seeking a place to belong or talented musicians seeking a career in the industry, music reveals itself a mighty vehicle for self-discovery. Beyond the individual, Music Central explores the power of music to build connections with others, be it via ensembles, performing to an audience, or sharing in the cultural traditions of the local Darkinjung people. At a time when humanity is increasingly disconnected from self, from each other and from the land on which we live, Music Central is a timely roadmap for healing.
MUSIC CENTRAL
FERN MEI SIM, MUSIC CENTRAL
BIO
Fern Mei Sim is a director, producer, and editor working on Cammeraygal Land in Sydney, Australia. She recently made her television directorial debut with her documentary ‘Australia’s Queen of Burlesque’ (2022) which premiered on SBS VICELAND and is now streaming on SBS On Demand (https://bit.ly/39eTrre). Fern has five years of broadcast media experience, having worked at organisations such as SBS, ABC, Channel 7, Endemol Shine Australia, Polaris Pictures, and Deerstalker Pictures. She was recently the Associate Producer of ‘Lost For Words’ Season 2, a 3 x 1-hour SBS docu-series about adults with literacy and numeracy difficulties (Season 1 trailer: https://bit.ly/3QgPJ0Q). Fern was also the Associate Producer of a new lifestyle series for a global streaming service, and Script Supervised Season 3 of 1 For All, a Dungeons and Dragons comedy web-series with over 17 million views (https://tinyurl.com/y6g8mync). Fern is a queer Chinese-Malaysian woman who is motivated by the need to systematically change the Australian mediascape, both in front of and behind the camera, so that it more accurately reflects the diverse cultural, socioeconomic, and gender experiences of its audiences.
PROJECT SYNOPSIS
Music Central explores the power of music to improve youth mental health and build strong and cohesive communities on the NSW Central Coast. Be it primary school students seeking to engage in education, homeless youth seeking a place to belong or talented musicians seeking a career in the industry, music reveals itself a mighty vehicle for self-discovery. Beyond the individual, Music Central explores the power of music to build connections with others, be it via playing in an ensemble, performing to an audience, or sharing in the cultural traditions of the local Darkinjung people. At a time when humanity is increasingly disconnected from self, from each other and from the land on which we live, Music Central is a timely roadmap for healing.
MUSIC CENTRAL
PRISCILLA CAMERON, NO FISH PICS
BIO
Priscilla currently has several feature films and television series in financing and development: The Breathing Sea (feature film in financing – co-writer/ director), No Fish Pics (television dramedy series in development – writer/ director), Croak (feature film in development deal with Netflix – co-writer). The Breathing Sea won the AWG and Adelaide Film Festival’s INSITE AWARD for the best unproduced screenplay in Australia and her previous short films have all won awards and been sold nationally and internationally.
Her feature film, as writer/director, The Butterfly Tree premiered domestically at the Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) and internationally at the Canadian Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). TIFF is one of the largest film festivals in the world: in 2016, just 26 international feature films were selected to screen out of the 5,693 submitted (Toronto International Film Festival 2017). In the same year, The Butterfly Tree was nominated for three AACTA Awards (Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards) for best original screenplay (Priscilla Cameron), best actor (Ewen Leslie) and best original score (Caitlyn Yeo), and was nominated for five Ozflix Australian Independent Screen Awards. The film sold internationally to several territories, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Russia, China Pan Asia and Bulgaria.
Over the past 12 years, Priscilla has also designed and taught screenwriting and directing courses at the Griffith Film School to undergraduate and postgraduate students across the disciplines of live action, animation and games. She recently completed her PhD at Griffith Film School. Her thesis, ‘Taking tonal proof to the world stage: Developing a framework of creative and strategic choices to enhance an aspiring Australian feature film director’s vision’, explores how first-time Australian live action feature film directors can effectively transition from narrative short films to narrative feature films using a traditional financing structure while minimising domestic distributor risk and strengthening an original vision.
PROJECT SYNOPSIS
A 8 x 1-hour dramedy series about and for women who seek more from life (and any curious onlookers). It’s a bold, raw truth-telling of three combative, passionate mid-life women – and single mothers – exploring their sexuality across cultures and age groups determined to avoid going quietly or traditionally into old age.
NO FISH PICS
BETH ARMSTRONG, NO FISH PICS
BIO
Podcast host: Curveball, Best Well Being, Australian Podcast Awards, 2020.
Freelance director/writer, five award-winning shorts including Best of Festival Palm Springs and broadcasts in Japan, Canada and Australia. Special mention, ADG Best Directing Short, 2015.
Director’s Attachment to Mel Gibson – Hacksaw Ridge, 2018.
Director ten half-hour episodes children’s TV – Drop Dead Weird, (Aust/Irish Co-Pro) nominated, ADG Best Director, 2018.
Winner, storytelling Sydney Grand Slam, The Moth, 2019.
Screen NSW funded development of Beth’s feature, Cry Baby, 2020.
Beth directs commercials – Two Little Films since 2006.
Writer ten-minute cinema commercial for an elite brand for Asian cinema, Future TV 2020.
Writer, Noteworthy, The Cry and The Haven – Medium (Int) and Wanderlust Magazine (UK)
Beth has worked as an actor and voicing animated series’ and as a book narrator.
Masters in Film Directing (AFTRS). Diploma in Theatre Acting (USQ).
PROJECT SYNOPSIS
A 8 x 1-hour dramedy series about and for women who seek more from life (and any curious onlookers). It’s a bold, raw truth-telling of three combative, passionate mid-life women – and single mothers – exploring their sexuality across cultures and age groups determined to avoid going quietly or traditionally into old age.
NO FISH PICS
GEORGINA NAIDU, NO FISH PICS
BIO
Georgina Naidu is a graduate of the Victorian College of the Arts.
Georgina is best remembered for her role as Phrani Gupta on the much loved ABC TV series Seachange. Her most recent work includes the up-coming SBS series, A Beginner’s Guide To Grief, Harrow (Series 3), Clickbait, Kitty Flanagan’s ABC series Fisk, Network Ten Series Playing for Keeps and How to Stay Married. She has appeared as a guest on numerous television series which include Rosehaven (Series 2), Newton’s Law, Offspring, At Home with Julia, Please Like Me (Series 4), Wentworth (Series 4), The Beautiful Lie, Winners & Losers, Mr & Mrs Murder, Time of Our Lives, City Homicide, Satisfaction, MDA, Blue Heelers, Something in the Air, and Stingers.
Her film credits include Ali’s Wedding, Vessel, The Boys Are Back in Town, Playing for Charlie, Mall Boy, Dead Letter Office and Road to Nhill.
Georgina has worked extensively in theatre not only as an actor but also as a writer. In 2005 Georgina’s play Yellowfeather, which she wrote and performed in, had its world premiere at the Sydney Opera House before touring nationally and internationally. Selected theatre credits include Dance Nation, Minnie & Liraz, Ganesh Versus the Third Reich, Attract Repel, Fearless N, The Habib Show, Macbeth, Run Rabbit Run, and The Book Keeper.
PROJECT SYNOPSIS
A 8 x 1-hour dramedy series about and for women who seek more from life (and any curious onlookers). It’s a bold, raw truth-telling of three combative, passionate mid-life women – and single mothers – exploring their sexuality across cultures and age groups determined to avoid going quietly or traditionally into old age.
NO FISH PICS
BOBBI-LEA DIONYSIUS - BOOBS & BABES
BIO
I am a creative producer, editor, and outreach film marketer, with a passion for social impact documentaries and factual series, with a personal mission of making the world a better place, one piece of content at a time.
Through working with filmmakers, non-profits, and philanthropic donors and foundations, I am forging alternative funding models and pathways to audience. My research into impact producing included a 7-week placement in Indonesia with the media NGO, EngageMedia as part of my John Darling Fellowship in which I was the first Australian to receive.
Other awards include 3 Golden Key Honour Scholar awards and a LiveLab award for Academic Excellence. I am currently writing a research paper on impact producing to complete my Masters Degree at Griffith Film School, where I also work as a sessional supervisor for undergraduate projects and industry professional practice projects.
Recent career highlights including production managing Trish Lake’s Feature Documentary Love Opera, which premiered at the Brisbane Film Festival and performing the role of PMD for the Australian/Hungarian Feature Documentary LILI, which premiered at the Sydney Film Festival and through the exposure gained during its theatrical release in Hungary, LILI won the Hungarian Film Critics Award – the highest film accolade in Hungary.
PROJECT SYNOPSIS
Racing against her biological clock and the family cancer curse, a single, career woman embarks on an unconventional path to create life and cheat death, but a shocking discovery will change everything… This is not the Ken & Barbie story she was expecting. Much in the same vein of Embrace, Super-Size me and That Sugar Film – Boobs & Babes is a first-person wellness experiment and impact film about women’s health where the crossroads between IVF and cancer meet.
BOOBS AND BABES
NATALIE GRUBE, THE NORFOLK PROJECT
BIO
Natalie is an indigenous filmmaker from Norfolk Island whose work focuses primarily on cultural and linguistic revitalisation, environmental protection and creating films for social discussion. She has also produced, filmed and co-wrote several award winning drama and comedy films which have been screened at Byron Bay Film Festival, Byron All Shorts, The Mother Tongue Film Festival (USA), and SBS. Natalie is currently working on a multimedia campaign to educate Norfolk Island locals and visitors on effective waste management and minimisation.
PROJECT SYNOPSIS
Born and raised on Norfolk Island, Natalie Grube has a shocking realisation when her son gashes his hand on rusty tin washed onto their local beach from Headstone rubbish dump: their tiny Pacific Ocean island home has reached tipping point and is drowning under the weight of its own waste.
Compelled into action, Natalie embarks on a mission to regenerate Norfolk Island’s ecology before it’s too late. But to achieve this, 1800 Norfolk Island residents first need to confront their own reality and some inconvenient truths.
THE NORFOLK PROJECT
SAME OZERGUN, THE NORFOLK PROJECT
BIO
Sam is an Australian Curriculum Specialist currently undertaking a Master of Teaching at Melbourne University. With a Science degree, and Honours in neuroscience, Sam is an expert in strategising screen content for teaching and classroom learning. He works primarily on social and environmental change through education. Recently, Sam researched and devised education kits for Vitamania, Playing With Sharks, Bushfire Animal Rescue, Gruen Transfer, The Gateway (Indigenous) VR with Phoria and The Norfolk Island Project.
PROJECT SYNOPSIS
Born and raised on Norfolk Island, Natalie Grube has a shocking realisation when her son gashes his hand on rusty tin washed onto their local beach from Headstone rubbish dump: their tiny Pacific Ocean island home has reached tipping point and is drowning under the weight of its own waste.
Compelled into action, Natalie embarks on a mission to regenerate Norfolk Island’s ecology before it’s too late. But to achieve this, 1800 Norfolk Island residents first need to confront their own reality and some inconvenient truths.
THE NORFOLK PROJECT
DR ANNE CHESHER, THE NORFOLK PROJECT
BIO
As a creative media producer, Anne has produced education content and resources for ABC, SBS, Foxtel, BBC Knowledge, Discovery Kids, Showtime and National Geographic – with whom she worked with for fifteen years developing assets for the global market. Anne’s experience and knowledge of the education sector and the screen industry has culminated in her PhD research entitled – Television in the 21st Century Classroom. Anne is now focusing on contributing her extensive understanding of screen-based learning and education markets to social and environmental impact productions.
Anne is a Senior Lecturer for SAE Master of Creative Industries in Australia and also globally, a member of the SAE Scholarship and Research Committee, an Executive member of ASPERA and a Board Director of Screenrights Australia.
PROJECT SYNOPSIS
Born and raised on Norfolk Island, Natalie Grube has a shocking realisation when her son gashes his hand on rusty tin washed onto their local beach from Headstone rubbish dump: their tiny Pacific Ocean island home has reached tipping point and is drowning under the weight of its own waste.
Compelled into action, Natalie embarks on a mission to regenerate Norfolk Island’s ecology before it’s too late. But to achieve this, 1800 Norfolk Island residents first need to confront their own reality and some inconvenient truths.
THE NORFOLK PROJECT
LUCA FOX, THE NORFOLK PROJECT
BIO
Luca is an award-winning filmmaker and the co-founder of Eye Design Films. He has created content for high-profile influencers such as Prince Ea and Kasey Chambers, and has written, directed and filmed award-winning short films that have toured the Australian and overseas film circuit. His most recent short film ‘You Know How He Is’ screened at Flickerfest 2022.
PROJECT SYNOPSIS
Born and raised on Norfolk Island, Natalie Grube has a shocking realisation when her son gashes his hand on rusty tin washed onto their local beach from Headstone rubbish dump: their tiny Pacific Ocean island home has reached tipping point and is drowning under the weight of its own waste.
Compelled into action, Natalie embarks on a mission to regenerate Norfolk Island’s ecology before it’s too late. But to achieve this, 1800 Norfolk Island residents first need to confront their own reality and some inconvenient truths.
THE NORFOLK PROJECT