Step Away from The Telly: Making Scripted Online

Donna Chang joined SBS in October 2020 as a Development Executive in the SBS Scripted team, which oversees and develops SBS’s pipeline of original scripted fiction projects, including drama and comedy. She became Commissioning Editor in June 2021. As well as working across long form event series, Donna oversees the development and production of SBS’s short form and feature initiatives which provide opportunities for emerging talent from often underrepresented backgrounds, to share their unique stories of contemporary Australia. 

Louise Cocks is Screen Australia’s newly appointed Investment and Development Manager, Online. She joined the Online team in 2019 having previously worked as a Film Programmer for Village Cinemas Australia and as an actor in touring shows. She assesses and manages applications for Production and Development, from approval through to release and delivery. She has worked across the inaugural Digital Originals workshops, TikTok’s Every Voice Initiative, Skip Ahead with YouTube and organised a digital Online Roadshow last year for emerging Australian creators, offering bespoke advice.

Max Miller is a Melbourne based director most known for his work in Aunty Donna. In 2020 the group saw the release of their first TV series, Aunty Donna’s Big ol’ House of Fun (Netflix). Their YouTube channel has 85 million+ views and 450,000+ subscribers. Max and Aunty Donna have also started their own production company, Haven’t You Done Well Productions, as well as a new YouTube channel, Grouse House – both of which aim to grow the Australian comedy landscape, online. Their first show, Hug the Sun, also saw the launch of the channel amassing 30k subscribers on debut and over half a million views.

Richard Kelly manages development and production of Scripted Comedy, Short Form and Digital formats for the independent production company The 2 Jons, a joint venture between executive producer John Molloy and investment banker Jon Adgemis. Richard has been a producer on the drama series The Gloaming, which premiered on Stan in early 2020. In 2020 he co-produced the digital short form drama The Tailings, which launched on SBS On Demand in April 2021 and on US platform Topic in September 2021. The 2 Jons is currently in post-production on the drama series Barons which will premiere on ABC Television in 2022. Prior to The 2 Jons, Richard was a freelance TV producer. His credits include seven series of Shaun Micallef’s Mad As Hell (ITV Studios/ABC), comedy panel quiz Dirty Laundry Live (ABC) and John Safran’s Race Relations (ABC). In 2014 Richard created, wrote and co-produced the factual series Hipsters for SBS Television.

Join us for a series of free, in-person and live-streamed events for the screen and broadcast industry presented by AFTRS, ACMI, Film Victoria and Media Mentors Australia.