GCFF Board
Left to Right:-
George Friend OAM; Michael Selwyn; Chris Brown; Julie Anderson; Richard Featherstone; Julie Mikeska; Bruce Molloy; Casey Marshall Siemer (Festival Director) and Academy Award Winner John Cox (Festival Patron).
Festival Director:
Casey Marshall Siemer
Graduating from the Queensland University of Technology in 2003 with LLB (Hons)/BA (Media - Film Studies) degrees, Casey was admitted to the role of legal practitioners in 2004 after completing a Graduate Diploma of Legal Practice at Bond University on an academic scholarship.
Following her passion for feature film she joined Magna Pacific in March 2005 where she later became the Head of Theatrical Acquisitions, responsible for the acquisition and development of its theatrical release slate. In addition to this she managed legal and business affairs.
In her four years with Magna Pacific Casey held positions in marketing and publicity in both DVD and theatrical release and managed the theatrical national publicity and promotions campaigns for a number of films. She also added 9 feature films to the theatrical release slate including Righteous Kill starring Al Pacino and Robert De Niro.
Festival Patron:
John Cox
John is the recipient of a 1995 Academy Award for Visual Effects for the movie Babe and has 26 years in the visual effects industry. The John Cox Creature Workshop is internationally acclaimed as a leader in the design and manufacture of fantasy creatures, monsters and realistic animals.
Festival Board Members:
Richard Featherstone
Richard is the Legal Practitioner Director of Felix Law (www.felixlaw.com.au). He has been involved as the legal advisor to the GCFF since 2006, and more recently as a board member. Richard is passionate about promoting new Queensland film making talent.
Chris Brown
Chris owns his own production company, Pictures in Paradise, on the Gold Coast and in 2004 he produced The Proposition an Australian/UK co-production. The Proposition won The IF Lexus Award for Best Australian Film 2005 and four AFI Awards. It was subsequently selected for The Toronto, Sundance and Berlin Festivals. In 2004 Chris won Independent Producer of the Year, from the Screen Producers Association of Australia (SPAA). Chris has been on the GCFF Board since its inception in 2002.
Bruce Molloy
Emeritus Prof Bruce Molloy the joined Bond University Film& Television Department in 1994 after a distinguished career at QUT. Past president of ACANZ, former board member of BIFF, PFTC and Barron Entertainment, he was awarded the Figuera da Foz festival medal in 1998 and the Kinetone Award in 2005. Bruce has been on the GCFF Board since its inception in 2002 and was its Chairperson in 2008.
Michael Selwyn
Michael Selwyn is the Managing Director and Vice President Australia and New Zealand of Paramount Pictures Australia Pty Ltd. Michael has been on the GCFF Board since its inception in 2002.
Julie Anderson
Julie is the Project Manager for the John Cox Creature Workshop, which is internationally acclaimed as a leader in the design and manufacture of fantasy creatures, monsters and realistic animals. John Cox won the 1995 Academy Award for Visual Effects for the movie Babe and is a GCFF Festival Patron. Recent film credits for the workshop include Nim's Island (2007), Rogue (2006), Racing Stripes (2003) and Peter Pan (2002) Julie has been on the GCFF Board since its inception in 2002 and was its Chairperson in 2008.
George Friend OAM
Founding Board member of GCFF and current Chief Executive of his own film production company Rising Sun Films, established in 1996. He has also served on numerous film, event and community related Boards and Committees including SPAA, the Event Advisory Committee (EAC) for Gold Coast Motor Events Co., REDAB (GCCC) and Rotary. His film projects have taken him to diverse and remote locations including Antarctica, New Guinea, East Timor and Africa. He retains the rank of Major in the Army Reserve and is a Teaching Fellow at Bond University (Film Production). George continues work on several projects whilst maintaining close ties with the film industry. He was recognised for his service to the community in the 2008 Australia Day Honours List .
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Julie Mikeska
Julie is a director of Allure Professional Hair and Make-Up, a company which boasts an array of accolades in the areas of film and television, editorial work and training and has been involved with the festival since 2002 and became a board member in 2007.
Festival Advisors
Jane Smith
Head of the Centre for Screenwriting, AFTRS
Chris Nyst
Writer/Producer, Nyst Entertainment
Craig Service
Director, Rapid Media
Michael Sergi
Associate Professor, Director of Film & Television, Bond University
Fiona Searson
National Publicist, DDA Public Relations
Kylie Pascoe
CEO, RED:THREAD:STUDIOS
Jamie Campbell
Team Leader, mbapartnership
Jane Strangman
Director, Stranger Strategies Pty Ltd
Through their expertise the Official Advisors support and assist the Festival Director and the GCFF Board where possible with the further development and expansion of the Gold Coast Film Festival.
