Kirsty Stark is an Australian film producer based in

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...

. In 2010 she established a production company called Epic Films, and in 2023, an online platform called CrewHQ, which provides an online jobs market for freelancers in the

Australian film industry The cinema of Australia began with the 1906 production of ''The Story of the Kelly Gang'', arguably the world's first feature film. Since then, Australian crews have produced many films, a number of which have received international recogni ...

. She is known for her work on the 2018

ABC iview ABC iview is a video on demand and catch-up TV service run by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Currently iview video content can only be viewed by users in Australia. As of 2016, ABC iview attracts around 50 million plays monthly and a ...

series ''Unboxed'' and 2020 TV drama series '' First Day''. She is development producer in the South Australian office of Matchbox Pictures.

Early life and education

Kirsty Stark grew up in Adelaide. As a child and teenager, she read voraciously and "just always had an interest in storytelling". She lived overseas for several years before starting her degree at

Flinders University Flinders University, established as The Flinders University of South Australia is a public university, public research university based in Adelaide, South Australia, with a footprint extending across a number of locations in South Australia and ...

, where she studied film. She later undertook

Seth Godin Seth W. Godin, also known under his pen name as "F. X. Nine" (born 1960), is an American author, marketing expert, entrepreneur, and a former dot-com business executive. Early life and education Seth W. Godin graduated from Williamsville East H ...

's "altMBA", a month-long "online leadership workout".

Career

Stark spent five years working in

cinematography Cinematography () is the art of motion picture (and more recently, electronic video camera) photography. Cinematographers use a lens (optics), lens to focus reflected light from objects into a real image that is transferred to some image sen ...

as a camera assistant. She founded a film and television production company, Epic Films, based in Adelaide, in 2010. The company's first two films were the

short film A short film is a film with a low running time. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of not more than 40 minutes including all credits". Other film o ...

s ''Landscape Scene'' and ''L'Artiste!'', both screened in festivals internationally in 2011. Epic Films won was

Screen Producers Association of Australia Screen Producers Australia (SPA), formerly the Screen Producers' Association of Australia (SPAA) and earlier names, is a national organisation representing film production businesses, emerging producers, service providers and screen industry supp ...

's Breakthrough Business of the Year in 2016. The company mainly undertook low-budget projects, working with emerging writers and directors and often having difficulties getting them into production. In 2013 she produced the sci-fi web series '' Wastelander Panda'' (described by the SAFC (SAFC) as an "online sensation"), and in 2016 the comedy series ''Goober'', both released on

. She produced the 2015 feature film '' A Month of Sundays'' (for Madman), directed by Matt Saville and starring

Anthony LaPaglia Anthony LaPaglia (, ; born 31 January 1959) is an Australian actor. Known for his roles on stage and screen he has received several accolades including three AACTA Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Tony Award. For his starring role as Jac ...

and

Justine Clarke Justine Clarke is an Australian actress, singer, author and television host. Clarke has been acting since the age of seven and has appeared in some of Australia's best-known TV shows. She is best-known for her portrayal as Roo Stewart on the ...

. Stark started partnering with a larger production company, Matchbox Pictures, as well as doing work with

Screen Australia Screen Australia is the Australian Federal Government's key funding body for the Australian screen production industry, created under the ''Screen Australia Act 2008''. From 1 July 2008 Screen Australia took over the functions of its predecess ...

, within around six months of completing the altMBA course. In June 2018, after Matchbox Pictures opened offices in Adelaide, Stark was appointed to a newly-created role, as development producer for the company. The company started shooting season 3 of '' Wanted'', directed by

Jocelyn Moorhouse Jocelyn Denise Moorhouse (born 1960 or 1961) is an Australian screenwriter and film director. She is best known for directing films '' Proof'', '' How to Make an American Quilt'', '' A Thousand Acres'' and '' The Dressmaker''. Moorhouse has al ...

and starring

Rebecca Gibney Rebecca Catherine Gibney is a New Zealand actress known for her roles on Australian television in '' The Flying Doctors'', '' Halifax f.p.'', ''Packed to the Rafters'', ''Winter'' and '' Wanted''. She has also featured in a number of Australia ...

, in South Australia. In 2018 she co-produced, with Rebecca Elliott, the ABC iview series ''Unboxed'', written and directed by Sam Matthews. In the series, six

transgender A transgender (often shortened to trans) person has a gender identity different from that typically associated with the sex they were sex assignment, assigned at birth. The opposite of ''transgender'' is ''cisgender'', which describes perso ...

artists – including a dancer, a musician, a writer, and a

graphic artist A graphic designer is a practitioner who follows the discipline of graphic design, either within companies or organizations or independently. They are professionals in design and visual communication, with their primary focus on transforming l ...

– create a work based on the theme "unboxed", while talking about their experiences. She was co-producer on the 2020 children's TV series '' First Day'' and (for Matchbox), on the 2020 TV drama series '' Stateless'' for Matchbox and Dirty Pictures. Other production companies she has enjoyed working with include Closer Productions, Dinosaur Worldwide, and Studio Sunkie & Young Black Youth, and chooses to stay and work in Adelaide. She has named director

Sophie Hyde Sophie Hyde (born 1977) is an Australian film director, writer, and producer based in Adelaide, South Australia. She is co-founder of Closer Productions and known for her award-winning debut fiction film, '' 52 Tuesdays'' (2013) and the comedy ...

and producer Rebecca Summerton (of Closer Productions), local ACS president Ernie Clark, and producer Nick Batzias (with whom she worked on 2015's '' A Month of Sundays'') as mentors.

Other activities

In 2023, Stark established the online platform CrewHQ, which supports freelance film crew by providing a national online jobs market, and also runs an annual conference, CrewCon. Stark teaches short courses at the

Australian Film, Television and Radio School The Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS), formerly Australian Film and Television School, is Australia's national screen arts and broadcast school. Opened to students in 1973 as Film and Television School (FTS), after accredita ...

(AFTRS). Stark is co-chair of

The Mercury Mercury most commonly refers to: * Mercury (planet), the closest planet to the Sun * Mercury (element), a chemical element * Mercury (mythology), a Roman deity Mercury or The Mercury may also refer to: Companies * Mercury (toy manufacturer), ...

. She has given presentations at

SXSW South by Southwest (SXSW) is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and Convention (meeting), conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Texas. It began in 1987 and has conti ...

, TEDx Adelaide, AFTRS, and the

South Australian Film Corporation South Australian Film Corporation (SAFC) is a South Australian Government statutory corporation established in 1972 to engage in film production and promote the film industry, located in Adelaide, South Australia. The Adelaide Studios are managed ...

. In June 2025 she is scheduled to speak at the 25th anniversary of the "Regional to Global 2025" event for Screenworks.

Recognition and awards

* 2010: Inaugural NFSA and ACS John Leake OAM ACS Award for an Emerging Cinematographer * 2019: ''Unboxed'': Grand Jury Prize and Best Documentary, at the South Australian Screen Awards * 2020: '' First Day'': 8 international awards, including an Emmy,

GLAAD Media Award The GLAAD Media Award is a US accolade bestowed by GLAAD to recognize and honor various branches of the media for their outstanding portrayals of LGBTQ people and the issues that affect their lives. In addition to film and television, the Awards ...

, Kidscreen Award, Rose d'Or, and a Banff Rockie Award * 2022: Selected for the Global Producers Exchange as part of the

Australians in Film Australians in Film (AiF) is a Los Angeles-based non-profit organization that serves the Australian community working in the film and television industry. It awards the annual Heath Ledger Scholarship to emerging Australian actors, as well as sev ...

initiative, supported by the SAFC * 2023: Listed in the "

40 Under 40 ''Fortune'' magazine's 40 Under 40 is a list of individuals the publication considers to be the most influential young leaders for the year. The list has existed in two phases: From 1999 to 2003, the list was presented purely as a numeric rankin ...

" list of leaders by Solstice Media

References

External links

* * * (4 May 2022; 4m 18s)
Kirsty Stark — Reverse Engineer Your Way to Success
(Studiotime podcast #22; 25 February 2019; 51m) {{DEFAULTSORT:Stark, Kirsty Australian film producers Mass media people from Adelaide Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Australian women film producers Australian film production company founders