Maura Fay (12 March 1958 – 29 October 2001) was a leading casting director within the entertainment industry in Australia. In 2001 she was named as one of the 25 most influential people in television and radio in Australia. In 2001 the Screen Producers Association of Australia (SPAA) Services to Industry Award was awarded posthumously to Maura. SPAA has since decided to name the award the Maura Fay Award for Services to the Industry in recognition of Maura's extraordinarily rich life and valued contributions to Australian film and television. Maura was educated at Wynyard High School in

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

, where she was Head Prefect, and Hellyer College, Burnie Tas . She was of Irish heritage and spent some years working in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

after her schooling. On her return to Australia she joined the

Reg Grundy Organisation Reg Grundy Organisation (founded as Reg Grundy Enterprises, later known as both Reg Grundy Productions and Grundy Television and known informally as Grundy's) was an Australian-based multinational mass media company, primarily involved in tele ...

where she worked on the cult Australian television series

Prisoner A prisoner, also known as an inmate or detainee, is a person who is deprived of liberty against their will. This can be by confinement or captivity in a prison or physical restraint. The term usually applies to one serving a Sentence (law), se ...

, and became Head of Casting. She later worked as Head of Production for PBL Productions and also was a consultant for the Drama Departments at the

Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is Australia’s principal public service broadcaster. It is funded primarily by grants from the federal government and is administered by a government-appointed board of directors. The ABC is ...

, the

Seven Network Seven Network (stylised 7Network, and commonly known as Channel Seven or simply Seven) is an Australian commercial free-to-air Television broadcasting in Australia, television network. It is owned by Seven West Media, Seven West Media Limited, ...

, the

Nine Network Nine Network (stylised 9Network, and commonly known as Channel Nine or simply Nine) is an Australian commercial free-to-air television network. It is owned by parent company Nine Entertainment and is one of the five main free-to-air television ...

and the

Ten Network Network 10 (commonly known as the 10 Network, Channel 10 or simply 10) is an Australian commercial television network. It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Paramount Global's UK & Australia division and is one of the five national free-to-a ...

. Maura also served as a board member for the

Sydney Film Festival The Sydney Film Festival is an annual competitive film festival held in Sydney, Australia, usually over 12 days in June. A number of awards are given, the top one being the Sydney Film Prize. , the festival's director is Nashen Moodley. Histo ...

and the

Australian Theatre for Young People Australian Theatre for Young People (ATYP) is the flagship youth theatre company located in the Walsh Bay Arts Precinct, New South Wales, Australia. It was founded in 1963 by Eleanor Witcombe. History The first committee was formed in 1963 and ...

. She was also an Ambassador for Mothers Inc. Maura started her own company, Maura Fay Casting, in 1987. She discovered many actors who became household names across Australia and internationally, including the Hollywood star

Heath Ledger Heath Andrew Ledger (4 April 1979 – 22 January 2008) was an Australian actor. After playing roles in several Australian television and film productions during the 1990s, he moved to the United States in 1998 to further develop his film care ...

. In 1990, Maura set up Maura Fay Workshops, utilizing the delivery skills possessed by a professional actor to train corporate executives in communications skills. This company now operates throughout Australia, Asia and the US.

References

Australian Women Bio
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Mothers Inc Bio
* http://movies2.nytimes.com/gst/movies/filmography.html?p_id=189852 1958 births 2001 deaths Australian television producers Australian women television producers Australian film studio executives {{Australia-bio-stub