Darren DaleChair

Darren Dale has produced multiple award-winning documentary, factual and drama programs.

In drama, his credits include the telemovie Mabo, the groundbreaking Redfern Now (Logie Award for Most Outstanding Drama Series in 2013 and 2014, and 2014 AACTA Award for Best Television Drama Series), and Deep Water. Season 1 of Total Control premiered at TIFF, was the 2019 AACTA Award winner for Best Television Drama, and received MIPCOM Diversify TV’s Excellence Award for Representation of Race and Ethnicity (Scripted).

Documentary series include First Australians, First Contact (2015 Logie for Most Outstanding Factual Program), DNA Nation, How ‘Mad’ Are You?, Filthy Rich & Homeless, Addicted Australia, Books That Made Us, The Australian Wars (aka First Wars), First Weapons and Meet The Neighbours.

Feature documentaries include The Tall Man, Deep Water: The Real Story, In My Own Words, Maralinga Tjarutja, Step Into Paradise, The Dark Emu Story (Official Competition, 2023 Sydney Film Festival) and Lessons from the Unknown.

Darren is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. He serves on the boards of NIDA, the AFI and Sydney Festival

Darren’s tenure as Chair of the Board of Sydney Film Festival commenced on October 17^th, 2023.

Nick AbrahamsDirector

Nick is the Global Co-leader, Digital Transformation Practice for top 10 international law firm, Norton Rose Fulbright. He practices in the areas of tech, media, telco and privacy law.

Separately to NRF, he is a disruptor in his own right, having co-founded successful online legal service LawPath 5 years ago. Nick is on the board of ASX300 software company, Integrated Research. He is on the boards of the Garvan Foundation and the Vodafone Foundation.

He is the author of the books Digital Disruption in Australia and Big Data, Big Responsibilities. He has a Masters of Fine Arts (Film Producing) from the University of Southern California Film School (the Peter Stark Program). He was a Creative Executive at Warner Brothers in Los Angeles and worked on the TV shows, ER and The West Wing. He produced the mockumentary Searching for Alison Porchnik featuring Woody Allen and Carol Kane. He wrote and appeared in the TBS TV show The Ugly Gaijin Brothers and is the Founder of The Tokyo Comedy Store – now in its 24th year.

Sally Herman OAMDirector

Sally Herman is an experienced non-executive director in the fields of financial services, retail, manufacturing and property. She had a successful executive career in financial services in both Australia and the US, transitioning in late 2010 to a full-time career as a non-executive director. Sally is also actively involved in the not for profit sector, with a particular interest in the arts, social justice and education.

Sally sits on both listed and unlisted Boards, including three ASX 200 companies, Suncorp Group Limited, Premier Investments Limited and Breville Group Limited. She is also on the Board of Evans Dixon Limited as well as Investec Property Limited and the Sydney Harbour Federation Trust.  Sally is a member of Chief Executive Women.

Debbie LeeDirector

Debbie is Matchbox Pictures’ Director of Scripted Development, where she provides creative leadership to the development of scripted content across a broad range of genres and markets. She also serves as executive producer on various projects – most recently The Heights, Safe Harbour, The Family Law, Mustangs FC and Hungry Ghosts.

Prior to Matchbox, Debbie was ABC TV’s Head of Comedy, where she commissioned shows including A Moody Christmas, Please Like Me, Laid, It’s a Date, Upper Middle Bogan and The Strange Calls. She also spent a number of years at SBS and SBS Independent, starting her career in TV as a production assistant and then becoming series producer for experimental short film program Eat Carpet. This led to several years at SBS Independent as a Commissioning Editor for Drama and Comedy.

Debbie is a passionate advocate for screen stories with distinctive views of the world and believes these stories told well have the power to connect people and build understanding and empathy. She currently also serves as Chair of Diversity Arts Australia, a national organisation committed to making cultural and linguistic diversity a central concern across the creative arts sectors.

Amanda Maple-BrownDirector

Amanda Maple Brown is a versatile filmmaker and dedicated philanthropist with a deep commitment to the Australian independent film scene. While she’s primarily recognized as an actress, her recent project, “Evicted: A Modern Romance,” graced the screens at SFF in 2022, showcasing her multi-faceted talents.

Since 2018, Amanda has played a pivotal role in driving the success of the Young Philanthropist’s Program, known as “The Director’s Lab,” at SFF. Her active involvement has nurtured emerging talent and paved the way for a new generation of creative voices.

Amanda’s passion ignited the creation of the Sustainable Future Award, which has evolved into the world’s most substantial cash prize for films that inspire climate action, now standing at an impressive $40,000 as of 2023.

Her contributions to the intersection of arts and philanthropy are pivotal in shaping a more sustainable and impactful future for the corporate landscape of cinema, where creativity and purpose harmoniously converge, offering a promising horizon for emerging talent.

Penny SmallacombeDirector

Penny is a Member of the Maramanindji people, from the Northern Territory in Australia. She has completed a cadetship with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) and has a Masters of Arts (Documentary Producing) from the Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS) in Sydney. Between 2004 and 2005 Penny worked in the Indigenous Programs Unit at the ABC. She was selected for Screen Australia’s Indigenous Department’s Producers Initiative in 2011, and also worked as a Senior Programmer for NITV, National Indigenous Television, a division of SBS. She was Head of the First Nations Department at Screen Australia and managed the department for 6 years overseeing a large slate of successful film and television including Total Control, Spear, She Who Must Be Loved, Sweet Country, We Don’t Need a Map, Grace Beside Me, Mystery Road, Sweet As, We Are Still Here and Little J and Big Cuz. She also created numerous special initiatives which have provided  development opportunities for some of Australia’s newest rising writing, directing and producing talents. In 2021 she worked with the renowned production company, Bunya Productions and produced the mini-series True Colours for SBS/NITV.