I first became interested in the industry in my final year of school. I was fortunate enough to be able to have Film as a subject and it was the one I enjoyed the most, not just because I was analysing films and learning about the craft but because I also had a really great teacher. She’s was incredibly supportive and inspiring when it came to her work ethic and love for everything film related. She was a great role model for me during my time at high school because I was relatively new, but having Film as a subject really opened me up to the possibilities of a combined creative and technical profession.

Even for people that treated the subject as a bit of a blunder, we were all able to use our lesson time as an outlet. So when it came down to choosing whether or not to continue studying, I didn’t really give it much thought and boiled it all down to what subject I enjoyed most in school and well...here we are!

What's the best thing about working in the business?

It would have to be that every shoot is different. I see a lot of the same people but on different rotations which I love. I also love hearing people’s ideas and learning from everyone. I can confidently say I haven’t walked away from a shoot having not learnt something from it. I find that it’s all about repetition when it comes to progress, whether it be from working with the same person a couple times in an effort to understanding their workflow or something as simple as tail slating correctly (embrace the mistakes!).

What’s your proudest moment so far?

Probably winning equal Best Cinematography at the 48hr Film Challenge last year. It was very unexpected and gave me the confidence that maybe I was doing alright. What blew me away even more was the fact that a record number of teams had entered last year, 51 teams I believe, which was incredible and so exciting to see. It was something that I had really wanted to get into for a long time and was fortunate to have worked with such a great team.

Ren Williams and I on Mt Osmond shooting the last scene of our 48hr Film (Photo by Simon Rich)

What’s been your most interesting or challenging project so far?

There are two projects that come to mind, the first one is an honours short film I helped out on called ‘Edward Has a Tree Inside of Him’ Directed/DOP by Kristoffer Lucia of Gutter-Pop Pictures. It’s a surreal relationship drama about exactly what it sounds like. It gets a bit gnarly in the end with some pretty unsettling shots and sound effects but it’s a really visually striking film that I’m proud to have contributed to.

 The other project is a documentary called ‘The Love of my Life’ which I helped Helen Carter shoot in the early days of my degree. It follows the story of a transgender couple getting married in Adelaide and it was my first gig outside of Uni so I was pretty nervous. The creators were happy with what was shot so that’s all I could really hope for! I believe that the documentary was aired on ABC in April so maybe you can see it on iView. 
My first time using the Aaton 16mm Camera at Flinders University for our short film 'The Happy Husband Guide' (Photo by Patrick Maddern)

What’s your favourite film or TV show?

My favourite film is probably ‘Paterson’ by Jim Jarmusch. I love how simple and elegant it is in its portrayal of the protagonist with mostly static shots.

What motivated you to do this job?

I'm motivated mostly by the creative aspects of collaborating on different projects. Realising people's stories on screen is a true gift, whether it be a story they've written or re-telling something they've experienced, it's incredibly rewarding to be part of the process. I think the moment that really kickstarted my motivation to get into filmmaking was when one of my films was screened at my school's film festival that they held each year to showcase student work. When I walked out of the theatre, a man (who I believe was the father of one of the students in attendance) came up to 17-year-old me and said that my film made him cry. I hadn't taken anything too seriously with filmmaking until that point, so when I discovered that my filming on a little DSLR could have such an effect on a random, grown man. I was hooked.

Where do you think your future lies? Is it in camera, directing or perhaps editing?

Camera is definitely where the future lies for me. One of my near-future goals is securing a camera attachment of some kind, whether it be through a Mentorship Program or with the SAFC, it's definitely something I have my eyes on at the moment. I'm determined to upskill as a 2nd AC and make my way up the ranks that way. I still get a bit of imposter syndrome when I take control as DP so I'd rather delve into the assistant roles and pick up the odd camera operating roles for smaller/personal projects.

Thanks Abby, we look forward to seeing you progress in your career.

Here I was DP'ing a Music Video in Kuipto Forest, with Head of Art Department, Sybella Schumacher (Photo by Amy Evans)