Celebrating its 5th year, The Natalie Miller Fellowship invites applications for its annual grant from Friday July 1, 2016. The only grant of its kind in the country has doubled this year for the first time to $20,000, through fund-raising efforts led by Fellowship Ambassador, Kerry Gardner.
The Fellowship is open to all women working in the Australian screen industry and aims to provide financial assistance to pursue professional development in their fields through attachments, internships, secondments, travel and other means in order to reach their full leadership potential.
The Natalie Miller Fellowship was established in 2011 to recognise and nurture the next generation of female leaders in the Australian screen community and inspire them to achieve outstanding success at the most senior levels of their fields.
The Fellowship is funded from donations made to the Natalie Miller Fellowship Endowment Fund and through the generous support of major sponsors including Film Victoria and the Deluxe Heartbeat Fund, Andyinc, Myer Foundation and ICAA. Says Gardner, “Nurturing female leadership skills, from graduate level to Chairman of the Board, is vital for a healthy film and television industry in Australia. Let’s lead the world in strong action in promoting men and women working side by side in our sector”.
Since 2012, four Fellowships have been awarded to Rachel Okine (Vice President, International Production and Acquisitions at StudioCanal in Paris), Harriet Pike (Head of Production & Development, WildBear Entertainment), Rebecca Hammond (Head of Localisation & Access Services, Deluxe Australia) and Courtney Botfield (Director, Goodship).
At each presentation, Natalie Miller herself has presented the award, last October at the Australian Movie Convention introduced by Marc Wooldridge, Managing Director Twentieth Century Fox.
The Natalie Miller Fellowship is unique in its role of passionately promoting female leaders across the spectrum of the Australian screen sector, but also as a support network for women in the industry and the respect and recognition of the Fellowship is palpable.
Courtney Botfield, recipient of the 2015 Natalie Miller Fellowship said “The Natalie Miller Fellowship is unique in its role of passionately promoting female leaders across the spectrum of the Australian screen sector, but also as a support network for women in the industry and the respect and recognition of the Fellowship is palpable. The Fellowship has afforded me not only invaluable new professional relationships and opportunities but, most importantly, the confidence and focus to purse my career goals and I encourage all aspiring women in the screen industry to apply.”
All applications for the Natalie Miller Fellowship must be received by Friday 26 August, 2016 and the recipient will be announced in mid-October at the 2016 Australian International Movie Convention on the Gold Coast.
Read application guidelines and how to apply.