From left: Fiona Nix, Natalie Miller AO, Joel Pearlman, Cheryl Mulholland, Stephanie Mills. Photo by Peter Jackson / AIMC 2018
The Natalie Miller Fellowship (NMF) is pleased to announce Village Roadshow’s appointment as co-sponsor of the annual Fellowship.
The global entertainment company will provide $50,000 cash over five years to support the NMF’s mission to recognise and nurture the next generation of female leaders in the Australian screen community and inspire them to reach the very top of their fields. The announcement was made on Monday 30th July at the Australian International Movie Convention on the Gold Coast.
“We’re thrilled to come on board as a co-sponsor of the Natalie Miller Fellowship, an organisation that excels in providing tangible professional development opportunities to talented female screen practitioners,” said Roadshow Films CEO, Joel Pearlman. “Village Roadshow looks forward to contributing to the Fellowship’s sustainability and witnessing the impact the past and future recipients will have on the growth of our industry.”
Established in 2011 to recognise the unique contribution of screen industry pioneer Natalie Miller AO, 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 is the only grant of its kind in the country and offers up to $20,000 for a professional development program that will deliver significant benefits to the applicant and the wider Australian screen community.
“It’s fantastic to see Village Roadshow, as one of the biggest players in the Australian screen industry, leading the charge to support gender equality and taking action to fund opportunities for much needed leadership of women in the screen industry,” said Sue Maslin, President of the Natalie Miller Fellowship. “We’re delighted to have such a long-term commitment to help ensure the sustainability of the Fellowship and thank Village Roadshow, in particular CEO Joel Pearlman, for its generous support.”
Since 2012, six Fellowships have been awarded to Rachel Okine (Vice President of Acquisitions STX international), Harriet Pike (Head of Production & Development, WildBear Entertainment), Rebecca Hammond (Head of Localisation & Access Services, Deluxe Australia), Courtney Botfield (Film Distribution and Marketing Consultant/Producer), Sasha Close (Film Programming Manager, Wallis Cinemas) and Kristy Matheson (Kristy Matheson (Director, Film Programs ACMI).
Applications for the current Natalie Miller Fellowship close on Monday 20th August at 5pm, 2018 and the recipient will be announced in November 2018 at the SPA conference.