Jess Kenneally
Co-Director, Writer, Graham (Cast)
Jess Kenneally is a writer, director, producer and actor working across film, television and theatre. He briefly studied Arts/ Journalism, then outdoor studies, before attending NIDA Open in 2013 to study acting. Throughout his acting career Jess has strived to tell stores that cross demographics playing key roles in a number of short films such as Hirani (2015) and The Escape Hatch (2016), both of which enjoyed success on the festival circuit. Working on both sides of the camera, Jess has produced stage productions including the Australian Theatre debut of Good Egg, a play that tackled mental health themes, in which he also played one of the lead roles. He has worked in the audio department at Endemol, Shine Australia, Eureka Productions and the Nine Network on productions including LEGO Masters, Survivor, Gogglebox Australia and The Block. The Fort is Jess’ first produced screenplay.
Carly anne kenneally
Co-Director, Editor
Carly Anne is a director, producer and editor working in narrative, documentary and television, with a focus on storytelling.
From 2012 to 2016 Carly Anne was production manager for radio show All the Best, which was made by FBi Radio in Sydney and broadcast nationally via the CBAA. During that time she earned a Cert III scholarship in live TV with Metro Screen (2014), and studied Cert IV in film and TV at Metro screen in Sydney (2015). Carly Anne was a Union Docs collaborative fellow from 2015 to 2016, specialising in experimental documentary and non-fiction media in New York, and the Production Manager for SXSW Audience Favourite award winner and New York Times acclaimed film The Light of The Moon in 2016. Carly Anne won the ASE Edit Royale 2020, where she edited a complete music video from unseen media in only two hours, Carly Anne was formerly an assistant editor at The Butchery, and now freelances for The Editors, ARC, and for renowned senior editors.
Eliza Charley
Kitty
Eliza Charley is an actor, writer and producer whose career spans film, theatre and television. She enjoyed her first taste of theatrical life In 1998 when, at the tender age of 11, she wrote, co-produced, designed, costumed and starred in an adaption of the legend of King Arthur. She has since gone on to work on popular TV shows Neighbours, Secret City, Buying Blind, and Deadline Design, feature films Time Apart (Amazon Prime, 2020), Oddball (2015), and The Fort (2021). A graduate of the NIDA Open Studio and Advance Studio programs in Australia, and the Summer Conservatory program at The Neighborhood Playhouse in New York, U.S.A, and Eliza is a former faculty member at Meisner Melbourne where she taught acting technique. Eliza has collected awards and scholarships from institutions as varied as L’Alliance Française, and the Australian Olympic Committee. In 2019, she won the Women in Film and Television (WIFT) Scholarship to study Creative Leadership: with Sue Maslin (The Dressmaker) at Compton School for business, technology and creativity. A passionate advocate for women in the industry, Eliza Charley is an inaugural member of the Victorian Chapter of female producers Screen Vixens, and a member of Women In Film & Television Australia.
Shaynna blaze
Executive Producer, Set Designer
Shaynna is an award winning interior and set designer who has created stunning residential and commercial spaces internationally for more than 20 years. Shaynna has been a judge on Nine Network’s The Block for 12 years, was interior designer on Selling Houses Australia (Lifestyle Channel) for 13 years, and anchored TV shows Deadline Design (Lifestyle Channel, 2016) and Buying Blind (Nine Network, 2018). Shaynna’s TV work has garnered her several awards, including back-to-back ASTRAs for ‘Favourite Female Personality’ in 2013 and 2014. Off-screen Shaynna chairs family violence charity Voice of Change which she co-founded, runs her successful interior design business Blank Canvas Interiors, and has been a guest speaker and MC at a number of events including the Safe Steps’ Candlelight Vigil in 2017 and 2018.
DEAN BILLS
Tom
Dean Bills is a 14-year-old Melbourne-based actor who has amassed impressive experience over the course of his relatively short
career. He played the lead roles in Victorian College of the Arts’ Masters short film There’s Always One, University of Melbourne’s 2018 production of Boys Will Be Boys, and has also featured in short films John Morton’s Funeral (2019), Raul: Younger (2018), and Deakin University’s Eastbound (2018). Dean’s stage credits include the National Theatre St Kilda’s Goodies Baddies and All That Jazz: Moana and Pete’s Dragon (2017) and Hooray for Hollywood (2017). In 2018 Dean travelled to Los Angeles with his family to take part in a series of The Celebrity Experience (TCE) workshops spanning scene study, improv, cold reading, monologues, auditions and commercials, going on to play the lead role in the TCE Showcase. When he’s not acting Dean enjoys gaming, skateboarding and playing AFL football. The Fort is Dean’s first starring role in a full- length feature
LIZA DENNIS
Mary
Known for her work on The Very Excellent Mr Dundee (2020), Five Bedrooms (2019), You Can Say Vagina (2018) & Plague (2015), Liza Dennis is a Melbourne/Adelaide based actor and voice over artist who has worked across film, television and theatre, for more than 20 years. She is a recipient of both the Joan Harris AM Graduate Award from the National Theatre, and the Besen Family Foundation Artist Program. Away from the spotlight Liza is an experienced casting associate, script researcher/editor who has moved increasingly towards writing and directing in recent years. Most recently she was awarded Best First Time Director at the Prague International Film Festival and Finalist for Best Director & Original Story at the Sweden Film Festival & Hollywood Gold Festival. Since graduating from RMIT’s Advanced Diploma of Screenwriting in 2018, Liza has worked as an independent script editor, while continuing to work on her own scripts. Liza recently wrapped on Apple TV series Shantaram as script researcher and is currently casting co-ordinator on NBC’ ’s Series 1 of La Brea. A multi-faceted artist who is passionate about story, connection and giving voice to those who are unable to self-advocate, Liza is co-chair of the Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance Wellness Committee, and is a member of the Australian Writers Guild.
