2.30 - 3.20 | CULTURAL SAFETY ON SET

Directors have a vital role to play in ensuring that the set is a safe-space for everyone. In this conversation between ADG's Strategy & Development Executive, Ana Tiwary, and Indonesian Australian director Katrina Irawati Graham (Bali, Dark Whispers). The two will take a deep look at the ground-breaking cultural safety document Katrina and Sara Richardson (Endemol Shine) created while working on the STAN ‘Bali’ TV series. Ana and Katrina will explore what prompted the document to be created, the cultural safety team that arose from the document, and the way these were reflected on set. Ultimately, Katrina will make the case that safe relationships are the foundation of intercultural directing. 

Moderator: Ana Tiwary

Speaker:  

• Katrina Irawati Graham

KATRINA IRAWATI GRAHAM

Katrina is an award-winning director, screenwriter, facilitator, and playwright. She recently co-directed Bali, a drama series for STAN and Channel 9, currently in post-production.  Her Indonesian ghost story, White Song, is part of Australia’s first all-female directed horror anthology, Dark Whispers, currently screening on SBS On Demand. Raesita Grey, the feature film of that story was developed through Stranger with My Face Attic Lab and Screen Queensland’s IncuBAIT horror initiative.   

Her play, Siti Rubiyah, developed through the LOTUS program, was optioned by Contemporary Asian Australian Performance (CAAP). It has had development showings at Haque Centre (Singapore), National Play Festival, Sydney Festival, Sydney Theatre Company’s Rough Draft and La Boite. Katrina’s memory play, Bi Empat, emerged from Playlab’s Incubator program and was part of La Boite’s 2019 Highway Festival. Katrina has recently adapted Siti Rubiyah as a feature film with support from Screen Queensland.   

She has written two award winning crime web series: SCOUT (Best Mystery/Crime Webseries NY WebFest; Best Foreign Series Vancouver WebFest) which screened on ABC iView and Crime and Justice which was embedded in University of Queensland’s MOOC The Psychology of Criminal Justice (winner Harvard/MIT’s Edx Prize). Mother Tongue, her third webseries, is an aspirational, multicultural midwifery series. The project has been developed through AFTRS Talent Camp and SBS Digital Originals. It received pilot production funding from AFTRS’s National Talent Camp initiative.  

Katrina has worked as a dramaturg for projects with Queensland Theatre and Playwriting Australia. She ran the writers’ room for Ravi Chand’s ABC kids television project Namaste Yoga as part of the Kaleidoscope initiative. Katrina was also instrumental in bringing together women filmmakers across the country to form Women in Film and Television (WIFT) Australia, a national advocacy body for gender parity and representation of women in the Australian screen industry. Katrina serves on the WIFT International (WIFTI) board comprising of filmmaker activists from 6 continents giving her a global perspective on intersectional gender equity challenges. Katrina works in the anti-racism space and is currently part of the inaugural Screen Queensland Diversity and Equity Taskforce. She celebrates her Indonesian-Australian heritage and champions cultural safety.  

ANA TIWARY - Moderator 

Ana Tiwary is a Sydney based producer/director and runs the production company indiVisual films that specialises in multicultural stories. Ana holds a Masters in Film from the US, and has lived/worked in many different parts of the world including Germany, India, West Africa, North America and she immigrated to Australia 15 years ago.

From Bollywood films, TV shows and commercials, to National Geographic Channel, Ana has experience working across factual as well as scripted. She has produced over 25 documentaries for ABC TV and other international networks. Last year, Ana co-produced the first Asian Australian rom-com ‘Rhapsody of Love’. Presently she is developing a TV comedy series, ‘What would Suki do?’ with writer/producer Sukhjit Kaur Khalsa and 'Just Chidi Things' with actor/writer Chika Ikogwe. She has recently produced the pilot for the series 'Mother Tongue' with writer/director Katrina Irawati Graham.

In 2015, Ana was selected by Screen Producers Australia for their ‘Ones to Watch’ program. Ana participated in the inaugural Screen Australia ‘Developing the Developer’ program and in 2019 she was selected for ‘Screen Australia Talent Plus’, which involved an attachment at See-Saw Films and mentorship with Emile Sherman (King’s Speech, Lion).

She recently worked as series producer on the new ABC show iNDIA NOW!. Ana created the Diversity in Australian Media community almost 13 years ago and is an advocate for diversity, equity, inclusion, social justice and safe spaces. She works part-time at the Australian Directors’ Guild as Strategy & Development Executive. Ana has served as a Women in Film & TV (WIFT) Australia board member, is part of the Screen Australia Gender Matters Task Force and mentors emerging filmmakers.