Another Aussie in LA
Join Ansuya Nathan as she navigates the city of Angels, chatting to some of the shiniest Aussies in L.A., sharing their tales of living, working and playing on this side of the globe.

They say write what you know and Sarah Scheller (NO ACTIVITY) has done just that with her first pilot THE LETDOWN. Part of the ABC Comedy Showroom it tells the story of a struggling new mum and the mothers’ group she thinks she doesn’t need - a situation that proves to be ripe for the comedic picking. Sarah shares about finding a great collaborator in actress and co-creator/writer Alison Bell, developing the work with Julian Morrow (THE CHASER), getting support from ABC from the get-go and calling in favors from actor mates like Brendan Cowell and Patrick Brammall. She admits that everyone was a little intimidated by Noni Hazelhurst - I mean, who didn’t grow up watching her! - and we do our best not to give the whole story away! 

Direct download: Sarah_Scheller.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:00am PDT

Jersey born, Australian raised playwright Lally Katz (THINGS I WANT TO TELL YOU IN PERSON, NEIGHBOUHOOD WATCH) appears to have moved to Los Angeles. So far she is loving everything about it - the instacommunity, the freeways, the people, even the Californian hook turns. We discuss her obsession with New York psychics, her procrastination tools of choice and getting polite nudges from Gillian Armstrong via Instagram to get back to work. She shares her struggles with trusting her instincts with screenwriting, her annual new years resolution to see less theatre and watch more TV and her desire to pull the rug out from under herself. Be careful what you wish for! 

Direct download: Lally_Katz_.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:00am PDT

Have you seen an Australian film or TV show in the past 25 years? Then it’s likely you’ve seen some Ben Mendelsohn’s work. From The Henderson Kids to The Year My Voice Broke to Spotswood to Animal Kingdom. And that’s all before the US embraced ol’ Ben! We get stuck into all things Bloodline: working with Sissy Spacek and Sam Shepard, THAT INCREDIBLE WRITING and how the show made the Florida Keys locals proud. Ben shares how he works on accents and dialects, his youthful love for James Bond and how he scored the role of  in The Dark Knight Rises from a self tape! We also chat about his time in LA slogging away before what I call “the Animal Kingdom effect”. Just a word of warning: I might get a little excited in this one…

Direct download: Ben_Mendelsohn.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:00am PDT

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