MEET THE
FILMMAKERS
'Sea Lions - Life by a Whisker' was imagined and created by some of the leaders in giant screen, underwater photography and ocean conservation. Read about our talented filmmakers below.
PRODUCER
DAVID GROSS
Founder of Definition Films, David leads a team of world-renowned and dedicated specialists based at the heart of the Australian Film Industry: Fox Studios.
He has been involved in over 30 feature films and works closely with international clients and distributers including 20th Century Fox, Sony Pictures, Warner Brothers, PBS, Discovery Channel and Entertainment One.
Sea Lions – Life by a Whisker is David’s second Producing role for the IMAX and giant screens, with previous titles including Turtle Odyssey 3D, Australia, The Great Wild North and Out of Bounds: Mountain Adventure.
PRODUCER
SARAH BEARD
Sarah’s career spans over 25 years’ as a film and television producer and production manager delivering content to commercial clients, broadcasters and for feature release. In 2012, Sarah joined Northern Pictures, focusing her work on producing natural history series for international networks. As an ocean conservation advocate, marine themed stories have always been Sarah's passion.
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Most recently Sarah co-produced and was the Impact Producer for the award-winning ocean conservation documentary BLUE. BLUE has been called one of the most significant environmental films of our time. Aligning with Blue’s theatrical release in 2017, Sarah developed and implemented a 3-year multi-faceted impact campaign, working with over 65 partners from the not-for-profit, education, government, philanthropic and private sector. The BLUE education curricula have been used by over half a million Australian school children. ‘Sea Lions, Life By A Whisker”, sees Sarah continuing her ocean themed story telling creating entertaining and impactful films.
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In addition to her film work, Sarah has worked in parallel for not for profit Take 3 for the Sea as a project manager and served on the Take 3 board for 3 years. Sarah has just taken on the role as Take 3’s CEO. Sarah has appeared on numerous panels advocating for ocean protection and sustainability. #Take3fortheSea
CONCEPT/WRITER/DIRECTOR
AMELIA McCARTEN
Writer, director, and underwater filmmaker based in Sydney Australia with experience creating large format 3D natural history feature films for the IMAX and giant screens, working primarily with RED Digitial Cinema and GATES Underwater Products.
A qualified ADAS Part 1 commercial, technical, and cave diver passionate about producing entertaining and visually arressting stories that inspire hope, call for change, and highlight the need for a sustainable approach to the world’s oceans.
Recent credits include the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA) nominated ocean documentary BLUE, and the Russell Crowe narrated Turtle Odyssey 3D. Amelia enjoys the challenges and rewards of working on multiple IMAX feature films with the latest camera and underwater technology, to produce the highest quality 8K, stereo 3D images.
WRITER/DIRECTOR/EDITOR
PAUL PHELAN
Paul Phelan began his career as a Sociologist working with semi nomadic tribes in Tanzania and Kenya. His love of learning and teaching eventually lead to a career in media, in particular children’s factual/educational programs.
Paul has over 25 years experience working in film and television. Starting as an editor he has progressed and mastered a number of roles in the industry from script writer, post production supervisor to series producer and recently settled into the director’s chair. He has won multiple awards for his efforts and his projects have aired on National Geographic, Nickelodeon, Disney, Fox, Australia’s Channel Nine and the ABC.
Recently, Paul has been focusing on Australian Animals that are endangered or threatened, and giving a voice to creatures that can’t speak for themselves.
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY
JON SHAW ACS
Founder of Ginclearfilm, Jon Shaw is a three time AACTA award winning and Emmy nominated cinematographer, specialising in natural history and underwater cinematography. Jon has held a deep passion for the ocean and the environment from an early age, beginning his career as a Marine Biologist.
With over 20 years experience filming with wildlife, Jon believes in telling positive, immersive narratives that channel important educational messages to the nest generation.
Jon has worked in some of the most unique and heavily protected areas in the world. From the largest Green Sea Turtle rookery on The Great Barrier Reef, Australia, to Humpback Whales in Tonga.
Most recently, Jon was awarded the Australian Cinematographers Society gold award for ‘Turtle Odyssey 3D’ and an AACTA award respectively for his work on the ABC series ‘Life on the Reef’ and feature film ‘Blue’.
