Kelrick is a Ngarluma man from Broome WA, and in 1998 was the inaugural presenter of ABC TV’s Message Stick. In 2002 he completed his Masters in Documentary Writing and Directing at AFTRS, and in 2007 returned to WA to become NITV’s Commissioning Editor. He formed Spear Point Productions in 2010 – credits include the multiple 2015 AACTA Award nominee Prison Songs. Kelrick was also the Indigenous Manager for Screenwest before joining the ABC as Head of Indigenous in 2016. His commissions at ABC include Black Comedy, Maralinga Tjarutja, and popular award-winning drama Total Control.
Kate Hodges Executive Director, Shark Island Foundation (Australia)
Kate is a documentary producer and Executive Director of Shark Island Foundation. Producing highlights include Wash My Soul, The Department and Frackman. She’s EP of Shark Island’s The Pool and currently in production on The Valley. Support for Frackman through Good Pitch Australia introduced her to impact producing and she’s overseen the release and outreach strategies for a range of social issue films through Screen Australia backed Screen Impact. Motivated by the communities, conversations and change that documentary fosters, Kate is delighted to be supporting the sector through Shark Island Foundation.
Nic Meloney Executive in Charge of Production, Factual & Documentary, CBC Unscripted (CAN)
Nic Meloney is a mixed Wolastoqi/Canadian journalist and Executive in Charge of Production with CBC Unscripted. Working closely with independent creators from Inuit, Métis and First Nations communities (as well as non-Indigenous) in documentary and factual productions, he’s also an advisor to CBC/Radio-Canada’s new National Indigenous Office and is part of the Indigenous team leading the work on CBC/Radio-Canada’s National Indigenous Strategy. In his roles with CBC Unscripted’s documentary and factual entertainment units, Nic’s carried storytelling ventures of all shapes and sizes – from audio documentary and podcasts, to short films and premium limited documentary series. Previously, he worked as a journalist, writer, and video producer with CBC Nova Scotia and CBC Indigenous. His work has taken him to Indigenous communities across the country for the production and development of digital video features and television news documentaries, as well as syndicated, local and national news content. A member of Woodstock First Nation in Wolastokuk (New Brunswick) and a proud Cape Bretoner, he currently lives and works in Kjipuktuk (Halifax, Nova Scotia).
Robert Y Chang Co-Producer POV, American Documentary | POV (USA)
Robert Y. Chang is the Co-Producer of POV. He serves as juror, screener, programmer, panelist, and reviewer for a range of film festivals, foundations, and funders of the arts. Robert received his PhD in Cultural Anthropology with research on the intersection of religion and media. As a filmmaker, Robert’s work has screened worldwide and is distributed by Documentary Educational Resources (DER). He is a member of the PGA, the Television Academy, and NLGJA.
Theresa Navarro Co-Director & COO, Catapult Film Fund (USA)
Theresa Navarro is Co-Director and COO at Catapult Film Fund, a San Francisco-based nonprofit providing early-stage support for independent documentaries.
Theresa is a Pinay cultural worker and working mama whose career spans two decades. Previously, Theresa was vice president of external affairs at American Documentary, the producer of iconic PBS series POV. An Independent Spirit Award-nominated producer, her credits include Peabody Award-winning anthology series America Reframed and sci-fi feature Advantageous, winner of the special jury prize at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival.
Hollie Fifer Director of Special Projects, Doc Society (AUS)
Hollie is a cultural strategist with a passion for working alongside and for documentary filmmakers to unlock the potential of their stories for change. At Doc Society, Hollie develops funds, convenings, networks and initiatives to strengthen the field. She has worked as a documentary director and impact producer and her films have screened in over 35 countries including at IDFA, CPH:DOX, Hot Docs, the UN Human Rights Council and the National Portrait Gallery of Australia. Hollie currently serves on the Board of the Australian International Documentary Conference (AIDC) and the Castlemaine Documentary Festival (CDoc).
Dena Curtis Head of Indigenous Commissions & Production, NITV (AUS)
Dena joined NITV in 2024, as the Head of Indigenous Commissions and Production, overseeing NITV’s original content slate. Dena’s background is Producing and Directing. Her work includes the acclaimed children’s series Grace Beside Me, Comedy Series 8MMM Aboriginal Radio, Vampire hunter series Firebite, documentaries Ella, A League of Her Own, Back to Nature and Rebels with a Cause which premiered at MIFF. As well as Factual Series’ Shadow Trackers and First Weapons, which took out GOLD at the New York Festivals Film and TV Awards in 2024.
Angela Bates Head of First Nations Department, Screen Australia (AUS)
Angela Bates is proud to lead the First Nation’s Department at Screen Australia since September 2021. She joined the department in 2019 as a Development and Investment Manager, where she managed a slate of projects from Feature Film, TV Drama Series and children’s animation to documentaries, including We Are Still Here (a Co-Production between Australia and New Zealand), Award-winning TV Drama Total Control Series 2, Little J & Big Cuz 3, Looky Looky Here Comes Cooky and a new TV Crime Drama True Colours.
Angela Bates hails from Country New South Wales and is a proud Aboriginal and Maori woman. She has a background in journalism and has worked at CAAMA, ABC and SBS and NITV. One of her proudest achievements is setting up the first nightly National Indigenous News service in 2008 as its inaugural Executive Producer, overseeing its rapid growth including the it’s free-to-air launch in 2012.
She has a Master of Arts Screen: Business and Leadership from the Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS). She spent a year in Winnipeg, Canada, in 2015 & 2016 working for the World Indigenous Television Broadcasters Network hosted by the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN).