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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Second Session (51-2)
2008-02-27 Daily Xml
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LEHMAN, MS M.

Ms BEDFORD (Florey) (15:36): As Adelaide continues its celebration of the arts with the Fringe and the Festival, it is a good time to remember the important role our state has played and continues to play in film and television.

The world's biggest short film festival, Tropfest, was held in Sydney on Friday 17 February. Three South Australian filmmakers represented our state—William Allert with Dusk, Sara Crowest with Looped, and Michelle Lehman, whose short film Marry Me is the 2008 winner of the Sony Tropfest Short Film Festival. It is Michelle I particularly want to congratulate and pay tribute to today because she spent her childhood and teenage years growing up in the suburb of Modbury North, which is, of course, in the seat of Florey.

Michelle attended Modbury Primary School and The Heights High School. Her mother Sharon was my workmate in a video shop that we co-managed when Michelle was still at school. Along with her husband Bryan, Sharon was happy to use the public education system, as both remain excellent schools.

Michelle's love of film started with an interest in photography, and at an early age she decided photography would be her career. Michelle commuted to Banksia Park High School to complete year 12 photography. Travelling in her lunch break each week did not deter her as she was keen and determined and eventually achieved a perfect score of 20.

The next step on her journey was attending Croydon Park TAFE College. From 300 applications Michelle was successful and chosen amongst 15 students to attend a photography course. On completion of that course, Michelle commenced a full-time position with a national photographic portrait chain in the store at Myer Tea Tree Plaza. When 18, Michelle won that company's Australasian Photographer of the Year Award, and soon after was offered a position in Sydney. At the tender age of 19 she packed her bags and left home to make the trek to New South Wales.

Soon after, she commenced a job with another of Sydney's leading wedding and portrait studios, gaining valuable experience. After two years working for others, Michelle decided it was time to go out on her own, and at 21 years of age, working from home with a portable mini studio, she started her own business specialising in child photography.

Five years later, after achieving her goals in photography, Michelle decided to pursue her love of film, an interest in filmmaking and a desire to win an Oscar. She applied to do a degree in film with the Victorian College of the Arts, and, after an intensive application process, she was one of 12 successful candidates from a pool of 500. The course involved three years study in Melbourne where Michelle moved to attend the VCA while still commuting to Sydney to work to support her study.

Whilst in Melbourne, Michelle was involved in making short films, and her parents would drive over each year to cater for the film crew. It was during this time that they realised that filmmaking was a long, gruelling process involving dedicated filmmakers working long hours to fulfil their dreams. Also, it was during this time that Michelle realised that winning an Oscar was very far away.

After making many formula film school shorts, Michelle vowed to not make another film unless she loved it and loved making it. After working out what that would take, Marry Me, her short film, was born. Whenever Michelle gets the opportunity she returns to her home in Modbury North to catch up with family and friends. It was on one of these occasions a few years ago that Michelle penned her script for Marry Me. Sitting at the kitchen table with a laptop, she recalled a childhood memory as a five year old chasing a boy around the schoolyard in a pretend wedding dress, and many other happy memories of times playing in the streets.

Michelle scoured the streets of Sydney for a suburb that looked similar to Adelaide, and managed to find a location within an hour's drive. With a dedicated and committed film crew and child actors, who all worked for no fee, they worked two long weekends last September.

The final cost for their film was $5,000 and it is a credit to her and her artistic resolve. On behalf of Michelle, I take this opportunity to thank all her film crew and actors and to give a special thanks to her husband, Myles Conti, who edited the film; her brother-in-law and producer, Karl Conti; her cinematographer, Dan Freene, who is another South Australian; her costume designer, Karty; and her awesome parents, Sharon and Bryan, for always believing in her.

Michelle Lehman is a pocket dynamo with a huge future ahead of her in the film industry. Soon she will also become a mother, and we all wish her well in that most wonder-filled career as she combines that role with her film journey. Her film journey will always include her supportive husband and parents and it will require the enthusiasm and determination she has already demonstrated in achieving her goals so far. I am sure she deserves her success to date and that she will go on to make many more entertaining films for Australia. Along with all her supporters, I wish her well and I have my fingers crossed that her Oscar dream, now well and truly on her horizon, will be achieved in the not too distant future.

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