THE crew
Madeleine Dyer
DIRECTOR / WRITER / CO-PRODUCER
Madeleine Dyer has been writing, directing and producing film, TV and web content for the past ten years, with her award-winning short films having screened at numerous festivals. In 2016, 'Sexy Herpes' – a multi award-winning web series she co-wrote and directed, was acquired by the Australian Nine Network and by Virgin for in-flight entertainment, before the television format was sold to Aetios Productions - culminating in three seasons of the French-Canadian ‘Sans Rendezvous’ (ongoing) for CBC.
Madeleine has recently completed a shadow directing attachment with Trent O’Donnell which culminated in her directing an episode of the Australian series, 'Colin from Accounts' for Easy Tiger and domestic streaming service Binge. She has had previous impactful director attachments in recent years – one with Rachel Griffiths on the film 'Ride Like a Girl' and the other with Kriv Stenders on 'Slim and I'.
Madeleine has further ongoing projects as writer and director including teenage TV drama/thriller 'Sanctuary', as well as 'Blood Sisters', a feature film backed by Screen Australia and Screen Queensland with Mad Dan Productions. Madeleine is set to direct her first full TV block in late 2023 on drama series, ‘Austin’, for ABC and Northern Pictures.
Daniel Mulvihill
PRODUCER / WRITER
In 2017, Dan completed co-writing and producing the 6 x10-min online series 'Sexy Herpes', funded with the assistance of Screen Australia. 'Sexy Herpes' has been acquired by the Nine Network. It recently won 'Best Ensemble' at Dublin Web Fest, and continues to be an official selection on the web series festival circuit globally.
In 2019, Monsters of Many Worlds was released on SBS via an initiative in collaboration with Screen Queensland. Dan is now developing a new female-driven and culturally diverse online series set in FNQ, called 'Blood Sisters'. The 'Proof Of Concept' for 'Blood Sisters' was shot in late 2019 and backed by Screen Australia and Screen QLD.
Dan is also currently writing a new stage play with co-writer Madeleine Dyer and Kodie Bedford after successful development with La Boite's HWY program in late 2020. In 2022, Dan embarked on the development of new YA TV series, Sanctuary, with Sam Carroll, Rachel Griffiths & Madeleine Dyer. A Savage Christmas marks his debut feature film as writer and producer and will be released in cinemas in late 2023.
Ben McNeill
PRODUCER
Ben McNeill is a Brisbane-based producer who has worked across features, documentaries and television specials over a career of fifteen years.
In 2022, Ben co-produced 'In Our Blood', a 4x 60 drama series with Hoodlum Entertainment funded by the ABC, Screen Australia and Screen Queensland. This followed his collaboration with Hoodlum the year prior for Stan’s Christmas On The Farm.
In 2019, Ben produced the Feature Documentary ‘Dying to Live’, an important film about organ transplantation that screened to audiences at Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, CinefestOz and Byron Bay film festivals, followed by a Madman-led domestic theatrical and SBS television release with overseas sales to TRT World, RTVE, Daai TV, and Sky.
Ben served as Production Executive for the Freshwater co-production feature Early Winter by Camera D’or winning director Michael Rowe, and produced with Emmy award-winning producer Mark Lewis the PBS/ABC animal series The Standard of Perfection. Ben again collaborated with Lewis for the 3D Sundance success Cane Toads: The Conquest (Participant Media/Discovery Studios), and The Pursuit of Excellence for PBS.
Ben has worked across high-end drama features as a Production Accountant including the NBC/Universal mini-series The Starter Wife, the Nine series Sea Patrol, the Universal-Angelina Jolie directed biopic Unbroken, Warner Bros’ San Andreas, Disneys’ Pirates 5 and Thor 3, and Arclight’s Aus-China Co-production Guardians of the Tomb. Factual credits include Show Me The Magic, Rise of the EcoWarriors, Reptilian Battleground, Worm Hunters, and Frackman.
Shing Fung Cheung
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY
Shing Fung Cheung is a cinematographer who has a passion for creative visual imagery that evokes both meaning and soul in each shot with his story-led approach. Whether it is a feature film, commercial or music video, they are all driven by story and his focus remains the same – create pictures that emotionally touch the audience. Originally from Hong Kong, he immigrated to Australia and also later lived in the Philippines. He is a blend of different cultures; these contrasting worlds not only make him highly adaptable but have also enriched his creative process and experience, which he injects into his craft. He has extensive experience in the film industry and his work has taken him beyond these countries to all parts of the world.
Upon graduating from the Australian Film and Television and Radio School (AFTRS), his graduating film “Danya” took first prize of the Kodak Film School World Competition and was showcased at the Cannes Film Festival. His feature film collaboration with Erik Matti (one of Filipino’s greatest directors of all time) on “Kubot: The Aswang Chronicles 2”, earned him two nominations in the Philippines for Best Cinematography at the 40th MMFF Awards and Cinematographer of the Year at the 31st PMPC Star Awards.
Fung first collaborated with Madeleine Dyer and Daniel Mulvihill in 2019 when the made POC short film – ‘Blood Sisters’ with the support of Screen Australia and Screen QLD. Fung embarked cinematographer on The Steve Jaggi Company feature film, ‘Swimming For Gold’ for the Hallmark Channel in 2020 and then again with Steve Jaggi as cinematographer ‘A Royal In Paradise’ in 2023. Roaring Entertainment’s ‘A Savage Christmas’ marks Fung second collaboration with Dyer and Mulvihill and their first major production together and will be released in cinemas in late 2023.
Anastasia Adams
PRODUCTION DESIGNER
Anastasia Adams is an accomplished and highly experienced Set Decorator hailing from New York City with a passion for transforming spaces into visually captivating environments. With nearly two decades in the industry, Anastasia has worked on a diverse range of film projects, showcasing an exceptional eye for detail and a deep understanding of storytelling through visual elements. Having graduated from The School of Visual Arts with a Bachelor in Fine Art & Design in 2006, Anastasia possesses a solid foundation in design principles and an extensive knowledge of historical periods, art movements, and cultural references. Throughout the years, Anastasia has worked extensively as an Art Director and Set Decorator on TV commercials, films, tv shows, music videos and high fashion photo shoots with celebrity clientele including Alec Baldwin, Yoko Ono and Lady Gaga.
Commercial clients include Disney, Samsung, Mercedes, Breguet, Maybelline, Pepsi, IBM, Pfizer, Chanel amongst numerous other major brands. Notable achievements include her work being displayed at The Met Gala (2013) which went on to be published in the New York Times article entitled ‘A Neccessary Stop’. In addition, her work has been displayed on billboards in Times Square and various prestigious magazine covers such as Vogue, Elle and Harper’s Bazaar. In 2020, Anastasia emigrated to Australia and is continuing to work in film and televison constantly seeking new challenges and opportunities to expand her expertise. A Savage Christmas is proudly Anastasia’s first role as Production Designer working alongside a brilliant crew and debut feature film director Madeleine Dyer.
Lorelle Penkevics
COSTUME DESIGNER
Lorelle Penkevics is an experienced fashion designer that has enjoyed success in the fashion, film and TV industries. Lorelle hails from a strong arts and design background, trained in a number of disciplines that has led to a bachelors degree focused in fashion and design from the University of Canberra, as well as runway success in both the US and Australia, where she created and managed her own fashion label, headquartered in Brisbane.
Penkevics is sought after for a range of creative projects that include Feature films, episodic television and commercials. She is known for La Brea Season 3 (2023), In Limbo (2023) Rock Island Mysteries (2022), Thirteen Lives (2022), Young Rock (2021) and Bloody Hell (2020) to name a few.
A Savage Christmas marks the nascent rise of Penkevics to Costume Designer. Within this role she was able to capture the grit, the pastels, the darkness and light-hearted world of the Savage Family, articulating moments of each character’s individuality and journey through a blend of subtle costuming mixed with confident risk-taking.
Pip Hart
FILM EDITOR
Pip is a freelance film and television Editor, based in Meanjin (Brisbane), Queensland. She loves to tell stories with a strong heartbeat and complex characters. Inside Film Magazine featured her in its 2022 Rising Talent issue.
Since completing her BA in Film and Television at Griffith QCA in 2010, Pip has edited across a range of genres and formats. Her favourite part of editing is discovery, whether it’s discovering a certain nuance in a performance or discovering the story of a documentary during the editing process. Her job is to discover the hidden gems and moments that bring truth to a story.
In 2019 she was awarded Best Editing at Tropfest for Crush, and received a nomination from the Australian Screen Editors’ Guild for The Mother Load. She edited The Moths Will Eat Them Up, awarded Best Live Action Short Film at Sydney Film Festival 2022 and was nominated for Best Short film at the 2022 AACTA awards. Pip's children’s broadcast credits include Totally Wild, BrainBuzz and the 2023 Logie-nominated coming of age series Barrumbi Kids. Her documentary credits include Blak Portraits episode 2: Oodgeroo Noonuccal, Sistas In Mining, feature film Fight To Live, My Body Says which won the AIDC Best Short Form Award in 2021; and Belonging, winner of Best documentary at Melbourne Queer Film Festival 2020.
Dave Williams
SOUND DESIGNER
Dave Williams has been working in the creative tech industry since the early 2000’s. This has included a diverse skill set that includes live sound production, recording bands in-studio, and working with a loudspeaker manufacture company. After establishing Tigermoth Audio Production in early 2012 he branched into the film and TV industry, delivering services as a production sound recordist, post-production editor and sound designer for a range of independent and corporate clients.
From 2012 to 2018 he also worked as a lecturer at a creative industries private university, teaching a range of subjects to both audio engineering and film & tv students. Dave has an ongoing and extensive set of hobbies and interests that include such things as general science, tech and designing, 3D printing, electronics and more. If Dave had to define his raison d'être, it would be ‘creative technical problem solving’, he lives for the continuous process of learning, thinking, and making, that such a philosophy entails.
Jason Fernandez
COMPOSER
Jason Fernandez is a modern electro-acoustic composer. A uniquely skilled music technologist, he collaborates with creative teams to develop distinctive, story driven music – composing scores in a collage of styles and warping instruments into new sonic shapes.
Jason has more than 15 year’s experience performing varied roles as a composer, score producer and music editor with many of Australia’s finest directors including George Miller, Zack Snyder, Baz Luhrmann, Kriv Stenders, Kimble Rendall, Gregor Jordan, Russell Crowe, Josh Wakely and many others. Jason’s musical techniques helped win an Emmy in 2019, with the dramatic editing of The Beatles’ songs for the hit show Beat Bugs on Netflix.
Jason’s musical vision for A Savage Christmas was a retro, domestically driven confronting instrumental discord of chaos, nostalgia, pain and light moments of humour that sustain the most dysfunctional of families. The heartfelt drama of Davina’s journey is also captured as she fights to heal herself and find acceptance within and from her family. This is captured through the emotive strings percussion across Act 2 and Act 3.