Justin McMillan (QLD)
I grew up in a small fishing town on the NSW south coast of Australia. As a kid I spent most of my time on farms and in the ocean where I developed a healthy respect for the natural environment.
I always had an appreciation of cameras growing up, but what I really loved was telling stories, mostly in attempt to get out of trouble. I could sing every commercial jingle on TV and by age 13 I could recite the entire screenplays for my three favourite films at the time – Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, The Lost Boys and Stand By Me. When I started work as an art director in Sydney’s advertising scene I finally saw the film industry up close and instantly fell in the love with the craft of filmmaking.
When I’m not making commercials I make short films and develop feature film and TV series concepts. I watched my father work 6 days a week my whole life, so it’s natural for me to be constantly chipping away on multiple projects and improving my craft. I’ve always loved aerial cinematography and how it gives the audience a sense of geography within the story. So a few years ago a mate
and I developed a drone company (www.heliguy.tv) which keeps me on top of all advances in filmmaking tools available to the filmmaker.
What I love about commercial filmmaking is that it requires you to be resourceful to find the magic in each individual project, regardless of the budget. I believe there’s a way to make every piece of communication an enjoyable experience for the audience and I really love the challenge to find and deliver it every time.
At the end of the day, I just love collaborating with creative people and making films.
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