Andrew Walsh
b. February 27, 1986, Whyalla, South Australia.

BIOGRAPHY:   Andrew Walsh was born in the seaport town of Whyalla on South Australia's Eyre Peninsula. As a child he had no real interest in the arts, instead aspiring to be a professional Ice Hockey player.

However, at the age of 17 he discovered he had potential and talent for writing and has never looked back since.  

At the age of 24, Andrew made his directorial debut with The Comedian, a powerful and haunting short film about a charismatic but troubled stand up Comedian running away from a traumatic event in his past.  

Despite having no money or previous experience working in the film industry, The Comedian premiered at the 2011 Short Film Corner part of the Cannes Film Festival. Six years on The Comedian still regularly screens at film festivals and art events across Melbourne.

Since then Andrew has built a reputation as a fiercely outspoken filmmaker mixing a fearless uncompromising style with intimate sensitive storytelling. Andrew constantly pushes the envelope blurring the line between fiction and reality taking stories, characters and situations from his own life. He uses his films as a way to confront taboos, start conversations and break down barriers.  

Since then Andrew has written directed and produced Rearranged (2011), Empire Of Nowhere (2012), Growing Out (2013), and I Miss The War (2014), building a reputation as one of Melbourne's most driven, unpredictable and passionate directors.  

Andrew is currently preparing to release his fifth short film I Miss The War and has begun developing what will be his first feature film project The Shallow End.  

The Shallow End is slated for shooting in 2019.

	The Comedian

CRITICAL OVERVIEW:   Growing up I had no ambition whatsoever to become a filmmaker. Quite frankly I had no ambition to be anything. I just fell into it. I wasn’t chasing it but it turned out to be the only thing I ever wanted.  

Now that’s its been 14 years since I first put pen to paper I cant imagine doing anything else.  

I’m a very solitary person by nature. I have spent most of my life in one form of isolation or another.

Writing, directing and producing films enables me to express myself and build a connection with the world around me.  

My films are often intensely self autobiographical. They’re taken directly from things I’ve experienced or witnessed or people I’ve met.  

	I Miss The War

I’m interested in exploring the perspectives of those who live on the margins of our society. Struggling artists, losers, addicts, violent sociopaths, petty criminals and heartbroken loners all sharing in common a desperate need to connect and make sense of the world around them.

My favorite characters are always the ones that have their back to the wall with very few options. They have to make decisions they’re not emotionally equipped to deal with, learning things about themselves at the same time as the audience. That’s what motivates me in terms of what kind of stories I want to tell.  

I also like to use my own distinctive style of satirical humor in my films to explore difficult topics and start conversations.  

Actor and musician Serge Gainsbourg once said “Ugliness is superior to beauty because it lasts”. I think it's why my films have done well and continue to stand the test of time.  

Most people relate to failure a lot more then they can relate to success.

- Andrew Walsh, November 2017.

FILMOGRAPHY:

	Growing Out

The Comedian (2010, 9 mins)

Rearranged (2011, 10 mins)

Empire Of Nowhere (2012, 5 mins)

Growing Out (2013, 16 mins)

I Miss The War (2014, 23 mins)

The Shallow End (feature, in development)

SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY:

Sunday Shorts #14: Growing Out, by Andrew Walsh, Cinema Australia, May 31, 2015.

Trailer of the Day: I Miss The War, by Andrew Walsh, Cinema Australia, June 18, 2017.

I Miss The War, We are Moving Stories, June 2017.

Andrew Walsh on Vimeo

Contact Andrew Walsh

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