Tropfest alumni Alethea Jones, Gerard O’Dwyer and Robert Connolly share how they built successful businesses as creatives in film and television.
As glamorous as the craft may appear from afar, the secret to a successful career in the film industry can often be boiled down to three things: talent, opportunity and good business sense.
Here, three Aussie creatives share how they built sustainable businesses in film and television – after an early boost from the Tropfest short-film festival.
Tropfest returns to Centennial Park, Sydney, on Sunday 22 February.
Alethea won Tropfest in 2012 with her film Lemonade Stand.
I had trained to be a director but it always felt so unattainable. It was actually when I visited Los Angeles as part of my Tropfest prize (all expenses were paid and introductory meetings were arranged) that I understood that it could actually happen for me.
The agents and producers I met saw my Tropest film and a few other shorts I’d made and they started getting me work. I live in LA now and work as a director here.
'Tropfest basically launched my career,' says director Alethea Jones. Photo: Alex Vaughan
Interpersonal skills have been the most vital part of my business growth. My craft is pretty dialed in but people invite me back to work with them because I’m also respectful and my sets are fun. On top of the repeat work I get, other prospective employers (studios and producers) usually call my old bosses before hiring me. So interpersonal skills have been the way to grow my business, for sure.
I’d had a little success at other film festivals but there was no clear path to convert those successes. John Polson and Tropfest basically launched my career.
I originally wanted to wait a few years to use my trip to Los Angeles; I didn’t think I was ready but John Polson just said “Off you go.” He pushed me out of the nest so to speak. I might have missed my moment if he hadn’t done that.
Here’s what worked for me: I made a bunch of pretty bad short films. Then, once I worked out all the kinks, I really took my time making my next few short films. They became my calling cards.
Creative gigs can be time-consuming and expensive so once you’ve mastered the elements of your craft, wait for the next concept to be fully tuned up. Don’t compromise. Find the right people, see if you can wait for those pieces to be exactly as you want them then go for it and get your stuff out there!
Gerard was awarded best actor at Tropfest 2009 for his performance in Be My Brother.
A Tropfest win opened doors for actor Gerard O’Dwyer. Photo: Radioactive Pictures
I’ve always wanted to be the lead actor in a film. In 2009, I won best male actor for the lead role in Be My Brother. At the Tropfest afterparty, in the wee hours of the morning, it dawned on me that I am an actor. But it wasn’t until I became the lead actor in the Netflix film What About Sal? that I realised I could do this for a living.
To grow as an actor, never say no to an opportunity that inspires you and makes you feel alive! You have to commit to it. Commit, commit, commit!
Tropfest has opened so many doors for me and I owe it all to Genevieve Clay-Smith, who cast me in her Tropfest film, Be My Brother. Even to this day, people in the industry still refer to our win and introduce me as a Tropfest winner. It shows how much the industry respects the festival.
What I would say to other aspiring actors is, you have to be old school because there are no short cuts. Turn up on time, learn your lines and learn the other actor’s lines, too. Also have a regular routine on set, like taking the time to do vocal warm-ups and get your mind ready for the day.
Robert was runner-up at Tropfest 1997 with his film Rust Bucket.
I was pretty lucky when I was in film school. There was an older producer, John Maynard, and he had very good business acumen. He was big on the practical things you need to do to essentially consider yourself a small business, as opposed to just a creative person floundering.
He gave me that spirit of where art and commerce meet. I would say the longevity of my career was set in motion there… and here I am, 30 years later.
‘It was the first time my work had been seen by a large audience,’ says Robert Connolly.
I’ve grown my business with a philosophical approach to collaboration. Creative work can feel very singular… So for me, it was a realisation that I’m not a solo traveller. It was about moving from the idea of being a sole trader to being a business – and as a business, you collaborate.
Our success has been in large part based on joint ventures with other companies. It’s also become very helpful for us in attracting investment into our company and projects.
With that collaborative spirit I touched on, we made the film Rust Bucket in one weekend.
We didn’t win. We came second. And I’ll never forget that because winning came with all these prizes and I was so jealous! But it began that adventure of working with people to create something and then take it to an audience.
It was the first time my work had been seen by a large audience. And it gave me a sense of how exciting that is. We’re a very serious business today but we still have that little twinkle in the eye that I had when we made Rust Bucket one weekend 30 years ago.
You have to make work that is true to your interests. Create your vision as a storyteller, as opposed to cynically contriving something. If you love science fiction, make an amazing science-fiction short film. You can build a creative life being truthful to what you love and people can tell.
I sometimes find young people feel discouraged from pursuing creative careers. The idea that creative industries are an integral part of our national economic wellbeing is sometimes lost. But these massive corporations – Apple, Netflix and YouTube – they generate creative content, they show creative work to the world.
CommBank is proudly presenting Tropfest on Sunday 22 February, 2026 at Centennial Park, Sydney, and online via the Tropfest YouTube channel.
Published: 9 February 2026
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