About Us
Students of Note
Long term students and past students who began their careers at Drama
With A Difference include:
Kaiya Jones
New lead role upcoming in Neighbours in 2009. Plays Jess Cooper in Saddle Club 3 (Australia 2009, USA 2008).
CASSANDRA MAGRATH
Major role in the feature film Wolf Creek. Played Miranda
in Sea Change and Pi in Crash Zone.
KODI SMIT-MCPHEE
Child lead in Romulus, My Father with Eric Bana. Major role in the Australian film Walkabout by Richard Franklin.
GEORGIA BOLTON
Feature film Noise. Major role in online Girl Friday. Current member of staff, 2008.
Keanu Quaresma
Lead in film Love This Time – winner of Berlin Film Festival Award.
Tatiana Quaresma
Lead in film Love This Time – winner of Berlin Film Festival Award.
MARTIN SHARPE
2007 member of the acclaimed Red Stitch Actors Theatre. Previous work includes lead in Scooter.
JUSTINE PUY
Plays Sillibub in the 2007 International tour of Cats.
ELIZA TAYLOR-COTTER
Plays Janae Timmons in Neighbours; previous major roles in Sleepover Club and Pirate Islands.
KESTIE MORASSI
Underbelly (2008), Satisfaction (2008). Other films include Wolf Creek, Dirty Deeds, The Illustrated Family Doctor and Thunderstruck. Nominated for an AFI (Prestigious Australian Film Industry Award) for Best Supporting Actress.
PETER FLAHERTY
Plays surgeon Donny Tremayne in All Saints.
DIANA GLENN
Canal Road (2008), Satisfaction (2008). Other films include The Oyster Farmer and Somersault. Played Jemima in The Secret Life of Us.
Kai Quaresma
In TV pilot Pharoah’s Leap.
SARA REED
Plays Stanley’s daughter in City Homicide.
MARK WILSON
Regular guest role of Bennie in Blue Heelers, in the movies Welcome to Woop Woop and Dead Letter Office (with Miranda Otto), and roles with Melbourne Theatre Company. Current member of staff, 2008.
SARAH HALLAM
Attended this school for 10 years and now a major casting director for new upcoming series and previously for Blue Heelers. Current guest staff, 2008.
DAVID DONOGHUE
Performed in 2006 with The National Theatre of Great Britain (Melbourne tour). Currently in a number of well-known advertisements.
SIANOA SMIT-MCPHEE
Currently plays Bree Timmons in Neighbours.
STEPHEN PILKINGTON
Currently studying at prestigious schools in the USA and Russia. After training with Michele Williams, Stephen obtained a role in London’s West End with Vanessa Redgrave in Lady Windamere’s Fan.
LARA SACHER
Played Serena in Neighbours. Current member of staff, 2008.
JANE ALLSOP
Major roles in Last Man Standing and played Jo Parrish in Blue Heelers for over five years.
RICHARD GRAY
Went on to graduate from the directors course at VCA Film School. Recently received funding from Miramax USA for a major feature film, 2007.
MICHELE DAVIS
Has forged a career as a playwright and screenwriter. Currently editing for major international Miramax films.
TORQUIL NEILSON
Film roles including Amy, Love and Other Catastrophes, and He Died With A Falafel in His Hand, theatre roles with Melbourne Theatre Company, and lead roles with Playbox Theatre Company. Plays the role of Jake in The Secret Life Of Us.
VICTORIA GOLDBERG
Currently training at the renowned Juilliard Drama School in New York.
HANNAH ROWLANDS-TABERER
Obtained major agency representation in 2007 and currently in several ads.
DORIAN JAMES
Obtained major agency representation in 2007 and currently in several ads.
ALEX MARRIOTT
Played Scooter in The Saddle Club.
SIMONE RAY
Bell Shakespeare Company, graduate of the West Australian Academy of Performing Arts.
MICHAEL ISAACS
Played Clancy throughout the run of Blue Heelers.
EMILY MILBURN
Played Caitlin in Neighbours.
LEIGH BOWMAN
Played Brad in the series Guinevere Jones.
LAUREN HAWKER
Played the role of Sue in the Australian feature film Mall Boy.
CLAUDIA BUTTAZZONI
Played Lara in Home and Away and lead in feature film Beware of Greeks Bearing Guns.
NATHAN WENTWORTH
Played in Thunderstone, Blue Heelers, My Brother Jack.
ADRIAN FOLEY
Played Luke Dawson in Neighbours.
NICK DONALDSON
Played Nicholas Reading in Pirate Islands (Network 10, 2003). Lead role in the feature film 48 Shades of Brown.
OWEN LEE
Played Zac in Neighbours.
NATASHA QUARESMA
Signed with Sony/BMG in 2007, currently in discussion with other record labels in the USA.
KATIE CAMPBELL
Played Wind in Guinevere Jones. Guest roles in Blue Heelers.
BEN SCHMIDEG
Played lead in Wicked Science and High Flyers.
VANESSA ELLIOT
Played Fire in Guinevere Jones.
Our students have appeared in major roles in the following:
FILM: Romulas My Father, Noise, Wolf Creek, Ned Kelly, Love and Other Catastrophies, Dirty Deeds, Josh Jarman, Mall Boy, My Brother Jack, Welcome To Whoop Whoop, He Died With A Fallafel in His Hands, The Dead Letter Office, Amy. The Scase Chase, Beware Of Greeks Bearing Guns, and countless other short, award-winning films.
THEATRE AND OPERA: The Bell Shakespeare Company, The Melbourne Theatre Company, Playbox Theatre Company, Red Stitch, London's West End, The National Theatre Of Great Britain, Australian Opera, The Victorian State Opera, Handspan Theatre, Major tour of the musicals Cats, Les Miserables, Scrooge, The Wizard Of Oz.
TELEVISION: Underbelly, Canal Road, City Homicide, Satisfaction, The Saddle Club Series 3 (USA 2008), Sea Change, The Secret Life Of Us, MDA, A Country Practice, Blue Heelers, Home And Away, Neighbours, Round The Twist, Ocean Girl, The Wayne Manifesto, Crash Zone, Something In The Air, Janus, Stingers, Scooter Secret Agent, Pirate Islands, Good Guys Bad Guys, Fergus McNeil, Something In The Air, Heartbreak Heigh – in fact, just about every Australian Television series.
NEW ONLINE TELEVISION SERIES: Girl Friday.
NB: The teachers at Drama with a Difference are all friends and/or colleagues with most casting directors, many film producers, writers and agents who contact us on a regular basis for suggestions for various roles. However it is important to understand that, despite the success of many of our students, we cannot guarantee that any roles will come from attending the school. There is an enormous amount of “luck” involved where “being the right TYPE, at the right TIME and for the right PROJECT” is what gets you the job. Even those with major success stories must continually work in other jobs to sustain their lives as Australia does not have a big enough industry to support its artists. We encourage EVERYONE (especially those who are still at school) to make EDUCATION or the MASTERING OF SOME OTHER CRAFT/TRADE OR PROFESSION A PRIORITY.