jOHN MAYNARD
PRODUCER
Jirga was made in two parts. The first was the Afghanistan shoot, the result of immense risk, courage, commitment and daring, by the director and lead actor, Sam Smith. Of an equal challenge was turning the 38 hours of handheld footage into a film. Shot in 4k MP4 25fps the rushes were exciting but a challenge to work with. There was a story to refine and a lot of technical work to check the picture and deal with rough sound. Initial investigations and tests at post-production house Definition Films demonstrated the effectiveness of stabilization, sharpening and grading to create an image suitable for a cinema screen. The screenplay was revised to accommodate the gaps in footage, before the final edit commenced.
NIKKI STEVENS
EDITOR
Editor Nikki Stevens has a background in documentary and television, her recent credits include; Black Divaz (dir. Adrian Russell Wills, 2018); Howard on Menzies: Building Modern Australia (dir. Simon Nasht, 2016); Pauline Hanson: Please Explain! (dir. Anna Broinowski, 2016); and Once Upon a Time in Cabramatta (dir.Bernadine Lim, 2012). Jirga is Nikki's first feature drama.
Liam egan
SOUND DESIGNER
Liam has been working in sound for over 30 years and has 40 feature film credits as sound designer/sound supervisor. Liam has had a long career in sound design for film, documentary and television. In recent years, has also contributed to the sound for a variety of screen-based art works, virtual reality films and fulldome cinema. He has won, and been nominated for, many sound awards during his career including the 2009 AFI for Best Sound and ASSG best achievement in Film Sound Design for Samson and Delilah (dir. Warwick Thornton, 2009); the 2010 IF award for best sound design and ASSG award for best achievement in Film Sound Design for Beneath Hill 60 (dir. Jeremy Sims, 2010); and has been nominated for many more.
AJ TRUE
COMPOSER
AJ is a Sydney based musician known for his work as a co-founder and drummer of Psychobilly band Zombie Ghost Train from 2001-2008. As a composer, producer, and musical director his music has been used in film, TV, radio & theatre: Red Dog (dir. Kriv Stenders, 2011), Underbelly (2008-2018), True Blood (2008-2014), Paramedico (dir. Benjamin Gilmour, 2012), Foxtel's MAIN EVENT, Home and Away (1988-present), Sydney Theatre Company, The Dames of Throne Burlesque Show, Star Wars Burlesque, Southern Cross Austereo, and national TVCs. Jirga is AJ's first film score.
The Jirga soundtrack is now available on iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/jirga-original-motion-picture-soundtrack/1398451906
DAVID GROSS
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER & POST PRODUCTION SUPERVISOR
David founded boutique Sydney based post house Definition Films in 2006. Definition Films specializes in providing HD solutions to Australian and international clients. David has worked as post supervisor on over 20 feature films and 100 hours of broadcast television and is constantly challenging the status quo in postproduction.
His recent Australian projects include: Sherpa (dir. Jennifer Peedom, 2015), The Water Diviner (dir. Russell Crowe, 2014), Hacksaw Ridge (dir. Mel Gibson, 2016), The Turning (2013), Adoration (dir. Anne Fontaine, 2013), The Rehearsal (dir. Alison Maclean, 2016), Spear (dir. Stephen Page, 2016) and Fell (dir. Kasimir Burgess, 2014).
BRIDGET IKIN
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER
Bridget Ikin has worked as an independent film producer for over 30 years. She is passionately committed to innovative filmmaking, especially to the telling of stories by and for women. Her award-winning films include Jane Campion’s An Angel at My Table (1990); Sarah Watt’s two features Look Both Ways (2005) and My Year Without Sex (2009), the BAFTA-nominated documentary Sherpa (dir. Jen Peedom, 2015), and Alison Maclean’s The Rehearsal (2016), Crush (1992), and the much-loved short Kitchen Sink (1989). She also produces exceptional moving image multi-screen installation works with artists including Angelica Mesiti and Hossein Valamanesh. Bridget was the Head of SBS Independent 1996-2000, and an inaugural Feature Film Evaluator at the Film Finance Corporation (now Screen Australia) 2005-7. She was on the board of the South Australian Film Corporation from 2009-2015. In 2018 Bridget was awarded an honorary doctorate from AFTRS for her services to television and film in Australia.