George Coles

George is a Wonnarua woman from the Hunter Valley region and is the First Nations Community Engagement Manager at AFTRS. A graduate of the School’s Bachelor of Arts Screen: Production, George now works with the First Nations and Outreach Division to deliver skills-based workshops and custom short courses to Indigenous communities and implements cultural wellbeing strategies for the First Nations students throughout the school.

As a First Nations filmmaker, telling stories has always played a significant role in George’s life. Previously directing documentaries for NITV and assisting on community-driven projects, George is now devoting her skills to help other people tell their stories on a much bigger platform.

One of the highlights from my time at AFTRS would be the people I had met and the amazing work we were able to create together. There was a real sense of support in my cohort that I feel has really been reflected in our time after graduating – we’re still going to people’s festival screenings years later.

My career highlight would be the First Nations community-led projects that I’ve worked on, from documentaries to skills-based programs, and having the opportunity to continue to do so. As an Indigenous storyteller, it’s always an honour to work with my community to help tell our stories in the way we want to tell them.