Pre-eminent drama producer John Edwards will deliver the Hector Crawford memorial lecture next Wednesday at the Screen Forever conference in Melbourne.
Edwards' productions have won 39 AFI and AACTA Awards, four People’s Choice Awards, eight ASTRA Awards, 29 Logies, more than a dozen craft awards in Australia and international accolades including three New York Festival Awards and a Golden Globe nomination.
Now with Endemol Shine Australia, he has produced more than 600 hours of television drama including The Beautiful Lie, Offspring, Gallipoli, Love My Way, Paper Giants, The Secret Life of Us and Police Rescue.
Among his other credits are The Surgeon, Dangerous, Rush, Tangle, Puberty Blues, Party Tricks, the Golden Globe nominated mini-series On the Beach, Marking Time, which won seven AFI Awards, six telemovies in the Cody series, and Beaconsfield.
Screen Producers Australia CEO Matt Deaner said, “Edwards’ contribution to Australian television drama is incomparable to any other contemporary figure in the country. Across an incredible, prolific career, his creative vision has spawned high-quality Australian drama that has resonated with national and international audiences.
"It will be a rare opportunity to hear from someone with such experience, intimate knowledge and perceptive insight into the Australian media industry.”
Previous Hector Crawford memorial lecture speakers include Phillip Adams, Kim Williams, Dare Jennings, Peter Garrett, Lachlan Murdoch, Noel Pearson, Margaret Pomeranz, Harold Mitchell and Gillian Armstrong.