What does a young man do when he is not sure what career path he should follow? “You can do what you want” was the advice Damian got. “But that was not necessarily helpful” our guest speaker last week drily remarked… Well, the Army was recruiting, and, provided one signed up for 6 years, one could learn a trade into the bargain. He ended up becoming an Avionics Technician, specialising in Helicopters, and was posted to Afghanistan. But the work in the Army didn’t provide the job satisfaction he was after.Today, Damian runs a Video Production company, Iron Forge Pictures, based on the Gold Coast. The path to success was not exactly a bed of roses: After the Army, he travelled Europe with his own camera. “I have always enjoyed shooting silly videos,” he said, which he edited himself and then published on streaming sites such as YouTube.
At age 28, Damian embarked on a career in Video editing. He enrolled at the local International Film College, hunkering down to serious study of the art, earning an Advanced Diploma. But it’s not as easy as… In 2012, when the Australian Dollar was on par with the US, it was cheaper to make movies in the US, so work was scarce. So he started making his own short films. But, 3 days before shooting was to start, his Director pulled out… No other option but to learn how to direct himself.
And the rest is history, so they say. His feature film ‘The Lost One’ debuted in 2020. During the COVID period in 2021, he wrote four feature length scripts and directed his second feature, ‘Girls Night Out’ in 2022. Today, Damian writes, directs, edits and even distributes his own work. ‘Gunpowder’ is destined to be published as a graphic novel. In addition, he regularly lectures at TAFE college. “No flies on you”, I think, is the correct colloquial Australian expression…
(Photo: Damian Hussey (right) with meeting Chairman Gerald East)