2024 Winner: Outstanding Alumnus Award (Arts, Education and Law)
Bachelor of Film & TV Production, Class of 1998
As General Manager & Creative Director for BBC Studios Productions Australia, Kylie has developed, sold and produced over 600 hours of TV in just the last five years. For the last 26 years, she has been traversing the wonderful world of TV. Kylie champions the careers of many, has built an inclusive team and is a regular judge on many awards programs.
What does a typical day/week at work look like for you?
My week is filled with brainstorm development meetings (my favourite part of the week), management meetings, network pitches, set visits, watching edits, talent meetings, finance meetings, UK update Zooms, keeping up to date on industry news and market changes and constantly looking at the horizon and thinking about what we need to be focusing on next—all whilst keeping across every new launch of shows in Australia (and overseas). I think about my amazing team and what support they need to excel at their job and try to be a good creative manager—not to mention a mother and wife!
How did your time at Griffith help shape your career?
It provided well-rounded experience for all the different roles you can do on productions and it was a very close-knit cohort where some of us are still working together today! I did drive my lecturers crazy by constantly wanting to hone the course to suit the very clear direction of what I wanted to get out of my tertiary education though.
What inspired you to pursue your current career path?
I always knew I wanted to work in film and television—from high school. I loved the idea of working collaboratively with people, travelling the world, telling stories, and the idea that no two days are the same. Moving image is such a powerful storytelling medium and I have never grown tired of it—then all of a sudden, you calculate you’ve been in it for 26 years whilst you’ve been distracted by how challenging and interesting it is! It’s definitely kept me on my toes.
How do you stay updated with the latest trends and developments in your field?
I watch A LOT of content across every genre and every platform. I have to! Of course, I also attend conferences (both here and overseas), read the news, blogs and industry newsletters, and attend every networking event I can to keep in touch with my colleagues and share common experiences.
Can you share a valuable lesson you learned from a setback or failure in your career?
Twenty years ago, I made a show that was – what I thought – the worst bit of TV you’d ever seen. My lesson was, to make sure you’ve put in the development and work before being on set and ensure everyone knows the show you want to make. I also learnt so much about the type of leader I wanted to become and what I needed to learn to become that leader. It’s always a learning process.
What motivates you to continue striving for excellence in your field?
I’ve always been ambitious by nature, so that helps with motivation. I’m also creative, so the drive to keep making content is constant, to keep moving forward especially as I feel so inspired by the many stories there are to tell. When I look around at the industry, I see there is also so much work to do in a lot of areas–gender and pay parity, diversity and inclusion, sustainability–the list goes on!
How do you approach leadership in your work and community involvement?
Listen and lead (and listen again and again)! Don’t be afraid to embrace change and encourage those around you to do so too. Being your authentic self also allows others to be their authentic self and when you aren’t worried about all that and can just have a space to do your best work—wonderful things happen.
Favourite inspirational quote, and why?
‘I don’t know what I don’t know’—not exactly inspirational and probably too honest and basic. But it keeps me asking questions and keeps me listening to the clever people around me. It’s actually what I say to my kids all the time too especially when they try and tell me they know everything (teenagers)! So that’s another cross-over between my work and home life.
How do you maintain a work-life balance, especially considering your level of achievement?
It’s constantly evolving as I move through the different stages of my life. I think as a mother, I have learnt to be ambidextrous—this is a skill that comes naturally to producers because it has to so it’s been mutually beneficial to my home life. I am constantly amazed at the clever producers I work with and how quick we are to look outside the square. I think it keeps you agile. I have an incredible wife, who also works in TV, but her ability to run the house, the kids and work full time has been the thing that allows me to do what I do.
The other big work-life balance for me in recent years is my art practice. I have always dabbled but have now begun to exhibit my artwork and find there’s nothing better and more balancing than a Sunday afternoon painting and gardening. It reorders and restores my mind and gets me ready for the week ahead.
Best life book recommendation, and why?
As a teenager, my Dad gave me a copy of Dale Carnegie’s How to Win Friends and Influence People. Bit old school—but I remember it was so helpful (mental note for next time: think of something more highbrow and perhaps within the same century)! To be honest I actually listen to a million podcasts because I’m constantly looking for answers across so many different topics! So right now I’m listening to Deborah Frances-White's The Guilty Feminist. She’s brilliant.
How do you see your industry evolving in the next decade, and how do you plan to adapt?
This is a very real area of concern that is consuming right now. My industry is changing drastically, huge seismic shifts in viewing patterns, consolidation and contraction are everywhere. But when I look at my own viewing habits from the 70s to now, then I’m not afraid of change because I’ve been through and part of so much fundamental change already—so my focus is on how we can evolve with it. Where are the future opportunities? What does traditional linear TV do to survive a declining advertising market with fragmented audiences? What’s next after peak TV? How do we continue to make TV that engages and tells stories because as human beings, storytelling is how we share, connect and reflect. That’s still the same!
Can you share a specific initiative or project you're currently working on that excites you?
When the gender pay gap results came out earlier this year I was, yet again, so disheartened by the 19% gender pay gap. I’ve grown up in this industry seeing the same results year in and year out. So this year I decided to do something about it and kicked off a gender pay gap review across every line on every budget of every show we are making here at BBC Studios. As I say to my team, “If you want to change the world, start in your own backyard.“
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