Filmmaker Sonya Pemberton awarded at doco conference

Documentary maker Sonya Pemberton has been awarded the prestigious Stanley Hawes Award at the Australian International Documentary Conference, today in Melbourne.

The creative director of Genepool Productions, has written and directed over 60 hours of broadcast documentary and factuals including Uranium: Twisting the Dragon’s Tail, Jabbed: Love, Fear and Vaccines, Immortal, Catching Cancer and Crude: The Incredible Journey of Oil. She was the executive producer of the three-part SBS series Tales of the Unexpected.

“Australian documentaries, like Australian scientists, punch well above their weight internationally,” she said.

“For me, an hour or two or three of TV is an extremely valuable thing. That may sound odd when you think of some of the dubious shows on TV, but Australian documentaries can – and do – reach tens of millions of people, worldwide. They can help shape thinking. They can influence decisions. They can make a difference. For many of us, that’s why we do the work we do. To contribute.”