ABC appoints new Arts Commissioning Editor

ABC has appointed a new Commissioning Editor – Arts in documentary producer / director / writer Mandy Chang, reporting to the Head of Arts, Katrina Sedgwick.

Chang’s work has covered a wide range of factual genres including music, arts, history, observational and biography. Her feature length documentary The Mona Lisa Curse for the UK’s Channel 4 won the Rose d’Or, Banff World Media Festival Grand Jury Prize, Grierson and Emmy Awards.

The Camera that Changed the World, made for BBC4, has screened at festivals worldwide and last week reached the final shortlist for a Grierson Award for best Arts documentary.

For ABC TV she has previously produced and directed several documentaries including A Thousand Encores: The Ballet Russes in Australia.

She is currently an producing observational documentary series for BBC2 on neurosurgeons at the UK’s John Radcliffe Hospital.

Chang says, “Coming home to Sydney to work for ABC TV is a thrill. I cherish the fact that the ABC’s commitment to the arts is enshrined within its charter. It’s an important part of the nation’s cultural DNA and it’s exciting to be part of that. I look forward to working with both Katrina and Australian filmmakers in helping to shape an arts slate that is distinctive, inspiring and critically robust in the near future.”

Sedgwick adds, “Mandy’s impressive arts documentary experience, along with her passion for developing and supporting filmmakers, makes her a superb addition to the arts team as we explore new opportunities and new models for bringing the arts to Australian audiences on the ABC.”

She begins in January.