This month SQ talks to Mandy Lake and Margie Brown, co-producers of the Animal Planet’s highest rating series ever, Snake Boss.
What are you working on at the moment?
We’ve got quite a few on the go at the mo: Snake Boss/ Sheila season two (woo hoo!); Bowled Over: A Dragumentary (a feature length doc about a troupe of drag queens who rescue an Ipswich bowls club from going under); In Irwin’s Footsteps (yes, we’re stalking Bob Irwin Sr, in the croc tracks he and Steve have left through Queensland; Third Eye View ( we’re following the fascinating daily adventures of Julianna – ‘supernanny’ of the psychic world – and her ‘Charlie’ sidekick, Nicole Fisher); and Psychic Roadtrip (we’re hitting the historical trail, with two of Australia’s most unique and hilarious psychics – animal communicator, Amanda De Warren, and flower reader, David Laws) … but to name a few!
Who are you working with? And why?
On Snake Boss/ Sheila we’re lucky enough to work with incredible talent both in front of and behind the camera/ scenes, including: Camo, Pete Wright; soundie, Travis Brown; editors in the ‘Snake Pit’, Scott Walton, Ben Jurss, Joe Switak, and Ashleigh Harding. Why? Simples: They’re just the best eggs!
We also teamed up with co-producers WildBear Entertainment to help launch our Snake Sheila onto international TV screens, as they already had existing relationships overseas to help make this happen.
How did you get to this point in your career?
Number one is through what we like to call ‘good eggs’ – we’ve worked with some hugely talented people over the years and would be nothing without their hard work, skills, and utter dedication. Another big factor is our risk taking behaviour – we’ve invested heaps of our own money and resources into the development of pitches/ teasers. What’s more, we’re big believers in backing yourself and your stories: A good idea is a good idea, and don’t let anyone else tell you otherwise!
What’s been tough? What’s helped you on your way?
The biggest source of frustration/ hair tearing is that there simply aren’t enough hours in the day to be able to juggle a lot of eggciting projects, and have some sort of life outside of Flickchicks (sorry mums). Working with good eggs in The Coop has definitely helped us on our way, as has sheer persistence, determination, passion for storytelling and resilience (‘I Get Knocked Down’ is definitely one of our theme songs) – not to mention, that glass of grape juice at the end of the day!
What’s next?
World domination (just kidding!). As well as working on our current doco slate (see above), we want to spread our wings into the world of feature film and TV comedy. EEEKKK! We just said that out loud!
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