Helen Buday - President

Helen Buday is an Australian theatre, television, movie actress and singer. She graduated from the highly reputed National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) in 1983. An accomplished singer, she attended The Music Conservatory of Melbourne in 1980 where she majored in classical singing. Being a multifaceted performer she also took up dancing at the tender age of eight (tap, jazz, modern, ballet). She was awarded best actress at the Valladolid International Film Festival in 2003 for her role in “Alexandra’s Project” directed by Rolf De Heer. Her major film credits include also “Dingo” directed by Rolf De Heer (1990), “For Love Alone” directed by Stephen Wallace (1985) and “Mad Max 3 Beyond Thunderdome” directed by George Miller (1984). In addition to her Australian film career, versatile artist Helen Buday has also been really prolific on the Australian theatre scene. Over the years, she has become one of Australia’s most respected theatre actors. She has performed with most of Australia’s leading theatre companies (as an actor and a singer) including The Sydney Theatre Company  (“Macbeth”, “Uncle Vania”, “A Midsummer’s Night Dream”, “The Threepenny Opera”, “The Seagull”) and The Melbourne Theatre Company (“High Society”, “The Importance Of Being Ernest” with Oscar winner Geoffrey Rush).  Besides her work in film and theatre, She has also appeared in various Australian television series including  “All Saints”, “Stingers”, “Secrets”, “Land Of Hope”, “Five Mile Creek”, “Water Rats”, “Shadow Of Cobra”. In France, she has performed in “George Dandin” (2011) and “Le Dindon” (2009).  She created an Australian film festival « Le Bout Du Monde » in her local town of Pézenas in 2011.

Julie De Bona

Julie de Bona was born in 1980. Her mother is a seamstress and her father a computer analyst. At 19, while studying biochemistry in college, she decides to take a year off to explore acting. She attends classes at the Conservatoire régional in Montpellier before starting stand-up comedy and working for television. She acted on stage in "Le Malade imaginaire" by Molière, "Puzzle" by Woody Allen, "Dernier rappel" by Josiane Balasko and "Etat critique" by Michel Lengliney. On television, she appeared in several series, "Une famille formidable", "Sœur Thérése.com" and "La Vie devant nous". She appeared on screen for the first time in "Camping 2" by Fabien Onteniente, soon followed by "Beursur la ville" by DjamelBensalah, released on October 12, 2011. She was also in "Cyprien" by David Charhon, "Je déteste les enfants des autres" by Anne Fassio and "Indigènes" by Rachid Bouchareb

 (Photo : Christine Ledroit-Perrin)

Mathieu Delarive

Born in 1975 in Paris, Mathieu Delarive has appeared on television, on stage and on screen. Fluent in English, he is adept in many sports. He has appeared in many series, starting with "Terre indigo" with Francis Huster and Cristiana Réali, followed by "Le Grand Bâtre", "Le Secret de Bastien", "La Clé des champs",, "Un été de canicule" , "Les Secrets du volcan", "Une femme d'honneur", "Avocats et associés"… In 2007, he is Yann, one of the heroes of "Les Bleus" on M6. In 2008, he is part of a very innovative series ""Cellule d'identité", followed in 2009 by Elisabeth Rappeneau's TV movie, "Ligne de feu" and a comedy for M6, "Dans la peaud'unegrande", costarring Claire Kelm. On screen, he appeared in "Le Pharmacien de garde", "Double zero", "Les Chevaliers du ciel", "Le Siffleur", "Picnic à Gaza" by Philippe Khazarian. In 2010, he costarred in Alexandre Arcady's film, "Comme les 5 doigts de la main" with Patrick Bruel, Vincent Elbaz, Pascal Elbé and Eric Caravaca.

Isabelle Doval

Actor, director and screenwriter, Isabelle Doval started her artistic career as a professional dancer, working under the guidance of well-known choreographers such as Jérôme Savary and Thierry Godefroy. She appeared in many films under the name Isabelle Dinelli, from « Le plus beau Métier du monde » in 1996, « Comme une bête » and « Comme un poisson dans l'eau » in 1998, as well as « La Vérité si je mens! 2”. Drawn towards directing, she starting making short films from 1996. Her 1999 short “Deçue” took part in an anti-drug campaign. In 2003, she wrote and directed the feature film comedy “Rire et Chatiment” (“Laughter and Punishment”), a tragicomedy about a funny man who loses everything because he doesn't listen to others. This comedy brought about a huge public success for her actor husband José Garcia. In 2008, she directed the tender and imaginative film “Un Château en Espagne”, a funny and moving chronicle of childhood and friendship.

Deborah Grall

Born in an artist family, Deborah takes acting classes with Eva Saint Paul. She appeared for the first time on screen in "Les Fautes d'orthographe" by Jean-Jacques Zilbermann. She worked with Bruno Chiche, Edouard Molinaro and her father, Sebastien Grall, who has given her very interesting characters in his films. Then Deborah met Tanya Lopert who directs her in "Country Music", a British play by Simon Stephens, which she will perform for several months at the Théâtre des Déchargeurs. End of 2006, after the death of her grandfather, Philippe Noiret, she decided to break away from Paris and moved to London for 2 years. There, she met young directors fresh from cinema schools like the London Film School or the NFTS and she appeared in some fifteen short films, among them 'The Lonely Cowboy" by Nick Parrish and "Cries of London" by Frankie Frears (Stephen Frears' son). She moved back to Paris in 2008, when she meets Joann Sfar who gives her the part of Elisabeth Levitsky, Serge Gainsbourg's first wife, in his movie "Gainsbourg, vie héroique". She moved on with the blockbuster series for Canal+, "Maison close", broadcasted beginning of 2009. In March 2010, she came back to the stage in "Les Monologues du vagin", with her grandmother Monique Chaumette. She appeared in "Frères du bled" by Christophe Botti, with Manuel Blanc and Gabrielle Lazure. She will soon rejoin the cast and crew of "Maison close" for a second season.

(Photo : Basile Dell)

Philip McLaren

Philip McLaren was born in Redfern Australia and descends from the Kamilaroi people. He has worked in the film and audiovisual industry in Australia and New Zealand, as well as in Canada and the USA. He has worked as set designer, artistic director, graphic designer, storyboard artist, director and producer. We can see his name credited on over a hundred shows on Australian networks such as Ten, Nine, Seven and Sky Networks, as well as NBC, CBS, ABC and Hanna Barbara in the US, and CBC, CTV in Canada, and NZBC in New Zealand. These days, his focus is on writing. Just like Didier Daeninckx, he uses police intrigue as a backdrop to social and historical realism. His frank writing highlights the slow and difficult and social ascension of Aboriginals in an ambivalent Australian society. His books, more than a long discussion, reveal the richness, the wisdom, humour and humanity of his people. He is the author of six novels, three of which have been translated into French. “There’ll be new dreams” (“Nouveaux Rêves”, édition Le Fil Invisible), “Scream Black Murder” (“Tueur d’Aborigènes”, édition Gallimard) and “Murder in Utopia” (“Utopia”, édition Traversées).