Sound of Silence Productions

In another life, I might have been a full-time filmmaker or a playwright. But maybe… this is that life.

Sound of Silence Productions is where I partially take off the academic hat and step into a world driven by instinct, feeling, and unfiltered human stories. It is my creative home – a space where ideas find form in words, images, and performance, and where concepts are tested not through theory, but through the reaction of an audience, the silence of a darkened cinema, and the energy shared between performers and spectators.

I have always believed in the power of narrative. Even in my research career, it was the story behind the numbers that held my attention. But for years, I watched the world of theatre and film from a distance, convinced it belonged to others: the formally trained, the naturally theatrical, those brave enough to risk public failure in pursuit of artistic truth.

Then, as life often does, it found a way to surprise me.

In my twenties and thirties, friends - many of them well-known in creative circles - began urging me to consider dramatic arts not as a spectator but as a practitioner. They insisted I had the character, voice, natural rhythm, the background of a lifelong bookworm, the relentless pursuit of excellence, and the people skills required to keep creative chaos moving toward a shared vision – literally, everything a producer or director needs.

I laughed it off for years, too conscious of my life commitments, too mindful of the steady career path I had built. But the invitations kept coming. Scripts found their way into my inbox. Conversations turned into opportunities. Eventually, curiosity pulled me in!

I enrolled, quietly and with no fanfare, in workshops and courses around Sydney. I sat in rehearsal rooms, technical classes, script labs…. a student again, humbly learning a new language of storytelling. Those early steps led to projects, collaborations, and the improbable experience of standing not only behind the scenes, but sometimes performing on stage, and later teaching what I had learned to others in different institutions.

Life commitments and other responsibilities meant it was never going to become my primary career. But it grew into something equally important: a reminder that our creative instincts do not fade with age or job titles. They wait. And when called upon, they often find us far better prepared than we realise

Sound of Silence Productions was formally established in 2020 and has since become my private, public, sometimes chaotic, always passionate experiment in story. Here, I draw on experience in writing, casting, marketing, and producing to create stories that speak to human need, cultural transition, shared pain, and unspoken joy.

Whether on stage or screen, I see this work as an extension of my academic curiosity, just expressed differently. It is where I ask the same fundamental questions about systems, identity, and change, but through performance and visual storytelling. And honestly, the world makes far more sense when it is played out in scenes and characters.

Sound of Silence is a constant reminder that my academic articles rarely make anyone laugh, cry, or recognise themselves. Art does that. Story still matters. No dataset or model will ever fully capture what it means to be human. I have learnt that art and story is still our most powerful form of insight. And as long as I have the chance, I will keep chasing that truth.