Amanda Browne graduated from ACA’s part-time program back in 2008, but a lot has happened since then. She moved to Los Angeles, decided producing was a better fit than acting, and co-founded Undertow Content with business partner Ashlee Russell, back in Australia. So far, Undertow has executive produced two short films that were accepted into multiple Australian festivals, produced a national commercial for Nature’s Way, and produced two panels for SXSW Sydney. Bravo, bravo!
Most recently—Amanda and the Undertow team launched a new brand new podcast. CUT! is a “collection of global voices talking about the business of film and TV” promising unfiltered stories, raw insights, and no gatekeeping”.
Read on to hear about her career journey (the “three pillars”), tips for fellow actors (“YOU MUST HAVE AN IMDB PRO PAGE!”), and the biggest lessons from her acting studies for her multi-faceted creative career.
ACA: Tell us about moving to Los Angeles!
Amanda: It was a big step, but something I always knew I wanted to do from a very young age. I wanted to act and I’ve always been a “nothing is impossible” type of person and knew the type of career I wanted meant I needed to be in LA. I moved just after my 20th birthday and went to a community college on the outskirts of LA. They had an incredible theatre program and I was able to get an international student visa to study there. My Mum and Dad always said that they would pay for me and my brother’s education if we wanted to go to uni, so this was my version. The plan was to be at the school for a year and a half then get a working visa for a year and move to LA—and that’s exactly what I did! I fell into industry events like premieres and after parties as well as talent coordination on live shows like The Voice, the Critics Choice Awards and The Academy Awards and that paid my bills while I auditioned. It also opened me up to other opportunities and connections in the industry.
ACA: What were your career unexpected stepping stones? Any tips for other actors wanting to do the same?
The people I met at college were a big part of my growth as an actor and it also gave me a safe environment to explore other roles like producing and directing. Eventually I decided that acting wasn’t the right direction for me and I headed in the direction of producing. Had I not had that exposure during college I may not have felt confident enough to pursue it later. Also shifting into a full time role was one of the best things I ever did for my career—I was able to gain the experience and exposure I needed and make the contacts that allowed me to start my own company.
One main tip I have for creatives, especially at the beginning, would be to make sure you structure your career in pillars.
- Pillar 1 is your acting where you are auditioning, booking and training which is building your career and will hopefully become your main pillar.
- Pillar 2 is the job that pays the bills and if this can be a job within the industry then that is ideal because it means you’re still networking and meeting the people who will hire you as an actor. This might be working as a production assistant, hair and makeup or an on-set acting coach or teacher.
- Pillar 3 is the volunteering where you can throw yourself into the work that may not pay but will get you the experience or the connections you need to build your acting career. This might be a local theatre production or acting in a short film.
My other tip is to be open minded when it comes to how your career is going to look; sometimes actors pigeonhole themselves by saying no to roles that may not be what they imagined themselves doing. I have many friends who do audiobooks, gaming voiceovers and stunts that aren’t necessarily considered an ‘acting job’ but it’s still performing and not only does it add diverse skills to their resumes but it also avoids stagnation, which is the enemy of motivation. Also YOU MUST HAVE AN IMDB PRO PAGE! Every single person who is going to hire an actor is going to look at your IMDB page. Also engage in LinkedIn – that’s where the decision makers are and it’s amazing how many people will respond to messages on there. Most importantly – have a life outside of acting. Your path is your path and you need to let it take you to where you’re supposed to be.
ACA: What lessons from your acting studies have been most useful in your multi-faceted creative career?
Amanda: Being open to the human experience and that people experience situations in different ways is an important part of being able to work with and lead a team on a production and in business. On top of that, committing to clear and consistent communication is crucial—in acting we are given dialogue that moves the story forward and so many times as actors we perform as characters who don’t communicate and it leads them to certain situations. As audience members we watch these situations unfold and sit there thinking “If only that character had told the other character what they were truly feeling or what they heard or saw! The outcome may have been different—for better or worse!”
Honest and transparent communication is hard for a lot of people, but we have to say the hard thing in order to move through hard situations. We won’t always get along with everyone and it’s important to remember that not everyone has to like us, but we always have to be respectful to ourselves as well as other people.
ACA: What were the biggest challenges starting a production company?
I feel like we are still in the thick of starting so the challenges are still very real. A big one is money and having the financial foundation to be able to move things forward. Having money means you can hire the people you need in order for the business to operate efficiently. We don’t have a seed investor so we are wearing many hats but we are learning a lot and that will make us better business owners in the long run. The constant challenge is going to be getting financiers and buyers to believe and invest in us but we are working to make our company self-sufficient and build our own audiences so we aren’t as reliant on other people to say ‘yes’. At the beginning, getting a run on the board to prove that you can do what you are saying you can do is what the streamers and studios need to see so getting money to finance those first projects can be challenging but it’s what you need to do in order to prove why people should trust you.
ACA: Tell us about the projects you’ve produced as part of Undertow Content.
Amanda: So Undertow Content is a multi-pillared business. We have our development slate which consists of feature films, tv series and web series. Then we have our production arm where we produce our own projects and also do commercials for select clients. Our third pillar is our industry development pillar that houses our podcast CUT! The Podcast, our webinar series, our newsletter and we are building an exciting education program that we aim to launch in 2026.
So far, Undertow has executive produced two short films that were accepted into multiple Australian festivals, produced a national commercial for Nature’s Way, produced two panels for SXSW Sydney and released our Podcast. Our development slate consists of feature films, tv series and web series and all are aimed at hitting an international audience.
ACA: Why did you decide to start CUT! The Podcast?
Amanda: I think we can all agree that podcasts have taken over and there is an opportunity to reach audiences there. You also don’t have to get permission to do it—it’s a self starter industry. We saw this as an opportunity to start to connect with an audience of creatives and professionals in our industry who are craving access to information about how to move their career forward.
Unfortunately in Australia, there has been a history of gatekeeping information and opportunity and this is for various reasons, but it means that people wanting to get into the industry are stuck if they don’t know someone, have the money to access networks or don’t live in a certain area. Both Nell and I were actors who came from families that were not connected to the industry and we both left to go to America because we just couldn’t kick down the doors in Australia. The podcast was born out of our passion for giving people access to information and creating a culture of information sharing and community. We also want to build an audience for Undertow who can come along on the ride with us as we build this company. We want people to invest in the stories we are telling and also know that we want their thoughts on what we are doing. The audience for the podcast is our way of understanding what people are going to watch and what people want.
ACA: Who’s Nell? Tell us more about your creative partnership.
Amanda: Nell is my co-host on CUT! And the Head of our Industry Development at Undertow. She and my business partner, Ash, are superwomen and together we are building this business. Nell comes from an acting background and like me, moved to LA to pursue her career and we connected via a mutual friend. We had very similar experiences having worked in entertainment events and then leaning towards producing. Nell taught at AFTRS and has a sales and partnerships background which is an extremely valuable asset to us as we move our projects and initiatives forward.
ACA: What interviews should we look forward to on CUT!? What can listeners expect?
Amanda: All the episodes have something for everyone! and I have to say, the amount that I learned from these conversations is more than I thought I would. Listeners can expect our IN THE NEWS segment where we have a chat about different topics affecting the industry. Then there is our INTERVIEW segment where we chat with professionals from all over the globe. Our first episode is with Deb, a Physical Production Manager in LA – everyone who plans to make a film or show with a production company or studio needs to know what this role entails. They are the people who get things made! From there we chat to Joe, an LA based musician who is the epitome of the creative entrepreneur – every freelancer needs to listen to his episode and I think ACA students will really benefit. We have Liam who is a Post Production Supervisor, Jeanne an artist-turned-director from LA and Alison McGirr who is an actress and former ACA student and many more.
Our most recent episodes are with an entertainment lawyer, Janine Lapworth (every creative needs to listen to her episode) and Andrew Shaw, an Aussie producer based in NYC with an inspiring journey. We are about to launch our last episode of Season 1 with Screen Executive Julie Eckersley! Season 2 is already shaping up to be jam packed full of incredible guests and we have some exciting changes in store to grow the podcast and connect our listeners with information and opportunity.
ACA: Anything else you’d like to share?
Amanda: Yes! Undertow is really excited to launch our new webinar series in April called PITCH PLEASE: Creating a data-driven blueprint that is focused on providing in-depth information for anyone who plans to pitch themselves (that’s you actors!) or their project to production partners, buyers or funders. We produced a sold-out panel at SXSW Sydney last year so this series is inspired by that. It’s a five-session series that will take people through a blueprint for pitching a project using data and marketing as the backbone. This is what every studio, streamer or production company is wanting to see now – it’s the standard – and we want to make sure Australians are equipped with the information and tools to compete with the best on a global stage.
Our guests include Grainne Brunsdon, COO of Screen Australia, Nat Lynch from Cinch Media, Georgia Woodward, CEO of The Post Lounge & Orange Ent., Carmen Knox from US-based global production company Invention Studios (you guys need to know about Invention!) and entertainment lawyer Janine Lapworth who will walk everyone through what they need to be covered when they pitch their idea.
Those interested can sign up via the event website here.
ACA: Where should we follow Undertow and CUT!?
Amanda: Check out our website undertowcontent.com or subscribe to the Undertow Community here. Get Social with us @undertowcontent.
Listen to CUT! The Podcast – undertowcontent.com/cutthepodcast/
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/cut-the-podcast/id1794060996
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/43e6MiGDWLvF7B3jR7Mz41
Or anywhere you get your podcasts!
INSTA – @cut.pod @a.m.andabrowne @nell.nakkan
TIK TOK – @cut.the.pod
YOUTUBE – @undertowcontent
