NORTH Fremantle local Miley Tunnecliffe took out this year’s award for outstanding female director at the prestigious Flickerfest short film awards in Sydney last month.

The award is given in honour of filmmaker Samantha Rebillet, and is presented by family and friends including Claudia Karvan and Gracie Otto.

Tunnecliffe’s ScreenWest-funded comedy Calling also won best international film at last year’s Austin Short Comedy Festival.

Tunnecliffe, a fifth generation Fremantle-ite, wrote, directed and starred in the hilarious portrayal of a mother/daughter relationship told through phone calls.

The mother is played by Debra Lawrance (Please Like Me and Pippa in Home and Away).

Pursuing an acting career in New York, Tunnecliffe found herself taking a different direction: “I started writing and getting behind the camera. I spun the dice and chucked myself in the deep end,” she says.

Fortune smiles on those who dare, and along with winning awards, the young director/screenwriter wrote an episode of the ABC’s new series The Heights.

Calling is showing at Camelot in Mosman Park, Saturday March 2 as part of Flickerfest, where Tunnecliffe will talk about her film.

by JENNY D’ANGER