Company Manson Podcasting Network
-
- Arts
-
A podcast, produced in rural Australia, bringing together ambitious women from the bush, the city and all over the world. As a former ABC Rural journalist, Company host Skye Manson loves to shine the spotlight on rural people doing amazing things. Each series will include a hand picked mix of stories from well known and inspirational women in our cities, international friends and colleagues and of course - country women who're killing it in business.
-
Bec Bignell: How to make a film about farmers
Bec Bignell is a West Australian film maker on the road to big things, her biggest project to-date, her film HOMESPUN was picked up by streaming giant STAN last year after being acquired by ABC Commercial.
Bec’s main mission in her film making is to challenge stereotypes everywhere. She’s pushing boundaries in her narratives, her characters and in the way she produces film.
In many ways this film is based on a lifetime of observation and for that Rural Australia is lucky to have her - because her perspective as someone who grew up in WA’s wheatbelt runs deep, drawing on her experiences and observations of childhood, community, stereotypes, expectations, hard times, good times - its endless.
HOMESPUN was was financed in large part by Bec personally. It was shot in just two-weeks with locals - who had no acting experience - featured as many of the main characters. I’ve watched it a few times now and there are so many relatable moments, that hit deep in parts and just make you laugh in others. It’s refreshing to see how humorous and engaging these kind of characters can be on screen - because really, we’ve never seen rural Australia depicted in this way before. You have to make time to see this film.
Here's the trailer - https://youtu.be/IGBMaGS3G_s
And here's the film on Stan - https://www.stan.com.au/watch/homespun-2021
Thank you to Rabobank for sponsoring this season of Company.
To fully immerse yourself in what we do, sign up to our free weekly newsletter at mansonpodcasting.com -
Annabelle Hickson: How to make a magazine
Annabelle Hickson talks about the idea of feeling ideas running through her blood like some ind of addict.
But when it comes to her print magazine and modern media business Galah Press - she IS an addict, a women possessed, to flip the narrative on life in rural Australia.
As an original outsider to rural Australia (she grew up in Sydney’s north shore) the mirror that she holds up to people and projects in the bush - is flattering - and it reverberates light deep into the corners of our communities - into the lives of people that sometimes even we ignore - musicians, artists, creatives, artisans - painting a full, diverse and awesome picture of where we live;
Don't be deterred if you think you have heard Annabelle's story before, today we discuss the behind the scenes business mentality of her venture.
How does Annabelle single-handedly manage and grow this business with no large scale advertisers, a 160,000 dollar printing bill three times a year and contract staff that need to be paid.
Galah Press consists of a thrice annually print magazine, two newsletters, multiple events, a new hard cover book - and more things to come, like a podcast and a writers course.
Explore it all at digital.galahpress.com
Company is Manson Podcasting Network’s flagship show alongside, Daily Routines, Women Behind Wool and Garden.
We’re online at mansonpodcasting.com if you want to catch-up or share any of these shows.
To fully embed yourself in our community use the website to sign up to our FREE weekly newsletter - it lands on Sunday mornings - and I like to think of it the weekend magazine but in digital format, and curated especially for people like you and me!
substack.companyonsundays.com
This Season of Company is sponsored by Rabobank. We've been talking about its Client Councils and Community Fund today - if you have a community initiative that will help your community thrive the Rabobank team would love to know about it. rabobank.com.au -
Bush Journal, editor and photographer Jess Howard muses on her place in agriculture and farming
Growing up as one of four children on a sheep farm in southern New South Wales, I think I always knew that it would not be me that was coming home to work as the 'farmer'.
This was never implicity suggested, it was just a feeling. For females who've grown up on a farm, I'll bet many of you had the same feeling.
Today's guest Jess Howard certainly did. She grew up on a farm in western Queensland and a career or life in agriculture didn't quite feel 'right' to her - but with such a strong attachment to the land and place where she grew up, this has always been an uncomfortable feeling.
As she carved her path in jobs and vocations internationally, there was always a yearning to return home, to be able to 'contribute' to agriculture and her family's long held love of life on the land. Is this a feeling you've ever had? I most certainly had.
Here are my musings on this - Just because you don't want to be a 'farmer' does not mean you don't want to be a part of the life on the land, to help build up the industry at large, the communities that live there and do something with your talents that honour your family's values and business direction.
Up until now, it's been hard for families to recognise, support and celebrate the multitude of skills that could be put to good use in an agricultural operation.
Don't get me wrong - this is definitely changing now, but it's a quandary that's been felt by women all over, and at a very deep level. If you're not a 'farmer' then your not really involved.
I'm not sure if this is making sense, so I'll let you listen on this conversation with Jess Howard, editor of Bush Journal and one of the women of the Bush Collective - an instagram platform celebrating the beauty of bush life through incredible photography, seriously there's nothing second grade about this account.
You can pre-order the Beauty in the Bush Collective's hard cover book - Bush Life here. -
Uber organisational expert and South Australian farmer Bridget Johns
There's no deny-ing it today's guest is infatuated with routines, systems and being organised.
Bridget Johns lives on a broad-acre cropping, sheep and goat farm on the Yorke Peninsula of South Australia with her husband and two children She's a mother, organisational expert and a grants writer and founder of Be Simply Free.
Bridget teaches women to go from being time poor to time rich by decluttering their homes, phones, calendars and minds.
What I have found fascinating is that Bridget is also driven by data and as you will hear in this interview, many of the things she does in her life are formulated with reference to data - the time she get's up for example of 4.44am.
But please don't let this turn you off. It's true, I don't think I have ever met anyone so organised but I am very glad Bridget Johns has come into my life and I most certainly am taking heed from her approach to managing her farm household.
You can find Bridget and her courses at besimplyfree.com.au or @be.simplyfree on Instagram. -
Sophie Weeding is making her mark in the world of beautiful accomodation
Today’s guest Sophie Weeding is rural girl born and bred making her make as a mark as super talent bed and breakfast creator in Tasmania.
Born of late nights scrolling on Pinterest while breastfeeding her babies – Soph realised she could channel her skills in design and branding in a venture recreating old homes near her farm in Tasmania. To-date she has three super gorgeous accommodation options under her belt, The Bruny Boathouse, Raffah House and a new addition - a beach shack on the east coast of Tasmania
Sophie is a full time mum, secretary of the local Agricultural Show and her love project is the renovation and management of these three Bed and Breakfasts.
Sophie lives in Oatlands in Tasmania with her husband Nick and her two children Willie and Archie
Soph actually great up in the lush landscape of Western Victoria, so I wondered how on earth she ended up in Tassie in the first place.
Instagram
@raffahhouse
@brunyboathouse
@mansonpodcasting
Or sign up to our newsletter at companyonsundays.substack.com -
Tambo Teddies a true resilience in the bush story
Today we head to north, and then West, to the main street of Tambo in Queensland.
To meet the current co-owner of Tambo Teddies – a beautiful bush business born of adversity – as in when the price for wool was taking a pounding in 1992, over 40 years ago now.
“A brain storming session during a workshop developed the idea that Tambo could assist the wool industry, encourage tourists and create employment by making unique teddy bears from wool pelts and stuff them with wool.”
40 years later, Tambo Teddies remains. Its current owners are Tammy Johnson and Alison Shaw who I speak with today.
Customer Reviews
Looking forward to more!
What a great taster. A lovely, thoughtful interview with Naomi.