Lianne Mackessy is an award-winning Australian writer-director whose work is grounded in intimate, performance-led storytelling.

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In 2026, her short film Crescendo won Tropfest, judged by a jury that included Margot Robbie and James Cameron. She was also selected as an inaugural recipient of the Tropfest Runway x MPA Career Accelerator Program in Los Angeles.

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Her short film Tuesday Tuesday received the Rebel 8 Award for Outstanding Emerging Female Director at the Academy Award-qualifying Flickerfest, and earned an AWGIE nomination for Best Short Film.

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Lianne holds a Master of Arts in Directing from the Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS), where she also studied screenwriting. Originally trained as an actor, she brings a performance-led approach to filmmaking, grounded in a strong sense of story.

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Her debut short film Not a Wallflower premiered at the Melbourne International Film Festival in 2020, and she was selected for the MIFF Accelerator Lab.​ Her work has screened at festivals across Australia and internationally, and streamed on ABC iview and Stan.

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Alongside her creative practice, Lianne has worked extensively with Bus Stop Films, an award-winning disability-led non-profit, developing inclusive film projects and mentoring emerging filmmakers through its Accessible Filmmaking Program.