BYRON BAY LOS ANGELES BRISBANE
[ About ]
Since then, Bronte Studios (Australian Movie Production Company) has also produced many other films. Including The Cost, The Greatest Surf Film in The Universe, Kane, Brando With a Glass Eye, Heart of the Man, and Fear Below.
Bronte’s latest film, Take My Hand starring Radha Mitchell (Finding Neverland), Adam Demos (Sex Life) & Bart Edwards (The Witcher), wrapped production in 2023.
Bronte Studios continues to grow and expand its business. Taking on Kiah Roache-Turner’s newest vision Beast of War, a WWII shark film slated to go into production in 2024.
[ Blake Northfield ]
Founder & CEO, Bronte Studios
Blake Northfield is the founder and CEO of Bronte Studios (formally Bronte Pictures), one of Australia’s fastest-growing film production companies. Since launching in 2015, Blake has built an internationally acclaimed slate of feature films, with titles distributed across global markets and major streaming platforms including Netflix, Stan, and Red Bull TV. In 2022, Bronte Pictures was honored with Screen Producers Australia’s Breakthrough Business of the Year award.
Blake began his industry journey as an actor, training in Los Angeles, Sydney, and Melbourne, with on-screen credits that include Home and Away, Please Like Me and The Story of Us. Transitioning behind the camera, he gained valuable experience in management under the mentorship of Mark Byrne before co-founding Bronte Pictures.
His producing credits include Streamline (2020), Wyrmwood: Apocalypse (2021), Fear Below (2023), Brando with a Glass Eye (2023), Take My Hand (2024), The Fabulous Four (2024) and Beast of War (2025).
Committed to nurturing the next wave of creatives, Blake spearheads the Bronte Pathway program, developed in partnership with Bond University and SAE College, to offer emerging filmmakers hands-on production experience.
[ Sandra Tahmasby ]
Head of Production
Sandra Tahmasby Baxter is a dynamic and versatile screen industry professional with over a decade of experience across film and television. A graduate of Sydney’s Macleay College with a Diploma in Journalism, Sandra has built a robust career through a diverse range of production roles spanning both local and international projects.
She spent several formative years on the set of Home and Away, Australia’s most iconic television drama, where she honed her skills in multiple capacities including Locations Assistant, Production Assistant, 3rd Assistant Director, and 2nd Assistant Director. Her credits extend to major productions such as Thor: The Big Salad (Marvel/Disney), The Moth Effect (Amazon) and Heartbreak High (Netflix/Fremantle).
Since 2020, Sandra has been an integral part of the Bronte Productions team, bringing her sharp instincts, logistical expertise, and passion for storytelling to Bronte’s slate of films including; Wyrmwood: Apocalypse (feature film), Fear Below ,Beast of War, The Fabulous Four and Take My Hand to name a few.
As Head of Production, Sandra oversees all aspects of physical production through to post production across Bronte Studios’ slate of projects. She manages budgets, schedules, and crews ensuring each production runs smoothly, efficiently, and to the highest creative and technical standards.
Sandra plays a key role in leading the production team with a strong focus on problem-solving, collaboration, and execution.
[ Drew Smith ]
Development and Production Coordinator
Drew Smith, a graduate of SAE Byron Bay where he earned top honors in Film, has been immersed in the screen industry since his earliest days as an intern on Bronte Pictures’ debut feature, Out of the Shadows. From these beginnings, Drew quickly established himself as one of Australia’s most sought-after location managers, contributing his skills and meticulous eye for detail to high-profile productions including Total Control for ABC, Ten Pound Poms for BBC & Stan, and Five Blind Dates for Amazon Prime, among many others.
His extensive credits also include significant work on Bronte Pictures’ films such as Beast of War, The Fabulous Four and Take My Hand, reflecting his versatile experience across diverse genres and production scales.
Driven by a deep passion for storytelling, creative problem-solving, and fostering meaningful collaborations, Drew joined Bronte Pictures full-time as Development and Production Coordinator in late 2023. In early 2025, he stepped into the role of Head of Development, where he now oversees the company’s expanding slate of feature films.
In this role, Drew focuses on nurturing compelling new projects from concept through to production, working closely with writers, directors, and producers to bring fresh and distinctive stories to the screen. His commitment to excellence and his comprehensive industry knowledge continues to make him an integral part of Bronte Studios’ creative vision and success in both the Australian and international film markets.
[ Michelle Krumm ]
Michelle Krumm is a seasoned film producer and executive renowned for her dedication to compelling storytelling and her significant contributions to both Hollywood and Australian cinema. She began her career at Miramax Films and TWC where she acquired films such as The Road, Miss Potter and Vicky Christina Barcelona. She transitioned into full time producing and made The Spectacular Now which won the grand jury prize for Acting at Sundance and was on the National Board of Review for best films that year. Michelle’s other producing credits include: All Good Things, Factory Girl, Bobby, Escape From Pretoria, Mercy Road, Seriously Red, Carnifex, Streamline, The Furnace and R.U.R. Krumm’s unwavering commitment to diverse and thought-provoking narrative continues to enrich the global landscape.
[ Richard Harris ]
Richard is a film executive and producer with more than twenty-five years’ of industry leadership experience across a diverse range of roles including eight years as CEO of the South Australian Film Corporation.
In 2020 Richard founded his production company Fractal Films through which he has both developed his own screen projects as well as provided strategic, business advice and EP services to some of Australia’s most exciting and emerging screen businesses.
Since 2023 he has worked most closely with the award-winning Closer Productions as an Executive Producer, assisting the company in its ambition to grow, develop external partnerships and build greater production capacity. Over the same period he provided screen consultancy services to a range of other production companies including Archipelago Productions, Rodeo Royale, Oombarra Productions, Cascade Films and Lantern Pictures, among others.
Prior to working with Closer, Richard established the impact film company Minderoo Pictures, and as its Executive Producer developed a strong slate of impact projects, including Plastics Future directed by Academy Award-winning filmmaker Louis Psihoyos (The Cove).
In 2019 he was Co-producer and Executive Producer on the feature documentary Under the Volcano, produced by Cody Greenwood and directed by Gracie Otto. The film had its international premiere at SXSW in Austen Texas in March 2021, and is distributed worldwide by Universal.
Before moving into independent production, Richard held a number of industry-leading executive roles, including Executive Director of the Australian Directors Guild, and Head of Business and Audience at Screen Australia where he oversaw the agency’s Enterprise Program and other key industry market and development areas.
However, it was during his time at the SAFC, that Richard had the most significant impact. Over his eight years as CEO he transformed the local production sector, overseeing the construction of the $43M Adelaide Studios, creating the groundbreaking low budget FilmLab designed to support emerging local talent, and achieving record production levels in the state. His tenure witnessed the rise of a new generation of South Australian talent including Sophie Hyde, Anthony Maras, Dario Russo, Tilda Cobham-Hervey and Danny and Michael Philippou (aka Rakka Rakka Bros).
Richard is currently the Chair of the award-winning Adelaide-based Windmill Theatre Company and has served on the Ausfilm Board. He has lectured in media policy at Sydney University and authored the 2007 Platform Paper Film in the Age of Digital Distribution. In 2007 Variety listed Richard as one of its ten Global Executives to Watch.
Bronte Studios is an Australian Movie Production Company with offices worldwide. Collaborating with some of the worlds largest movie production companies.