THE INSIDE WORD

HOME AND AWAY, INDIA, HOME AGAIN AND THE ROCKIT

FILMMAKER Tyler Atkins has certainly taken the road less travelled. A talented surfer in his youth, the Burleigh Heads local studied acting, landed a role in Home And Away and moved to Los Angeles where his good looks helped him to become a muchin-demand model.

He became one of the hot young things on the LA social scene, hang- ing out with h the likes of Paris Hilton.

Despite that success he realised something g was missing in his life and travelled to

India where he discovered Sikhism: “I walked into the famous Golden Temple in Punjab and it hit me – this was the thing I had been looking for all my life.”

That moment gave him the clarity and path to become a vessel for the semi-autobiographical story of his life with the film Bosch and Rockit, which has been released in cinemas this week.

“I wanted to tell the story of parenting and the repercussions of drugs and alcohol. With anything you create and make, when it is personal it becomes so powerful. It took me a long time to explore that aspect of my life, which I had buried, and via the powerful platform of cinema it becomes an incredibly moving experience.”

The film stars Luke Hemsworth and Rasmus King in his first screen role. “I cast Rasmus ... because my background is acting and I knew I could get what I wanted out of him. Luke was amazing with him and in a way they were like father and son. As the writer I had a vision of what I wanted but was happy to allow the actors the scope to work within the script to get the end result.

“I have such deep gratitude that I was chosen to tell this story. I believe it was God telling me to do this and while it was hell at times, the crew was amazing and together we got it done. I am proud that no matter what happened I turned up and got it finished.” What’s next?

“I’ve finished a script about the legendary surfer Michael Petersen and am going through the process of getting it started. He was an undiagnosed paranoid schizophrenic and it’s a heavy script about this non-heroic character who wrestled with his illness.

“He never surfed competitively again after winning the Stubbies, endured shock treatment and said that he spoke to aliens so he was very different.

“I’ve learnt so much doing Bosch and Rockit so it should make the movie e about Michael eas- ier.”

It has been some e journey with a lot t more to come.

CILLEKENS A MEDIA SHOWSTOPPER

IT doesn’t seem that t long ago that we e were photographing Emma Cillekens as either Miss Gold Coast Show or in various local theatrical productions.

Now, she is back from New York to visit family and friends and, to put it mildly, her life has changed dramatically.

She graduated with a double degree in journalism i and business from f QUT. “I graduated into the global recession and found myself taking a job at a newspaper in a place I never expected, Mount Isa,” she explained.

The plan was to stay for a year but that became eight after landing a gig as an ABC breakfast radio host. “I loved it and covered incredible stories like crocs eating snakes!”

Emma then won a scholarship to study for a master’s degree at New York University at the intersection of journalism, technology and business, and was the first Australian ever accepted into the program.

“I’m fascinated with where the media is going rather than where it’s been, so the opportunity was too great to pass up,” she said. “I packed up everything and it’s been one fascinating project after the next.”

These days she’s a multiaward-winning journalist who has worked with some of the biggest media companies in the world. One of those projects was a significant investigation.

“The US had the highest rate of maternal mortality in the developed world and we investigated why. We were so humbled to win nearly every major journalism award and be a Pulitzer Prize finalist. That story was the catalyst for Congress allocating $60m to improving the understanding of maternal deaths.”

Next, she worked in the podcast arena for The Wall Street Journal, on The Future of Everything, and co-created the award-winning show In Machines We Trust, looking at the role of AI in our lives.

She was even a finalist in the “Oscar’s of Podcasting”.

While she loves America’s innovative spirit, she misses the laidback lifestyle and sense of community we often take for granted in Australia.

Emma also teaches the next crop of journalists at a university in New York, helps clients build podcasts, and founded Sculpt Your Story, which trains people to powerfully tell their own story.

“I think of myself as a storyteller, who both tells stories and helps others to do the same.”

It’s a long, long way from Ashmore and Miss Gold Coast Show.

MAGIC OF OLIVIA WILL NEVER WANE

MANY locals have wonderful memories of Olivia Newton-John, and Karen Mckinley has particular fondness for the homegrown superstar.

“I was a young reporter on this paper back in the ’90s when she was first diagnosed with breast cancer. I knew she was staying at Sheraton Mirage so I left a note with the concierge. That night the phone rang at home and my sister called out, ‘Olivia’s on the phone for you’.

“While she didn’t want to talk publicly, she took the time to reach out and thank me for my message.

“Another example was for my 50th birthday when my mother contacted her for a video she was making from all my friends for the party.

“Not only did Olivia send a beautiful message she also sang Happy Birthday.

“Such a beautiful, caring woman who touched and improved the lives of so many people.”