Angela Betzien

Writers

"...this is a stunningly gripping production: beautifully written by Angela Betzien... superb..." John McCallum, The Australian

Angela Betzien is a multi-award winning playwright and screenwriter.

Angela is a core writer on TOTAL CONTROL for ABC TV with Blackfella Films starring Rachel Griffiths and Deborah Mailman. TOTAL CONTROL won Best Drama Series at the 2019 AACTA awards. Angela wrote an episode of SECRET CITY series 2 produced by Penny Chapman and Matchbox Pictures.

Angela has two original series in development; one with Matchbox/ NBCU and the other with Werner Film Productions and she is currently attached as head writer on two literary adaptations for limited television series.

In 2017 Angela was selected for Brilliant Careers funding through Screen Australia to transition into television and film writing, through this program she trained in TV development and showrunning with Penny Chapman and Cate Shortland.

Angela’s play CHALKFACE will premier at STC in 2022 starring Catherine McClements. Angela’s plays have been performed around the world; THE HANGING at Sydney Theatre Company was shortlisted for the NSW Premier Literary Awards 2017. EGG premiered at MTC the same year and was revived in 2019 for a Tasmanian school tour. HELICOPTER (originally MTC commissioned and produced) had its second season at the Norwegian National Theatre in Oslo where it played in repertory in 2015 and 2016.

MORTIDO (Belvoir/ STCSA) featuring Colin Friels was nominated for a Victorian Premier’s Literary Award. THE DARK ROOM (Belvoir) featuring Brendan Cowell and Leah Purcell won the 2011 Sydney Theatre Award for Best New Australian work and was nominated for a total of seven Sydney Theatre Awards.

Angela’s play for young people CHILDREN OF THE BLACK SKIRT has been toured and seen by more than 100,000 schoolchildren and several of her plays for appear on state education curriculums. Through her company, Real TV, Angela has produced and toured her theatre work internationally for more than 15 years.

Angela won the 2015 Australian Writers’ Foundation Playwriting Award and has won two Community and Youth Theatre AWGIES, in 2015 for THE GAP and in 2018 for THE HUM. Angela was the Patrick White Fellow at Sydney Theatre Company in 2013.