Local writer aims for television success

Green Point writer Karen Matthews has fingers and toes crossed that her latest work, A Child’s Voice, will be developed into a television show.

A short pilot has been filmed by a professional crew from Sydney including a director, camera person and sound technician who have worked on television productions such as NCIS Sydney.

The actors had varied theatre and television experience; some were locals connected with the theatre scene on the Central Coast and some were from Sydney and the Blue Mountains.

Matthews hosted a showing recently at Broadlands, Green Point, where she said it was met with great enthusiasm.

“We had a fantastic time, everybody really enjoyed it,” she said.

Matthews took up writing in later life, about four years ago, and has entered many festivals with some success and was fortunate in getting some financial backing to develop the pilot for her story A Child’s Voice.

“This is my fourth pilot, and I have won a lot of awards at festivals,” she said.

Matthews developed the idea for A Child’s Voice one Sunday morning after opening Facebook.

“I just thought every time I opened Facebook there was a story about a missing child, a photo of a little face,” Matthews said.

“I just started thinking where do these kids go? Who speaks for them?

“The idea of A Child’s Voice was born.”

Matthews honed her writing skills at a writers’ retreat in Italy where she said she learned about writing.

“It was there I thought about writing a short film, so I went home and wrote the pilot for A Child’s Voice,” she said.

“I have had very positive feedback.”

She has now written six episodes, and plans to send the pilot to producers and streaming services in the hope of it being picked up.