About
Born in Melbourne, Australia, Sheean is a versatile writer/director with a background in stop-motion animation, SFX make-up, and cinematography. These broad and diverse skills have made Sheean an inventive storyteller, adept at finding unique solutions from the screenplay through to the finished film.
His films have screened and won prizes at numerous international film festivals including Sundance, Berlin, Telluride, Chicago, and Hawaii International. Sheean made his feature debut with ERRORS OF THE HUMAN BODY in 2013, set within the mysterious world of genetic engineering and developed at the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics in Germany. Errors premiered at the Fantasia Film Festival to critical acclaim and screened at numerous others, including Melbourne International, Rio International, Rotterdam and Fantastic Fest, Austin. ERRORS was released theatrically in the US through IFC films in 2013, with releases in the UK, Germany, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand and more territories followed.
Sheean formerly headed up development at Instinctive Films GmbH for five years in Berlin, Germany, where he co-wrote the feature film THE DIVIDE for Xavier Gens (Frontier(s), Hitman), and was co-producer and 2nd unit director. He also wrote the screenplay COLD SKIN, a period monster movie, for Babieka Films in Spain, premiering at Sitges 2017 and starring Ray Stevenson and David Oakes. He is currently working on the screenplay for HIGGS, for director Richard Raaphorst and Holland Harbour productions, and recently sold THE NEW MACHINES - an ambitious high-concept sci-fi about nanotechnology co-written with Shane Danielsen - to Intrepid Pictures (Dr Sleep, The Haunting of Hill House).
Sheean is developing several original screenplays for his future projects, as well as working for a variety of production companies as a screenwriter and director for hire. He’s currently in post on his new film THE ROCK OF AGES, an epic black comedy shot in Iceland to be released in 2021.
FILMOGRAPHY
FILM FESTIVALS / FILMOGRAPHY
ERRORS OF THE HUMAN BODY - 2012 / 2013
Fantasia Film festival – Montreal
Melbourne International Film Festival
Frightfest - London
Transatlantyk International Film & Music Festival - Poland
Festival do Rio - Rio de Janeiro Int`l Film Festival
Fantastic Fest - Austin
Raindance - UK
Lund Fantasy Film Fest – Sweden
Telluride Horror Show - US
Jönköping film festival – Sweden
29th Annual Olympia Film Festival - Washington
Canberra International Film Festival
Cockatoo Island FF - Sydeny
Brisbane International Film Festival
Razor Reel Fantastic Film Festival - Belgium
SCI-FI-LONDON Film Festival
Buenos Aires Rojo Sangre
Abertoir Film Festival- Wales
Science+Fiction, Trieste International Science Fiction Festival – Italy
Fancine, Malaga - Spain
International Filmfest Rotterdam
Fantaspoa - Brazil
WILLIAM - 2006/2007
SUNDANCE film festival. USA.
Melbourne International Film Festival. Australia.
Flicker Fest. Australia.
Dresden International Film Festival. Germany.
St Kilda Film Festival. Australia.
Palmsprings. USA.
Montreal first people’s festival. Canada.
ATOM awards. Australia.
Brisbane International Film Festival. Australia.
Revelations. Australia
FISH - 2005/2006
Berlin International Film Festival. Panorama.
Melbourne International Film Festival. Australia.
Hawaii International Film Festival.
CORK International Film Festival. Ireland.
IMAGO International Film Festival. Portugal.
Brisbane International Film Festival.
REVELATIONS. Perth.
Flicker Fest. Australia.
Sydney Film Festival. Australia. Dendy Awards.
St Kilda Film Festival. Australia.
LA shorts fest. USA.
Palm Springs International Film Festival. USA
BING - 2002/2004
Melbourne International Film Festival. Australia.
Telluride International Film Festival. USA.
Chicago International Film Festival. USA.
Hawaii International Film Festival. USA.
Palm Springs International Film Festival. USA.
Flickerfest International Film Festival. Australia.
Dresden International Film Festival. Germany.
St Kilda Film Festival. Australia.
Commonwealth Film Festival. UK.
Message to Man Film Festival. Russia.
Bilboa Film Festival. Spain.
Melbourne Comedy Festival.
Los Angeles Cinematheque. USA.
FLEDGLING - 1999/2001
Dresden Film festival. German.
Humboldt Film Festival. USA.
St Kilda Short Film Festival. Australia.
Anima Mundia Animation Festival. Brazil.
Cinema Jose Film Festival. Spain.
Message to Man Film Festival. St Petersburg.
Sitges Film Fest. Spain.
Chicago Underground Film Fest. USA.
Palm Springs Film Fest. USA.
Watch My Shorts. Australia.
Slamdance Film Festival. USA.
Side On Screenings. Sydney, Australia.
Melbourne Fringe Festival 2000.
Archive program entitled ‘Otherworlds’. New York City.
Slamdance 2001 Anarchy Semi Finalist Screening. USA.
Moscow film festival. Australian program.
Annecy 2003. Australian retrospective program.
FESTIVAL PRIZES
Trieste science + fiction winner jury prize for best film ‘ERRORS OF THE HUMAN BODY’
Next wave best actor award for Michael Eklund for ‘ERRORS OF THE HUMAN BODY’
Flickerfest Sydney SBS Television Award ‘WILLIAM’
Montreal first people’s festival - TEUEIKAN GRAND PRIZE, Best film & Cinematography ‘WILLIAM’
ATOM awards, Australia - Best Short fiction ‘WILLIAM’
Melbourne International Film Festival - Winner Emerging Australian Director ‘FISH’
Sydney Film Festival - Nominated for a DENDY award ‘FISH’
Dresden International Film Festival, Germany - Winner best sound ‘BING’
Melbourne Comedy Festival - Winner best use of postproduction ‘BING’
St Kilda Film Festival - Winner best sound ‘BING’
Slamdance Online Festival, USA - Winner Best Film ‘FLEDGING’
Melbourne Fringe Festival - 2nd prize for best film ‘FLEDGLING’
- Served on the international jury film fest Dresden 2008