Biography
Kate Woods, the celebrated director of Kangaroo, will premiere her upcoming feature film in Australian cinemas on September 18, 2025, followed by a worldwide release through StudioCanal Films. The movie, inspired by the life of Chris "Brolga" Barns, founder of The Kangaroo Sanctuary, features performances by Ryan Corr, Deborah Mailman, and Lily Whiteley. Woods is an experienced director with a strong background in U.S. and international television. Her recent credits include The Lincoln Lawyer (2023), The Umbrella Academy, Underground, Bosch: Legacy (2022), and The Lost Symbol (2021). In 2020, she directed Showtime's The Good Lord Bird—earning an Australian Directors Guild nomination—the Netflix original Messiah (directing four out of ten episodes), and the Apple TV+ series Home Before Dark. Earlier in her career, Woods directed four of six episodes of Fighting Season (which received a 2019 AACTA Award nomination for Best Miniseries), six episodes of the acclaimed Changi, three episodes of the Logie-nominated The Farm, and four episodes of Simone de Beauvoir's Babies, winner of Best Mini-Series at the ATOM Awards. Since 2005, she has worked extensively in the U.S., directing episodes of high-profile series including Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., NCIS: LA, Law & Order, House MD, Suits, Nashville, Revenge, Bones, Blindspot, Private Practice, Castle, and Underground. In Australia, Woods maintains a long-standing relationship with ABC TV, directing episodes of GP, Phoenix, and Janus, which garnered multiple AFI nominations including Best Director. The co-production Escape from Jupiter with NHK won the ATOM Award for Best Children's Television Drama. Her other credits include Police Rescue, Heartland, Mercury, Raw FM, Wildside, Something in the Air, MDA, All Saints, City Homicide, the telemovie Blackjack, and the Jim Henson sci-fi series Farscape. In 2008, Woods was honored with the Australian Directors' Guild Michael Carson Award for Excellence in Television Drama Direction. Her debut feature film, Looking for Alibrandi, celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2025. Now considered a contemporary Australian classic, the film won Best Film, Best Actress, and Best Editing at the AFI Awards, Best Film at the IF Awards, and received several Film Critics Circle of Australia nominations including Best Director, along with Best Director honors from the Variety Club of Australia. Woods is represented by CAA in the United States and HLA Management in Australia.
