Biography
Having worked in the media industry for 30 years, Suzanne has gained over 150 hours of international broadcast credits. She has produced numerous episodes of a flagship Breakfast Show for UK regional television station Channel M that aired live for 3 hours a day. Furthermore since 2004, when she took the brave step of leaving all her beloved family and friends behind in the UK to embark upon a new life in Western Australia, Suzanne gained further Australian broadcasting credits as Associate Producer as Assistant Producer for the Nine Network where she produced several episodic, as well as one-off special productions, for distribution to wide-ranging Australian audiences.
Suzanne is highly organised, efficient and diligent, as well as personable, empathetic and supportive. She has the capacity to think both laterally and critically and liaises well with all levels of cast, crew, clients and stakeholders to consistently deliver high results in challenging work environments.
With her knowledge of many formats and genres and her vast experience of this challenging but rewarding industry, Suzanne has been integral to the success of many of the productions she's worked on. Notably, she was fundamental in the growth of Australia's beloved lifestyle series, The Garden Gurus, which she helped to expand from being produced as a WA only production to the successful production and subsequent distribution of the series to all states across Australia. The series continues to go from strength to strength and is now distributed internationally across 86 countries.
Since Suzanne started her media career at the age of 16, she has worked for several high-profile international and Australian production companies and broadcasters, such as: Nine Network, ABC, Endemol Australia & UK, Image Hunter Films, Granada Television, ITV, BBC, Yorkshire TV, Granada Sky Broadcasting, Antix Productions, Channel M, MUTV, The Shopping Channel, Bow Television, The Gate Films, Equinox Film & TV.
Due to her proven leadership skills, Suzanne undertook the role of Broadcast Team Manager at regional television station Channel M, responsible for the training and scheduling of their crew. Aware of the risk of crew members not turning up for their 4am shift, Suzanne devised and facilitated a multi-skilled training system which would ultimately ensure their early morning breakfast show would always go on!
A few years on, having experienced the challenges that motherhood poses for a working woman, Suzanne decided to pursue her goal of becoming an independent producer/director and decided to up-skill and network at Perth's prestigious film school, the WA Screen Academy (WASA). There, she specialised in her field of producing and directing and also expanded her skill-sets within the areas of screenwriting, cinematography and editing. Despite not having studied for 25 years, Suzanne excelled in her studies, not only achieving high distinctions in her grades, but also winning two coveted Channel Nine Awards; Excellence in Producing for WASA's first ever co-production 'Long Lost', a short film about love and loss and the pursuit for human connection, which she co-produced with The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and filmed in Perth and Glasgow. And Best Documentary for 'Mitch', a short film which follows the story of a Perth family and the challenges they faced when their young son became the quadriplegic victim of a coward's punch.
After graduating Edith Cowan University with a Master of Screen Studies, Suzanne fulfilled her dream of working within her own production company. In February 2018, Suzanne Ryan set up Nutshell Pictures on a mission to combine her vast industry experience, compassion for humanity and the power of storytelling in order to produce content and culture that will enact positive change.
