Biografia
Steve Kearney was one half of the iconic Australian comedy duo Los Trios Ringbarkus, who toured extensively throughout the 1980s. Their performances included appearances at the London Mime Festival, Shaffer Theatre in Amsterdam, the VI Annual Clown Festival in Vienna, Montreal Mime Festival, National Arts Center in Ottawa, Du Maurier World Theatre Festival in Toronto, Expo '86 in Vancouver, Beau Geste Mime Festival in Vancouver, Harbourfront Theatre Summer Festival in Toronto, Dance Theatre Workshop in New York, Coronet Theatre in Los Angeles, as well as shows in San Francisco, Atlanta, Houston, Miami, New Zealand, the UK, and Ireland. They also won the prestigious Perrier Award at the Edinburgh Festival in 1983 and performed at the American Place Theatre in New York.
Following their US shows, Los Trios was signed by top US talent agency Triad Artists, who booked them for shows in Los Angeles. This led to unprecedented three-picture studio deals with Columbia Pictures, Paramount, and United Artists simultaneously, working alongside talents such as Michael Varhol (Pee-Wee's Big Adventure) and producer Bill McEuen (The Jerk).
Steve starred in The Nutty Nut, written by Spider-Man director Sam Raimi, later taking on editing and music supervision duties for the project. That same year, he appeared in the Australian classic "Rikky and Pete," directed by Nadia Tass.
After a 12-year partnership, Los Trios concluded their collaboration following the writing, production, and starring roles in the Australian feature "Garbo" and a TV sitcom pilot for the Australian Broadcasting Commission.
Steve then transitioned into television sitcoms, working with NBC on a show executive produced by ER star Anthony Edwards and Warner Bros. He also starred in and developed his own pilot "Pistol Pete" for Fox TV with Simpson’s writer John Swartzwelder.
His guest lead roles include appearances on Friends, Ned and Stacey, JAG, Family Matters, and pilots such as Nothing Upstairs (NBC) and 24 Minutes (New World). He also collaborated extensively with Shelley Duvall (The Shining) on "Rock and Roll Mother Goose" and with Anthony Edwards on his directorial debut, "Charles Ghost Story," featuring Cheech Marin.
Returning to Australia in 1999, Steve founded production company Mini Studios with partner Leanne Tonkes. Together, they developed several feature films and children’s TV projects, securing hundreds of thousands of dollars in development funding from private, state, and federal sources for projects including "Please Explain," "Homework," "Fistful of Arteries," "I Sold My Life On Ebay," "It Just Stopped," "Barry Noodles," "Scratches and Cuts," the children's show "Debra The Zebra," the mobile game "Ticklebum," and the alternate reality game "Artifact."
They attended MIPTV and Cannes Film Festivals multiple times, forming co-production agreements with Canadian company Amberwood Entertainment for "Rob The Robot" and "Debra The Zebra." As of 2010, "Rob The Robot" was in production in Singapore with the Singaporean MDA, slated for release in 2012. Leanne and Steve continue producing local TV commercials and music videos, including Sara Blasco’s "All I Want," nominated for Best Music Video at the ARIA Awards in 2009, as well as animated shorts like "Help," winner of Best Short at the Tropfest Mitsubishi Super Short Series in 2009, and "White Lines," a live-action finalist at Tropfest 2008.
Steve co-wrote and co-produced the first-ever animated TV pilot commissioned by Australian Disney, "The Gumwalds," for the Shorty McShort Shorts program on the Disney Channel.
Mini Studios recently completed the short film "The Apprentice," starring US actor Anton Yelchin and produced by legendary producer Pete Farrelly and Charlie Wessler (Something About Mary). The film is part of the "Untitled Comedy" collection of shorts to be distributed by Relativity Media. Steve secured financing from Relativity Media, Screen Australia, and Film Victoria, with production led alongside Tonkes.
Steve has traveled globally, attending diverse conferences such as X Media Lab in Singapore and Suzhou, China; the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco; the Toronto Film Finance Forum in 2008; and the CTIA Wireless Conference in 2008, showcasing his expertise in multi-platform strategies.
He has participated in The Script Factory, Arista Script Workshops, and Spark Workshops through Screen Australia, refining his script analysis skills. Steve regularly collaborates with Hollywood script doctor Michael Hauge and writer Larry Karaszewski (Larry Flynt, Ed Wood) on various projects, utilizing the latest industry analysis techniques.
After directing live comedy shows in Los Angeles in the showcase arena, helping actors secure TV development deals, Steve continued directing, premiering shows at the Melbourne Comedy Festival such as "Coo Coo Bananas" with Tania Lacy (2002), "Survival of the Phattest" for comedian Hung Lee (2002), and "The End of Fin Begin" (2004).
In 2007, Steve partnered with longtime co-writer and friend Chris Adams to form Adams Kearney, aiming to bring international features with Australian creatives at the core to a global audience. They developed the project "Bank of CIA," progressing through submission and treatment development with Screen NSW, working with writer Justin Morgan (writer of "Dirt Music" for director Phillip Noyce and actor Russell Crowe) and script editor John Collee (writer of "Master and Commander"). As executive producer, Steve also helped guide "Jucy," an ultra-low-budget Australian feature that premiered at the Toronto Film Festival in 2010.
Adams Kearney maintains a diverse slate of spec projects from emerging Australian writers and holds a first-look deal with US producer Warren Zide.
