Neil Sharma is an International Emmy Award winning director, based in Sydney.
“I was that kid that stayed up all night watching music videos. I didn’t realise it at the time but this was the beginning of my fascination with film,fashion,art and culture.
Nothing intrigues me more than observing human nature. What it is that makes us so fantastically bizarre, endlessly curious and emotionally resilient.
Representing this experience through my own unique gaze, with a focus on story and strong performances, is what drives me as a director”.
Mentored by Oscar winning auteur Taika Waititi and acclaimed director Jeffrey Walker, his directing credits include the International Emmy and AACTA winning reboot of HEARTBREAK HIGH for Fremantle Media and Netflix; STRIFE S2 for Binge and Made Up Stories; The psychological drama CRITICAL INCIDENT for STAN; The dramedy remake MOTHER AND SON for Wooden Horse and the ABC; the SBS Digital Original Series APPETITE, which premiered at the 2023 CANNESERIES Festival as the only Australian project invited into competition; the children’s series THE UNLISTED for Aquarius and Netflix; and BORN TO SPY for ABC Kids and Aquarius Films.
Neil’s work has also been nominated for two ADG awards, an AACTA and a Rose D’Or. He is also a recipient of Screen Australia’s Talent USA:New York initiative in 2025.
He cut his teeth in the film industry as an assistant director on productions such as MARVEL’S SHANG-CHI AND THE LEGEND OF THE TEN RINGS, MAD MAX: FURIOSA, THE FALL GUY and MORTAL KOMBAT to name a few.
Neil’s approach to directing has a musicality to it that resonates throughout his work, which explores the human experience through his own unique lens. His extensive on-set experience and invaluable mentorships have put him in a very small pool of film makers who can creatively, efficiently, and effectively conceptualise and navigate a film production, of any scale and genre.
Other credits include THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER, LOST FLOWERS OF ALICE HART, LION, THE CRY, PICNIC AT HANGING ROCK, MODERN FAMILY.