Lunch Break: Lantern Pictures

Lantern Pictures co-founders Sarah Lambert and Jane Manning give AWG members an exclusive peek behind the scenes. What is it like to start a brand new production company from the ground up? What can give your TV drama project the best chance in the market? What are they working on at the moment?

ABOUT THE PRESENTERS / CO-FOUNDERS

Sarah Lambert is one of Australia’s most prolific screenwriters and has created, written and produced some of the most iconic, beloved and acclaimed dramas of the last ten years. Stories about women have been at the heart of her success. Most recently she was creator and showrunner of The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart (Made Up Stories / Amazon) which won multiple awards and broke records as the most successful ever Australian Amazon Original launch globally. She was also writer and showrunner on the critically acclaimed and multi-award winning series, Lambs of God (Lingo / Foxtel), following up with another Lingo collaboration on the adaptation of Markus Zusak’s The Messenger (ABC). She is also the creator of the hit series Love Child (Nine Network) which ran for four seasons. In 2023, Sarah formed Lantern Pictures with writer-director Jane Manning and media executive Andrew Lambert. Sarah is creator and writer-showrunner of Help Me! (ABC TV, 6 x 1 hour), Lantern’s first production, a darkly funny, whip-smart drama with a crime-driven plot and character-driven heart, that begins shooting in late 2026. 
  

Jane Manning is an award-winning director and writer whose work includes the documentary series Back to Nature (as creator, series producer and director-writer). She was director-writer of Ka-Ching! Pokie Nation, earning a Special Mention at the Australian Directors’ Guild Awards. Jane has written and directed multiple episodes of many acclaimed TV series, such as Who Do You Think You Are?, and was co-writer on the feature documentary Deep Rising. Her short dramas have won numerous national and international awards. Returning to her drama roots after many years in documentary, Jane recently co-founded Lantern Pictures with writer-showrunner Sarah Lambert and media executive Andrew Lambert to create bold, premium TV drama series, and is an Executive Producer on their first production, Help Me!

EVENT DETAILS:

WHEN: Thursday 6 August 2026, 1pm-2pm  AEST 
WHERE: Online via Zoom
This event is free, but RSVPs are essential