Michael Tessari is a cinematographer and director of photography based in Adelaide, South Australia. His feature credits include the SXSW-nominated Monolith, the horror feature Diabolic, the road film With or Without You and the upcoming The Run, alongside the Netflix original series Gymnastics Academy: A Second Chance and commercial work recognised with multiple ACS Gold Awards. This page collects press coverage, reviews and interviews from those projects, together with original articles written for filmmakers and producers: case studies, behind the scenes breakdowns and practical guides to shooting in South Australia.
In 2022 I photographed Monolith, a science-fiction thriller with one actor on screen, one primary location, fifteen shoot days, and a total budget under AUD $500,000. The film ended up travelling much further than any of us expected — SXSW, a long festival run, international release — and as a result it's the project people ask me about most, usually because they're planning a contained, low-budget feature of their own.
Read MoreProduction has wrapped in Adelaide on The Debt, the latest title to emerge from South Australia’s Film Lab: New Voices initiative, and the first to made by a First Nations-led South Australian creative team with major state government support.
Read MoreI’ve looked back at some of the common questions I’ve been asked in interviews over the years and collected them into this handy blog. If you’re interested in learning more about being a Videographer or Director of Photography read on to learn my thoughts!
Read MoreFilmmaker Daniel J. Phillips makes an early bid with one of the best films of 2026 so far!
Read MoreCogently written and smoothly directed, … With or Without You is a sensitive treatise on grief, family dysfunction, forgiveness, the pain of vulnerability, and the sins of the parents being visited upon their children.
Read Morewe[dot]art is a global collection of websites from the arts, design and culture world, open to everyone.
Read MoreFresh from its Monster Fest screenings in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane & Perth, were it was awarded ‘Best Australian Feature‘, DIABOLIC will release from November 20 in Australian Cinemas for Special Event Screenings.
Read MoreDiabolic earns rave reviews and national release after Adelaide Film Festival premiere
Diabolic hits cinemas nationwide this November.
Read MoreWith or Without You tells the moving mother-daughter story of Chloe (Melina Vidler) and her free-spirited, alcoholic mother, Sharon (Marta Dusseldorp). When their lives intersect with Dalu (Albert Mwangi), a West African man, they find themselves on a journey of emotional discovery.
Read MoreMarta Dusseldorp, Melina Vidler and Albert Mwangi will come together in Adelaide next week for Kelly Schilling’s With or Without You, a real-life inspired mother-daughter story of finding love and safety from tough beginnings.
Read MoreMatt Vesely’s debut references 2001: A Space Odyssey and Arrival, but ably stakes its own territory as a compelling and fastidious piece of work
Read MoreIn the name of celebrating talent, we are pleased to offer you a free digital copy of our Rising Talent issue for 2024.
Those on this year’s list are people we think will shift and lead our industry into the future. Some are newer faces. Others have recently stepped into senior roles where they’re now making waves. We think you’ll want to work with all of them.
Read More
