Arianna Bosi

Peter has worked in journalism, film and screen exhibition, distribution and marketing, venue and event management and hospitality for most of his professional life.

He is a highly experienced film festival and event production and marketing consultant and manager. He can also knock up a great spread! Or make sure the caterers are on track, and on time!

Peter’s experience has almost always tended towards new ventures, start-up activity or the re-invention of existing activity. This is reflected across his work history as sometimes, short tenures. Good examples of this are the Goat Island Film Festival for the City of Sydney, the Olympic Arts Film Festival for SOCOG, and the short turn around relationships in his private sector distribution consultancies.
The Goat Island Film Festival; The City of Sydney required a sustainable film event to promote non-English language cinema beside our own national cinema. After 2 years it was clear that, though glorious in its location, The Goat Island Film Festival would never be commercially sustainable, due to its location. Peter recommended it be discontinued.
The Olympic Arts Film Festival, by its very nature, was always going to be a 1 off, however Tourism NSW (now Destination NSW) wanted to develop an international competitive festival off the back of this one-off event; Peter recommended that those funds go to the Sydney Film Festival towards its international competition strategies, enabling that event to develop its now well established international prize categories.

Whether it be establishing new successful new indi-cinema screens in the major centers of Adelaide, Sydney and Byron Bay, creating new festival events for the City of Sydney, Screen Australia (Australia’s National Screen agency) or SOCOG or opening new restaurants, Peter has more than capably managed or been heavily involved in all aspects of the activity to deliver success.

Peter has a solid background in either working for, or to, federal, state and local governments, in particular in the arts and events sectors.

His more than 15 years with the Australian Broadcast Corporation (the National Boradcaster), as a highly respected radio and television presenter and producer have honed his communication and presentation skills to a very fine art.

Career Highlights
In the heyday of independent arthouse exhibition Peter began his professional career with Valhalla Cinemas co-managing Valhalla in Melbourne and then opening, managing and co-programming their Cinemas in Adelaide and Sydney.

In 1999 and 2000, Peter delivered the City of Sydney Goat Island Film Festivals and the Olympics Arts Film Festival as artistic director and general manager. These were both unique large scale multi venue events which were highly successful and very visible.

In 2001/2, with partners Dendy, he built and opened the 3-screen cinema complex in Byron Bay (Now Palace Cinemas Byron Bay). He managed the cinema until 2004 and programmed until 2005 to be one of the most successful regional cinemas in the country at the time.

From 2004 until 2007 Peter was the Big Screen Festival Director and Project Manager for the Australian Film Commission (now Screen Australia), managing and/or touring up to 34 film festivals a year to remote and rural centers, nationally. This experience consolidated Peter’s attachment to and love of developing and delivering culturally significant events to small communities.

From 2010 until 2012 Peter created the theatrical division for and was theatrical sales manager for Umbrella Entertainment, releasing 6 international and 2 Australian features in 2011. Umbrella Entertainment continues to be very active in the Theatrical sector





From 2011 & 2012 Peter was co-director and programmer of the Australian Film Festival of India presenting packages of Australian, features, shorts and documentaries nationally cross India in cinemas and in partnership with Festivals and the Federation of Film Societies of India. The opportunity to promote and tour Australian feature film throughout India was an exceptional professional experience

In 2012/13 Peter was Producer, Marketing Distribution and Sales for Felix Media and managed the release the full dome screen work “Coral Rekindling Venus”, to 40 planetarium venues worldwide, as a day and date event internationally around the globe associated with the “Transit of Venus” in 2012, and a national North American tour with Sundance New Frontiers in 2013.

From November 2017 until June 2019 Peter Produced for the Brunswick Picture House. The opportunity to extend his experience in live theatre and music presentation in such a unique venue and in such an accelerated manner was an invaluable addition to his body of experience.

Peter is currently a consulting creative producer to HOTA and is producing site specific public space activations with his company Dashboard Animals and has recently completed the first stage of a local community site specific Placemaking activity, the InSideOut Lightbox in his home community of Ocean Shores. This initiative won the Arts Northern Rivers 2020 “Your Big Idea” competition

He is also recognized as a highly qualified film and entertainment journalist and commentator. Peter has worked extensively in print, radio and television as a writer, producer and presenter. He has worked full-time as a journalist, producer & presenter with ABC television and radio, Channel 10, 2GB, The Herald and Weekly Times, Foxtel, The Movie Network and 2SER. He is still called upon to contribute to discussions on the business of film and screen entertainment and has on many occasions chaired Q&A sessions for industry and organizational events such as the Screen Producer’s Conference and AACTA.

In 1994 he was the first Australian journalist invited to sit on the Cannes Festival FIPRESCI (International Critics) Jury. He is acknowledged as a Cinema Pioneer.

Peter also boasts an interesting career in hospitality. He has owned a operated restaurants and worked in an interesting array of sites across a number of years.