Michael Balk | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Australian |
| Alma mater | Queensland University of Technology |
| Occupation(s) | Actor, Producer, Television Presenter |
| Years active | 2000–present |
Michael Balk is an Australian actor, television presenter, radio announcer [1] and producer. [2]
Michael grew up in the Clarence Valley in Northern Rivers New South Wales. [3] He attended primary and secondary school in Grafton [4] before moving to Brisbane to study Arts/Law at Queensland University of Technology. [5]
Balk is the nephew of acclaimed filmmaker Philip Hearnshaw, [6] and grandson of Australian Liberal Politician Eric Hearnshaw.
Balk is best known for his original television roles, notably scrapboy in dirtgirlworld [7] [8] & Get Grubby TV, [9] Glen Goosebump in SMASHHDOWN!, [10] and various characters on BrainBuzz. [11]
Michael appears in musicals, [12] theatre productions [13] and television commercials. [14] [15]
Between 2006 and 2010 Michael was lead presenter and producer at Steve Irwin's Australia Zoo. [16]
Michael is the president [17] of the Australian charity the Actors & Entertainers Benevolent Fund of Queensland. [18] He served as president of Actors Equity Queensland for many years, and as a board director for the MEAA. [19] Michael is currently the Federal President of the Media Entertainment Arts Alliance. [20]
Michael was nominated for Best Emerging Artist at the Matilda Awards in 2005 and 2006.
In 2010 dirtgirlworld was nominated for a Logie Award in the Outstanding Children's Program category. [21] The creators of the show dedicated the nomination to key creatives on the team citing Michael Balk among them. [22]
The stars of dirtgirlworld were recognized with an AFI Award in Melbourne, Australia in 2010. [23]
dirtgirlworld also received nominations for a BAFTA [24] and Prix Jeunesse Award [25] in 2010, and for Outstanding Preschool Programme at the 2011 JAPAN prize [26] in Tokyo.
In 2013, Balk and the team from the ABC went on to win the International Digital Emmy Award in Cannes for their work on dirtgirlworld. [27]
Balk was voted in the Clarence Valley's Most Influential People of 2019. [28]
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