Paul Fenech | |
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Born | Paul Fenech 21 November 1972 [1] Sydney, New South Wales, Australia |
Occupation(s) | Filmmaker, film and television actor, director, producer and writer |
Years active | 1995–present |
Paul Fenech (born 21 November 1972) [1] is an Australian filmmaker, film and television actor, director, producer and writer. [2] He is best known for writing, directing, producing and starring in the television series Pizza , Swift and Shift Couriers , Housos, Bogan Hunters , Fat Pizza: Back in Business, Housos vs. Virus: The Lockdown and Darradong Local Council as well as the motion pictures Fat Pizza (2003), Housos vs. Authority (2012), Fat Pizza vs. Housos (2014) and Dumb Criminals: The Movie (2015).
Early in his career, Fenech directed More Than Legends, a documentary highlighting Aboriginal culture through the eyes of elders from the Nyungar (W.A.), Arrernte (N.T.) and Tiwi (N.T.) groups. [3]
He first achieved prominence by winning third place in Sydney's annual Tropfest short film festival in 1995 for a biographical short entitled Pizza Man based on his experiences as a pizza delivery driver. He won the Tropfest award for best film in 1998 for Intolerance written by and starring Acclaimed Australian Comedy Superstar Austen Tayshus, although he had submitted the film under the pseudonym Laura Feinstein to appeal to the sensitivities of the judges, particularly Tropfest founder John Polson, who hoped that a female director would win the award. [4]
Fenech was then able to secure a deal with Australian community broadcaster SBS to produce a sitcom based on his short film. Entitled Pizza , and premiering in 2000, it ran for five seasons, with the final season airing in 2007. A full-length motion picture based on the series entitled Fat Pizza was released in 2003. Over a decade later, Fenech combined the storyline of Pizza with that of his third SBS Series Housos to create the feature film Fat Pizza vs. Housos . [5] [6] [7] [8] [9]
Following the success of Pizza, he created the sitcom series Swift and Shift Couriers . Series 1 began airing on SBS on 27 October 2008 and Series 2 premiered on 15 August 2011. [10] [11]
His third television show for SBS, Housos , first aired on 24 October 2011. To date, two series have been produced, in addition to two full-length, cinematically-released motion pictures, Housos vs. Authority (2012) and Fat Pizza vs. Housos (2014). Housos won the award for Most Outstanding Light Entertainment Program at the 2014 Logie Awards. [8] [12]
Fenech's program Bogan Hunters , a combination of comedy and reality television, began airing on 13 May 2014 on 7mate and was the channel's highest-rating entertainment program and second highest rating show to date. [13] [14]
Fenech has recently re-started his shows Fat Pizza and Housos on the 7 Network, after his deal with SBS was not renewed. These shows are under variations of the original name, both called, Housos Vs. Virus: The Lockdown and Fat Pizza: Back in Business. These spin-off shows star Fenech playing the same characters as he did in the original shows and most of the original cast, however the shows are far more lewd than their SBS filmed counterparts, with far more reference to touchy social issues such as the COVID-19 pandemic and a lot more nudity and swearing. These shows, airing on 5 November 2019 for Fat Pizza: Back in Business and the 26 October 2020 for Housos Vs Virus: The Lockdown have proven successful with consistently high ratings online.
Feature films | |||||
Year | Title | Credit | Role | Notes | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2020 | The Very Excellent Mr. Dundee | Emilio (Gardener) | |||
2018 | That's Not My Dog! | Himself | |||
2015 | Dumb Criminals: The Movie | Director, writer, producer and executive producer | Rabbit | ||
2014 | Fat Pizza vs. Housos | Director, writer, producer and executive producer | Franky Falzoni/Pauly Falzoni | ||
2012 | Housos vs. Authority | Director, writer, producer and editor | Franky Falzoni | ||
2003 | Fat Pizza | Director, writer and producer | Pauly Falzoni/Alfredo Falzoni | ||
1999 | Somewhere in the Darkness | Lawnmower Man | |||
Television | |||||
Year | Title | Credit | Role | Notes | |
2023 | Darradong Local Council | Creator, director, writer and producer | Sam 'Fox' Foxitini | 9 episodes | |
2022 | SAS Australia: Who Dares Wins [15] | Contestant | Himself | 9 episodes | |
2018 | Deadly Down Under | Presenter, Creator | Pauly | 10 episodes | |
Drunk History Australia | Jesse Dowson | Pilot | |||
2015 | Dumb Criminals Motorcycle Club | Creator, director, writer and producer | Rabbit | ||
Summernats and the Hunt for the Great Aussie Hoon | Pauly | TV movie | |||
2014 | Bogan Hunters | Creator, director, writer and producer | Host | 10 episodes | |
2013 | Celebrity Splash! | Contestant | Himself | [16] | |
2011–2013; 2020-present | Housos / Housos vs Virus: The Lockdown / Housos: The Thong Warrior | Creator, director, writer and producer | Franky Falzoni | 23 episodes | |
2008–2011 | Swift and Shift Couriers | Paul 'Mario' Gauci | 19 episodes | ||
2006 | World Record Pizza | Pauly Falzoni | 6 episodes | ||
2006 | The Da Vinci Cup | 3 episodes | |||
2004 | Pizza: Special Deliveries | 10 episodes | |||
2004 | Pizza Live | 5 episodes | |||
2000–2007; 2019-present | Pizza / Fat Pizza / Fat Pizza: Back in Business | 56 episodes | |||
1999 | The 50 Foot Show | Director | |||
1998 | Heartland | Title Design | Mini-series | ||
Short films | |||||
Year | Title | Credit | Role | Notes | |
1998 | Intolerance | Director and producer | |||
1997 | Dangerous Pizza | Director, writer and producer | |||
1996 | Space Pizza | ||||
1995 | Pizza Man | ||||
1994 | More Than Legends | Director and writer | |||
In 2014, Fenech broke the Guinness World Record for 'Most Self Portrait (selfie) Photographs Taken in 24 hours’, taking a total of 2408. In order to qualify, each 'selfie' photograph had to be taken with a different participant. The event was held to raise money and awareness for Barnardo's Australia. [17]
The ARIA Music Awards are a set of annual ceremonies presented by Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), which recognise excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of the music of Australia. They commenced in 1987.
Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2013 | Pauly's Shorts | Best Comedy Release | Nominated | [18] |
Fat Pizza is a 2003 Australian comedy film based on the Pizza television series, both of which were created, produced, written and starred in by Paul Fenech. The film's story takes place between seasons two and three of the television series. It features Rebel Wilson's first movie credit.
Fat Pizza is an Australian comedy television series created by Paul Fenech. The series premiered on SBS on 24 April 2000 where it aired for its first five seasons between 2000 and 2007 before moving to 7mate for its sixth and seventh seasons, in 2019 and 2021, respectively. The series has a spin-off feature length movie, Fat Pizza, released in 2003, and a best-of highlights video and DVD that featured previously unreleased footage and a schoolies exposé, released in 2004. In addition to this, a theatre show entitled "Fat Pizza", starring several characters from the show, toured the Australian east coast. In 2014, the storyline of the series was combined with that of Housos to create the motion picture Fat Pizza vs. Housos. The film was shown in Australian cinemas from 27 November 2014.
Christopher Franklin is an Australian stand-up comedian and former sailor for the Royal Australian Navy. He is most famous for performing the song "Bloke", which was certified platinum, reached No. 1 on the ARIA Charts, and was the twelfth-biggest-selling single in Australia in 2000. He lives in Launceston, Tasmania.
George Kapiniaris is an Australian stage, television and film actor and comedian. He is of Greek descent and is best known for his role in popular sitcom Acropolis Now and composed the series' theme song.
Vince Sorrenti is an Australian stand-up comedian, writer and television presenter from Punchbowl, New South Wales. He is of Italian descent. Sorrenti performs nationally and internationally. He performs at sports hospitality, charity events, corporate events, club venues and private parties. He performs, MCs, and facilitates at around 200 events per year.
Jason Davis, known professionally as Jabba, is an Australian actor, media personality, video jockey, television and radio host, who first made a name for himself as part of the launch of subscription television in Australia in 1995. He was a host for music television station "Red" on the now-defunct Galaxy subscription television network, before the channel changed its name to Channel V. Jason the jabba was part of a famous Incubus live performance at a secret gig in Bondi 2002.
Alex Romano is an Argentine-Australian actor. He has starred in all of Paul Fenech's TV series; as DJ BJ in Pizza, "Alex" in Swift and Shift Couriers, and "Jimmy the Junkie" in Housos. He grew up in the Western Suburbs of Sydney, Australia, after he migrated there with his family in 1981.
Tahir Bilgiç is an Australian comedian, film and television actor of Turkish descent. He is primarily an actor and comedian. He has written, directed and starred in live shows including "Lord of The Kebabs", "From Lebanon With Love" and "Straight Outta Compo" to name a few. He has appeared in 5 different Australian sit-coms and 3 feature films. He co-created and starred in "StreetSmart" (ch10) as well as coming with the initial idea and then co-creating "Here Come The Habibs" (ch9).
Paul Naked is an Australian actor and rapper, best known by the name Sleek the Elite. He began performing music as Sleek the Elite in 1991, then appeared in the SBS television series Pizza as a character by that same name. He appeared on the first two seasons of Pizza from 2000 to 2001, and in the show's two spinoff films, Fat Pizza (2003) and Fat Pizza vs. Housos (2014).
Rob Shehadie is an Australian actor, writer and stand-up comedian, who has featured in television series such as Pizza, Swift and Shift Couriers and Housos. He has performed numerous stage show comedies across Australia and has made many appearances at schools and charity events. His filmography includes Fat Pizza, a feature film that broke Australian box office records and Fat Pizza vs. Housos. Shehadie and Tahir Bilgic created the TV comedy series Here Come the Habibs
Swift and Shift Couriers is an Australian comedy television series that first screened on SBS TV in October 2008. The series is produced, directed and written by Paul Fenech, who was also responsible for the comedy series Pizza. It is set around the staff of the fictional 'Swift and Shift' Courier Company, in the central business district of Sydney. Episodes have been partly filmed in Egypt, India, Thailand and the United States.
Brendan Jones is an Australian radio presenter, actor, media personality and motorcycling enthusiast.
Housos is an Australian comedy television series created by Paul Fenech for SBS, that screened on SBS One. The series is a satirical parody of low income Australian residents of fictional suburb Sunnyvale, New South Wales, who are living in Housing Commission public housing. In 2014, the series won the Logie Award for Most Outstanding Light Entertainment Program.
Housos vs. Authority is an Australian film, based upon the stories and characters of the Housos television series, created by Paul Fenech.
Bogan Hunters is an Australian comedy reality television series created by Paul Fenech for Seven Network's 7mate. The series provides an in-depth look into Australia's bogan subculture, as the Bogan Hunters traverse the nation looking for Australia's greatest bogan. The show first aired on Australia's 7mate on 13 May 2014 and on New Zealand's TV2 on 14 October 2014. The finale of season 1 aired on 15 July 2014 in Australia and on 9 December 2014 in New Zealand.
Ellen (Elle) Dawe is an Australian film and television actress, comedian and model.
Kevin James Taumata is a Māori New Zealander Australian film and television actor.
Fat Pizza vs. Housos is an Australian film based on the combination of the stories and characters of the SBS series Pizza and the comedy series Housos, both created by Paul Fenech. The film began screening in Australian cinemas on 27 November 2014.
Deadly Down Under is an Australian comedy reality television series on the Seven Network's 7mate. The series follows host Paul Fenech and presenters Jacquie Rodriquez and Elle Cooper in search of the deadly of the deadliest creatures and places in Australia. They dive with great white sharks, handle venomous snakes and wrestle crocodiles, meet with the survivors of deadly attacks and trawl the history books for the deadliest events on record.
Vanessa Davis is an Australian actress known for her roles in the Housos television series and movies. She studied for a degree in musical theatre at the Australian Institute of Music.