Our new podcast series, Stories from the Crest, shares the varied stories of Old Michaelians, and has been created by TV producer, Claudia Nankervis (OM 2012), and emerging filmmaker, Fraser Pemberton (OM 2011). Together they explore the lives of Old Michaelians who share a common link through their school, but have unique stories to tell.
In episodes one to three we have heard the stories of disability advocate Mandy McCracken (OM 1991), award-winning cinematographer Max Walter (OM 2012), esteemed medical researcher Judith Whitworth (OM 1961), Hollywood film director Patrick Hughes (OM 1996), actor Sean Rees-Wemyss (OM 2015) and Olympic shooter Elena Galiabovitch (OM 2007).
Today, in episode four, we hear from former number one draft pick and this year’s AFLW Rising Star award winner Isabel Huntington (OM 2017), and Olympic mogul skier Brodie Summers (OM 2011).
Isabel Huntington (pictured with Fraser and Claudia) was drafted by the Western Bulldogs with the first overall selection in the 2017 AFLW draft, while she was Co-Captain of St Michael’s. Since then, Izzy has battled repeat knee injuries, including an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rupture on both knees. Izzy’s admirable resilience saw her bounce back from injury and move from the forward line into defence, where she was a force for the Western Bulldogs in 2020. Izzy ended this year’s season ranked equal first for contested marks and second for intercept possessions. She was one of five defenders to be named in the 2020 Team of the Year and became the Western Bulldog’s first ever Rising Star award winner. On top of her dazzling football career, Izzy is also completing a Bachelor of Science at the University of Melbourne, with the goal of working in medicine.
The second guest, Brodie Summers, began mogul skiing while studying at St Michael’s. Brodie made his Olympic debut at Sochi in 2014 after producing two strong World Cup results just prior to the Sochi Winter Olympic Games. After qualifying for his second Olympics at PyeongChang 2018, Brodie ruptured his ACL and could not participate in his event. After a dedicated rehabilitation program, Brodie now has his sights set on the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games. Outside of skiing, Brodie is in his final semester of studying Banking and Finance at Monash University, and is looking forward to starting his new career after Beijing 2022.
We thank both Izzy and Brodie for sharing their stories with us, and we hope you enjoy Episode Four.
Listen via the player above, or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and most other popular podcast applications. New episodes are published every fortnight during school term time for a limited series of episodes, so make sure you subscribe so you don’t miss an episode.
Learn more about our fabulous hosts and creators of the podcast below:
FRASER PEMBERTON (OM 2011)
Fraser is a local Melbourne filmmaker who works primarily as a writer, director, and cinematographer. He loves to explore distinctly Australian stories that retain fundamentally human concerns, addressing the themes of time, memory, and loss. His most recent film Hourglass has been the recipient of over 10 festival selections and won Best International Student Short at the Glendale International Film Festival in 2018. He is currently completing his Master’s degree in Narrative Film at the Victorian College of the Arts and is a co-founder of production company Dogmilk Films.
CLAUDIA NANKERVIS (OM 2012)
Claudia is an emerging producer with an impressive list of credits in film, television, radio and podcasts, including Production Assistant on Rockwiz for SBS and Assistant Television Producer at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival. Claudia has worked at production company Gristmill as production runner, executive assistant and is now producing several projects in development.
