ROUND UP: NEW VO WORK FOR ‘JUST BETTER CARE’; MOUNTAIN OF YOUTH’s ‘DREAMLINK’ IN AACTA FIRST ROUND VOTING CONTENTION & NEW SONG ‘SHORES’ TO FAREWELL WINTER.

Just a few quick tid bits of stuff to shout out! I did some voice over for some Just Better Care TVCs that were released a few weeks ago. Thanks to the team at Mosaic Music, Core Sydney (shoutout to Callum Foot for remembering me from a previous campaign!) and my agents EM Voices.

Dreamlink, a film put together by Mountain of Youth and the Class of ‘23, was recently part of the first round of voting for the AACTA Short Film awards. At the time of writing the voting is closed, so fingers crossed it’s made it to the next round for further consideration!

Lastly, I’m set to release a new single Shores. Produced by Jono Fernandez, it’s scheduled to be out on 31st August - a warm farewell to the Aussie Winter! Check out the single art, release schedule and first lyric video teaser:

I’ve recently shot a fun TVC campaign, recorded more voice work for upcoming campaigns and have auditioned for a pretty cool project - hopefully more to be revealed soon!

APRIL/MAY CATCH UP

Here’s a quick round of what’s been happening on my end!

A new TVC that’s just been released promoting the latest State of Origin series. Lots of fun filming up in QLD - especially with fellow cast Adorah, Alex and Kieran. Big thanks to YOUI, Anousha Zarkesh Casting and my reps at Howell Elite.

I’ve also been working on more music lately. Filming was recently completed for an MV for the song Hide & Seek with Clara Helms, for the My Inner Child OST. I’ve also teamed up again with laXed for a song Time which will be out in June, as well as writing at the moment with Space Cop 2. I’ve also written a few more tunes for my own album, 2 of which will feature some good mates of mine - I’m looking forward to getting all these tunes completed and out into the world!

Lastly, I worked together again with the wonderful Julia Firak on another photoshoot getting some new headshots and portraits done - I really dig how they came out!

Photoshoot with Julia Firak

I recently had a shoot session with photographer Julia Firak. I previously worked with her on the Mountain of Youth short film DreamLink in 2023, so it was wonderful to work with her again. The aim was to channel some ideas geared towards my Bohifale music project, and thus will be used in promotional media later down the track to promote the album/singles. Enjoy this small preview!

Jan and Feb '24 updates

The first two months of 2024 have been jam packed with fun and exciting things. I did want to post updates more frequently here, but being simultaneously busy and tired, slowed down my urge to tell the internetz what I’ve been doing.

The cast of ‘Falling in Slow Motion’ shooting at eSpace Brisbane. Photo by Craig Claxton.

Miniseries in development, Falling in Slow Motion (Sarah Dinsey Film Productions), recently had the cast back together back in January at eSpace Brisbane (IG: @espacebrisbane). This was to shoot some promotional goodies, as well as welcoming new addition to the cast James Mason (IG: jimmyjamesmason). Big thanks to Julie Collins Photography, Katie from Bloody Snatched and the rest of the wonderful crew behind the scenes who helped shape the day!

Keep up to date with all that’s happening with the show and keep the support going for independent Australian projects! (IG: @falling_in_slow_motion)

Lead cast of ‘Strangers in a Car Park’ in double exposure, polaroid form.

Newcastle feature Strangers in a Car Park (McBrat Motion Pictures) had the lead cast come together to film the last bunch of pick up shots in January. It was wonderful and bittersweet to see everyone again for one night wrapping things up. With all the filming complete, I’m excited to see the movie go out into the world later this year! Keep updated with the film on IG:@strangersinacarpark.

There have been more releases for the My Inner Child OST (IG: myinnerchild_film)- Those Memories (Rouady/Ola) by Caitlin Lopez (IG: @caitlinlopez___) feat Clara Helms (IG: @clarahelms) and Hide & Seek (Ola/Rouady) with me on the lead featuring Clara as well on the hook. You can find more info on my music page. There are plans for music videos to be shot for both songs soon so keep a lookout for that!

Still on music news, I was asked to help write songs to accompany two Step One commercials that aired on Australian TV. This was a big opportunity for me as a songwriter, and I had a lot of fun through the process. Perhaps less fun being without pants in front of camera, but nonetheless, a wonderful opportunity I appreciated. Both songs can also be found on my music page. A big thanks to my frequent musical collaborators laXed (IG: @laxed_music) and Jono Fernandez (IG: @jonofernandez) for all their help with the production and vocal arranging!

On the set of the ‘Step One: Valentines’ commercial with the wonderful Jett, Olga and Nick the DoP.

I was fortunate to be interviewed by my voice agent EM Voices - which you can read in full here. It was nice insight into my approach to the craft, as well as the story as to how I got discovered - which I’m told is a rare occurrence! Thank you to Kathryn for being wonderful to chat to.

On the topic of voice over, a read I did for Lifespace Probiotics went to air during the tennis in January (and for eagle eyed viewers, it’s an updated version of the campaign the year prior) Thanks to the team at Massive Music for an fun in studio session.

Unsuccessfully trying to hide the 5-head. Photo by Nadia Kamis

To finish off, here is my favourite shot from a portrait photo session I had last week with the wonderful Nadia Kamis (IG: nadiabehindthelens). She was also the BTS photographer for the Strangers in a Car Park (see all her cool BTS here). If you’re in need of portrait shots and in the Newcastle area, I suggest reaching out. Thanks to Nadia, Stu and everyone who came up to me and said hello at the Maitland Show.

That’s it for now. I will make sure to keep you folks updated more frequently as Feb finishes and March comes through. Props to you if you’ve read through this entire post. Cheers!

New song demo 'These Ties' soft released

I decided to unleash this demo into the universe after being sitting in the vault for a while. This was inspired by Fleetwood Mac and Dido and produced with my regular collaborator Jono Fernandez. The title is a homage to one of my favourite local artists from my childhood, Amiel.

Tweaks and changes are in the pipeline, but after a rough week, I figured the serotonin boost I needed was getting this out there. The track is out on Bandcamp, Soundcloud and Youtube.

'Form/Dissolve' has been released with 'Pluto' as lead single; New Voice Over spots for Bupa Dental

My new EP Form/Dissolve has been released! It’s been a while since I’ve released music so it felt great getting this out into the world. Zak Roams, Derek J. Turner, Jono Fernandez and May Ladkani were contributors to the release - out on all streaming and purchasing platforms. I did make the decision to postpone the music video with extra things planned . It’s expected to drop later in Autumn, alongside some cool new additions. Check out the lyric video for title track Pluto:

Another release this week comes from a cool series of voice over spots I did for Bupa Dental Australia. Thanks to Igor + team from Eden Creative, Bupa and Simone from EM Voices. Check out the spots below

'My Inner Child' MV Released; Shoutout from Buzzfeed Oz

The MV for My Inner Child has been released online, check it out below. Big thanks to Michelle Rouady for allowing me to help co-write the track!

My Inner Child was written by Michelle Rouady and Lawrence Ola, performed by Caitlin Lopez and Lawrence Ola (as Bohifale) and produced by Jono Fernandez. The M/V was produced and edited by Jay Seely from Blacklist Productions with HMUA by Jess (@jessfxc) and appearing on screen alongside Michelle and Caitlin, actress Madison Ruby.

In other news, a Buzzfeed Oz article had given me a shoutout on a list titled: 11 Pacific Islander Actors Who Are Serving On Screen And Deserve Way More Recognition. To quote writer Morwenna Petaia:

I first saw Ola on a television commercial for underwear and soon he was convincing me that a specific mattress that could withstand being rolled over by a truck was a need, not a want. Before long, Ola popped up in Nine Network's After the Verdict and more recently in Upright on Binge. You heard it here first — my prediction is Ola slaying his way to a main role in a comedy series this year because he deserves it. 

Rather kind words - cheers to Buzzfeed Oz and Morwenna for including me on the list! To check out the full list, click here.

New song collaboration released; MV directed by Michelle Rouady to follow.

I was approached by Michelle Rouady, who had previously included my single Parasols in her directorial debut Bonded by Blue, for an opportunity to co-write a track My Inner Child to be sung by Sydney actor/singer/producer Caitlin Lopez. Enjoyed the many sessions with producer Jono Fernandez who helped craft the pop ballad. A music video directed by Michelle will soon follow later this month. It’s available now on music platforms to buy and stream, so check it out.

Wrap on 2022; New Music Video teaser for upcoming single, 'Pluto'

2022 is done and dusted. I’ve realised it’s been a while since I’ve last updated (I’ve refrained from using ‘I haven’t posted since last year') but I thought I’d post to say I hope folks had a wonderful New Years and can look back on 2022 fondly, or at least with the determination for 2023 to a better year moving forward.

That said, one goal in 2023 for me is to release more music. I’ve just released a new music video teaser for an upcoming track, Pluto. It was produced by Melbourne based Zak Roams, with vocal production done by Derek J. Turner - who I released Looking 4 the Thing with last year - at Quarterpipe Studios. Pluto is mid-tempo electronic pop track with 80s synths and electric guitar throughout. It is set for release on March 14th.

CREDITS

Produced by Zak Roams

Vox Production by Derek J. Turner at Quarterpipe Studios

Directed by Lawrence Ola

Director of Photography - Aravind Shanavaz (The Light Pirate)

Assistant Director - Kate Jirelle

Cast: Sia Theresa, Anna Aleksandrova, August Rogers, Dian Rahardjo, May Ladkani (VO) and Kate Jirelle.

For more details, check out the imdb page.