Kyas Hepworth (Australia)
Head of Commissioning & Programming
NITV

Kyas Hepworth nee Sherriff is a cisgender Bundjalung woman who has spent her career working in the screen and creative arts sector.

As the Head of Commissioning and Programming for NITV, Kyas drives the creative direction of NITV’s distinctive offering across commissioned and acquired content, and oversees NITV’s programming and scheduling to bring it to audiences. Kyas is responsible for the development and delivery of NITV’s acclaimed commissioned content slate, which sees the channel work with Australia’s Indigenous production sector across factual, scripted and children’s programming. This includes award winning children’s animation, Little J & Big Cuz, the captivating documentary series The Beach from Warwick Thornton, impactful feature documentary Incarceration Nation and NITV’s first non-children’s drama series, True Colours, coming in 2022.

Kyas is passionate about bringing unique and diverse stories to the screen and has worked alongside and supported leading and emerging Indigenous practitioners for more than a decade. Her extensive experience in the sector also includes working across feature films, documentaries, television series and shorts.