Region Riverina commercial manager Adam Drummond has dived into his new role. Photo: Region.
No stranger to the big screen, Adam Drummond has appeared in television dramas including Water Rats and All Saints, as well as dozens of TV commercials, and in 2013 he made his film debut in the Aussie cricket comedy Backyard Ashes.
While acting got his creative juices flowing in his younger years, Adam’s passion for storytelling now lies behind the camera.
An avid documentary maker, corporate videographer and true crime podcaster, Adam and his wife Melinda operate Wagga Wagga.TV and recently produced a 20-minute film to help raise $1.5 million for the Pro Patria Centre (PPC) which will support former and serving emergency service personnel, Defence veterans and their families.
Adam is also the chair of the not-for-profit group Committee 4 Wagga (C4W), which champions positive change through leadership, action and collaboration. He is also a former director and partner of Fitzpatricks Real Estate in Wagga.
Adam’s extensive business connections, enthusiasm for his community and nose for a good yarn made him the perfect fit for Region Media’s new Riverina team which launched in June.
He has embraced his role as Region Riverina’s commercial manager and says the online news outlet complements his documentary business, while the company’s flexibility suits his lifestyle as a busy father of three.
“I think the meaning of life is in having that balance, and in order to have the right balance you’ve got to have the spokes positioned equally in the wheel of life – family, work, self and contributing to your community,” Adam said.
“I’m wearing three hats with Region, Wagga.TV and C4W which keeps me busy, so it’s important for me to find time for myself and my family.”
Adam has recently taken up photography as a hobby and is enjoying spending time with his son working on their nighttime shots.
The family spends a lot of time bushwalking and in the outdoors, but they also love snuggling up and watching a good movie together.
After spending four years in Sydney, Adam and Melinda moved back to Wagga to raise their family in the town where they met and fell in love as teenagers.
Born in Albury, Adam moved around a lot as a child with his family, attending schools in Penrith, Tumut, Moulamein and Cootamundra, before moving to Wagga Wagga where he completed year 11 and 12 at the then Trinity Senior High School.
From the age of six he wanted to be an actor, so his parents found the ideal school in Wagga Wagga where the “outspoken and confident” 17-year-old Adam was elected school captain. He said it was his impromptu Elvis performances and joke telling at school assemblies that attracted the attention of Melinda, who was in year 11 at the time.
Adam went on to study screen and stage acting at Charles Sturt University before he was spotted in a stage play and taken under the wing of manager Mark Byrne, who helped shape the careers of Natalie Bassingthwaighte and Timomatic.
He secured a few TV roles and loads of commercials for the likes of Maccas, Optus and Visa. His first job was for Optus and the four-hour stint landed $10,000 in his bank account.
“That’s when I quit my day job and thought I was going to make it big in Hollywood,” he laughed.
The popularity of reality shows saw the TV dramas dry up and Adam said in 2002 he decided to leave the industry and the couple moved back to Wagga to start a family. It was during their search for a home that Adam’s vibrant personality and “gift of the gab” landed him a role in real estate.
Adam threw himself into his work as well as a variety of local charities, and became embedded in the local community. With three young kids, he said he had to take a step back from his busy job and community work in 2014 to focus on his family and growing his boutique media business.
Over the past six years, he has interviewed countless visiting celebrities, created promotional videos for local businesses and his live local sport streams have attracted up to 60,000 online viewers. Adam also recently launched his podcast series titled ‘Missing Files’ which explores missing person cases, cold cases and Australian mysteries.
Adam was excited to have the opportunity to produce the fundraising documentary for the Pro Patria Centre featuring Australian television Gold Logie Award-winning actor and scriptwriter John Wood as a presenter.
The documentary, A Call to Action: Your Defence, Our Battle, has already raised more than $350,000 towards securing the Carmelite Monastery for the centre before March 2023.
“I’m very emotionally connected to this project particularly considering Melinda and I went to school with veteran Brad Fewson who features heavily in the documentary,” Adam said.
“Brad’s battling demons every day and to see what the treatment can do for him is amazing. Veterans like Brad have to travel to Queensland, Melbourne or Sydney for treatment, which is crazy. We really need this centre close to home because the suicide rates among vets is out of control.”
Adam says joining Region Riverina has opened his eyes to a different way of producing local news, and he enjoys speaking to local businesses about “how we can help amplify their voice through the new and exciting Region Media platform”.
Loading ...
