New York Film Academy Australia alum Leroy Button has been busy since graduating the Filmmaking program in 2018, having worked on multiple blockbusters, including Aquaman and Dora and the Lost City of Gold, as well as upcoming franchise sequels Fast & Furious 9 and James Bond film No Time to Die.
Australian publication Daily Telegraph recently covered Button’s achievements in a profile, touching on his early start as a child playing with consumer and prosumer camera equipment. Button would shoot numerous videos and short films with his friends, presaging his future career in the filmmaking industry.
Sense, a film he made while still in high school, went on to win seven awards in the festival circuit, and led to Button creating his own freelance company, Button Media. After taking a Panavision Master Class while studying at NYFA Australia’s Gold Coast campus, Button landed a job with Panavision, where he eventually was able to work on superhero epic Aquaman, which was partially filmed at Village Roadshow Studios.
On set, Button worked closely with stars like Jason Momoa and Nicole Kidman, but it was the state-of-the-art technical equipment that really wowed him. “I was actually more interested in having conversations with the camera boys,” Button tells Daily Telegraph Australia.
Sure enough, that job led to another and then another, and in just a few short years Button has built up an impressive resume with credits on huge Hollywood films in the camera and electric departments, including as the drone technician on last summer’s Dora the Explorer film.
Additionally, Button has been working in television, and earning cinematography credits as well. His career is clearly only just getting started.
“Leroy displayed passion, positivity, and a strong work ethic,” says Steve Pratt, NYFA Australia Chair of Filmmaking, “and was able to utilize the unique hands-on approach to filmmaking that makes NYFA Australia’s curriculum stand out from the rest—ensuring graduates like him are industry-ready when big studios come calling. We are extremely proud of him and look forward to his continued success in the industry.”
Please note: NYFA does not represent that these are typical or guaranteed career outcomes. The success of our graduates in any chosen professional pathway depends on multiple factors, and the achievements of NYFA alumni are the result of their hard work, perseverance, talent and circumstances.