Joe Hepworth commenced his role as Head of Writing at NIDA in 2022. His experience includes over 15 years as a writer for film and television in the UK, including on the BBC’s BAFTA-nominated children’s series All At Sea. He has also worked as a script reader and editor, and was selected for the prestigious BFI Guiding Lights scheme.

Joe has trained dramatic writers at internationally recognised schools across three continents, including the Northern Film School (UK) and the Escuela Internacional de Cine y Televisión (Cuba). He was Deputy Director of Undergraduate Programmes at the Met Film School (UK) before moving to the Australian Film, Television and Radio School (AFTRS) in 2016 as the Course Leader for their BA in Screen Production.

Joe is driven by the transformative power of storytelling. Whether in his own work or through the storytellers he develops, giving a voice to those least often heard is at the heart of what he does. Through his own production company he has written, directed and produced over 40 short films with underrepresented groups, including disabled young people, excluded young people, refugees, Gypsy and Roma groups, veterans, mental health groups, young people from low economic backgrounds, and sexually exploited young people in Malawi.

He holds an MA in Screenwriting, is currently undertaking a PhD in interactive storytelling and curriculum design, and is an Associate Fellow of the UK Higher Education Academy.