AND WHAT WE BELIEVE IN.
WHO WE ARE
Whitfield Studio is a versatile Australian design and production studio servicing theatre, film, and live events across Naarm (Melbourne) and Meanjin (Brisbane).
Founded in 2023 by Leah Fitzgerald-Quinn and Willem Whitfield, the studio offers a full suite of creative services tailored for independent and professional theatre companies, festivals, filmmakers, and arts organisations. Our capabilities span graphic design, branding and marketing, costume and production design, film and theatre production, and event coordination.
At the core of Whitfield Studio is a people-first philosophy rooted in kindness, collaboration, and honesty. We take a meta-absurdist, surrealist approach to our boundary-pushing creative work, crafting pieces that spark vital dialogue through unconventional storytelling. Our design ethos emphasises sustainable practices in up-cycling and waste reduction in order to maintain a circular economic model. By establishing and upholding these values of environmental consciousness, cooperative leadership, and authentic self-expression, Whitfield Studio aims to revolutionise not just the artistic mediums we work in, but the very philosophies underpinning how creative work is conceived and brought to life.
THE TEAM
LEAH FITZGERALD-QUINN
Leah is a versatile, multidisciplinary artist, with a love for all things creative. She divides her time between flexing her Shakespeare muscles with the Queensland Shakespeare Ensemble, feeling guilty about the amount of costumes stacked in her living room, and spreading edible glitter throughout the house.
Since graduating from a Bachelor of Fine Arts (Drama) in 2018, Leah has flung open the doors to a prolific creative career in performance, costume and production design, and film and theatre production. In 2019, she commenced her apprenticeship with the Queensland Shakespeare Ensemble, and in 2020, secured a position in the company’s Core Ensemble, taking on roles in performance, production management, costume design, and finance.
In 2023, she completed a Certificate IV in Small Business and Entrepreneurship. As a performer she has trained the Melbourne Shakespeare Company, Zen Zen Zo, Vulcana Circus, The Mask Family, D.I.V.E Theatre Collective, Wit Incorporated and Backbone Youth Arts. Her recent credits include; The Fae Embassy at Woodford Folk Festival (Lead Costume Maker), The Penelopiad by the Queensland Shakespeare Ensemble (Costume Design & Performer), and The Toucan Club at PIP Theatre (Costume Designer).
WILLEM WHITFIELD
Willem Whitfield is an award-winning film director, theatre producer, writer, actor, and graphic designer.
Since graduating with a Bachelor of Creative Industries in 2016, he has pursued a career managing diverse creative projects across the performing arts, cinema and festival environments. Recently he held the role of Department Head for The Fae, an immersive puzzle experience, at the Woodford Folk Festival between 2022-2024. He also served as Production Manager for the Queensland Shakespeare Ensemble's production of Macbeth and the interactive murder mystery Wedding and a Murder for FeverUp!
He has also held the position of City Producer for the 48 Hour Film Project since November 2020, where he manages the entire Brisbane leg of the international competition, including graphic design, marketing, and social media outreach.
He maintains an independent artistic practice, consistently producing original theatre and film content across Brisbane. In 2021 he wrote, produced and performed in his own original play, Hello, Gaz Rhumbo! and trained as an Apprentice with the Queensland Shakespeare Ensemble (QSE). In 2022 he won the Anywhere Pick award for his immersive performance “Chat With Lucifer” and helped produce Brisbane Fringe in its first year of operation.
In 2023 he worked as a Director with the La Boite Assembly program and the marketing coordinator for Anywhere Festival.