The producer best known for his work on Australia’s longest running TV series Neighbours and McLeod’s Daughters presented two classes at the Film and Television Institute’s (FTI) new home at the State Library of WA.
Kingston said FTI had provided an important launch pad for his own extensive career.
‘FTI was always a place where visiting film makers would attend and hold talks,’ he said.
Get in front of tomorrow's news for FREE
Journalism for the curious Australian across politics, business, culture and opinion.
READ NOW‘It also showcased non-|mainstream work through its screenings and festivals. For me, it was a place I could rent broadcast standard equipment at incredibly reasonable prices to produce documentaries.’
Kingston emigrated from England to WA at the age of seven and grew up in Kalamunda, where he first discovered his passion for the arts.
‘I attended Kalamunda High School which had a great balance of curriculum, sport and art, including drama and the very early days of video production,’ he said.
‘It was very progressive for its time.’
Kingston studied medical laboratory science at WAIT, now Curtin University, but his profound love for photography and the entertainment industry ultimately decided his career path.
‘Neighbours was obviously a mammoth project and it’s a machine that just keeps going,’ he said.
‘I think it’s coming up for 30 years next year.’
‘I also produced the feature Nerve in 2013 which was a real labour of love and is something I’m incredibly proud of.
‘It is definitely the type of project that could come out of somewhere like FTI.’
It seems Kingston’s talents also rubbed off on his son Oliver, who he will watch graduate from the WA Screen Academy at Edith Cowan University at the conclusion of his Perth trip.