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Mark Coles Smith

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Mark Coles Smith
Coles Smith in 2020
Born1987 (age 36–37)
Kalgoorlie, Western Australia
OccupationActor
Known forFirst Indigenous Australian actor nominated for a Gold Logie
Notable work
Television
AwardsFCCA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role (2015)
Helpmann Award for Best Male Actor in a Play (2017)
AACTA Award for Best Actor in a Series (2022)
AACTA International Award for Best Actor in a Series (2022)

Mark Coles Smith (born 1987), also known by his musical identity as Kalaji, is an Aboriginal Australian actor of stage and screen, sound designer, field recordist, writer, and composer. He is known for his roles in the feature films Last Cab to Darwin (2015), Picnic at Hanging Rock (2018), and Occupation: Rainfall (2020), as well as the television series Mystery Road: Origin (2022), and the Canadian series Hard Rock Medical (2013–18).

In 2023 he became the first Indigenous Australian actor to be nominated for a Gold Logie and won Best Actor in a Series in both the AACTA International Awards as well as the domestic AACTA Awards for his role in Mystery Road: Origin.

Early life and education

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Coles Smith was born in 1987[1] in Kalgoorlie, in Western Australia, and grew up on a cattle station on the Fitzroy River, two hours' drive east of Broome, in the Kimberley region of the state.[2][3] This was his mother's country, the land of the Nyikina people.[3] His grandfather was a pearl diver, and Coles Smith has said that his family were all very hardworking.[4]

His parents separated when he was young, and travelled around the country (including at Southern Cross University in Lismore, New South Wales; and in Brisbane, Perth, and Broome) with his mother, who was an academic who lectured in Indigenous mental health. He did not reconnect with his father, who ran art projects in remote communities, until he was around 10 or 11 years old. He felt an instant rapport and familiarity with his father, who he described as possessing a kind of "German eccentricity".[4]

He made his debut in the Network Ten children's TV show Ocean Star at the age of 14 after being taken to an open audition by his aunt.[5][3]

In 2007, Coles Smith received the Wilin Centre for Indigenous Arts and Cultural Development's Yvonne Cohen Award. He earned a certificate from the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts in Aboriginal Theatre,[6] a course offered only once in Broome, in which eight students attended classes for six months. He later said that most of his training came from working with experienced actors, such as Lisa Flanagan.[2]

Career

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Coles Smith has worked in acting, sound design, field recording, writing, and composing music.[3]

Film and television

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After filming his role in The Gods of Wheat Street in 2014, Coles Smith was cast in an episode of American sitcom Modern Family, playing a tour guide called Koora in an episode filmed in the Blue Mountains in New South Wales.[7]

Coles Smith won critical acclaim for his performance as Tilly in Last Cab to Darwin, and was awarded with FCCA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role in 2015.[8]

In 2021, Coles Smith was cast in Mystery Road: Origin, a prequel to the original two series.[9][10] In the prequel, Coles Smith played a younger version of detective Jay Swan, a role originated by Aaron Pedersen.[11]

Following Chris Brown's defection from Network 10 to the Seven Network in 2023, Coles Smith succeeded Brown as the narrator of The Dog House Australia.[12]

Coles Smith features as narrator and interviewer in the documentary Keeping Hope, directed by Tyson Mowarin, which examines the high rates of suicide in Indigenous communities in the Kimberley.[13] The film premiered at the Sydney Film Festival in June 2023,[14] ahead of its airing on NITV and SBS Television.[15] In the film, Coles Smith opens up about his own and his family's experiences with the impact of suicide of close friends and family members. Steve Dow of The Guardian gave the film four out of five stars.[16]

In 2023, Coles Smith became the first Indigenous Australian actor ever to be nominated for a Gold Logie.[17][3] He also received nominations for the Logie Award for Most Popular Actor and the industry-voted Logie Award for Most Outstanding Actor for his role on Mystery Road: Origin.[17] He was one of three identities from ABC TV nominated for the Gold Logie, along with Leigh Sales and Shaun Micallef, with Coles Smith crediting the latter with helping him draw inspiration from the "Curiosity Cul-de-sac" parodies on Shaun Micallef's Mad as Hell for his role on Mystery Road: Origin.[18] On 21 November 2024, it was announced that ABC had ordered a second series of Mystery Road: Origin, with Coles Smith to reprise the role of Jay Swan.[19]

Stage acting

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Coles Smith has performed in several stage plays. He gave his first stage performance as a child, Crabbing at High Tide,[20] presented as part of the Perth International Arts Festival in 2005.[21]

His 2016 performance in The Drover's Wife at the Belvoir Theatre in Sydney[22] earned him the Helpmann Award for Best Male Actor in a Play in 2017.[23]

Coles Smith played a leading role opposite Jack Charles in ILBIJERRI Theatre Company's Black Ties, first performed for the Sydney Festival in January 2020,[24] then touring to Perth, Melbourne, and then Wellington and Auckland in New Zealand in February and March of that year.[20]

Music

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Coles Smith was the sound designer for the play Which Way Home at the Belvoir, produced by ILBIJERRI as part of the Sydney Festival and directed by Rachael Maza Long.[25]

Under the stage name Kalaji (the Nyikina word for "whirlwind"[26]), Coles Smith gave his first musical/multimedia performance, named "Night River", at the Yirramboi arts festival in Melbourne in 2019.[27] The work explored Nyikina country and the Mardoowarra (aka Martuwarra, or Fitzroy River area).[28]

In December 2021, under the name Kalaji, he released an electro-pop album of the same name.[29] NME reviewer Cat Woods described the music as reminiscent of Icelandic band Sigur Rós, and overall "an atmospheric, expansive adventure in synths, instrumentals, field recordings, and treated vocals – and a meditation on themes of intergenerational wisdom and memory". Partly recorded on country and produced at Wawili Sound Studios in Broome, Coles Smith explores his relationship with Martuwarra (the Fitzroy River catchment area) and his Nyikina culture.[27] It includes field recordings of natural sounds,[30] and one of the ten tracks is named "Wandjina",[29] the cloud and rain spirits of Aboriginal Australian mythology.[31]

Narration (audio)

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In 2020, Coles Smith narrated an extract from the Banjo Paterson's poem " The Man From Snowy River" on RN Breakfast.[32]

Coles Smith narrated the audiobook of Tasmanian Aboriginal author Adam Thompson's short story collection, Born Into This (2021).[33]

Recognition and awards

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Personal life

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Coles Smith was deeply affected by the suicide of a close friend in 2011, when he was 23 years old, but kept his experience and feelings hidden until several weeks into the making of the documentary Keeping Hope ten years later.[16]

In an appearance on Take 5, a show hosted by Zan Rowe on ABC Television and in an hour-long interview on Double J in October 2023, Coles Smith revealed the five songs that he had found most centering, or grounding, in his life:[4]

Also on Take 5, Coles Smith said that his grandmother was Ningali Lawford, then a dancer at Bangarra Dance Theatre in Sydney (later an actress). He said that she had a three-month relationship with David Bowie, who asked her to accompany him back to Berlin, but she refused.[40]

Coles Smith moved to Melbourne in 2015.[41] After many years of living on the east coast of Australia, he had returned to his hometown Broome by 2023.[3]

Filmography

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Television appearances

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Year Title Role Notes
2003 Ocean Star Spider 12 episodes
2005 Blue Heelers Luke Parnell Episode: "One Good Turn"
2007–2010 The Circuit Billy Wallan 8 episodes
2009 Dirt Game Willie Episode: "Boab Dreaming"
2013 Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries Tom Derrimut Episode: "Deadweight"
2013–2018 Hard Rock Medical Gary Frazier Main role, Canadian series
2014 Modern Family Australian Guide Episode: "Australia"; American series
2014 The Gods of Wheat Street Tristan Freeburn 6 episodes
2014 Old School Jason Dhurkay 8 episodes
2015 Airlock Jonah Ashbrook
2016 Hunters Dylan Briggs 13 episodes; American series
Please Like Me Ricky 1 episode
2017 Doctor Doctor Dan 2 episodes
2017-23 Little J & Big Cuz Uncle Nick 20 episodes
2018 Picnic at Hanging Rock Tom 6 episodes
2018 Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 Specialist Crash (voice)
2017-20 Shaun Micallef's Mad as Hell Various (incl. Bumfrey Moo) 14 episodes
2019 Lift Guy Web series
KGB William 5 episodes
Les Norton Jack 'Palings' Murphy 1 episode
2019 Zero-Point Kyle Burton Voice, 4 episodes
2020 Halifax: Retribution Kip Lee TV series; 7 episodes
2022 Savage River Joel Thorpe TV series; 6 episodes
2022, 2025 Mystery Road: Origin Jay Swan Series 3 main, succeeded Aaron Pedersen
2023 The Clearing Wayne Dhurrkay TV series
Erotic Stories Manny 1 episode (Imperfect Paw Paw)
2025 Apple Cider Vinegar TBA TV series

Film appearances

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Year Title Roles Notes
2024 We Bury the Dead Riley Post-production
2023 Combat Wombat: Back 2 Back Reginald
2023 Scarygirl River Bandit (voice)
2022 Sweet As Ian [42]
2022 Akoni Sammy
2021 Jarli Cuzzo Short
2020 The Story of Lee Ping Jack Short
2020 Occupation: Rainfall Captain Wessex
2016 Miro Miro Short
2016 Messiah Short
2015 Last Cab to Darwin Tilly FCCA Award for Best Supporting Actor
Nominated – AACTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role[3]
Won – AFCA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role[8]
Pawno Pauly Nominated – AACTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Nominated – FCCA Award for Best Supporting Actor
2014 Wurinyan Henry Short
2013 Around The Block Steve Wood
2012 Ace of Spades Christian Short
2010 Beneath Hill 60 Billy Bacon

Self appearances / presenter

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Year TItle Role Notes
2023 The Dog House Australia Narrator
2020 Outback Ringer Narrator
2019 Will Australia ever have a black Prime Minister? Presenter

Footnotes

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  1. ^ Ceremony took place in December 2022 in Sydney.[36]
  2. ^ Ceremony took place online in February 2023.[39]

References

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  1. ^ "Smith, Mark Coles (1987-)". City Libraries, City of Gold Coast. Gold Coast City Council. Archived from the original on 29 July 2023. The person, Smith, Mark Coles (1987-) represents an individual associated with resources found in City Libraries, City of Gold Coast
  2. ^ a b Byram, Vickii (10 July 2022). "Mystery Road Origin reveals Jay Swan's beginnings as a detective". The Canberra Times. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Smith, Mark Coles (25 July 2023). "Mark Coles Smith" (PDF). National Indigenous Times (Interview). Style Up. Interviewed by Smith, Shahna: 12-13.
  4. ^ a b c Coles Smith, Mark (31 October 2023). "Mark Coles Smith's grounding songs" (audio (1:05) + text). ABC Listen. Interviewed by Rowe, Zan. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
  5. ^ "My first job: Mark Coles Smith, actor". The New Daily. 3 March 2014. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  6. ^ a b "Mark Coles Smith". CPMGT. 1 March 2015. Archived from the original on 1 March 2015. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  7. ^ Domjen, Briana (17 March 2014). "Aussie actor Mark Coles Smith steered clear of Modern Family sex bomb Sofia Vergara because she was 'absolutely gorgeous'". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  8. ^ a b c "2015 Awards". FCCA Awards. Film Critics Circle of Australia. Retrieved 29 July 2023. Best Actor - Supporting Role: Mark Coles Smith (Last Cab to Darwin)
  9. ^ Quinn, Karl (21 August 2021). "'Big boots to fill': Mark Coles Smith inherits Aaron Pedersen's iconic role". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  10. ^ Bailey, John (31 May 2023). "Mystery Road star's ghosts: 'sometimes I can feel them nearby'". The Age. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  11. ^ Byram, Vickii (13 July 2022). "A drive down Mystery Road with Mark Coles Smith is a journey back to detective Jay Swan's origins". The Canberra Times. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  12. ^ Knox, David (9 February 2023). "Mark Coles Smith narrates The Dog House". TV Tonight. Retrieved 16 March 2023.
  13. ^ "Keeping Hope". SBS On Demand. 10 September 2023. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
  14. ^ "Keeping Hope". Sydney Film Festival. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
  15. ^ "Keeping Hope: Mark Coles Smith's powerful and deeply personal documentary". NITV. 14 August 2023. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
  16. ^ a b Dow, Steve (29 August 2023). "'We need to be strong together': Mark Coles Smith on Australia's 'deeply offensive' Indigenous suicide crisis". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
  17. ^ a b c Knox, David (28 July 2023). "Mark Coles Smith makes history as first Indigenous actor nominated for Gold Logie". TV Tonight. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  18. ^ Karvelas, Patricia (29 July 2023). "'Stoked to be included': Mark Coles Smith on Logie nomination". RN Breakfast. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  19. ^ Slatter, Sean (21 November 2024). "ABC to welcome Sally Hepworth adaptation 'The Family Next Door', 'Mystery Road: Origin' S2 in 2025". IF Magazine. Retrieved 21 November 2024.
  20. ^ a b "Mark Coles Smith". AusStage. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  21. ^ "Crabbing at High Tide". AusStage. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  22. ^ "The Drover's Wife". AusStage. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  23. ^ a b Harmon, Steph (24 July 2017). "Helpmanns 2017: The Drover's Wife and Adelaide festival claim Australian theatre awards". The Guardian. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  24. ^ "Black Ties". AusStage. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
  25. ^ "Which Way Home". AusStage. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
  26. ^ "Kalaji Discography". Discogs. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
  27. ^ a b Woods, Cat (7 December 2021). "Kalaji – 'Kalaji' review: Sweeping, evocative electronic soundscapes by Mark Coles Smith". NME. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
  28. ^ "Night River at YIRRAMBOI Festival". WeekendNotes. 28 April 2019. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
  29. ^ a b "Kalaji – Kalaji (2021, red with black swirl vinyl, Vinyl)". Discogs. 3 December 2021. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
  30. ^ Kalaji - teaser on YouTube, published by Heavy Machinery Records, 29 November 2021.
  31. ^ "Ungarinyin Religion". Encyclopedia.com. 19 October 2023. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
  32. ^ Friday Poem: Mark Coles Smith reads from 'The Man From Snowy River', Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 24 July 2020, retrieved 31 October 2023
  33. ^ Thompson, Adam (2021), Born Into This [catalogue entry], Wavesound Pty Ltd, ISBN 978-1-004-03018-7 – via Trove
  34. ^ "Winners Announced for the 2022 AACTA Awards". AACTA. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
  35. ^ "Winners Announced for the 12th AACTA International Awards". AACTA. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
  36. ^ Cain, Sian (23 October 2022). "Baz Luhrmann's Elvis leads 2022 Aacta award nominations". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
  37. ^ Knox, David (24 February 2023). "AACTA International Awards 2023: winners". TV Tonight. Retrieved 30 July 2023. ABC's Mystery Road: Origin taking home Best Drama Series and Mark Coles Smith was named Best Lead Actor in a Series.
  38. ^ "Winners announced for the 12th AACTA International Awards". FilmInk. 24 February 2023. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
  39. ^ Pedersen, Erik (23 February 2023). "Australia's International Awards: 'Avatar: The Way Of Water', Cate Blanchett & Austin Butler Take Top Prizes – Full List". Deadline. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
  40. ^ Hitch, Georgia (31 October 2023). "Mark Coles Smith reveals family and personal connections to David Bowie". ABC News (Australia). Retrieved 1 November 2023.
  41. ^ O'Brien, Mary (31 July 2015). "My secret Melbourne: actor Mark Coles Smith goes looking for the doorway to love". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  42. ^ Bailey, John (31 May 2023). "Mystery Road star's ghosts: 'sometimes I can feel them nearby'". The Age. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
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