Josh Wakely is an Emmy Award-winning creator, director, screenwriter, producer and principal partner at Grace: a storytelling company.

Originally from Newcastle, an industrial town three hours north of Sydney, Australia, Wakely was raised in a household filled with music, instilling in him the firm belief that storytelling is the core of both screen- and song-writing. Today, that belief powers Wakely’s output as an entertainment content innovator as he blends iconic, universally-known music catalogues with original narratives into high-end television, film and multi-media projects distributed across entertainment platforms worldwide.

After securing the rights to develop entertainment properties based on a huge swath of recorded master and publishing catalogues – including Universal Music Group’s catalog, The Beatles and Motown – Wakely created the critically-acclaimed, two-time Emmy-winning children’s animated series “Beat Bugs” (Netflix) and the Smokey Robinson produced animated series “Motown Magic” (Netflix). Both series featured reimagined tracks sung by multi-platinum selling recording artists, including Sia, P!nk, Jennifer Hudson, Eddie Vedder and more.

Building upon his success in music-infused animation, Wakely’s current slate of projects includes a premium, scripted drama series based in the world of Bob Dylan’s music, and more than a dozen other scripts featuring the greatest artists, internationally renowned figures and athletes of all time. On the feature film side, Wakely has optioned the rights to the best-selling memoir Half a Life, which tells the haunting story of one man’s 20-year struggle with the accidental death of his high school classmate. The book was awarded the National Book Critics Circle Award in 2011. Wakely will adapt the memoir for the screen and direct.

A graduate of Australia’s prestigious Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA), Wakely lives in Los Angeles with his family.

AGENT:
United Talent Agency (UTA)

LEGAL REPRESENTATION:
Hansen, Jacobson, Teller, Hoberman (HJTH)

LAWYER:
Craig Jacobson