On my sixth birthday Dad took me to a toyshop in Sydney, Australia, to choose a present. A small clockwork projector that used short strips of 35mm film to show examples of basic animation caught my eye.

At school I was encouraged by my Headmaster to continue to pursue my interest in the movie world. For one day each month it was my job to hire and project the 'The Three Stooges,' short films, adventure serials and cartoons, with the school's 16mm Bell & Howell projector. During this time I also developed personal contacts at the distribution offices for Columbia Pictures in Sydney, Twentieth Century Fox, Paramount and other major 16mm distributors. This served to give me a sense of connection with the film industry.

One of my neighbours at the time was a man by the name of John Clarke. John was an Air Conditioning Engineer with Hoyts Cinemas Australia. On a trip to the then flagship Regent Theatre in Sydney he took me behind the giant Cinemascope screen, where to my amazement huge images moved in a mosaic pattern. From then on I accompanied him on his way to work on a number of occasions - for a boy of 12 or 13 dreams are built upon these experiences.

Another neighbour was a projectionist at the Hoyts Astor in Burwood. This cinema was renowned for having the steepest incline of any other in Australia, Wow! The projector lens was almost on the floor of the Bio-box; I think the angle was about 55 degrees. At the Astor I participated in a 'changeover', that involved pulling on a lever which operated a shutter to the arc house. My brain was alive with wonderment. I was now hooked on the magic that danced on the screen in a darkened cinema.