Joanna Callaghan was born in Newcastle and grew up in Singleton. She is now a filmmaker based in the UK whose practice explores philosophy through drama and documentary. 

In 2014 she produced feature Love in the Post: From Plato to Derrida, based on a book by philosopher Jacques Derrida.

During her residency at The Lock-Up Joanna will undertake research and development for a film based around Australian identity weaving together both fact and fiction. During this time, she will also be a Visiting Fellow in the School of Creative Industries at the University of Newcastle working on a UK-Australia project on Filmmaking Research. 

Her visit is supported by grants from the Arts Council England, the Arts and Humanities Research Council and the University of Sussex, where Joanna is a lecturer in filmmaking.