Axel is a former youth of the mountains, who moved back to k-town just before the pandemic. He’s spent the better part of three decades working in advertising agencies, and was a founding partner in Lost Art (Melbourne) and Present Company (Sydney). His clients and past projects included work for brands like Apple and Leica through to artists such as David Byrne and Phoenix. He is now the Head of Marketing at Scenic World where he’s happily selling memories to the masses. He’s also been an editor or publisher of a range of media titles including Dazed & Confused, Love Want, Contagious and Photofile. Now he’s back in the mountains he appreciates all the things he didn’t as a mountain youth and gets overly excited by spotting native orchids out in the bush. He was able to work with MOY in its first iteration, providing an opportunity for the participants to partake in a marketing briefing and shoot day at Scenic World.

Txai Davies is a previous student of the Mountain of Youth project (2022). Txai grew up in the Blue Mountains and spent most of his childhood with a camera in his hands and iMovie open. He’s always loved to act and write, but has more recently discovered his interest in directing through the amazing opportunities provided to him by the Mountain of Youth mentors. Txai is now working on his own projects - short films, long-form scripts and music.

Sam O’Connor grew up in the beautiful Blue Mountains, surrounded by the close-knit community of Katoomba. While attending Katoomba High School, he discovered his love for the film industry. From a young age, Sam has been making small films and dreaming of working on big movie sets. In 2022, Sam had the opportunity to be a part of the MOY 2022 pilot program. MOY holds great significance in Sam’s life. It has brought about profound changes, providing him with a sense of purpose and a supportive community.  It has also offered Sam insights into the film industry, helping him shape his future aspirations.

Sam is Currently  balancing part-time study work with his involvement in MOY and other smaller projects. Through MOY, Sam has found caring individuals and a place where he can freely express himself. Sam is truly passionate about film, and his hope is to inspire others, just as he has been inspired by his experience at Mountain of Youth.

Barbara Lepani (MA Science and Technology Studies UOW) is a social and cultural change agent who has worked in the NFP, Government, university and private sectors. She is the author of three books: ‘The Regenesis Journey’ (2023), ‘Call of the Dakini’ (2022) and ‘Tulkus,

Tertons, Turmoil: East Tibet 1855-1955’ (2021). All are available on the online amazon platform. Barbara is the President of the Greater Blue Mountains Creative Arts Network (GBMCAN). In this capacity she is the coordinator of its Regenesis Collective project, which hosts a blog of poetry and articles on regenesis.org.au. Barbara is co-editor of its e-

newsletter, ARTBytes, and has developed and led a range of GBMCAN multi-arts projects in the Blue Mountains and Seven Valleys (Lithgow) LGAs. Barbara is also a long-term student- practitioner in Tibetan Buddhism, completing a three-year retreat in its wisdom tradition, 2006-2009.