Rhiana Jade Griffith (born April 16, 1985) is an Australian former actress and artist.[2]

Rhiana Griffith
Born
Rhiana Jade Griffith

~1985 (age 38–39)[1]
Mulbring, New South Wales[1]
Occupation(s)Actress, artist
Years active1998–2005
Height158 cm (5 ft 2 in)
Children1

Life and career

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Griffith was born in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia. She began modeling as a child, doing runway work and catalogue advertisements, and eventually progressed from there to television commercials.

From there, she got her first guest-starring role on the Australian medical drama Children's Hospital, and won her first film role, as Mercia in the 1998 film 15 Amore.[1][3] Shortly thereafter, she won Model Quest 98's Grand Final for the 12–15 division,[4] and was cast as Jack in the science fiction film Pitch Black,[5] a role for which she had to shave off her hair.[6]

Griffith continued to act throughout her teenage years, balancing her career with schooling. She starred in Desperately Seeking Brandi, a short film that was broadcast on the Nike website to coincide with the 2000 Sydney Olympic games. Her costars in the film were Brandi Chastain and Oliver Ackland. That same year, she was also a guest-star on the Australian comedy TV series BackBerner.

In 2001, she starred in the short film Search by director Hannah Hilliard. In 2002, she did a three-month guest-star stint on the popular Australian soap opera Home and Away and then guest-starred on an episode of the crime drama White Collar Blue.[7] 2003 saw her appearing in a music video by rocker Ben Lee, called "Running With Scissors," directed by Nash Edgerton.

In 2004 she reprised her role as Jack from Pitch Black in the animated short film The Chronicles of Riddick: Dark Fury.[8] She also auditioned to play the role in the feature film sequel to Pitch Black, The Chronicles of Riddick. Her casting was backed by producer and star Vin Diesel, but Griffith was told she had to "toughen up" for the role. Despite enlisting the aid of a kick-boxing trainer, she had only three weeks to prepare, and the role eventually went to Alexa Davalos.[9]

2004 also saw Griffith embark upon her art career in earnest, with two major solo gallery showings. Her first, Chrysalis, was held at the Tighes Hill Gallery in Newcastle, Australia in January 2004.[10] Her second, A Month in Kaos, was held at the Surry Hills Cafe 249 art gallery in Sydney, Australia in May 2004.[11] Griffith also acted in another short film, A Whole New You, and guest-starred in an episode of the Australian medical drama All Saints.[8] As the year came to a close, Griffith portrayed Barbarella in print and television ads promoting the Flickerfest film festival.[12]

In 2005, Griffith held her third art exhibition, a collaboration with her brother, poet Damien Griffith, called Sibling Revelry. In conjunction with the art show, they released a limited-edition book of their work, pairing her paintings with his poems. Griffith also contributed to a Wearable Art Festival, and will launch a line of clothing later in 2005. She is working on her second book, a children's book, for release in late 2005, and portrayed the starring role of Clare Newell in a short film, Wrong Answer, which will be continued in the psychological thriller called Volunteer, to be directed by JD Cohen.

Griffith has a daughter, Poppy, born in 2009.[2]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Work Role Type
1999 15 Amore Mercia Feature film
2000 Pitch Black Jack Feature film
2000 Desperately Seeking Brandi Bea Short film (webcast)
2001 Search May Short film
2004 A Whole New You Receptionist Short film
2005 Wrong Answer Clare Newell Short film
Winner of Judges' Choice: Short Film, Audience Choice: Short Film and Best of Fest at the 2005 Frankly Film Fest

Television

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Year Work Role Type
1998 Children's Hospital Kelly TV series, 1 episode
2000 BackBerner Kristi Taylor TV show, 1 episode
2002 White Collar Blue Lilly Derwent TV show, 1 episode
2002 Home and Away Aimee Cooper TV series
2004 All Saints Cindy TV series, 1 episode
2004 The Chronicles of Riddick: Dark Fury Jack Anime DVD

Music videos

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Year Work Artist Role Type
2003 Running with Scissors Ben Lee Waitress Music video
Year Work Role Type
2004 Flickerfest Barbarella Advertising campaign

Art exhibitions

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Year Work Role Type
2004 A Month in Kaos Painter Art exhibition
2004 Chrysalis Painter Art exhibition
2005 Sibling Revelry Painter Art exhibition

References

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  1. ^ a b c Quinn, Ben (28 January 2006), "Perfect pitch", Newcastle Herald
  2. ^ a b Amy Edwards (11 February 2011). "Inspirational birth re-ignites artistic creativity". The Newcastle Herald. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
  3. ^ Stratton, David (24 April 2000), "15 Amore", Variety
  4. ^ "Perfect pitch", Newcastle Herald, 1 May 1998
  5. ^ Joyce, James (31 July 1998), "Hunter teen bound for Hollywood", Newcastle Herald
  6. ^ Roach, Vicki (13 May 2002), "Steel City actor pitches her sci-fi talent as a boy", The Courier Mail
  7. ^ Barnier, Linda; Gadd, Michael (15 October 2002), "Rhiana cops kidnap role - The WORD", Newcastle Herald
  8. ^ a b Edwards, Amy; Gadd, Michael (11 October 2004), "Tough stuff for Rhiana - the word", Newcastle Herald
  9. ^ Barnier, Linda; Gadd, Michael (19 June 2003), "Putting up a fight - The WORD", Newcastle Herald
  10. ^ Barnier, Linda; Waugh, Andrew (10 December 2003), "Rhiana's in like Vin - The WORD", Newcastle Herald
  11. ^ Grant, Sarah (2 May 2004), "Actress masters new art", The Daily Telegraph
  12. ^ Edwards, Amy; Gadd, Michael (10 January 2005), "Beam us up, Rhiana - the word", Newcastle Herald

Sources

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