Ally’s journey began in a rural community in Australia where the idea of making a living or a career telling stories for television never felt like an option. Yet through hard work and determination, Ally has achieved success, writing for sold-out audiences at the Magnet Theater in New York City, digital platforms, and streaming services based in Hollywood including Facebook Watch and the CW Seed.
As a seasoned comedy writer, from Amy Poehler’s improv school UCB, Ally’s sketches have gained critical acclaim internationally at the Montreal Sketchfest, Chicago Sketchfest, New York City Sketchfest, Philly Sketchfest, and Boston Comedy Arts Festival. She attributes her signature dark wit to her obsession with Mitchell and Web’s sketches. “Their comedic sensibility is a huge influence. They have the perfect mix of wit and social commentary.”
Ally’s leap from stage to broadcast happened when she won the prestigious ATX Television Festival’s Pitch Competition. Her comedy series pitch wowed industry judges, earning her first prize, pitching content to development executives from Hollywood’s leading studios and networks including Comedy Central, Happy Madison, FX Networks and Sony.
She soon went on to write for Fun Science with Charlie McDonnell and Warigami for the CW/CBC. Working with celebrated writer/producer Jeffrey Lieber, showrunner of The Originals, NCIS New Orleans and co-creator of the ABC hit, Lost, Ally helped make a fifteen-episode series for the new streaming platform, Quibi. The series is co-created by YouTube star and author, Charlie McDonnell and directed by Catherine Hardwicke, director of Twilight, Miss Bala and This is Us.
Ally continues to write episodes for the successful TXT Stories, streaming on Facebook Watch. The series includes episodic and stand-alone narratives that are told through text messages, earning an admirable three million followers. “There’s an art to telling a story and keeping a global audience captivated, especially on social platforms where stories need to be designed for short bursts of attention. There still needs to be dramatic tension, plot twists and payoffs in order to keep viewers hooked. You become a master of storytelling when it’s compressed like this.”
Currently, Ally is developing her latest comedy series pilot that she co-wrote and produced with actress Desiree Staples, called The Influencers. “It’s about a woman who wants to manage A-list celebrities, but ends up managing crazy YouTube Influencers and cats.”
When asked what drives her prolific output that’s lead her to such success, she cites a passion for the art form. “Storytelling is how we relate and learn to empathize with each other. I tend to do it through humor but the goal is essentially to share and talk about what it is to be human.”