Gary Hartley

Gary Hartley is a South African writer, creative director, and award-winning theatremaker with over 15 years of experience spanning television, media, theatre, marketing, and advertising.

He began his career as a writer and producer for etv's The ShowBiz Report and The Style Report, interviewing notable figures from Bonang Matheba and Athol Fugard to Sir Ian McKellan and Rosito Missoni.

As the co-founder of Horses’ Heads Productions, he produced and directed theatre, including the Standard Bank Ovation Encore prize-winning Wintersweet and the Standard Bank AHA! Ovation Award-winning Scrape, respectively.

Gary is also the founder and editor-in-chief of SCAFFOLD, a platform dedicated to queer creators and culture, which earned him a spot on the Mail and Guardian’s Top 200 Young South Africans list in 2021.