Falstaff Dowling-Mitchel was born on 25 June 1984. He lives in Hamilton, studied teaching at Waikato University from 2009-2011 and is now a primary school teacher in Hamilton.
He performs professionally in musical theatre and plays. He has toured New Zealand, Australia and the UAE acting in a number of different productions. He has had success writing short films and music, winning two international awards in 2017 and 2019.
In 2019 he wrote his first novel White Lies, Maori Legends and Fairytales, which won a Storylines Notable Book award in 2019 and is currently being used in more than 100 high schools in New Zealand to engage young people in reading, and New Zealand history. Plans are currently underway for the book to be turned into a feature film.

Selected bibliography:

• White Lies, Maori Legends and Fairytales (Self-published 2019)

Awards

• Storylines Notable Book Award 2019 for White Lies, Maori Legends and Fairytales
• Finalist, Australian Tropfest  for 'Evolution of a Poorly Thrown Snowball' (writer, 2019)
• Runner up (Best score), Australian Tropfest for 'Evolution of a Poorly Thrown Snowball' (composer, 2019)
• Best original song, Rode Reel Film Competition (composer/writer, 2017)

Resources:

• Falstaff's website