Former criminal lawyer and comedic filmmaker Mark Nicholson says two defining chapters of his professional life fundamentally changed his political outlook, ultimately convincing him to stand as a One Nation candidate at this year’s Victorian state election.

Nicholson, who co-directs Melbourne-based animation company Stepmates Studios, was officially unveiled this week as One Nation’s lead Legislative Council candidate for the Northern Metropolitan Region during the party’s Victorian campaign launch led by Senator Pauline Hanson.

While many Australians know Nicholson through his work in political satire, his career began in a very different profession.

Before entering film and animation, he worked as a criminal lawyer, appearing regularly in Victorian courts.

Speaking during an interview with Sky News host Andrew Bolt, Nicholson said his years practising criminal law represented the first major turning point that reshaped his political thinking.

According to Nicholson, witnessing the criminal justice system firsthand exposed him to issues that he believes are often misunderstood by people who have never worked inside the courts.

Although he did not identify a single case that changed his views, he said years spent dealing with offenders, victims and the legal system gradually altered how he viewed crime, public policy and government decision-making.

The second major influence, Nicholson said, came after leaving legal practice and building Stepmates Studios, the Melbourne animation company he co-founded.

Running a business, employing staff and navigating Australia’s regulatory environment provided what he described as another practical education in how government policy affects everyday Australians and small businesses.

Those combined experiences, he said, eventually convinced him that One Nation best represented the values and policy direction he wished to support.

“I found my political home,” Nicholson said while explaining why he had chosen to enter politics through Pauline Hanson’s party.

Nicholson’s candidacy also reflects his longstanding association with One Nation beyond electoral politics.

Stepmates Studios has produced Pauline Hanson’s Please Explain, the animated political satire series that has become one of the party’s most recognisable online campaigns since launching in 2021.

The series features Senator Hanson voicing an animated version of herself while commenting on Australian politics, government policy and current affairs through satire.

Earlier this year, Nicholson also co-wrote A Super Progressive Movie, a feature-length animated satire based on the Please Explain series.

The film attracted national attention following its Australia Day release and generated both support from One Nation followers and criticism from opponents over its political themes.

During Monday’s campaign launch in Melbourne, Pauline Hanson introduced Nicholson alongside seven other candidates as One Nation formally began its Victorian election campaign.

The party says it intends to contest every lower house seat while fielding candidates across all Legislative Council regions in November’s state election.

Nicholson will contest the Northern Metropolitan Region, an electorate covering Melbourne’s northern suburbs where competition for upper house seats is expected to be intense.

One Nation has positioned the region as an important target as it seeks to expand its parliamentary representation beyond its current Victorian upper house member, Rikkie-Lee Tyrrell.

The broader candidate team announced this week includes former Liberal Party figure Colleen Harkin, Geelong councillor and former police officer Chris Burson, human resources manager Fiona Lopez, lawyer Aaron Sandford and office manager Natalie Adams, while Victorian party president Warren Pickering will contest the lower house seat of Pakenham.

The launch itself attracted additional attention after One Nation barred reporters from several media organisations, including the ABC, The Guardian and The Age, from attending its official press conference.

Senator Hanson defended the decision by arguing those outlets had treated the party unfairly over many years, while media organisations criticised the move as inconsistent with principles of press freedom and democratic accountability.

Later that evening, Pauline Hanson addressed supporters at a campaign event in Melbourne that was met by protesters outside the venue.

Despite the demonstration, the function proceeded under police supervision, with party officials arguing the protest ultimately drew additional public attention to One Nation rather than disrupting proceedings.

Nicholson’s political debut comes as One Nation attempts to capitalise on improved polling and broader voter dissatisfaction with the major parties.

The party has indicated it will campaign strongly on issues including cost of living, law and order, government spending, energy policy and what it describes as excessive political correctness.

More detailed policy announcements are expected throughout the election campaign rather than being released all at once.

For Nicholson, however, the focus remains on explaining why he chose to leave a successful legal career, build a business in Australia’s creative industry and now enter politics.

He says the experiences gained in courtrooms and later as a business owner convinced him that Australia’s policy direction needed change, leading him to seek election under the One Nation banner.

Whether Victorian voters embrace that message will become clear when they head to the polls in November, but Nicholson’s candidacy adds another high-profile figure to One Nation’s expanding campaign as the party seeks to increase its influence in state politics.