australian television information archive

Emilie Cocquerel as Sandy

Sandy was once a strong and powerful water God, shamefully reduced to living as a reclusive sewer Demon. Sandy is socially inept and deeply sensitive. She is a "Bogeyman" presence in her hometown, a symbol of terror for children, however her anti-social exterior hides an overwhelming passion — there's just nowhere to put this energy, and so she has learned to channel it into being an outsider.

While Sandy has lived for many lifetimes, she looks seventeen. With dark Goth clothing, flowing dreadlocks, strange markings on her arms and piercing eyes, it's safe to say that Sandy stands out in a crowd — which could explain her fear of them. Although she uses her exotic looks to keep the world at arm's length, the fact that she is viewed as a monster causes her deep shame.

Sandy has mastered the art of gathering intel by lurking and listening. She plots attacks on Demons and keeps an eye on new dangers in town. When Tripitaka shows up in the village, Sandy is suspicious of the newcomer but instantly recognises her name and knows the legend of her quest. Sandy joins Tripitaka, and quickly becomes a zealot, wanting to redeem herself and believing, for the first time in many years, that she has some good to offer. But the journey will force her to confront and accept her past. Sandy is agile and strong, excelling in the "soft styles" of martial arts like Aikido and Aikijujitsu that use an attacker's own force against them. She has the magical ability to find water, a skill that will prove infinitely useful on this treacherous quest.

---

Born in Sydney to a French father and an Australian mother, Emilie Cocquerel attended bi-lingual schools in France, Los Angeles and Houston before settling in Sydney. Studying at Sydney University she led performances in the Drama Society (SUDS), and finished runner-up in the Dungog Film Festival Speed Auditions. Emilie was then accepted into the prestigious Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA) acting program. At the end of her first year she attended a three- month exchange program with the Conservatoire National Supérieur d'Art Dramatique de Paris (CNSAD) where she studied under renowned director Daniel Mesguish.

In 2016 Emilie was seen in the feature films Joe Cinque's Consolation, based on the book by Helen Garner, Lion starring Dev Patel and Rooney Mara and Mormon Yankees: The Spirit of the Game. She also featured in Rachel Ward's ABC telemovie An Accidental Soldier.

Emilie was a runner-up for the 2015 Heath Ledger Scholarship and is one of Australia's most intriguing newcomers, being recently included in the Australian Women's Weekly's Generation Next portfolio.