IF Magazine

IF Magazine http://if.com.au/ Inside Film - Australia en-us http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss info@if.com.au (The Editor) <![CDATA[Key programming exec to depart ABC TV]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/19/article/Key-programming-exec-to-depart-ABC-TV/QXLUHALZLZ.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/19/article/Key-programming-exec-to-depart-ABC-TV/QXLUHALZLZ.html Don Groves Tim Brooke-Hunt, ABC TV’s controller of children’s content, said he will step down in September to pursue new opportunities in children's entertainment. In the past six years he oversaw the launch of ABC3 and ABC4Kids, which reach almost 60% of Australian children aged up to 12 years. Children's programs are the most popular content on ABC TV's iview catch-up service, accounting for more than 2 million program plays monthly. "I leave ABC TV with renewed respect for public broadcasting, with gratitude to the talented producers of our programs,” he said. Richard Finlayson, the newly appointed Director of ABC Television, said: "There is no doubt that the dominance of ABC TV in the children’s area has been one of the great success stories for the ABC and this has been achieved under Tim’s leadership.” Brooke-Hunt worked for Beyond International and the Yoram Gross Studios before starting his own company, Sticky Pictures, in 2002. Wed, 19 Jun 2013 16:31:44 +1000 <![CDATA[The Rocket wins the popular vote]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/19/article/The-Rocket-wins-the-popular-vote/QZNOZDQOLT.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/19/article/The-Rocket-wins-the-popular-vote/QZNOZDQOLT.html Don Groves Writer-director Kim Mordaunt’s debut film The Rocket was voted best narrative feature at the Sydney Film Festival in the Foxtel Movie Channels Audience Awards. The award is a propitious sign in the lead-up to the Lao-set film’s premiere on August 29. Sitthiphon Disamoe stars as Ahlo, a boy who enters a rocket festival competition to help save his poverty-stricken family after they are uprooted by the construction of a hydro-electric dam. The gong for most popular documentary went to The Crossing, director Julian Harvey’s account of two young Aussies, Clark Carter and Chris Bray, who decide to cross a remote island in the Arctic for the hell of it. The Rocket beat Saudi Arabian director Haifaa Al Mansour’s Wadjda, Iranian director Asghar Farhadi’s The Past, Belgian director Felix van Groeningen’s The Broken Circle Breakdown and Spanish director Pablo Berger’s Blancanieves. In the docs category the next most popular titles were Stories We Tell, This Ain't No Mouse Music, Muscle Shoals and Blackfish. The festival reported a 22% increase in ticket sales and a 20% increase in revenue. Total attendances at films and talks grew by 17% to 143,050. All told there were 278 sessions across the 12 days of the festival, including 192 films from 55 countries in 54 languages, 20 world premieres, four international premieres, 124 Australian premieres, 17 retrospective titles, 82 features, 51 documentaries and 30 short films. For the first time ever the SFF screened films from Angola (Death Metal Angola), Bangladesh (Television), North Korea (Comrade Kim Goes Flying), Malawi (William and the Windmill) and Saudi Arabia (Wadjda). More than 150 Australian and international filmmakers attended. Wed, 19 Jun 2013 14:31:43 +1000 <![CDATA[Music and Effects hires Julianne Deeb]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/19/article/Music-and-Effects-hires-Julianne-Deeb/FEFGGBUBAO.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/19/article/Music-and-Effects-hires-Julianne-Deeb/FEFGGBUBAO.html Inside Film Correspondent In a sign of confidence in the economically challenged post industry, sound post production facility Music and Effects has hired Julianne Deeb as Business Development Manager. “It is no secret that the post production sector has been experiencing difficult times of late but we are confident of the future and are busier than we have been for some time,” said Doron Kipen, founder of Music and Effects. The Melbourne-based studio is handling the compilation mastering of all 17 chapters of producer Robert Connolly’s omnibus film The Turning and sound mixing two chapters. Among other projects are The Boy Castaways, Michael Kantor’s rock musical feature for the ABC featuring You am I’s Tim Rogers, cabaret star Paul Capsis and ARIA Award-winner Megan Washington; Jar Dwellers SOS, a 52-part animated series co-produced by Viskatoons Animation with Canadian partners for ABC3; and Big Name No Blanket, Steven McGregor's feature documentary for Foxtel on the late frontman of the Warumpi Band, George Rrurrambu Burarrawanga, which premiered at the Sydney Film Festival. Deeb has worked as a writer/director specialising in documentaries and a freelance researcher and production manager since graduating from the VCA Documentary course in 2005. Most recently she served in the Industry Programs area at Film Victoria where she managed funding programs including travel for international markets and festivals, internships and Indigenous placements and other industry activities and events. She acknowledges she is on a fast learning curve in immersing herself in audio post, working with Kipen, who is President of the Australian Screen Sound Guild, and Brendan Croxon. “It is a cyclical business but we’re busy and getting busier,” she said. In addition to her part-time role with Music and Effects, she is developing a number of documentary projects. Œ Wed, 19 Jun 2013 12:58:26 +1000 <![CDATA[Henshall, Nable set to star in Fell]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/19/article/Henshall-Nable-set-to-star-in-Fell/NJXDIZMNPN.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/19/article/Henshall-Nable-set-to-star-in-Fell/NJXDIZMNPN.html Don Groves Two Australian actors who are emerging on the international scene have been cast as the leads in Fell, the first feature from director Kasimir Burgess. Matt Nable will play a guy whose daughter is killed in a hit-and-run accident. Daniel Henshall will play Luke, the driver who is sent to jail for five years. When Luke is released, Nable‘s character changes his identity and plots revenge. The screenplay is by Natasha Pincus, based on a story she wrote with Burgess, whose short film Lily won the Crystal Bear at the 2011 Berlin International Film Festival. The producers are John Maynard and Mary Minas, with Bridget Ikin as executive producer. The nine-week shoot starts at the end of July in and around Warburton in country Victoria. Nable has just completed roles in the movie Riddick, the third instalment in The Chronicles of Riddick series which stars Vin Diesel and Karl Urban, and in Julius Avery’s crime thriller Son of a Gun, which features Ewan McGregor, Brenton Thwaites, Jacek Koman and Swedish actress Alicia Vikander (A Royal Affair, Anna Karenina). His credits include producer Robert Connolly’s omnibus film The Turning and Sarah Spillane’s Around the Block, the saga of an Aboriginal boy who’s torn between his passion for acting and the disintegration of his family, starring Christina Ricci, Jack Thompson, Hunter Page-Lochard, Madeleine Madden and Damian Walshe-Howling. Henshall, who made his breakthrough in Snowtown, stars alongside fellow Aussie Meegan Warner in the US network AMC’s drama pilot Turn, written by Nikita creator/executive producer Craig Silverstein and directed by Rise Of The Planet of The Apes’ Rupert Wyatt. Set in 1771, it’s the story of a New York farmer Abe Woodhull, who joins with a group of childhood friends to form a band of spies who turn the tide in America’s fight for independence. Henshall has completed two Australian films, Jennifer Kent's The Babadook, a psychological-thriller starring Essie Davis, and These Final Hours, Zak Hilditch’s Apocalyptic thriller which co-stars Nathan Phillips, Jessica De Gouw and Sarah Snook. He's also in Around the Block. Fell is funded by Screen Australia, Film Victoria and the producer offset. It will be co-distributed by Maynard’s Footprint Films and Transmission Films, and international sales are being handled by the Helsinki and Stockholm-based The Yellow Affair. The DOP is Martin Dean, who went to the Victorian College of the Arts film and TV school with Burgess. Maynard tells IF the production will utilise a crew of just 15 people, the same number as the unit that filmed Balibo in Timor. He contrasts that lean-and-mean shooting style with his production of Romulus, My Father, which employed a crew of 66. Œ Wed, 19 Jun 2013 11:38:25 +1000 <![CDATA[Palace closes deals for 10 titles]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/19/article/Palace-closes-deals-for-10-titles/HBAHYTXQTH.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/19/article/Palace-closes-deals-for-10-titles/HBAHYTXQTH.html Don Groves After a few weeks of negotiations Palace Films has finalised the contracts for 10 films from the Cannes Film Festival and market for release in 2014. That wasn’t a record haul from Cannes for the distributor but general manager Nicolas Whatson rates it as “definitely one of the busiest markets in recent years.“ As for the time it takes to finalise deals, Whatson observes, “Sometimes contracts not only take weeks, they can take months. On occasion Cannes deals are made on a handshake or on a napkin at 3am. Then the fun begins.” The upcoming slate is an eclectic mix of films from the UK, Italy, France and Latin America. Still Life stars Eddie Marsan and Downton Abbey’s Joanne Froggart in the poignant tale of a lonely council worker whose job is to find the next of kin of those who have passed away alone; from The Full Monty producer/director Uberto Pasolini. Italian director Paolo Sorrentino’s The Great Beauty is a pastiche of loosely connected vignettes, set in Rome at all-night parties, high society gatherings and religious congresses. First-time writers/directors Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza’s Salvo is a thriller about a Mafioso henchman who makes a profound connection with a young blind girl while on a mission to execute her brother. Actress-turned-director Valeria Golino’s Honey follows a young woman with a secret double life as an angel of mercy, starring Jasmine Trinca. Also from Italy is Maria Sole Tognazzi’s I Travel Alone, which features Margherita Buy as a respected but feared 5-star hotel critic who travels anonymously to Europe’s most exclusive resorts. From Uruguay comes Álvaro Brechner’s Mr Kaplan, a black comedy about a Jewish octogenarian with a fragile hold on reality who hatches a plan to kidnap an elderly German restaurateur whom he suspects of being a former Nazi and return him to Israel. Palace nabbed four titles from France including Marc Fitoussi’s Folies Bergère, which stars Isabelle Huppert and Jean-Pierre Darroussin as a stuck-in-a-rut farming couple; Katell Quillévéré’s Suzanne, a drama which explores the sensitive bond of two sisters and their single father and stars Sara Forestier and François Damiens; and Ruben Alves’ upstairs/downstairs Parisian comedy The Gilded Cage. You and the Night is a 1980s-influenced, hallucinogenic fable of a group of friends preparing for an orgy, featuring an ensemble cast headed by Alain Fabien Delon, Béatrice Dalle and Eric Cantona, from first-time writer/director Yann Gonzalez. Wed, 19 Jun 2013 08:15:02 +1000 <![CDATA[Film and video production up, post plummets]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/18/article/Film-and-video-production-up-post-plummets/UHPTXUMEHV.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/18/article/Film-and-video-production-up-post-plummets/UHPTXUMEHV.html Don Groves Australian film and video production revenues reached $2.2 billion while the post sector plummeted to $330 million last year. Out of the combined revenues of $2.5 billion, those businesses’ total operating profit before tax was just $178 million. Those are the headline numbers from the first survey of the Australian screen production sector in five years conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The results were released Tuesday at Screen Australia’s Jobs, Dollars, Hearts and Minds conference in Canberra. The production industry’s revenue was up 38% since the last survey in 2006/07 while total employment in that sector expanded by 23% to 13,414. The post industry’s turnover was down by 25% on 2006/07 and employment contracted by 21% to 2,346. Nearly $93 million was generated from visual effects work provided to other businesses and nearly $66 million came from animation services. . While the production volume looks healthy, the ABS report shows news and current affairs programs accounted for 36,500 hours of commercial TV programming last year, nearly half the commercial TV content made in Australia. “Perhaps not coincidentally, news and current affairs programming was also the cheapest programming to produce, with costs averaging about $14,000 per broadcast hour, “ said William Milne, Director of Integrated Collections at the ABS. "That's considerably less than the production costs of drama, which was well over half a million dollars an hour.” Screen Australia’s chief operating officer Fiona Cameron said, “This ABS data provides a crucial gauge of the health of the screen production sector following five years of rapid change and development. In the past five years, we’ve seen the introduction of the Producer and PDV Offsets, the formation of Screen Australia, the introduction of the digital multi-channels and the dawning of a new golden age of TV drama. “The high Australian dollar and a tough global economic climate have also impacted many parts of the industry but the sector as a whole has weathered these changes well.” For the first time, the digital games sector was included in the industry-wide survey and recorded total income of $89.4 million. Developers produced 245 digital games last year, with the majority – 188- made for mobile or web platforms. Giving a snapshot of industry profitability, commercial free-to-air broadcasters generated $4.6 billion in revenue and incurred expenses of $3.6 billion. Subscription broadcasters and channel providers raked in revenues of $4.5 billion but with a hefty expenses bill of $4.1 billion. Tue, 18 Jun 2013 15:27:23 +1000 <![CDATA[SPAA sounds alarm on copyright proposals]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/18/article/SPAA-sounds-alarm-on-copyright-proposals/QHLKIRPNRU.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/18/article/SPAA-sounds-alarm-on-copyright-proposals/QHLKIRPNRU.html Don Groves The Screen Production Association of Australia has warned about a proposed easing of copyright laws and lamented the fall in the volume of TV drama production. SPAA’s executive director Matthew Deaner blasted recommendations by the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) which he said would repeal all existing copyright exceptions and replace them with a vague US concept known as ‘fair use,’ which would be largely determined by litigation. That “thinking is out of touch with commercial reality and shows no understanding of the issues facing our sector,” he told Screen Australia’s Jobs, Dollars, Hearts and Minds conference in Canberra. “These views, if left uncorrected, would undermine many legitimate sources of income.” Deaner said the number of feature films produced today is at best static and there has been a drop in the number of hours of Australian TV drama. In the documentary field, the volume of hours had increased but the number of titles declined due to the rise of documentary series at the expense of one-off projects. He acknowledged that in the past five years the producer offset has strengthened the recoupment position of the production business but said there are limited opportunities for private feature film investment and local distribution. “Coinciding with reduced payments for content are rising expenses - squeezing the budgets and industry in every direction,” he said. He reiterated SPAA’s chief priorities as increasing the producer offsets; producing “international facing content”; protecting commercial terms via the offset mechanism or content standard; stressing the importance of the national broadcasters; and developing new distribution and commissioning opportunities. The association aims to build bridges across the screen sector, starting in Canberra on Wednesday with a forum with leaders of the MEAA. On the same day SPAA is hosting the Tomorrow's Australian Screen Stories annual breakfast moderated by Sky News' David Speers, with a policy Q&A between Arts Minister Tony Burke and Shadow Arts Minister Senator George Brandis. Œ Tue, 18 Jun 2013 14:18:21 +1000 <![CDATA[SBS argues the case for more funding]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/18/article/SBS-argues-the-case-for-more-funding/AXMJMVWZOV.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/18/article/SBS-argues-the-case-for-more-funding/AXMJMVWZOV.html Don Groves SBS managing director Michael Ebeid has called for increased government funding to enable the broadcaster to commission more Australian content. “We will continue to advocate for more funding to deliver the level of Australian content that we believe our audiences should be getting and which we think is needed for the health of the local production sector,” Ebeid said in the text of a speech which was delivered on his behalf by SBS head of TV and online content Tony Iffland at the Jobs, Dollars, Hearts and Minds conference in Canberra. Ebeid indicated SBS would have supported the Convergence Review recommendation that the Federal Government adopt a local content quota of 28%, which would have been a substantial lift from the current level of about 16%, and said SBS would welcome increasing the producer offset for TV drama. The speech highlighted several upcoming SBS shows including Better Man, a drama about the last Australian man hung overseas in Singapore in 2005, which stars Claudia Karvan, David Wenham and Bryan Brown and airs next month.Œ “It gets SBS back into the drama genre for the first time in three years with content that inspires change,” he said. Also flagged were Once Upon a Time in Punchbowl, which will give audiences previously unheard perspectives by those involved and affected by the 2005 Cronulla Riots, due to screen in November, accompanied by an Outreach program in the local community; and Legally Brown, a new series featuring Nazeem Hussain which will explore social and racial divisions through comedy to encourage Australians to better value diversity. The speech continued, “Making local content and telling Australian stories is expensive but it’s essential for the development of our society and capturing our stories for future generations. “The fact is that SBS is lean and agile. We deliver impactful content, despite operating on one fifth of the average budget of all the other broadcasters. But we want to, we need to, and we are capable of doing more. “ Tue, 18 Jun 2013 13:34:31 +1000 <![CDATA[Boreham lauds producer offset and drama investment]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/18/article/Boreham-lauds-producer-offset-and-drama-investment/QHHMIAMBQW.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/18/article/Boreham-lauds-producer-offset-and-drama-investment/QHHMIAMBQW.html Inside Film Correspondent Screen Australia chairman Glen Boreham delivered a state-of-the-industry report today, putting a positive spin on the success of the producer offset and the agency’s investment in drama. Giving the opening address at today’s Jobs, Dollars, Hearts and Minds conference, Boreham said more than $1 billion had been injected into the screen industry by direct and indirect funding over the past five years. However that funding looks less impressive when set against the modest returns from international film sales, according to figures Boreham quoted. Since the producer offset was introduced in July 2007, more than 600 final certificates had been issued, resulting in more than $730 million being paid to production companies and triggering more than $3 billion in production budgets, the vast majority spent in Australia. In addition to the offset, since its foundation Screen Australia has directly invested more than $300 million in funding Australian content. In the past five years he said the box office average for Australian films had increased by 64%, a misleading statistic when set against local films' lowly average of about 4% of the total B.O. Boreham was keen to stress Australian films have performed well on the international festival circuit, with 50 films selected to screen from 2008-2012. But he conceded that exposure had resulted in just $97 million worth of international sales in that period, “despite a challenging international marketplace.”” Boreham boasted about the string of successful Australian TV dramas including Howzat: Kerry Packer’s War and House Husbands and the international acclaim and commercial success for productions such as The Slap, Rake, and Wilfred. He noted Seven’s A Place to Call Home and the ABC’s The Doctor Blake Mysteries achieved audiences of more than 2 million and Foxtel’s Wentworth attracted a cumulative national audience of over 630,000 across the week, ranking as the most watched Australian drama series in the history of Australian subscription TV. He neglected to say all these shows were commissioned by Australian broadcasters and that Screen Australia is merely an investor without any creative input. He did not refer to the search for a new CEO to run Screen Australia but noted the looming federal election and said, “We are in the midst of technological, social and regulatory changes that will shape the future of what we watch, how we watch it, and how we engage with screen content." Œ Tue, 18 Jun 2013 12:45:54 +1000 <![CDATA[ABC boss vows to tackle the drift away from linear TV]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/18/article/ABC-boss-vows-to-tackle-the-drift-away-from-linear-TV/UVNNSRIRNJ.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/18/article/ABC-boss-vows-to-tackle-the-drift-away-from-linear-TV/UVNNSRIRNJ.html Don Groves Just 11 days into his job as the ABC’s Director of Television, Richard Finlayson has affirmed the broadcaster’s commitment to Australian drama and children’s programming. In his first public address Finlayson identified one of his major challenges as appealing to audiences who are increasingly watching content online.Œ “According to LEK consulting, over 50% of viewing in the 18-24 demographic is already on-demand,” he told Screen Australia’s Jobs, Dollars, Hearts and Minds conference in Canberra. “It will be 80% as early as 2017 and older demographics are close behind. We cannot afford to be complacent about the impact of this shift. Add to that the local aspirations of global content makers and distributors, rising costs and declining returns - and there will be plenty to think about. “But thankfully, there actually is a silver bullet solution. If you understand your audiences, and provide them with compelling Australian content, where and when they want it, you have a great future. Public broadcasters can do that - and Australia needs us to do that.” The former SBS executive paid tribute to his predecessor Kim Dalton for commissioning more than 91 hours of quality local drama in 2011/2012. “The ABC’s aim is to continue to increase the volume and diversity of drama on our screens,” he said. Among upcoming productions he mentioned Parer, the story of the legendary WW2 filmmaker Damien Parer who was killed in action, and a miniseries based on the Kate Grenville novel The Secret River. He observed there had been a 230% increase in children’s content over three years helped by increased Government funding and Screen Australia’s investment, citing such shows as Dance Academy, a co-production with Werner Films and ZDF, My Place, Giggle and Hoot, Studio 3, Prank Patrol and Rush TV. “While the ratings are spectacular, kids are heading inexorably away from scheduled TV. The ABC is there for them with iView, new ABC3 and ABC4Kids portals and great experiential and educational apps like the Play School Art Maker,” he said.Œ Tue, 18 Jun 2013 12:05:28 +1000 <![CDATA[The Victorian Government funds local film in partnership with Film Victoria]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/17/article/The-Victorian-Government-funds-local-film-in-partnership-with-Film-Victoria/TXSHHGGOFO.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/17/article/The-Victorian-Government-funds-local-film-in-partnership-with-Film-Victoria/TXSHHGGOFO.html Katie Miller-Crispe Seven local Victorian screen projects have received funding from the Victorian Coalition Government, through Film Victoria, to the amount of over $1.2 million. The funded projects include the documentary movies The Earth Wins and Electric Boogaloo; television documentaries Bodyline and Judith Lucy is All Woman; television movie Jack Irish: Dead Point; and television series Offspring(Season 5) and The Doctor Blake Mysteries (Season 2). Louise Asher, Minister for Innovation, Services and Small Business said that “Since December 2010, the Coalition Government, through Film Victoria, has supported 91 film and television projects which are estimated to generate around $350 million in production expenditure in Victoria.” According to Ms. Asher, the screen projects funded through Film Victoria’s Production Investment Program will create approximately 950 jobs for Victorians. “To ensure our industry remains strong, we have allocated $8.5 million over four years as part of the 2013-14 Victorian Budget to deliver a suite of support to Victorian screen practitioners in the areas of television production, animation and games industry development. “This new funding will provide increased support for local and footloose television productions to shoot in Victoria,” said Ms. Asher. Film Victoria CEO Jenni Tosi added, “Our talented local practitioners have driven the high level of production activity that we’ve experienced in Victoria during 2012-13 and it's great to see this is set to continue in 2013-14, across all the genres. We’re thrilled to end the financial year with investment funding to support these compelling and diverse projects.” Œ Mon, 17 Jun 2013 13:58:44 +1000 <![CDATA[The Internship socks After Earth]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/17/article/The-Internship-socks-After-Earth/GYABXKYTYE.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/17/article/The-Internship-socks-After-Earth/GYABXKYTYE.html Don Groves Faced with a choice between a post-Apocalyptic science-fiction thriller and a broad American comedy last weekend, Australian cinemagoers chose the latter. The Internship, the Googleplex-set caper starring Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn, raked in $2.3 million in its opening frame, beating After Earth, the father-and-son survival saga featuring Will Smith and Jaden Smith, which made $1.8 million. That was a reversal of their US debuts where the M. Night Shyamalan-directed After Earth fetched $27.5 million- a mediocre result for a film that cost $130 million- and The Internship collected $17.3 million. One Australian exhibitor had a hunch the comedy with two popular actors would resonate more strongly than the sci-fi film which he derided as boring. That’s another dud for the director after The Last Airbender. Neither opener could match the second weekend of Fast & Furious 6, which has amassed $20 million so far, or the third frame of The Great Gatsby, which has earned $19 million. Baz Luhrmann’s romantic drama has reached $140 million in the US and $300 million worldwide. In the specialty arena writer-director Jeff Nichols’ Mud, a coming-of-age drama featuring Matthew McConaughey, Michael Shannon, Reese Witherspoon, Tye Sheridan and Jacob Lofland, unearthed a splendid $45,000 at just three cinemas. However there was a muted response to A Lady in Paris, which follows Jeanne Moreau as a retired Estonian expatriate who tries to win back her former younger lover; it took $36,000 on 17 screens. Œ Œ Œ ŒŒWEEKEND BOX OFFICEŒ June 13-16 Œ Œ Œ Title Œ Week/ Screens Œ Box Office Œ % +- Œ Total Œ 1 Fast & Furious 6 2/490 $4,683,316 -58 $20,124,478 2 The Great Gatsby 3/566 2,772,002 -39 19,243,743 3 The Internship 1/263 2,318,571 NA 2,318,571 4 Despicable Me 2 PV/395 2,177,245 NA 2,177,245 5 After Earth 1/258 1,875,029 NA 1,971,102 6 The Hangover Part 111 4/303 836,395 -57 20,241,593 7 Star Trek Into Darkness 6/167 246,758 -60 15,973,254 8 Iron Man 3 8/93 126,588 -70 39,169,421 9 The Place Beyond the Pines 6/56 71,167 -48 2,745,808 10 The Reluctant Fundamentalist 4/26 70,464 -23 527,820 Œ Source: Motion Picture Distributors Association of Australia Mon, 17 Jun 2013 10:46:31 +1000 <![CDATA[Screen Australia report glosses over key issue]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/17/article/Screen-Australia-report-glosses-over-key-issue/DBBNMHDTXW.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/17/article/Screen-Australia-report-glosses-over-key-issue/DBBNMHDTXW.html Don Groves A qualitative research study commissioned by Screen Australia affirms the importance of Australian screen culture but pays scant attention to the issue of why cinemagoers rarely see local films. The Ipsos Australia report, Hearts & Minds, affirms that Australians believe that a strong local film and television industry producing high-quality content is essential to their sense of culture and identity. The study found the heavily promoted Hollywood films have a strong advantage in attracting cinemagoers but said Australians will go to see a local film if it has buzz and strong word-of-mouth. Reflecting their box-office results, Australia, Red Dog and The Sapphires were the most often cited examples. The focus group research indicated Australian films were easy to miss at the cinema because of very short runs, with one respondent quoting recent misfires Save Your Legs! and Blinder. That’s a chicken-and- egg argument because those films wouldn’t have been pulled off screen so quickly if they had sold more tickets. Pointing to a possible failure of marketing, participants said they missed out on seeing some Australian films at the cinema because they didn’t hear about them early enough. Tellingly, the film that was most widely and spontaneously discussed was Rabbit-Proof Fence, Phillip Noyce’s 2002 portrayal of the Stolen Generation, raising the question of why so few local films in the past 11 years had resonated strongly. The most positive responses were for TV dramas including The Slap, Redfern Now, Offspring, Howzat, Paper Giants and Puberty Blues. The ‘real life’ documentaries Go Back to Where You Came From, The First Australians and Australian Story were praised. “We’re experiencing a golden age of Australian drama,” said Screen Australia’s outgoing chief executive Ruth Harley. “Australian audiences are responding to local stories, using them to better understand themselves and each other. Our stories are staying with us long after we’ve turned off the television or left the cinema.” The research shows, however, that there is still a long way to go in reflecting the full diversity of the population. First and second generation migrants felt that mainstream content often did not reflect the multicultural reality of urban life and some had trouble relating to ‘Aussie’ cultural and social norms portrayed in commercial shows. The research was released ahead of the Jobs, Dollars, Hearts & Minds conference being staged by the agency in Canberra on Tuesday. The Hearts & Minds report can be downloaded from www.screenaustralia.gov.au/research/hearts_and_minds.aspx Mon, 17 Jun 2013 08:13:02 +1000 <![CDATA[Buckskin, Perception win Sydney Festival prizes]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/17/article/Buckskin-Perception-win-Sydney-Festival-prizes/WLPKRPQEXW.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/17/article/Buckskin-Perception-win-Sydney-Festival-prizes/WLPKRPQEXW.html Don Groves Buckskin, a documentary which profiles Adelaide language teacher Jack Buckskin’s mission to teach the once-endangered Kaurna language to Indigenous and non-Indigenous students, won the Foxtel Australian Documentary prize. Director Dylan McDonald was awarded the $10,000 prize at the Sydney Film Festival. Buckskin is part of SFF’s Screen: Black program of films from Indigenous filmmakers. The Foxtel jury gave a special mention to Miss Nikki and the Tiger Girls, Juliet Lamont’s film which chronicles the careers of emerging young female pop stars in Myanmar. Highly commended was Big Name No Blanket, Steven McGregor’s tribute to the Warumpi Band, its late front man George Rrurrambu, and his creative relationship with songwriter Neil Murray. The jury comprised director/ producer Ned Lander, documentary filmmaker Sascha Ettinger Epstein and Mariska Dean, Head of Programming – Factual Channels for Foxtel Networks Australia. The $5,000 Dendy Live Action Short Award went to Perception, director Miranda Nation and producer Lyn Norfor’s film which recounts the death of Crystal, a mother, daughter, lover, stripper and survivor. The jury acknowledged two standout performances in the Dendy live-action finalists: Maia Thomas, the lead in Perception and Ed Oxenbold of All God’s Creatures for “a tender and honest performance by a young actor with beautiful comic timing and a wisdom beyond his years.” The Dendy Awards were judged by Jason Ryle, Executive Director at the imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts; Sylvia Wilczynski, producer of The Rocket; and actress/filmmaker Mirrah Foulkes. The $5,000 Rouben Mamoulian Award named after the Hollywood director who first presented the award in 1974 and presented to the best director in the Dendy Awards competition went to David Lyons, director of Record, the story of a father in mourning who struggles to connect with his blind daughter. The $4,000 Yoram Gross Animation Award for best Australian animated short was awarded to Butterflies, a stop-motion horror-fairytale directed by Isabel Peppard and produced by Warwick Burton. The winners of the 2013 Foxtel Movie Channels Audience Awards will be announced Wednesday. Mon, 17 Jun 2013 06:18:58 +1000 <![CDATA[Sydney festival lauds Only God Forgives]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/16/article/Sydney-festival-lauds-Only-God-Forgives/YHJPWXIJSX.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/16/article/Sydney-festival-lauds-Only-God-Forgives/YHJPWXIJSX.html Don Groves It was booed by the critics at the Cannes Film Festival but Danish director Nicolas Winding Refn's Only God Forgives won the top prize at the Sydney Film Festival. Jury president Hugo Weaving conceded the “visually mesmerising and disturbing film” had polarised the jury and said it was a majority decision to award the bleak drama the $60,000 Sydney Film Prize. Icon is due to release the film, which stars Ryan Gosling, Kristin Scott Thomas and Vithaya Pansringarm, on July 18. It's described as a brutal story of betrayal, rage and redemption set in the Thai underworld.Œ Typifying the hostile response in Cannes, IndieWire's Eric Kohn said, “Refn stages each scene with the self-serious bleakness of a Robert Bresson picture, but applies such a cheap, one-note premise that his air quote approach to art house aesthetics reeks of student film indulgence." “I am very honoured and extremely excited to have received this honourable award from a country that in my opinion has one of the great film histories of the world,” said Refn, who won the Sydney Film Prize for his 2009 British prison thriller Bronson. Other films in competition included The Act of Killing, a powerful re-enactment of the Sumatran genocides from documentarian Joshua Oppenheimer; Dutch director Alex van Warmerdam’s comedy Borgman;Œ The Broken Circle Breakdown from Belgian director Felix van Groeningen; Calin Peter Netzer's Romanian drama Child’s Pose; For Those in Peril, the feature debut of Scottish director Paul Wright; Australian director Kim Mordaunt’s Laos-set The Rocket ; Canadian director Sarah Polley’s Stories We Tell;Œ and Wadjda from Saudi Arabia's first female director Haifa Al Mansour. The jury comprised Weaving, filmmakers Anand Gandhi (India) and Pia Marais (Sweden/Germany), film critic and curator Paolo Bertolin (Italy) and Australian producer Kath Shelper. Sun, 16 Jun 2013 15:12:20 +1000 <![CDATA[Oscar hopes for Saving Mr Banks]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/14/article/Oscar-hopes-for-Saving-Mr-Banks/MUBGFIEHGE.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/14/article/Oscar-hopes-for-Saving-Mr-Banks/MUBGFIEHGE.html Don Groves The Walt Disney Co. has opted to open Saving Mr Banks on a limited number of screens in the US on December 18, a week before it goes into wide release. The move is seen as evidence the studio is positioning the film for the awards season; it opens in Australia on Boxing Day. Emma Thompson stars as Mary Poppins’ Australian author P.L Travers, with Tom Hanks as studio head and animation guru Walt Disney. Disney acquired worldwide rights from the Australian producers Hopscotch Features and Essential Media & Entertainment and the UK’s Ruby Films. Directed by John Lee Hancock (The Blind Side) and scripted by Kelly Marcel and Australian writer Sue Smith, the plot chronicles the author’s childhood in rural Queensland and her struggles to bring the novel to the big screen. The cast includes Colin Farrell as Travers' alcoholic father, Kathy Baker, Rachel Griffiths, Ruth Wilson, Jason Schwartzman, Paul Giamatti and Sydney newcomer Annie Buckley as Ginty, the young Travers. No Disney film has ever won a best picture Oscar. “This positioning suggests they are serious not only about making Mr Banks a hit, but a serious awards contender,” said Thompson on Hollywood’s Anne Thompson . “And they're willing to take on the risk of mixed critical reaction.” Released in 1964, Mary Poppins won five Oscars including best actress for Julie Andrews. Fri, 14 Jun 2013 12:40:13 +1000 <![CDATA[Genevieve Bailey on award-winning doco I Am Eleven]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/14/article/Genevieve-Bailey-on-award-winning-doco-I-Am-Eleven/WDYBTKWLNI.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/14/article/Genevieve-Bailey-on-award-winning-doco-I-Am-Eleven/WDYBTKWLNI.html Inside Film Correspondent In 2005, Genevieve Bailey was a journalist working at a Melbourne newspaper, encountering ‘bad’ news stories on a daily basis. Against this backdrop, and in the wake of a series of personal crises, she began to conceive creating a positive story to cheer up audiences, as well as herself. “I had been in a serious car accident and through a lot of physical pain,” she recalls. “Recovering from that, my dad then passed away from cancer, so I wanted to make a change. I wanted to make something positive.” I am Eleven opens with just such positivity. “I thought back to my favourite age of life,” the documentary’s narrator intones, “And why I loved it so much. When the world feels big in a good way and at our feet. “For me, that was when I was eleven.” Having dealt with young people during her time as a fiction writer, Bailey was particularly inspired by them. “I think in society we focus a lot on what children could learn from adults. I thought about capturing something on film that is full of hope, positivity and honesty. When you’re eleven, you’re quite willing to express your opinions, so I thought this project would present a really intimate and honest portrayal of this generation on an international scale for audiences.” Inspired by the idea, Bailey started an international trek, journeying through 15 countries where she specifically looked for eleven-year-old children to interview and film as they went about their daily lives. “The documentaries we used to see, especially important documentaries, were about political issues that are actually quite upsetting,” Bailey asserts. “Even though these are very important and should be made, I wanted to make something with serious issues but also with a lot of joy in it.” With this in mind, Bailey created a list of questions covering topics as far-ranging as love, war, terrorism, family, religion, the environment and the future. The combination of the kids’ private lives, coupled with their public concerns, is what gives the film its deep insight into the human condition. Since the release of I am Eleven, Bailey has been travelling the country to promote the film, taking press interviews wherever possible, but also arriving in places where she had no contacts through which to promote it. “I had to put on another hat and learn a lot about film distribution. I would tell the audiences upfront [in the screening] that we didn’t have a budget like Spiderman to put ads on buses or like Twilight to put up on big billboards, but we really needed positive word of mouth, so if they liked the film, to please tell their friends, their family. To call someone they knew when they were eleven. “I came out with all these ideas to honestly let audiences know that they were able to help us get the word out. And they really did. So I guess the experience taught me a lot in terms of the business side of filmmaking as well as the creative side. I just feel like I’ve learnt so much and I continue to learn so much.” During the numerous press interviews she took, Bailey rarely mentioned she worked three jobs to raise the money needed for the production of this self-funded film. The day before the I am Eleven premiere at the Melbourne International Film Festival, someone asked her if there had been a time when she had thought ‘I’m never going to finish this’ or ‘what’s the point of doing this?’. Bailey’s reply was calm and confident. “I never once thought I wouldn’t finish it. I never once thought there’s no point of doing it. And I never once thought the film wouldn’t meet the audiences expectations because I already believed in it so much from the start, and even more so as the years went by, and I realised what was important was to not let having no funding prevent me from doing it. “There were times that were extremely difficult, but I’m so glad we persisted, jumped hurdles and continued to work really hard to get it in front of the audiences. When it did reach the public, it was responded to so well, and I’m really proud.” “Reading IF magazine and all these media articles ever since I was young about Australian films not doing very well as everyone hopedˆI’m glad that didn’t put me off. Sometimes people say Australians don’t want to support, or don’t go on and support, Australian films. But I think it’s about connecting with the audiences before the film comes out. Making sure they know about it and they care about it.” Although the film has been in the can for some time, the ‘I am Eleven project’ continues. Travelling to places around the globe that the 94-minute film does not cover, Bailey continues to interview more eleven-year-olds. “We are also very excited about inviting eleven-year-olds who want to get involved by sharing their own content. So they might make a video interview with themselves, write a song or poem like Grace does, or draw a picture and send it to us. Our website continues to grow so that eleven-year-olds can share their voices with the world. Also, when people who like I am Eleven come back to the website, they always discover new content. I think it’s very important to always provide audiences with new and engaging content.” For Bailey and co-producer Henrik Nordstrom, the making of I am Eleven is the culmination of passion, hard work and a series of unexpected encounters and coincidences, also leading to some unexpected outcomes. In 2008, she received a phone call from a friend called John Anderson, an eccentric man about whom she had made a short documentary years before. She was invited to a gig in Melbourne where she met the Indian musician Chacko, who runs an orphanage in India. Bailey decided to visit Chacko’s orphanage, interviewing the eleven-year-olds cared for at the orphanage as part of the I am Eleven project. “We didn’t feel comfortable just going over there and not doing anything to help them,” Bailey says, “So I started a voluntary organisation here, collected supplies and then we went to India.” “They were short of lots of things, but they were not short of love,” she fondly recalls. “We felt very inspired to include them in the film but also to share their stories in other ways with audiences around the world because we realised that everything we do over there really made a difference.” When Bailey first started the film, she had no idea how long it would take, nor that she would end up raising enough funds to purchase 3.5 acres of land in Southern India, build new homes and a school, and to supply food, clothing and much more for a group of orphans there. “I think the film has become a lifestyle for me,” Bailey laughs. “It’s not just work. It’s my kind of everything. “I like it how when you are making something you get completely entrenched in it and spend every day in it, thinking about it.” Taking six years to complete, Bailey’s I am ElevenŒwon Best Documentary at the IF Awards in 2011, is now having its national DVD release and is accompanied by the founding of the Darlingheart FoundationŒ<a href="http://www.darlingheart.org/">http://www.darlingheart.org/</a> Article edited by Paul Bugeja Fri, 14 Jun 2013 09:27:08 +1000 <![CDATA[Madman plots The Act of Killing release]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/14/article/Madman-plots-The-Act-of-Killing-release/DKXCQSXYMY.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/14/article/Madman-plots-The-Act-of-Killing-release/DKXCQSXYMY.html Don Groves When Madman Entertainment’s Paul Wiegard bought The Act of Killing at last year’s Toronto International Film Festival he had no idea the film would be one of the most controversial and impactful at the Sydney Film Festival. There were stunned reactions from audiences and critics to the film’s portrayal of the slaughter of alleged Communists, ethnic Chinese and intellectuals by Indonesian death squads in 1965.Œ US director Joshua Oppenheimer, who lives in Copenhagen and dare not set foot again in Indonesia, was on hand to introduce his film and take part in Q&A sessions. “I had nightmares and insomnia filming some recreations,” Oppenheimer said on Twitter. “I made the film to expose, and what needs to happen now is a process of justice - truth and reconciliation.” Now Wiegard is figuring out the optimum launch date and which of the three versions to release. He’ll set the date after the film has played widely on the festival circuit, reasoning that exposure will help spread awareness and encourage cinemagoers to see a film which is challenging and disturbing. “There are certain films where, walking in, it’s better to know little or nothing so you watch with completely fresh eyes as the story unfolds,” he told IF. “In this case it’s critical to have a sense of the politics and the backdrop and what you will be seeing. It’s something you have not seen before on screen.” Wiegard said he will probably release the version that screened at the Sydney fest and a shorter cut for TV screening. “It will take an informed audience to appreciate the film but I think it will have a long run in cinemas,” he said. Typifying the reviews, SBS Films’ Lynden Barber said, “The Act of Killing is one of these exceedingly rare films that changes the way people see the world. Having sat through its riveting 159 minutes with lower jaw almost permanently dropped in disbelief, I can state confidently I’m unlikely to ever forget it.” The Sydney Morning Herald’s Garry Maddox opined, ” It's a film that raises potent questions about the short jump from banal daily life to mass murder, about how history can turn perpetrators of war crimes into heroes and whether good really does triumph over evil.” Wiegard is excited about The Turning, the omnibus film based on Tim Winton’s collection of short stories, which Madman will co-distribute with producer/director Robert Connolly’s CinemaPlus. The all-star cast includes Cate Blanchett, Rose Byrne, Miranda Otto, Richard Roxburgh, Hugo Weaving, Callan Mulvey, Brenna Harding, Dan Wyllie, Susie Porter, Harrison Gilbertson and Robyn Nevin. Among the directors are Blanchett, Tony Ayres, Claire McCarthy, Mia Wasikowska, Connolly, David Wenham and Justin Kurzel. “It’s a big, bold cinematic event,” said Wiegard, who will announce the release date after its world premiere at the Melbourne International Film Festival. Fri, 14 Jun 2013 08:53:31 +1000 <![CDATA[Pharaoh Vs The Egyptians set for Indie Gems fest]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/13/article/Pharaoh-Vs-The-Egyptians-set-for-Indie-Gems-fest/ZBLNUSTWHP.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/13/article/Pharaoh-Vs-The-Egyptians-set-for-Indie-Gems-fest/ZBLNUSTWHP.html Don Groves Egyptian-born, Sydney-based comedian Akmal Saleh was so dismayed at the way Western media portrayed the 2011 revolution in his homeland that he shot a documentary on the subject. Pharaoh Vs The Egyptians will have its Sydney premiere on the opening night of the fourth annual Indie Gems Festival which runs September 12-14 at the Riverside Theatres, Parramatta. “Most of the information that Australians got about the uprising came from CNN, which Akmal felt was either inaccurate or did not reflect what was happening,” festival organiser John L. Simpson told IF.Œ “He was very passionate about it, went to Egypt and made this extraordinary documentary about what the Egyptian people actually did. It’s a story of a tyrant (President Hosni Mubarak) who has gone too far and the people who got sick of being lied to by their government. Ïn light of what’s happening in Turkey at the moment the story becomes even more important.” The film explains how social media helped bring millions of people together, as related by young activists who were instrumental in coordinating the protests. Simpson hopes to arrange a theatrical release for the documentary through his distribution company Titan View once Akmal has cleared the commercial rights to use some of the images sourced from a photo agency. The doco has played in a few festivals including the Byron Bay International Film Festival and the Canberra Comedy Festival. The closing night film is Korean-Australian director Michael Kang’s Gossip Nation, which chronicles the conflicts and dramas of a community of African immigrants and refugees who settled in Sydney’s Blacktown. The protagonist is Kemi, an unemployed Nigerian teenager who learns that gossip and innuendo can wreak havoc and turn her friends and family against each other. Simpson picked up the film after it won the last year’s DigiSPAA competition. He’s arranging community screenings and four-wall deals with some exhibitors. One innovation at this year’s Indie Gems festival is a student short film competition for aspiring filmmakers who live in the western suburbs, created around the theme of “kindness.” Simpson hasn’t yet figured out what the prizes will be. Also on the program will be a DIY cinema marketing forum. Œ Thu, 13 Jun 2013 10:40:20 +1000 <![CDATA[Government to release guidelines for $20 million funding]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/13/article/Government-to-release-guidelines-for-20-million-funding/SGZJSVLJGU.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/13/article/Government-to-release-guidelines-for-20-million-funding/SGZJSVLJGU.html Don Groves Offshore producers who were hoping to take advantage of the Australian Government’s special grant of $20 million will have to be patient. The then Arts Minister Simon Crean announced the incentive to attract productions to shoot Down Under when he unveiled the National Cultural Policy in March. Crean said the new funding was separate from the $21.6 million payment to Disney’s 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea: Captain Nemo Down Under, whose start date has been postponed until 2014 pending the finalisation of casting. The Office for the Arts (OFTA), the Government’s arts and culture policy and funding body, this week revealed it is working on the guidelines for the $20 million grant and they would be issued on or by July 1 after being approved by Arts Minister Tony Burke. The Arts Department will assess applications using the location offset guidelines and the thresholds on qualifying Australian production spend, with each application determined by the Minister. Officials advised that when the Government goes into caretaker mode the department can still assess the applications and then seek Ministerial approval- but a decision won’t be made until after the September election. Shadow Arts Minister Senator George Brandis has not responded in detail to the National Cultural Policy so an incoming Coalition Government may not endorse all its measures. Thu, 13 Jun 2013 10:15:05 +1000 <![CDATA[Politics may not affect agency's CEO appointment]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/12/article/Politics-may-not-affect-agencys-CEO-appointment/LFFSGUEZDL.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/12/article/Politics-may-not-affect-agencys-CEO-appointment/LFFSGUEZDL.html Don Groves An incoming Coalition Government may have to live with whoever the Screen Australia board and current Government anoint as the agency’s new chief executive. That’s despite the Shadow Arts Minister George Brandis flagging that, if elected, the Coalition reserves the right to review such appointments. The Screen Australia Act empowers the board to appoint the CEO after consulting with the Arts Minister, legal experts have told IF. Once that person is appointed, there is no provision in the Act for the Government of the day to terminate the CEO. The incumbent Ruth Harley, whose five year term expires in November, informed staff yesterday she has withdrawn her application for the job after the board told her it believes that the organisation should have a new CEO. The chairman Glen Boreham told staff, “The process for appointing the next Screen Australia CEO is progressing to schedule. I expect to be able to make an announcement within the next few months.” IF understands the board is considering applicants with international experience. In April Senator Brandis told SBS Film the agency and the Labor Government should postpone a decision on the CEO until after the election. He said, “The Opposition is of the view that, except in exceptional circumstances, no appointments or reappointments should be made to senior Government positions where such appointments would commence after the election. Such appointments are a matter for the new Government – whether it is a re-elected Gillard Government or an Abbott Government. The Opposition reserves its right to reconsider all such appointments if it were to win the election. “ IF asked the Senator’s office if that is still his position or whether he now accepts that in Government he would not have the power to intervene. His spokesman said there is “nothing further to add.” Wed, 12 Jun 2013 11:27:24 +1000 <![CDATA[Slow start for Oz thriller in US]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/11/article/Slow-start-for-Oz-thriller-in-US/VTTWSKBLFG.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/11/article/Slow-start-for-Oz-thriller-in-US/VTTWSKBLFG.html Don Groves Wish You Were Here received mostly glowing reviews from US critics and copious publicity last week, centred primarily on lead actor Joel Edgerton whose profile has rocketed after The Great Gatsby and Zero Dark Thirty. Despite all that, the psychological thriller had a disappointing opening weekend, taking $US25,700 at 11 cinemas in 10 cities including the Nuart Theatre in Los Angeles and the Village East in Manhattan. Directed and co-written by Kieran Darcy-Smith, the film premiered at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival where eOne snapped up North American rights. The distributor pushed back the release hoping to capitalise on Edgerton’s growing popularity.Œ Typifying the mostly laudatory reviews, the Los Angeles Times’ Gary Goldstein declared, “While the film has its moments of action, it's primarily a deeply wrenching, emotionally authentic adult drama about bad choices — some unplanned, some more calculated — and their inevitable repercussions.” In a similar vein, Blue-ray.com’s Brian Orndorf said, “It’s a vacation-gone-wrong story, but one that’s not interested in generating fear, just unbearable tension as a simple journey into a foreign land proves disastrous, yet the participants refuse to divulge the details of their unravelling. Tightly constructed and honest with character relationships, Wish You Were Here is a riveting study of guilt and moral corruption, wisely using disorientation to sustain interest in the bleak proceedings.” The Wall Street Journal’s Joe Morgenstern said, “I never would have guessed that Wish You Were Here was a feature debut for its Australian director, Kieran Darcy-Smith. Elegantly crafted and filled with flawless performances, this mysteriously charged drama comes alive in its very first frames—a man and woman soaking up the beauty of a beach in Cambodia—then holds you in the grip of its intricate structure.” While Morgenstern said he found Edgerton was “dismayingly wasted” as Tom Buchanan in Baz Luhrmann's The Great Gatsby, “this time he's got a role that does full justice to his extraordinary talents.” Less complimentary was The New York Times’ Stephen Holden who opined, “The time you spend trying to piece together a mystery that is presented as a teasing puzzle inevitably diverts you from deeper identification with characters who are not particularly sympathetic to begin with. But this hard-boiled feature directorial debut of Kieran Darcy-Smith at least looks terrific and shows an observant eye for flash and trash. “ So what factors might explain the slow start, apart from the ever-present challenge of selling Australian indie films to US audiences?Œ One film industry executive in Los Angeles pointed to lack of marketing, telling IF he could not find any ads for the film in the print editions of the Los Angeles Times and The New York Times. He asked, “How are you supposed to figure out how to see it?” Another LA-based executive suggested the primary purpose of the cinema exposure was to set up for the film for DVD sales and Video-on-Demand platforms, observing, “It's a sign of the times for indie films like this one. You need a name director and a bigger cast for anyone to really care enough to step out and support theatrically.” Also, it’s a crowded marketplace for specialty releases in the US. Joss Whedon‘s Much Ado About Nothing launched last weekend, snaring a terrific $172,000 at just five cinemas. The black-and-white contemporary take on Shakespeare's classic opens in Australia on July 11. Rick Rowley's documentary Dirty Wars, which follows investigative reporter Jeremy Scahill as he chases down the truth behind America's covert wars, nabbed $66,000 at four theatres in New York, L.A. and Washington, D.C. Hannah Arendt, Margarethe von Trotta’s biopic of the influential German-Jewish philosopher and political theorist, The East, an espionage thriller starring Brit Marling as a former FBI agent, and The Kings Of Summer, a US indie coming-of-age dramedy, all had solid second weekends. In the US this year The Great Gatsby has raked in more than $136 million, The Sapphires has earned nearly $2.3 million and Lore about $950,000.Œ Tue, 11 Jun 2013 16:21:41 +1000 <![CDATA[Ruth Harley withdraws from CEO race]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/11/article/Ruth-Harley-withdraws-from-CEO-race/ZBVAEHRGEO.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/11/article/Ruth-Harley-withdraws-from-CEO-race/ZBVAEHRGEO.html Don Groves Screen Australia’s chief executive Ruth Harley today informed staff she is no longer a candidate for the CEO’s position. In an email to staff Dr Harley said, “The Board believes that the organisation should have a CEO who is new to the agency to lead the next phase." Her five-year term expires in November. When the board decided to advertise the CEO’s job, Dr Harley told staff she would reapply. Applications for the position closed on April 26. Braithwaite Steiner Pretty Executive Search has begun a round of interviews with applicants.Œ IF understands the board appointed a sub-committee of three directors to oversee the process. The board may make a decision as early as July, which, as required by the Screen Australia Act, is made in consultation with the Arts Minister Tony Burke. The board began the process in April on the assumption that the successful candidate may need to give his or her current employer 2-3 months’ notice. Tue, 11 Jun 2013 12:13:45 +1000 <![CDATA[A fast and furious B.O. opening weekend]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/11/article/A-fast-and-furious-B-O--opening-weekend/XLIXMHIAAF.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/11/article/A-fast-and-furious-B-O--opening-weekend/XLIXMHIAAF.html Don Groves The law of diminishing returns which often determines the box-office trajectory of sequels doesn’t apply to the Fast & Furious franchise. The sixth edition of the guns, cars, girls and action caper raked in $13.6 million from Thursday through Monday, a record for the franchise. That was 41 per cent bigger than the five-day opening of the fifth edition, which had the benefit of the Easter vacation.Œ Universal reports that tracking showed the strongest response to Fast & Furious 6 came from women aged under 25, so it’s not just a male-driven phenomenon.Œ The Great Gatsby was resilient in its second weekend, scoring $5.7 million for the five days, which elevates its cumulative total to $15.2 million. Fuelled by favourable word-of-mouth, Baz Luhrmann’s romantic drama looks likely to reach at least $25 million.Œ Bollywood action comedy Yamla Pagla Deewana 2, the sequel to a 2011 hit, opened fairly well. However it was not a memorable weekend for other specialty releases. Benoit Jacquot’s Farewell, My Queen, a drama set during the final days of Marie Antoinette’s reign, starring Diane Kruger and Lea Seydoux, did not resonate strongly despite generally enthusiastic reviews. Also unimpressive were the debuts of Still Mine, a Canadian drama that follows a couple played by Genevieve Bujold and James Cromwell as they wrestle with her dementia; and Ping Pong, a documentary that examines eight folk, including one 100-year-old Aussie woman, as they compete in the over-80s world table tennis championships in Mongolia.Œ Œ Œ Œ Œ ŒŒWEEKEND BOX OFFICEŒ June 6-9 Œ Œ Œ Title Œ Week/ Screens Œ Box Office Œ % +- Œ Total Œ 1 Fast & Furious 6 1/513 $11,088,061 NA $11,289,659 2 The Great Gatsby 2/584 4,565,338 -33 14,110,041 3 The Hangover Part 111 3/432 1,952,793 -55 18,589,539 4 Star Trek Into Darkness 5/290 606,420 -48 15,390,868 5 Iron Man 3 7/168 425,722 -50 38,805,073 6 The Place Beyond the Pines 5/73 136,428 -30 2,596,329 7 Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani 2/15 119,797 -55 501,611 8 National Theatre: This House 1/31 95,338 NA 95,338 9 The Reluctant Fundamentalist 3/25 91,393 -8 406,574 10 Happiness Never Comes Alone 2/20 84,814 +26 237,443 Œ Source: Motion Picture Distributors Association of Australia Tue, 11 Jun 2013 11:18:01 +1000 <![CDATA[Angry actor returns fire at critic]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/11/article/Angry-actor-returns-fire-at-critic/RYEVFGDXEE.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/11/article/Angry-actor-returns-fire-at-critic/RYEVFGDXEE.html Don Groves Actors who get lousy reviews usually ignore them or suffer in silence- but not Kevin Harrington. The veteran actor was so incensed by a review by News Ltd.’s Leigh Paatsch of the DVD of Cliffy, he vented on Facebook. The ABC telemovie features Harrington as Cliff Young, who became an unlikely hero at the age of 61 when he won the 875km endurance race from Sydney to Melbourne.Œ In Saturday’s Daily Telegraph and Herald-Sun Paatsch dismissed it as a “dreadful telemovie that turns the ripping true story of the late ultra-marathon legend Cliff Young into a crap-tastic cartoon. How the ABC ever ponied up a commitment to this dim-witted affair beggars belief.” Paatsch advised readers who want the “real tale- much of which was ignored or changed by this TV calamity,” to read Julietta Jameson’s book Cliffy: The Cliff Young Story. His verdict: “1 star, run the other way.” Harrington, whose credits include the movies Red Hill, Australian Rules, The Honourable Wally Norman and The Dish and TV series Underbelly, Winners & Losers, SeaChange, Blue Heelers and Neighbours, wasn’t going to let that pass, blasting Paatsch on his Facebook page.Œ The actor queried the critic’s tastes, contrasting the sole star for Cliffy with the 3.5 stars he awarded Fast & Furious 6. He told IF, “A critic is useful if he or she has some academic or practical knowledge of that which they are criticising. The public become enlightened as to the artistic merit of the piece because the critic has the qualifications to steer them towards superior quality work. [The Australian’s] Graeme Blundell is one of these critics. Alternatively a critic may represent Everyman tastes and can therefore steer his constituency towards the popular. [Paatsch] has proven himself hopelessly inadequate according to both criteria.” Harrington’s Facebook friends were quick to offer their support, with some making uncomplimentary remarks about Paatsch. Judging by some of the comments, film critics are about as popular as politicians. Tue, 11 Jun 2013 09:15:19 +1000 <![CDATA[100 Bloody Acres set for US debut]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/11/article/100-Bloody-Acres-set-for-US-debut/XFBLAYZDEG.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/11/article/100-Bloody-Acres-set-for-US-debut/XFBLAYZDEG.html Don Groves American audiences will get the chance to see Colin and Cameron Cairnes’ horror comedy 100 Bloody Acres before it opens in Australia. The twisted tale of an organic fertiliser business whose sales rocket when its owners stumble across a secret ingredient that’s processed through a meat grinder, it will debut in the US on June 28. Music Box Films’ genre label Doppelgänger Releasing will launch the film, which stars Damon Herriman and Angus Sampson as brothers who run the fertiliser enterprise, in 15 cinemas across the US and on Video-on-Demand platforms. As they run short of raw material, Reg (Herriman) stumbles upon three travellers who are stranded on a remote country road. He cooks up a radical solution to their problem, aiming to gain the respect of his bossy big brother (Sampson). Produced by Cyan Films’ Julie Ryan and Kate Croser, the film premiered at the Melbourne International Film Festival last year. It opens in Australian cinemas on August 1 via eOne Hopscotch. The Works Distribution will release the title in the UK in October and it’s just been acquired by MK3 in Germany. Ryan and Croser first met the Cairnes brothers at the Australian Film Commission’s IndiVision Project Lab in 2008. “I just loved the script,” Ryan said. “The brothers kept developing it, it won first place in the horror section of the Slamdance screenwriting competition, and I kind of stalked them until we agreed to work together.” The finance came from Screen Australia, South Australian Film Corporation, Film Victoria and the MIFF Premiere Fund. The cast includes Anna McGahan (who received the Heath Ledger Scholarship from the Australians in Film organisation in Los Angeles last year), Oliver Ackland, Jamie Kristian, John Jarratt and Chrissie Page. Australian and US critics have lavished praise on the film. “A gory and funny riff on the trusty standby of city kids being menaced by rural types, 100 Bloody Acres reps a promising feature debut for Aussie brothers Colin and Cameron Cairnes,” opined Variety’s Richard Kuipers. “Pumping fresh juice into the formula by way of villains driven by economic imperatives rather than bloodlust, and victims more concerned with workshopping relationship issues than escaping certain death, the pic is primed to please gorehounds and has sufficient smarts to attract more upscale viewers.” “I had a blastˆ it is a laugh riot and completely bizarre, and a welcome entry into the Australian film scene,” said Twitch Film’s Kwenton Bellette.Œ “Writer/director brothers Colin and Cameron Cairnes have created a well-scripted, frequently gory yet fun, dark comedy-horror film on what seems to be a smallish budget, and that’s no small feat,” said Film Threat’s Don R. Lewis. Ryan and the Cairnes brothers are developing They Shoot Hostages Don’t They?, a comedy about a small-time crook who pretends to make a movie while concocting a ransom plea for a hostage that isn’t even alive. Screen Australia has funded the script development and Ryan says the project will be ready for financing in July.Œ Tue, 11 Jun 2013 09:04:56 +1000 <![CDATA[Post house DDP Studios launches]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/07/article/Post-house-DDP-Studios-launches/QTQKFBTJAU.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/07/article/Post-house-DDP-Studios-launches/QTQKFBTJAU.html Don Groves June 7 marks the launch of DDP Studios, Deluxe Australia’s new integrated film and TV post production facility. The new enterprise combines the post businesses of Deluxe/Cinevex, CornerPost, Digital Pictures and EFILM, headed in Melbourne by Ian Anderson and in Sydney by Marcus Bolton. That follows Deluxe’s acquisition last August of Omnilab's Media’s creative and media services businesses. Operating at sites in South Melbourne, Crows Nest and Lane Cove, DDP Studios provides feature film, documentary, TV drama and light entertainment services, from on-set to delivery master, all under one umbrella. The common philosophy, executives say, is a commitment to helping storytellers tell their stories better. “We’re really embracing our new brand and ethos with the resources to be mobile, able to go wherever our clients need us,” said Sydney general manager Bolton, who was head of post-production and visual effects supervisor at Digital Pictures. “We’re bringing all these businesses together and combining all the new technologies,” said his southern counterpart Anderson, who was general manager Deluxe Melbourne.Œ The executives said it took some time after the Onmilab acquisition for the respective teams to get to know each other and their ways of working. They point to such synergies as combining the CornerPost team’s expertise in working on TV reality shows such as The Block and RBT, with the film and drama-versed teams at Lane Cove. “Screen production equipment is ever changing and offers infinite possibilities,” said Bolton. “We live and breathe this techie stuff every day and it can be so easy for clients to get overloaded with choosing file types, camera formats and digital workflows. We believe technology should never get in the way of a good story.” “‘We’re about people first, technology second,” Anderson said. “Our digital architects take the time to get to the technical heart of a project and design the best end-to-end digital roadmap allowing our clients to direct all their energy towards storytelling.”’ It’s been a busy start to the year for the businesses now housed under the DDP Studios banner. Among the films being serviced are The Mule, These Final Hours, The Turning, Patrick, Galore, Felony, I, Frankenstein, The Rover, Tracks, Son of a Gun and Deepsea Challenge 3D. The TV clients include Essential Media & Entertainment’s Jack Irish – Dead Point and The Broken Shore, Every Cloud Productions’ Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries Series 2 and The Gods of Wheat Street, FremantleMedia’s Wentworth and Wonderland, Matchbox Pictures’ Devil’s Playground, Playmaker Media’s House Husbands Series 2, Screentime’s Janet King and Underbelly: Squizzy , Seven Network’s A Place to Call Home and Winners & Losers Series 3 and Werner Film Productions’ Dance Academy Series 3.. However the executives lament the absence of big budget Hollywood films shooting in Australia and endorse the campaign by Ausfilm and other industry groups to raise the location offset from 16.5 per cent to 30 per cent. Fri, 07 Jun 2013 10:51:35 +1000 <![CDATA[US, Australian deals for Aussie WW1 drama]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/07/article/US-Australian-deals-for-Aussie-WW1-drama/WHHFGZRFIC.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/07/article/US-Australian-deals-for-Aussie-WW1-drama/WHHFGZRFIC.html Don Groves Grindstone Entertainment has acquired North American rights to Forbidden Ground, an Australian WW1 movie co-directed by Johan Earl and Adrian Powers. Shot in Sydney and Dubbo, NSW, the self-funded movie focuses on three British soldiers who find themselves stranded in No Man's Land in 1916 France after a failed charge. The leads are played by Earl, who wrote the screenplay, Tim Pocock and Martin Copping. The supporting cast includes Denai Gracie (who also produces with Earl), Sarah Mawbey and Barry Quin. Michael Favelle’s Odin’s Eye Entertainment, who negotiated the deal with Grindstone, will distribute the film in Australia. Grindstone has an output deal with Lionsgate Home Entertainment, which will release the action/drama on all media platforms in the US but it won’t get a cinema airing. In Australia Favelle plans to launch Forbidden Ground in three or four capital cities and in regional areas later this year but he hasn’t firmed a date yet. Pinnacle will handle the DVD and digital rights via its output deal with Odin’s Eye. This is Earl’s second writing and directing effort following the 1999 action-drama Theory of the Trojans (co-directed with Melanie Cavin and Michael Massen). He also wrote and starred in the 2010 thriller Perfect Life, directed by Jith Sen. Powers makes his debut as a feature director. His short film, Scruples, which featured Johan, was selected from among 15,000 entries as a finalist for Your Film Festival, a collaboration between YouTube and Ridley Scott; it screened at the 2012 Venice International Film Festival. Odin’s Eye pre-sold the film on the basis of a three-minute promotional video to Momentum/eOne in the UK, China Star Alliance, and Dutch FilmWorks for the Benelux territories. At the Cannes Film Market Favelle closed deals for German-speaking Europe (Pandastorm); Scandinavia (Atlantic), Japan (Epcott), and Encore (airlines). The low-budget film was financed partly using the profits from Earl’s pyrotechnics and explosives business Armzfx, which provided 300 kg of explosives so most of the explosions depicted are real, not created by CGI. The battle scenes were shot on a farm in Dubbo and old buildings in Sydney substituted for wartime London. Currently Odin's Eye is distributing Du Jiayi’s Chinese/Taiwanese adventure drama One Mile Above in a limited number of Australian cinemas. The film opens today in the US in partnership with Milt Barlow's Asian Releasing.Œ Fri, 07 Jun 2013 10:43:40 +1000 <![CDATA[Mystery Road bound for the US]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/07/article/Mystery-Road-bound-for-the-US/ZXMYCENZEM.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/07/article/Mystery-Road-bound-for-the-US/ZXMYCENZEM.html Don Groves The good news keeps coming for Ivan Sen’s Mystery Road. The crime thriller received mostly positive reviews after opening the Sydney Film Festival and now the producers have announced a US deal. Boutique distributor Well Go USA plans an early 2014 release. Typically Well Go distributes films to a limited number of cinemas simultaneously with DVD and Video-on-Demand platforms.Œ The deal was negotiated by Arclight Films’ Gary Hamilton, who’s also an executive producer on the film, at the Cannes Film Market. He described it as ‘significant,’ which could imply Well Go is putting up a minimum guarantee of five-to-six figures.Œ “We are delighted to hear of Mystery Road being picked up for a US release”, said producer David Jowsey. “Ivan Sen’s murder mystery feature has a great cast and its genre roots should deliver to audiences around the world.”Œ The film opens in Australia on August 15. Aaron Pedersen stars as Aboriginal detective Jay Swan, who returns to his small rural town after a stint in the city and is called on to investigate the murder of a teenage Aboriginal girl. The ensemble cast includes Hugo Weaving, Jack Thompson, Ryan Kwanten, Tony Barry, Tasma Walton, Damian Walshe-Howling, David Field, Robert Mammone and newcomer Trisha Whitton. The Sydney Morning Herald’s Garry Maddox observed, “With a cast of entertaining outback characters, plenty of dry humour and stunning landscapes, the slow-burning murder-mystery has had a warm reception at its world premiere, opening the Sydney Film Festival.” Screen Daily’s Frank Hatherley said, “Sen’s dark tale of drugs and murders is wonderfully captured by his own camerawork. He’s also editor and composer. It’s a considerable achievement, not least for the quality acting he has harnessed, though the pace is often too measured for modern multiplex tastes.” The Guardian’s Larissa Behrendt opined, “As the town's secrets are unravelled, a sometimes awkward plot is eclipsed by Sen's cinematic craft, stellar performances and insights about the intricacies of race relations in rural Australia.” Last year Well Go acquired US rights to Peter Templeman’s romantic comedy Not Suitable for Children, also handled by Arclight Films. Fri, 07 Jun 2013 10:40:25 +1000 <![CDATA[Cinemas think outside the box]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/06/article/Cinemas-think-outside-the-box/YDLZKPVHMA.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/06/article/Cinemas-think-outside-the-box/YDLZKPVHMA.html Don Groves Last Saturday night Doctor Who fans packed 30 cinemas nationally to watch two episodes of their favourite TV series, Asylum of the Daleks and The Angels Take Manhattan. In the next few months cinemagoers will have the chance to watch an array of non-film programming including a West End play starring Helen Mirren, a Bruce Springsteen documentary, an André Rieu concert and a British Museum exhibition on Pompeii. Cinemas are devoting increasing screen time to operas, pop concerts, theatre, sports and other events, known in the trade as alternate content. Such fare often attracts people who rarely patronise cinemas and fills sessions which would otherwise be thinly attended. Box-office takings for event programming are up 100 per cent year-on-year at Event Cinemas and Birch, Carroll & Coyle, according to Ian Sutherland, general manager, alternate content, at parent company Amalgamated Holdings Ltd. In 2012 nearly 60 events screened at those circuits and Sutherland expects to nearly double that number this year. He said it’s a small but rapidly growing segment of the exhibition business, capitalising on the proliferation of digital screens. Sharmill Films founder Natalie Miller, who co-owns Melbourne’s classy Cinema Nova, pioneered non-theatrical fare five years ago with the Metropolitan Opera, followed by London’s National Theatre Live and the State Academic Bolshoi Theatre of Russia. “There is big growth in the market,” Natalie told IF. “The Met Opera and National Theatre Live are growing each year although the Bolshoi Ballets are a bit soft. Overall it’s a healthy business and it’s a boon to cinemas, often getting good crowds to daytime sessions which would otherwise attract few people.” Her slate includes The Audience, the West End play that stars Helen Mirren as Queen Elizabeth II, directed by Stephen Daldry (Billy Elliot, The Hours), which opens July 6. The play imagines conversations between the monarch and a procession of Prime Ministers, from Sir Winston Churchill to David Cameron; Miller says there are “huge pre-sales.” Also opening in July is the exhibition Munch 150, which celebrates the 150th anniversary of the birth of Norwegian artist Edvard Munch. Premiering in August are Pompeii Live from the British Museum, which looks at the homes and lives of the residents of Pompeii and Herculaneum nearly 2,000 years ago; and Reaching for the Stars, which features English/Irish pop phenomenon One Direction. The doco Springsteen & I, which examines the relationship Springsteen's fans have with their hero and his music, opens in August. Sutherland is in discussions with Australian concert promoters to screen gigs, either live or on delay, and sees this as another potential opportunity to not only fill cinemas but reach audiences who may not get the chance to see their favourite acts in person. Œ Thu, 06 Jun 2013 10:52:50 +1000 <![CDATA[PicSeeder extends deadline for entries]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/06/article/PicSeeder-extends-deadline-for-entries/GKBIZYASYA.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/06/article/PicSeeder-extends-deadline-for-entries/GKBIZYASYA.html Don Groves The Australian organisers of picSeeder, the inaugural global, online pitching competition designed to enable aspiring filmmakers to fund short films, have extended the deadline for entries to June 30. The brainchild of filmmaker Bill Bennett and his wife, producer Jennifer Cluff, the competition invites contestants to submit a one-minute pitch video. Members of the site (<a href="http://www.picseeder.com" target="_blank">www.picseeder.com</a>), which is free, get to vote on their favourite pitch. Those who submit the 12 most popular pitches will be asked to provide a three-minute video. The winner will be determined by an international jury comprising US sales agent Robbie Little, French financier/producer Jean-Charles Levy, Stephen Gates, New York-based head of the literary department at talent management company Evolution Entertainment, actress Michelle Ang and Indian producer Udayan Baijal. The cash prize, funded from the $28 entry fee, is up to $50,000. Bennett told IF the take-up was slower than he expected and he hopes extending the deadline will give potential contestants more time to film and send in their pitches. He said the judging phase will take about two weeks and he expects to announce the winner at the end of July. “The concept is really good but we were hamstrung by technical problems and a lack of marketing funds,” he said. “If we do it again, we would seek sponsors.” He said the one-minute pitch could be as simple as the aspiring filmmaker talking into his/her smartphone, webcam or laptop, or a trailer, sizzle reel or storyboards. The longer pitches give the contestant the chance to expand on his or her vision for the film and how it would be executed. Recognising the global nature of the competition, videos can be in any language but those in foreign languages must carry English sub-titles. The veteran filmmaker, whose credits include Backlash, Spider & Rose, Kiss or Kill and The Nugget, is developing Defiant, a thriller about two young Indian lovers wanting to marry against the wishes of their parents who, as a result, arrange to have them killed. Bennett is producing with Sydney-based Anupam Sharma, Los Angeles-based Andrea Keir and Michelle Manning, a former president of production at Paramount Pictures. Thu, 06 Jun 2013 10:34:18 +1000 <![CDATA[Umbrella snags three titles]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/06/article/Umbrella-snags-three-titles/ASNBCCQCMK.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/06/article/Umbrella-snags-three-titles/ASNBCCQCMK.html Don Groves Michael Caine, Dexter’s Michael C. Hall, Stanley Tucci and Alice Eve star in three films acquired by Umbrella Entertainment at the Cannes Film Market. Mr Morgan’s Last Love features Caine as a recently widowed US expat living in Paris who finds solace with a young woman played by rising French star Clémence Poésy. Sandra Nettelbeck directs and the screenplay is adapted from a French novel, La Douceur Assassine, by Francoise Dorner. Other cast members include Justin Kirk, Jane Alexander and Gillian Anderson. Hall has signed to play Richard Dane, who shoots and kills an intruder in the thriller Cold in July, adapted from the cult novel by Joe R. Lansdale. Mayhem ensues when the dead man’s father, an ex-con, sets out to avenge his son’s death. It’s director Jim Mickle’s follow-up to horror film We Are What We Are, which eOne Hopscotch acquired. Tucci and Eve star in writer-director Neil LaBute’s two-hander Some Velvet Morning. The drama, which premiered at the 2013 Tribeca Film Festival, follows a cat-and-mouse game between Tucci’s manic, ego-crushed character and Eve’s dazzling ingénue. Œ Thu, 06 Jun 2013 10:02:26 +1000 <![CDATA[ICS talent find new homes]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/05/article/ICS-talent-find-new-homes/ENPLBHPTKL.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/05/article/ICS-talent-find-new-homes/ENPLBHPTKL.html Don Groves As talent agency International Casting Services (ICS) prepares to shut its doors after 52 years, many of the actors it has represented have found new homes, Former ICS clients Martin Sacks, Kris McQuade, Helen Dallimore, Erica Lovell, Jo Turner, Nick Simpson-Deeks, Edmund Lembke-Hogan, Kip Gamblin and Nathan O’Keefe have all crossed to Lisa Mann Creative Management (LMCM). Rachel Blake and Tony Martin have joined RGM, John Waters signed with Marquee and Debra Lawrance has gone to Creative Representation. As IF reported previously, Abe Forsythe signed with United Management and John Batchelor moved to RGM. Some other ICS clients have told industry colleagues they have yet to decide what to do. Melina McKenna, who was a senior agent at ICS, joined LMCM on June 4. There are differing accounts of the circumstances leading to the decision to close ICS. Lisa Mann told IF on May 24, “When Melina was offered senior agent position here at LMCM we had no way of knowing that ICS’s doors were about to close, so the shock was as great to us as it was to her, the industry at large and to all of those wonderful actors and creative clients.” In response, Pauline Lee, who was a partner and senior agent at ICS, posted a comment on IF’s website stating, “These are the facts. I retired 2 months ago. I gave the agency to Melina McKenna to run, an offer to which she enthusiastically agreed. 2 months into my retirement Melina McKenna gave me 2 weeks’ notice without any conversation and moved over to Lisa Mann. Melina had been with ICS for 24 years.” Wed, 05 Jun 2013 08:57:24 +1000 <![CDATA[Devils Playground tackles controversial topic]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/06/article/Devils-Playground-tackles-controversial-topic/RQRNIISUGV.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/06/article/Devils-Playground-tackles-controversial-topic/RQRNIISUGV.html Don Groves Devil’s Playground, the Foxtel miniseries that deals with the cover-up of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church in the 1980s, “won’t pull any punches,” according to producer Helen Bowden. Now shooting in Sydney, the six-part series stars Simon Burke as Tom Allen, a psychiatrist who is hired as a confessor to the clergy and gets embroiled in political and theological intrigue. Burke played Allen as a 13-year-old schoolboy in Fred Schepisi’s 1976 drama The Devil’s Playground. The stellar cast includes Don Hany and John Noble as Bishops, Jack Thompson as the Archbishop, Toni Collette as a State Labor MP who campaigns for social justice, Andrew McFarlane as a priest and Max Cullen as a retired priest. The screenplay by Blake Ayshford, Cate Shortland, Alice Addison and Tommy Murphy is “complete fiction but drawn from events that happened,” Bowden told IF. Funded by Screen Australia and Screen NSW and produced by Matchbox Pictures, the series is being directed by Rachel Ward (The Straits, Beautiful Kate) and Tony Krawitz (Dead Europe). The producers are Bowden, Penny Chapman and Ayshford. Burke, who also serves as an executive producer, said, “It’s a total dream to have the opportunity to revisit a character from such an iconic film and kind of go back to where I started. It’s a full circle story.” The producers sent Schepisi the scripts and he gave his blessing, Bowden said. The series will air on showcase. International rights are being handled by NBC Universal, which owns a majority stake in Matchbox. Sat, 06 Apr 2013 00:00:00 +1100 <![CDATA[The Great Gatsby is a record breaker]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/04/article/The-Great-Gatsby-is-a-record-breaker/HMDRAVBMTJ.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/04/article/The-Great-Gatsby-is-a-record-breaker/HMDRAVBMTJ.html Don Groves Pundits who predicted The Great Gatsby would rake in at least $6 million in its first four days in Australian cinemas were right on the money.Œ Baz Luhrmann’s reinterpretation of the classic F. Scott Fitzgerald novel earned $6.78 million on 587 screens- a record opening weekend for an Australian film, boosted by the premium ticket price for 3D screenings. That beat Happy Feet’s $6.6 million and Baz’s Australia which did $6.4 million. Australian exhibitors were delighted with the result and expect the film to hold strongly in its second weekend, buoyed by the June 10 public holiday. One programmer noted the romantic drama is almost the only mainstream film pitched primarily at females in a sea of male-dominated titles such as The Hangover Part III, Iron Man 3 and the upcoming Fast & Furious 6. Gatsby’s worldwide total has topped $248 million, including $128.5 million in the US.Œ The final edition of The Hangover franchise pocketed $4.3 million in its second weekend in Oz, down 51%, bringing the total to $15.6 million, although tracking well below the predecessor. Two genre movies opened last weekend and both were duds: horror spoof A Haunted House and Sinister, a supernatural horror movie starring Ethan Hawke as a true-crime writer who discovers a box of home movies that puts his family in danger. On the art house circuit, Happiness Never Comes Alone, a French comedy featuring Gad Elmaleh and Sophie Marceau, fetched a ho-hum $67,000 on 19 screens.Œ Œ Œ Œ WEEKEND BOX OFFICEŒ May 30-June 2 Œ Œ Œ Title Œ Week/ Screens Œ Box Office Œ % +- Œ Total Œ 1 The Great Gatsby 1/587 $6,789,897 NA $7,223,120 2 The Hangover Part 111 2/499 4,367,878 -51 15,663,131 3 Star Trek Into Darkness 4/392 1,167,025 -36 14,448,264 4 Iron Man 3 6/180 847,472 -31 38,101,996 5 Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani 1/16 267,920 NA 267,920 6 The Call 3/159 254,596 -38 2,001,669 7 The Place Beyond the Pines 4/67 193,702 -39 2,401,785 8 Snitch 3/133 163,075 -48 1,552,496 9 The Croods 10/126 134,922 +1 24,936,743 10 A Haunted House 1/82 117,325 NA 117,325 Source: Motion Picture Distributors Association of Australia Œ Œ Œ AUSTRALIAN FILMS SCORECARD 2013 Œ Œ Œ Title Œ Release Date Œ Total 1 The Great Gatsby ŒMay 30 $7,223,120 Œ 2 Goddess March 14 1,587,751 Œ 3 Return to Nim’s Island April 4 1,195,972 Œ 4 Drift May 2 857,821 Œ 5 Save Your Legs! Feb 28 379,883 Œ 6 Blinder March 7 101,027 Œ ŒŒŒŒŒŒŒŒŒŒŒŒŒŒŒŒŒŒŒ Source:Œ Motion Picture Distributors Association of Australia Tue, 04 Jun 2013 09:48:56 +1000 <![CDATA[Curious finds a Touch of Sin]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/04/article/Curious-finds-a-Touch-of-Sin/PPKNTSEWGQ.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/04/article/Curious-finds-a-Touch-of-Sin/PPKNTSEWGQ.html Inside Film Correspondent Curious has snapped up five titles at the Cannes film festival/market including A Touch of Sin, an expose of rampant corruption and exploitation in mainland China. Director Jia Zhangke won the festival’s best screenplay award for his film based on the true stories of poor people driven to acts of desperation. Jia said the film, which was part-funded by the state-owned Shanghai Film Group, has been given official approval and will be shown uncut is his homeland. Curious Distribution’s Sarah Noonan said the company also acquired Big Sur, writer-director Michael Polish’s adaptation of a Jack Kerouac novel, which recounts the authors three sojourns to the cabin in Big Sur owned by poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti, starring Kate Bosworth, Josh Lucas, Radha Mitchell and Jean-Marc Bar. Also on its slate is Austrian director Ulrich Seidl’s The Paradise Trilogy, comprising Love, the story of Teresa, an upper-class, middle-aged European woman who goes to Kenya’s beaches to seek out African boys selling sex to earn a living; Faith, which follows Teresa’s sister Maria as she goes through a devastating divorce and develops an attraction to Jesus; and Hope, which looks at Teresa’s 13-year-old daughter Melanie as she’s sent to a strict diet camp for overweight teenagers in the Austrian countryside, where she falls for a doctor 40 years her senior.Œ Curious Distribution will release Australian writer-director Kim Mordaunt’s Laos-set The Rocket on August 29 and Italian director Matteo Garrone’s Reality, the saga of a Neapolitan fishmonger who pulls off little scams with his wife and is urged to try out for Big Brother, on July 4. Tue, 04 Jun 2013 08:38:15 +1000 <![CDATA[Mystery Road takes a new path]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/04/article/Mystery-Road-takes-a-new-path/GXSYQYLXML.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/04/article/Mystery-Road-takes-a-new-path/GXSYQYLXML.html Don Groves Ivan Sen’s new film Mystery Road, which will open the Sydney Film Festival, is bypassing the established theatrical distributors in a rare departure from the usual distribution model. Producer David Jowsey and writer-director Sen have decided to release the murder mystery on August 15 via Dark Matter, a company they own with Michael Wrenn. The rationale: If the film turns a profit, that will go to the filmmakers, not the distributor. The producers are paying for the marketing costs, avoiding the standard 25%-30% fee charged by distributors.Œ They’ve hired the Melbourne-based Backlot Studios to negotiate terms with exhibitors for a flat fee. Distribution veteran Alan Finney is a consultant and Tracey Mair is coordinating the national marketing and publicity campaign. The film stars Aaron Pedersen as an Aboriginal cop, Detective Jay Swan, who's called on to investigate the murder of a young Indigenous girl and realises a serial killer is at work. The cast includes Hugo Weaving, Ryan Kwanten, Jack Thompson and Tony Barry. The $2 million film was financed by Screen Australia, Screen Queensland and the ABC. Gary Hamilton's Arclight Films has world sales rights outside Australia.Œ Jowsey envisions a release of 15-20 screens. In an interview with the AFTRS quarterly LUMINA, Sen said the film is aimed primarily at art house audiences while also "pushing hard at the fringes of the multiplexes. It will have commercial bones but it will also have an Aboriginal and a cultural perspective." Wrenn worked for Curious when Screen Australia’s indigenous branch agreed to co-finance the film. At that time the branch’s guidelines did not require producers to have a deal with an approved Australian distributor; the guidelines have since been changed to include that provision. Curious later dropped out and Wrenn launched Greenlight Releasing.Œ Jowsey told IF, “While we are making quality, modest-release films, we thought, ‘Why shouldn’t we get involved in the distribution?’ There is a risk but there is an upside (if the film succeeds.) We do the trailers, the posters and the marketing so this ensures we keep control of the look and the feel and the creative elements.” The producers of Blinder self- distributed the Australian footy-themed drama, using the services of Backlot, and the film flopped.Œ Genevieve Bailey achieved a very good result by self-distributing her documentary I Am Eleven. Filmmaker-distributor Robert Connolly has set out to create a new paradigm for releasing Australian films that don’t warrant a wide cinema release and playing up to six sessions a day with his CinemaPlus initiative. That venture got off to a promising start with Connolly’s Underground: The Julian Assange Story.Œ If it works, the Jowsey/Sen/Wrenn gambit on Mystery Road may encourage other producers to take a similar route. Asked if he’d be willing to try that avenue again, Jowsey said, “It may take a long time to break even. Let’s see what happens by Christmas and I’ll let you know.”Œ Tue, 04 Jun 2013 08:32:57 +1000 <![CDATA[Monogamish: Documentary Begins Subject Search]]> http://if.com.au/2013/06/03/article/Monogamish-Documentary-Begins-Subject-Search/WILZISQORF.html http://if.com.au/2013/06/03/article/Monogamish-Documentary-Begins-Subject-Search/WILZISQORF.html Inside Film Correspondent Press Release NSW based TV documentary exploring open-relationships seeks couples Sydney, 02 June - Sydney-based filmmakers Damien Dunstan (director) and Taylor Litton-Strain (producer) have begun searching for subjects for their new TV documentary Monogamish. It will follow the journey of two couples, living in Sydney as they open up their relationships for the first time. “Monogamy has been a concept in humanity for as long as recorded word,” says Dunstan. “In practice, however, monogamy is something that many of us struggle with. There is a new breed of couples that believe there is a better way. These couples, while primarily monogamous, enjoy occasional consensual play with third parties, be it individually or as a couple.” The team are seeking couples in loving relationships that are considering opening up their relationships for the first time. If this sounds like you, or if you are already in a monogamish relationship or have experiences/opinions on the topic please email moscastings@gmail.com Monogamish continues Dunstan’s interest’s in sexual politics in modern society, and will be the follow up to his successful 2013 Webseries The Grindr Guide (http://www.youtube.com/user/TheGrindrGuide) which explored the social networking app Grindr. The 8-part series has received over 90,000 hits on YouTube to date and was featured on 20+ blogs domestically and internationally. For future details or to express interest please email us: moscastings@gmail.com Œ Mon, 03 Jun 2013 09:03:28 +1000 <![CDATA[Roadshow grabs Selfless, Black Mass]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/31/article/Roadshow-grabs-Selfless-Black-Mass/UTSINTIEXC.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/31/article/Roadshow-grabs-Selfless-Black-Mass/UTSINTIEXC.html Don Groves Roadshow Films has acquired two of the hottest titles at the Cannes Film Market: Selfless, a US thriller in the vein of Limitless and Looper, and crime drama Black Mass. Ryan Reynolds is set to star in Selfless, the saga of a wealthy old guy who is dying from cancer when he undergoes a radical operation that transfers his consciousness to the body of a healthy young man. But his seemingly re-born life goes awry when he delves into the mystery of the body’s origins and encounters a secret organisation that will kill to keep its secrets. The script by Alex and David Pastor made the 2011 Black List of Hollywood’s best unproduced screenplays, and director Tarsem (Mirror Mirror, Immortals) is aboard. Black Mass is based on the true story of Boston Mobster Whitey Bulger and his close relationship with disgraced FBI agent John Connolly. Johnny Depp was in the frame to play Bulger but Deadline.com reports the actor has backed out because the producers were unwilling to meet his asking price of about $US23 million. Deadline said the lead role will be recast. Joel Edgerton is confirmed to play Connolly and Barry Levinson will direct. Connolly was charged with tipping off his childhood friend Bulger when the feds were coming for him, prompting the crim to vanish for many years. Roadshow declined to comment on the terms of its deal for Black Mass but distributors usually have the right to approve any change in the casting of lead actors. Fri, 31 May 2013 10:34:16 +1000 <![CDATA[Baz scores with The Great Gatsby]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/31/article/Baz-scores-with-The-Great-Gatsby/EFQVCXFXXQ.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/31/article/Baz-scores-with-The-Great-Gatsby/EFQVCXFXXQ.html Don Groves After weeks of relentless hype following the US premiere and the glitzy launch in Cannes, the big question is: How will Australian audiences respond to The Great Gatsby? With a lot of enthusiasm, judging by the film’s $1.15 million opening day tally on 569 screens on Thursday. That positions Baz Luhrmann’s reinterpretation of the classic F. Scott Fitzgerald novel to rake in about $6 million in its first four days. While some films (eg The Hangover Part III) burn out quickly and finish up earning about 2.5 times their opening weekend, Gatsby looks set to benefit from mostly positive word of mouth and laudatory reviews. Some exhibitors predict the Warner Bros.-Village Roadshow Pictures co-production will wind up grossing $25 million- $30 million in Australia. B.O. prognostications are far from an exact science so the upside could be even higher, although Fast & Furious 6, which opens next Thursday, may prove to be strong competition given that young females make up a fair chunk of that franchise’s fan base.Œ Luhrmann’s previous film Australia grossed $37.5 million despite a critical mauling. But the period romance/adventure resonated exceptionally strongly with audiences in rural and regional Australia, whereas the Gatsby remake may prove to be more of a big city-suburban drawcard. Given that Gatsby has already amassed more than $US121 million in the US and $85 million in foreign territories, Australian taxpayers may well feel their contributions to the budget via the 40 per cent producer offset wasn’t a bad investment.Œ Fri, 31 May 2013 09:56:54 +1000 <![CDATA[Filmmakers find creative autonomy with new crowdfunding options]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/30/article/Filmmakers-find-creative-autonomy-with-new-crowdfunding-options/BHCARLOMJO.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/30/article/Filmmakers-find-creative-autonomy-with-new-crowdfunding-options/BHCARLOMJO.html Katie Miller-Crispe As the internet has become more and more prevalent in launching and promoting independent artists and entrepreneurs, more independent filmmakers are turning to crowdfunding platforms to launch their projects. Starting with Kickstarter in 2009, crowdfunding sites have been responsible raising over 10 million dollars for independent projects. In 2012 a new company, Seed & Spark, launched its crowdfunding site for filmmakers. This niche crowdfunding company differs from the way Kickstarter and Pozible operate, being specifically for filmmakers, and run by filmmakers, the company caters to a specific set of needs, and does it well. Instead of the all-or-nothing funding scheme operated by other crowdfunding services, Seed & Spark has an 80%-or-nothing policy that gives filmmakers the option to amend their project budgets if they don’t reach 100% of their fundraisi8ng goal. The company also allows filmmakers to adjust their campaigns if their financial needs change due to arrangements made offline. Furthermore, Seed & Spark is the first crowdfunding company to double as a distribution service. Filmmakers who fund their projects through the site can sell or rent their films for download through the site, and consumers who contribute to projects can earn ‘Sparks’ that they can use to hire films or for other benefits. Since the much publicized and unprecedented Veronica Mars feature film funding on Kickstarter reached over 5 million dollars, crowdfunding and the projects that come out of it have received more serious mainstream attention. Far from the days of crowdfunding being a last resort for projects that fcouldn’t get off the ground any other way, industry professionals have in recent years chosen to use the platform as a means of maintaining complete creative control over their projects. Zach Braff of TV’s Scrubs has done just that in his 2 million dollar Kickstarter campaign launched this April. In his campaign pitch Braff writes, "’Final Cut’ is the industry term for who has the final say on how the movie will be edited. A lot of financing deals require that the final cut go to the money people, NOT the director...You ultimately have no right to fight against these changes because you have signed away those rights in order to get your money. As a film-lover myself, I always want to see exactly what the filmmaker intended.” In the short time Seed & Spark has been running – and the website is still in beta testing – has a cinema section that hosts twenty-three crowdfunded independent films, and has twenty active campaigns running. Many of these films are being entered into international film festivals, including Rez, a short film written by Dominique DeLeon that became the most rapidly funded project on the site, when it reached its funding goal within 72 hours of going live. Seed & Spark may have set the standard for the development of more niche crowdfunding options, and has already proven itself an invaluable resource for independent filmmakers. Œ Thu, 30 May 2013 16:13:11 +1000 <![CDATA[Bryan Brown and Sam Neill go Old School]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/30/article/Bryan-Brown-and-Sam-Neill-go-Old-School/NCNOWSBQKN.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/30/article/Bryan-Brown-and-Sam-Neill-go-Old-School/NCNOWSBQKN.html Staff Writer Bryan Brown and Sam Neill will star in Old School, an ABC series in the vein of the BBC comedy-drama New Tricks. Brown will play Ted, a retired cop, with Neill as Lennie, an ex-crim. The odd couple turn sleuth to solve crimes, unravel scams and earn much-needed dosh. The cast includes Sarah Peirse as Ted’s feisty, sports-mad wife; Hanna Mangan Lawrence as Lennie’s granddaughter Shannon; Mark Coles-Smith as Jason, the mechanic son of one of Lennie’s prison mates; and Damian Walshe-Howling as a charming opportunist who woos Shannon. The show was created by Paul Oliver and Steve Wright and will be produced by Matchbox Pictures’ Helen Panckhurst and exec produced by Tony Ayres and Penny Chapman. Production of the eight-part series starts in Sydney in June with the directing chores shared by Gregor Jordan (Two Hands, Buffalo Soldiers), Peter Templeman (Not Suitable For Children) and Oliver. Global sales outside Australia will be handled by NBCUniversal International, which owns 60 per cent of Matchbox, producers of The Slap, Underground - The Julian Assange Story and The Straits. Matchbox has a busy slate, including reality shows The Real Housewives for Foxtel and Formal Wars for the Seven Network, the ABC’s children’s drama Nowhere Boys, drama series Devil’s Playground for Foxtel and Ayres’ theatrical feature Cut Snake, which will star Sullivan Stapleton and Ryan Kwanten. Thu, 30 May 2013 13:41:17 +1000 <![CDATA[Patrick footage draws foreign buyers]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/30/article/Patrick-footage-draws-foreign-buyers/XYSHNCMPXB.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/30/article/Patrick-footage-draws-foreign-buyers/XYSHNCMPXB.html Don Groves Some 20 minutes of Patrick, director Mark Hartley’s re-imagining of Richard Franklin’s 1978 Australian psychological thriller, was screened for US and international distributors at the Cannes Film Market. Producer Antony I. Ginnane was pleased with the feedback and is hoping the film will be selected for the Toronto International Film Festival in October, which he believes would be the launch pad for a raft of sales. In Cannes the international sales agent Bankside Films sold the pic, which stars Charles Dance, Sharni Vinson and Rachel Griffiths, to distributors in Turkey and the Middle East. Patrick will premiere at the Melbourne International Film Festival in July and will open in cinemas in October via Umbrella Entertainment. Ginnane produced the original, which starred Robert Helpmann, Susan Penhaligon and Robert Thompson. It was a breakthrough for the producer as it was snapped up by theatrical distributors worldwide. It made a ton of money in Italy where it sparked an unsanctioned 1980 sequel, Patrick vive ancora (Patrick Lives Again). Ginnane took legal action to stop the producers exhibiting the film outside the country, although it was released on DVD in the US in April. He’s seen that version and said it’s dreadful. In Cannes Ginnane acquired one title for IFM/Filmways, his Australian theatrical distribution co-venture with Robert Ward: Ain’t Misbehavin’ (Un Voyageur), an autobiography of documentary filmmaker Marcel Ophüls, son of legendary director Max Ophüls. It will screen at MIFF followed by a limited theatrical release. Also on IFM/Filmways’ slate are Brian Trenchard-Smith’s Gold Coast-set thriller Absolute Deception, which stars Cuba Gooding Jr. and Emmanuelle Vaugier and opens in August; and Andrew Traucki’s The Jungle, a thriller about a conservationist who goes to Indonesia to save the Java leopard and discovers something much bigger and nastier, which will go out in November/December. Ginnane plans to launch The Stolen, first-time director Geoff Davis’ WWII drama about three young Australians who leave their outback home to go to war and come back to find their family has been attacked by cattle rustlers, on Anzac Day 2014.Œ Thu, 30 May 2013 08:46:00 +1000 <![CDATA[ACMA invites public comment on broadcasting codes]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/29/article/ACMA-invites-public-comment-on-broadcasting-codes/WDREJAEGFZ.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/29/article/ACMA-invites-public-comment-on-broadcasting-codes/WDREJAEGFZ.html Don Groves Gretel Killeen, Media Watch’s Jonathan Holmes, 2UE’s John Stanley and Australian Press Council chairman Julian Disney will take part in community forums next month which will review and debate the radio and TV broadcasting codes. Organised by the Australian Media and Communications Authority, the six sessions will delve into such issues as privacy, decency, accuracy, balance and fairness, complaints handling and classification and the time-shifting audience. “Are the formal broadcasting codes that shape the boundaries of media keeping up with rapid changes in technology, social trends and demography, and community expectations?” said ACMA chairman Chris Chapman on its Engage website (<a href="http://engage.acma.gov.au/">http://engage.acma.gov.au/</a>). “We want to hear your views, so next month we’re holding a series of public forums called Citizen Conversations to explore this question.Œ “It’s broadly accepted that the internet and the fast-moving social media are challenging traditional broadcasting advertising models and programs, driving different news cycles and generally pushing broadcasters to adapt to meet audience and business needs. “This suggests new issues to consider. For example, it seems to a casual observer that product placement is now much more widespread in programs. Is that observation correct and, if it is, should this be disclosed? Is there enough transparency? “In a world where anyone can blog, does this change how we feel about the real or perceived influence of high-rating radio announcers—and, in any event, do they really need to be fair and balanced? Should the principle of fairness apply to opinions? “And what about the impact of citizen journalism and ‘instant media’ like Twitter and Instagram on the traditional notions of accuracy in broadcast news reports? How is that phenomena to be accommodated? “The question we’re asking is whether the regulation is keeping up with these changes. In this new media landscape, can the codes be better targeted? Are there are just so many code prescriptions that it’s difficult to weigh through what’s important and what’s noise?” The forums, which begin June 6, will be held at the ACMA’s Sydney office in Pyrmont and streamed live on the web. Among the other commentators who will participate are Jane Caro, Waleed Aly and Chis Berg of the Institute of Public Affairs. Wed, 29 May 2013 17:02:19 +1000 <![CDATA[Roadshow nabs Jessica Chastain movie]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/29/article/Roadshow-nabs-Jessica-Chastain-movie/VDHEYNAVIN.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/29/article/Roadshow-nabs-Jessica-Chastain-movie/VDHEYNAVIN.html Don Groves Jessica Chastain is arguably Hollywood’s fastest-rising female star. Aiming to capitalise on her box-office appeal, Roadshow has pre-bought The Zookeeper’s Wife, the true story of two Warsaw Zoo employees who sheltered hundreds of Jews during WW2. The film will be directed by Kiwi Niki Caro, whose credits include Whale Rider, North Country and The Vintner’s Luck. The screenplay is adapted from a Diane Ackerman novel about Antonina and Jan Zabinski, members of the Polish Resistance who smuggled Jews into the zoo and their home after the Nazis captured Warsaw.Œ The Zero Dark Thirty star is in Ireland filming Liv Ullmann's Miss Julie with Samantha Morton and Colin Farrell, and she’s also signed to appear with Emma Stone and Benedict Cumberbatch in Guillermo del Toro’s haunted house thriller Crimson Peak. Roadshow jumped on the project at the Cannes Film Market, plus Pride Prejudice and Zombies, an adaptation of Seth Grahame Smith’s mash-up of the literary classic. Burr Steers (Charlie St. Cloud) will direct and Lily Collins is in negotiations to play Elizabeth Bennett. Via its output deal with The Weinstein Company, Roadshow will distribute Suite Française, a 1940s-set drama about a young woman who lives with her controlling mother-in-law in Nazi-occupied France and ends up falling for a German officer. Michelle Williams, Matthias Schoenaerts and Kristin Scott Thomas are set to star, with Saul Dibb (The Duchess) directing. Wed, 29 May 2013 11:27:20 +1000 <![CDATA[Sophie Lowe to star in What Lola Wants]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/29/article/Sophie-Lowe-to-star-in-What-Lola-Wants/SAMJLFULMU.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/29/article/Sophie-Lowe-to-star-in-What-Lola-Wants/SAMJLFULMU.html Don Groves It’s all happening for Sophie Lowe. After scoring the lead role in the American ABC network series Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, the English-born, Aussie actress is set to star in US-set road movie What Lola Wants. Sophie plays the title character who runs away from home and fakes her disappearance as a kidnapping. In a desert diner she meets a guy played by Beau Knapp (Super 8) and they head for Mobile, Alabama, pursued by sinister forces. Her parents offer a reward of $1 million for her safe return. Written and directed by Aussie Rupert Glasson, who’s based in Los Angeles, the film starts shooting in LA and the city’s outskirts on June 27. The cast includes Robert Taylor, who stars in the US TV crime series Longmire, and Dale Dickey. Glasson is producing the film with Ayisha Davies of Ultrafilms, with whom he collaborated on his first film, Coffin Rock. “We are thrilled that we can make the dates work with Sophie,” Davies told IF. “Her ABC series is going into 13 episodes so there is a lot of buzz around her, which is fantastic.” The talent agency CAA will pitch the film to US distributors and Sydney-based Screen Corporation is handling international sales. There’s no Australian deal yet. “Our finance model doesn’t require us to have an Australian DG (distribution guarantee) at this stage so our sales agent will handle that once we have a finished film,” Davies said. Shooting was originally scheduled for last October but that was postponed after an Australian private investor dropped out.Œ Lowe’s credits include Beautiful Kate, Blessed and Blame and TV’s The Slap and Satisfaction. She shot three movies in the past 18 months including Two Mothers, a drama adapted from Doris Lessing’s novel The Grandmothers that co-stars Robin Wright, Naomi Watts, James Frecheville and Xavier Samuel. She was part of the ensemble cast of US writer-director John Huddles’ The Philosophers, the saga of a philosophy teacher at an international school in Jakarta who challenges his class to choose 10 of their fellow students who would take shelter underground and reboot the human race in the event of a nuclear apocalypse. And she journeyed to the Austrian Alps for Markus Blunder’s Autumn Blood, a thriller about a 16-year-old girl and her 10-year-old brother who are attacked by hunters after their single mother dies.Œ Wed, 29 May 2013 09:52:02 +1000 <![CDATA[Report: Cinematographers in the cross-hairs]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/29/article/Report-Cinematographers-in-the-cross-hairs/XRQIRSAUDI.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/29/article/Report-Cinematographers-in-the-cross-hairs/XRQIRSAUDI.html Brendan Swift The line where art meets commerce has always been a grey one – even when it is reliant on the public purse. The issue flared in 2011 when government proposals took aim at the regulations which limit foreign actors working on local productions. And it flared again last year when, for the first time, a number of local films employed foreign cinematographers. The appointments created a ripple of unease among local cinematographers who are regularly lauded as being amongst the world’s best. Of the seven Australians who have won Academy Awards for their work behind the camera, five are still active in the industry: Dean Semler, John Seale, Andrew Lesnie, Russell Boyd and Dion Beebe. A new breed are also making the leap into high-end features such as Ross Emery (The Wolverine), Simon Duggan (The Great Gatsby) and Jules O’Loughlin (Sanctum), just to name a few. So it came as a surprise late last year when Australian feature films The Babadook and The Rover both appointed foreign cinematographers: Radoslaw Ladczuk (Polish) and Natasha Braier (who holds a Spanish/Argentinean passport) respectively. Around the same time, the $12 million outback road movie Tracks appointed a US focus puller, ostensibly because the production couldn’t find someone with that skill-set among local camera crew. (Another local film, Son of a Gun starring Ewan McGregor, was also eyeing up a French cinematographer in late-2012 but, after much discussion, Australian cinematographer Nigel Bluck (The Tree) was appointed to shoot writer-director Julius Avery’s debut feature.)Œ Those decisions raised the concern of the Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance (MEAA) and the Australian Cinematographers Society (ACS). “We don’t like this at all because we think it sets a precedent,” ACS president Ron Johanson says. “Our argument is on taxpayer-funded films.” Screen Australia was a direct investor in all three productions, which were also eligible for the 40 per cent Producer Offset tax rebate. At the heart of the debate is why taxpayer money should be used to fund films: art and culture versus economics and employment." It is an unusual situation: few foreign cinematographers have ever been brought in to shoot an Australian film. Before the most recent cases, Screen Australia had never funded a feature film with a foreign cinematographer (aside from one co-production which also had a foreign director). The Rover producer Liz Watts was in pre-production when contacted by IF Magazine in late-December and not able to answer a list of queries about the circumstances and reasons which led to the appointment of Braier. The Babadook producer Kristina Ceyton also did not answer a list of emailed questions. Screen Producers Association of Australia (SPAA) president Brian Rosen says the choice of cinematographer ultimately comes down to the director. “It’s up to the filmmakers as to who they want to work with but it is rare that we bring DOPs into Australia. In fairness, our DOPs work overseas: they work in New Zealand, they work in America, they work in Europe, and having the odd DOP come into Australia, well, that’s going to happen. It comes down to who the director wants to work with.”Œ MEAA director of entertainment and crew Mal Tulloch says the union plans to hold discussions with SPAA and the industry to develop a formal assessment process when foreign crew are being considered. “Rather than being subjective and saying ‘I just can’t work with that person’ or ‘I just don’t like that person’s personality’ we’re actually getting to the fundamentals as to whether that person can actually do the job rather than this ‘I’ve worked with this person overseas – I just want to bring this person with me’. We don’t think that that is a valid argument to support the importation of a foreign cinematographer let alone any other crew person on a film set.”Œ Screen Australia’s Significant Australian Content (SAC) test – the only hurdle to accessing the 40 per cent Producer Offset tax rebate – does consider the nationalities and places of residence of key cast and crew, including cinematographers. However, the test is an opaque one (Screen Australia cannot disclose any information about specific decisions because of tax secrecy laws) and also includes a get-out-of-jail card: the SAC test also includes “any other matters that Screen Australia considers relevant”. If a film passes that test, qualifying expenditure is eligible for the 40 per cent Producer Offset. A cinematographer’s wages are a “below the line” cost (unlike the principal director, producers and the producers’ unit, and principal cast, which are capped at 20 per cent) and are fully-subsidised by taxpayers. While The Rover, The Babadook and Tracks also received direct investment from Screen Australia (likely to be in the millions of dollars), it appears to have had little impact on whether the government agency will step in. “If a project passes the SAC test, qualifies for the Offset, if there is one creative person out of the key team who is from overseas and who the producer believes is an exceptional talent, and the union agrees, then Screen Australia does not want to play Big Brother,” Screen Australia’s head of production investment Ross Matthews says. Such a laissez-faire stance implicitly endorses the view that there is no Australian cinematographer who could fulfil the director’s vision while undermining the economic argument behind Screen Australia’s direct film funding. Some changes have already occurred. The Tracks incident led to an agreement between the producers, See-Saw Films, to consult more widely in future before employing offshore crew, according to the MEAA. Meanwhile, a trainee was also employed to work with the camera department on the film – something that the ACS would like to see happen more regularly on productions. (The Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS) believes that any screen production receiving government investment via the Producer Offset should be required under legislation to employ a paid, first-time trainee, in an effort to generate employment, according to its recent submission to the National Cultural Policy discussion paper.) Nonetheless, the union remains wary of the trend, Tulloch says. “We’d like to think this is a glitch and there will be very small numbers in the future but we see a very worrying trend at the moment where the easy option is to try and grab someone from overseas and we have some very talented competent cinematographers in this country who should be considered first.” This report first appeared in IF Magazine issue #151. Wed, 29 May 2013 09:04:44 +1000 <![CDATA[Aussie distributors stock up in Cannes]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/28/article/Aussie-distributors-stock-up-in-Cannes/YVIXXEGIGR.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/28/article/Aussie-distributors-stock-up-in-Cannes/YVIXXEGIGR.html Don Groves The Cannes Film Market has proved to be a happy hunting ground for almost all the Australian independent distributors. StudioCanal and Rialto Distribution were among the most active Oz buyers, each snapping up five films from the US and Europe, featuring such stars as Robert Downey Jr, Justin Timberlake, Scarlett Johansson and Shirley MacLaine.Œ “There was no stand-out title that everyone was chasing but there were a lot of good films,” Studiocanal managing director Robert Slaviero told IF. As a result, Slaviero observed, “There were no bidding wars; it was all very civilised.”Œ Slaviero pounced on The Chef, an upcoming comedy written and directed by Jon Favreau, co-starring Downey, Johansson and Sofia Vergara. Favreau plays a guy who loses his chef job and launches a food truck business while he tries to reconnect with his estranged family. MacLaine and Christopher Plummer star in Elsa & Fred, a romantic comedy directed by Michael Radford, a remake of a Spanish-Argentine hit film. MacLaine plays a bubbly retiree in New Orleans with Plummer as a strait-laced widower who moves into her apartment building. How to Make Love Like an Englishman is a rom-com that features Pierce Brosnan as a hedonistic Cambridge University professor who meets his match in Kristin Scott Thomas and is forced to re-evaluate his lifestyle after getting Jessica Alba, her graduate student stepsister, pregnant. Timberlake stars in Spinning Gold, a biopic of colourful record company executive Neil Bogart, who was instrumental in the rise of disco. Slaviero is in final negotiations for one other title, “a cracker,” which he declines to reveal.Œ Also on his slate are two StudioCanal productions which were on sale in Cannes: The Gunman, which stars Sean Penn as an ex-government contract killer whose past comes back to haunt him, and Shaun the Sheep, an animated feature based on the plucky woolly creature seen in Nick Park's Oscar-winning short film A Close Shave, co-produced with the UK’s Aardman Animations. Rialto snapped by Japanese writer-director Kore-eda Hirokazu’s Like Father, Like Son, which won the Jury Prize in Cannes. The drama, which focuses on two families who discover their 6-year-old sons were switched at birth, features Fukuyama Masaharu, Ono Machiko, Maki Yoko and Lily Franky. Gerard Lanvin plays a cantankerous hospital patient in Get Well Soon from French director Jean Becker, who did My Afternoons With Margueritte. Also in Rialto’s fold is Ken Loach’s next film Jimmy’s Hall, the true story of James Gralton, the only person ever deported from Ireland to the US. Gralton was an Irish Communist leader who took US citizenship after emigrating there in 1909. After a shooting, he was arrested and deported to the US in 1933. Spanish filmmaker Santiago Zannou’s Scorpion In Love is an adaption of Carlos Bardem’s novel about a former neo-Nazi gang member who turns to boxing in an effort to reinvent himself after a spell in prison. Carlos Bardem (brother of Javier Bardem) plays a former boxing champ who befriends the young neo-Nazi (Alex Gonzalez), with Javier Bardem as a neo-Nazi chief.Œ Michael Kohlhass, which screened in competition in Cannes, stars Mads Mikkelsen as a 16th Century horse trader in France who amasses a rebel army after his wife is killed.Œ Tue, 28 May 2013 12:40:05 +1000 <![CDATA[Oz deals for Cannes prize winners]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/27/article/Oz-deals-for-Cannes-prize-winners/JEIITVMJHL.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/27/article/Oz-deals-for-Cannes-prize-winners/JEIITVMJHL.html Don Groves Transmission Films collared Australian rights to Blue Is The Warmest Color (La Vie D’Adele – Chapitre 1 & 2), the French film that won the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival on Sunday. Directed by Abdellatif Kechiche, the 3-hour, sexually explicit drama about a teen’s lesbian love affair was only the second French film to win the coveted Palme d’Or in 46 years (the most recent was The Class in 2008). Transmission Films joint managing director Andrew Mackie told IF he expects the film to get an R rating, at most. “We're very happy with our acquisitions,” he said, reflecting the general feeling among Aussie distributors who were very active in the Cannes market. Among the other titles in Transmission’s shopping bag are The Silence, Martin Scorsese’s passion project that he’s been working on since 1989, adapted from Shusaku Endo’s novel about Jesuits and the dawn of Christianity in 17th Century Japan; Jane Got a Gun, a Western that stars Natalie Portman, Joel Edgerton and Ewan McGregor; Zach Braff’s Kickstarter crowd-funded Wish I Was Here; and an untitled Mike Leigh project. Madman Entertainment had a productive Cannes, nabbing The Lunchbox, Indian director Ritesh Batra's debut film about a young Mumbai housewife and a stranger who build a fantasy world, which won the Critics Week viewers’ choice award in Cannes; and Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s 3D adventure The Young and Prodigious Spivet, the story of a gifted 12-year-old boy (Kyle Catlett) who leaves his family in Montana and takes off on a cross-country adventure to the Smithsonian Museum in Washington, D.C. to receive a prize, co-starring Helena Bonham Carter and Kathy Bates. In Cannes Madman MD Paul Wiegard had his first look at several films he had pre-bought: Blood Ties, which stars Clive Owen, Marion Cotillard, Billy Crudup, Zoe Saldana and Mila Kunis, the tale of brothers on opposite sides of the law in 1970s New York; Only Lovers Left Alive, about star-crossed vampires who’ve loved each other for centuries but find something always gets in the way, featuring Tilda Swinton, John Hurt, Mia Wasikowska and Tom Hiddleston; and The Past, a family melodrama from Iranian director Asghar Farhadi, who won an Oscar for best foreign film for A Separation. “It’s been a brilliant Cannes for Palace Films,” said general manager Nicolas Whatson. “We've acquired over a dozen world cinema jewels (including some major prize-winners) and look forward to announcing very soon.” According to Cannes trades, Palace’s buys included French box-office hit comedy The Gilded Cage (La cage dorée); Paolo Sorrentino’s The Great Beauty, hailed by Time magazine as an “unfailingly vivacious and poignant document of a great city, Rome, in its third millennium of glamorous decline and fall”; and Uruguayan director Alvaro Brechner’s upcoming comedy Mr. Kaplan, about an elderly Jewish wannabe Nazi hunter. The Cannes trades also reported Hopscotch eOne snapped up A Walk In The Woods, a comedy to be directed by and starring Robert Redford as a writer who tries to revitalise his life by undertaking a perilous journey on the perilous Appalachian Trail with his overweight, recovering alcoholic friend (Nick Nolte). EOne had pre-bought another hot Cannes title, Stephen Frears’ Philomena, which stars Judi Dench as an Irishwoman who searches for the son she was forced to give up for adoption. Roadshow reportedly swooped on Justin Chadwick’s Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom, which chronicles Nelson Mandela’s extraordinary journey from childhood in a rural village through to ascension to President of South Africa, starring Idris Elba and Naomie Harris. Sharmill Films nabbed The Missing Picture, an autobiographical documentary by French-Cambodian director Rithy Panh which uses clay animated figures to tell Panh’s recollection of events that led to the deaths of his family, which won the top prize at the Un Certain Regard sidebar in Cannes. Sharmill’s Natalie Miller also picked Valeria Bruni Tedeschi’s A Castle in Italy, the saga of an actress and her aging mother; Kurdish filmmaker Hiner Saleem’s My Sweet Pepper Land set on the Iraqi/Turkish border; and Reaching for the Stars, a doco about the English/Irish pop phenomenon One Direction. Œ Mon, 27 May 2013 16:40:17 +1000 <![CDATA[The Hangover III rules in Oz]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/27/article/The-Hangover-III-rules-in-Oz/SWUMPVPQZD.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/27/article/The-Hangover-III-rules-in-Oz/SWUMPVPQZD.html Don Groves There was no contest for the No. 1 title in Australia last weekend: The Hangover Part III dominated ticket sales, although the opening was about 20 per cent less than the second edition. Its $8.9 million haul on 496 screens stands in stark contrast to the raucous comedy’s relatively subdued debut in the US, where it raked in an estimated $US42.4 million. One obvious reason for the discrepancy: In Oz the film had zero competition, unlike the US where it was trounced by fellow opener Fast & Furious 6, which amassed about $98.4 million. In the US The Great Gatsby held well in its third frame, ascending to $118 million. The comedy starring Zach Galifianakis, Bradley Cooper and Ed Helms single-handedly boosted the top 20 titles’ weekend takings by 51 per cent to $14.3 million. In Australia Fast & Furious was set to open last Thursday but Universal shifted it to June 6 after Warner Bros. plunked Hangover on that date. There was an in-built franchise for the final edition of Hangover, the first two chapters having earned $54 million. Hence it probably wasn’t the wisest time to launch Dead Man Down, the male-skewing New York-set thriller starring Dominic Cooper, Colin Farrell, Noomi Rapace and Terrence Howard. It was D.O.A. In the speciality area, Mira Nair’s The Reluctant Fundamentalist fetched $133,000 on 30 screens in its debut, posting a decent per-screen average of $4,437. Critics sparked to the story of a young Pakistani man who chases corporate success on Wall Street and finds himself caught between his American Dream, a hostage crisis and the call of his family's homeland. Œ Graph: Weekend Box Office May 23-26Œ Œ Œ Œ Title Œ Week/ Screens Œ Box Office Œ % +- Œ Total Œ 1 The Hangover Part III 1/496 $8,926,674 NA $8,926,674 2 Star Trek Into Darkness 3/461 1,819,303 -43 12,729,903 3 Iron Man 3 5/250 1,236,985 -43 36,939,327 4 The Call 2/181 412,898 -53 1,581,626 5 The Place Beyond the Pines 3/67 315,655 -40 2,099,383 6 Snitch 2/185 314,096 -57 1,254,289 7 The Big Wedding 4/214 280,925 -54 4,524,334 8 Dead Man Down 1/115 199,726 NA 199,726 9 The Reluctant Fundamentalist 1/30 133,116 NA 133,116 10 The Croods 9/154 130,879 -22 24,784,395 Œ Source: Motion Picture Distributors Association of Australia Mon, 27 May 2013 16:19:34 +1000 <![CDATA[Mora preps bio on Aussie WWI hero]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/27/article/Mora-preps-bio-on-Aussie-WWI-hero/OOHGXKWCBI.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/27/article/Mora-preps-bio-on-Aussie-WWI-hero/OOHGXKWCBI.html Don Groves Philippe Mora is planning a film that honours Sir John Monash, the Australian General who led the Allied forces which smashed through the German lines in the Battle of Amiens on August 8 1918. “My opinion is that the Australian contribution to winning WW1 is under-appreciated internationally and this will be reflected in this new film,” said Mora, the French-born, Los Angeles-based filmmaker who grew up in Australia. “My mother Mirka and my father Georges knew Monash's famous friend Lizzie Bentwich, who befriended them in 1951 as young immigrants from Paris. My dad drove her around in his van with an armchair in it for her.” Mora hasn’t cast the lead role yet but said he’ll look for an actor who would become as synonymous with the General as was Peter O'Toole as Lawrence of Arabia. The victory prompted German General Ludendorff to concede, “August 8th was the black day of the German Army in the history of the war." Mora plans to shoot the film, Monash, in 2014. A filmmaker who has the ability to work on multiple projects simultaneously, he’s just finished Absolutely Modern, a comedy about Modernism, muses and the role of sexuality in art, as related by famed art critic Lord Steinway. When a black soccer player aged 29 confronts Steinway and claims to be his son, the story takes a modernist twist. Mora plays Steinway and former Chelsea star Mario Melchiot is the son. The cast includes Tequila Mockingbird, the curator of LA’s The Punk Museum, Clayton Watson (The Matrix Reloaded, 33 Postcards) and Rena Riffel. Mora is arranging to premiere the film in Australia later this year. Currently he’s working on The Sound of Spying, an experimental 3D filmed musical about the Cold War and the Hollywood black list. He based the screenplay on unclassified FBI documents and other US government files. John Apicella plays Winston Churchill, with John Jack Rodgers as Noel Coward, English actress Caroline O'Hara as Litzi Friedman, the first wife of Soviet spy Kim Philby, Rena Riffel in the dual roles of Marilyn Monroe and a Soviet control officer, and Brad Wilson as J. Edgar Hoover. Polish composer Adrian Konarski has written 12 songs including "I Loved Kim Philby," "This Stage Has No Curtain," "Sexual Deviates," "Bloodlands," "The Lavender Menace" and “There's No Business Like Spybusiness," with lyrics by Mora. He’s shooting scenes in London and Poland in August. Œ Also on his slate is 2 Days In Auschwitz, a documentary which chronicles the history of the infamous Nazi concentration camp, triggered by his visits in 2010 and 2011. “Many previously undocumented camps came to light this year,” he said. “I discovered eight of my relatives were murdered in Auschwitz and that story is included. “ Currently in post-production, the documentary is a sequel to German Sons, which focuses on the director and his friend, German musician Harald Grosskopf, whose fathers were on opposite sides in WW2. German Sons had its Australian premiere at the You Don't Have to Be Jewish! Film Festival in Brisbane in February and screened this month at the Audi Festival of German Films in Sydney and Melbourne. Œ Mon, 27 May 2013 14:58:00 +1000 <![CDATA[Rossiter takes the top honour at ACS awards]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/27/article/Rossiter-takes-the-top-honour-at-ACS-awards/KWSUKSVAJF.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/27/article/Rossiter-takes-the-top-honour-at-ACS-awards/KWSUKSVAJF.html Staff Reporter Jonathan Rossiter was named Australian Cinematographer of the Year at the 2013 ACS National Awards for Cinematography staged in Canberra on Saturday at Old Parliament House. Œ Rossiter shot the animated short film Sleight of Hand, directed by Michael Cusack for South Australian-based animation company Anifex. The short has been accepted into competition in the Nashville Film Festival, The Athens International Film + Video Festival and the Stuttgart Festival of Animated Film in Germany. Œ Adam Arkapaw won the Golden Tripod for his feature Lore and Roger Deakins took the international award for Skyfall. Œ Here’s the full list of winners: Australian Cinematographer of the Year Jonathon Rossiter, Sleight of Hand Inducted Into ACS Hall Of Fame Peter Donnelly, Peter Hannan,Mike Molloy, Les Wasley ACS Life Membership Bestowed Peter Curtis, Nino Martinetti International Award For Cinematography Roger Deakins, Skyfall NFSA John Leake OAM ACS Emerging Cinematographer Award Dale Bremner Best Student Cinematography Tim Barnsley “Inferno” Gold Plaque Experimental & Specialised Jonathan Rossiter “Sleight of Hand” Golden Tripod John Bowring TV Station Breaks & Promos Sidat de Silva “Firedance” Golden Tripod Music Videos Edward Goldner, Kimbra, "Come Into My Head" Award of Distinction Zoe White, Exit Music, "The Night" Golden Tripod Single Camera News, Local & Regional Adam Wilson "Muslim Protest" Golden Tripod News Directors Award Adam Wilson Seven News "Muslim Protest" Gold Plaque Neil Davis International News Matthew Allard "Skin Deep" Golden Tripod Current Affairs Lee Ali "Too Young To Work" Award of Distinction Mark Dobbin "Yakuza" Golden Tripod TV Magazine, Lifestyle & Reality Simon Nicholls "Chef On The Road" Golden Tripod Corporate & Educational Miles Rowland "Future Health Leaders Conference Promo" Award of Distinction Jason Wingrove "BHP - The Future is an Amazing Place" Golden Tripod Documentaries, Cinema & TV Ben Emery "Mustang - A Kingdom on the Edge" Award of Distinction Dion Beebe "Zen of Bennett" Golden Tripod Ron Taylor Wildlife / Nature Malcolm Ludgate "Monster Bug Wars Series 2" Award of Distinction Richard Fitzpatrick "Great Barrier Reef Episode 1" Golden Tripod Virtual Cinematography David Peers "Happy Feet" (Cinematographer Camera) Golden Tripod David Dulac "Happy Feet" (Cinematographer Lighting) Golden Tripod Commercials Local / Regional Benjamin Shepherd "Morris Janks" Golden Tripod Commercials National / International Simon Ozolins Foxtel "Favourite Things" Award of Distinction Daniel Ardilley "HSBC Rugby" Golden Tripod Dramatised Documentaries Jaems Grant "Australia On Trial - Mount Rennie Outrage" Golden Tripod Fictional Drama Shorts Jason Hargreaves "Beatlefeeders" Golden Tripod Telefeatures, TV Drama & Miniseries Toby Oliver "Beaconsfield" Award of Distinction Dave Cameron "Bliss The Beginning of Katherine Mansfield" Golden Tripod Features Cinema Adam Arkapaw "Lore" Golden Tripod Œ Mon, 27 May 2013 10:09:07 +1000 <![CDATA[The Transition begins for ICS's actors]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/24/article/The-Transition-begins-for-ICSs-actors/VOTEAIQXDH.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/24/article/The-Transition-begins-for-ICSs-actors/VOTEAIQXDH.html Don Groves At least two actors formerly represented by International Casting Services (ICS), the talent agency that is closing down after 52 years, have signed with other agents. It’s expected that a number of other actors on ICS’s books will cross to Lisa Mann Creative Management (LMCM), a process which will play out over the next week. Melina McKenna, a senior agent at ICS, is joining LMCM on June 4. The decision to close ICS was sparked by the retirement of veteran agent Pauline Lee, IF believes. Lisa Mann told IF that the question of which ICS actors would transfer to her agency is still in discussion. She said, “When Melina was offered senior agent position here at LMCM we had no way of knowing that ICS’s doors were about to close, so the shock was as great to us as it was to her, the industry at large and to all of those wonderful actors and creative clients. “I understand however that a number of ADA member agencies, including LMCM, have made contact with ICS in an effort to secure meetings with a number of their former clients.” That’s right. Abe Forsythe has signed with United Management and John Batchelor has moved to RGM. Forsythe’s TV credits include playing John Cornell in Howzat! Kerry Packer’s War and roles in Laid and Rescue Special Ops. Batchelor has appeared in Red Dog and TV’s Devil's Dust, Home and Away, Underbelly and Sea Patrol. Related article: The curtain falls on International Casting Services Œ Fri, 24 May 2013 13:15:04 +1000 <![CDATA[UPDATE: Two Key Execs to Depart Screen Australia]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/25/article/UPDATE-Two-Key-Execs-to-Depart-Screen-Australia/SXDGYTQPYB.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/25/article/UPDATE-Two-Key-Execs-to-Depart-Screen-Australia/SXDGYTQPYB.html Don Groves Œ Ruth Harley may or may not be reappointed as chief executive of Screen Australia but the agency is losing two senior executives. Head of production investment Ross Matthews and head of development Martha Coleman plan to step down. Matthews joined Screen Australia as senior investment manager after spending eight years with its predecessor, the Film Finance Corporation. He’s held his current post since January 2009. In 30 years as a producer, co-producer and executive producer his credits include the films Kick, Fast Talking, Australian Dream, Waiting, Short Changed and Heatwave and the TV series Correlli. Coleman worked in the UK for seven years as head of development at Icon Entertainment International, head of creative affairs at Material Entertainment and as a consultant producer. At Material Entertainment she was executive producer on the UK box office hit Run Fat Boy, Run, which starred Simon Pegg, Thandie Newton and Hank Azaria. She returned to Australia in January 2009 to take up her current role. Coleman has told friends she intends to return to producing; in 1998 she produced director John Curran’s debut feature Praise, which starred Sacha Horler, Peter Fenton, Joel Edgerton and Marta Dusseldorp. “Last July I told Ruth and the board I would be delighted to renew my contract until December 2013, but then I would move on to other things,” Martha told IF. “ It will have been five years by then, which is long enough for one person, and I'm incredibly proud of the excellent work my team has done in that time to support our filmmakers.” Applications closed on April 26 for the CEO’s position, arguably the most powerful in the screen production industry, presiding over an organisation with 110 staff and an annual budget of $110 million. Dr Harley, whose five-year term expires in November, told staff she would reapply. The board may make a decision as early as July, which has to be ratified by the Cabinet and Arts Minister Tony Burke. It’s believed that interviews will start shortly. The candidates may include Fiona Cameron, Screen Australia’s chief operating officer, Richard Harris, CEO of the South Australian Film Corp. and former head of the Australian Directors Guild, and Aussie-born New Zealand Film Commission CEO Graeme Mason, who has international experience with Manifesto, Polygram Filmed Entertainment and as president of worldwide acquisitions for Universal. However the Opposition contends the Government should not make any senior appointments- including that of the top job at Screen Australia- before the September 14 election. Last month Senator George Brandis, the shadow Arts Minister, told SBS Film the agency and the Labor Government should postpone a decision on the CEO until after the election. “The Opposition is of the view that, except in exceptional circumstances, no appointments or reappointments should be made to senior Government positions where such appointments would commence after the election,” he told this writer. “The Opposition reserves its right to reconsider all such appointments if it were to win the election.” In addition, the Coalition is understood to be looking to review the system of federal screen funding, which may result in Screen Australia’s mandate being narrowed to supporting cultural projects. Œ Sat, 25 May 2013 12:16:40 +1000 <![CDATA[Zom-com Bride of the Dead in the works]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/23/article/Zom-com-Bride-of-the-Dead-in-the-works/PRPPLJJDDP.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/23/article/Zom-com-Bride-of-the-Dead-in-the-works/PRPPLJJDDP.html Don Groves Les Hill will play one of the leads and co-produce Bride of the Dead, an Australian zombie horror/romance/adventure/comedy. The film will mark the feature writing and directing debut of Ryan Eckersley, who cut his teeth as a director on Neighbours and Big Brother. Eckersley has teamed up with executive producer Robert Lewis Galinsky and they are confident of raising the budget of $5-8 million from private investors.Œ Set in a post-Apocalyptic world, the plot follows a woman named Samantha who gets engaged to her boyfriend Peter. During his buck’s party at a zombie strip club, Peter is bitten on the arm. He flees the city to protect Samantha and she hires Jack, who is struggling to let go of his past, to help find her fiancé before he becomes a zombie. Jack and his band of brothers are zombie hunters, employed by life insurance companies to find infected people, put them to rest and bring back their locating chip as proof they’re deceased. Hill, whose credits include Underbelly, The Pacific, Rescue Special Ops and the upcoming Australian WW1 drama The 34th Battalion, will play Jack's right hand man Ralph. Eckersley worked with Hill on Candy for my Baby, a short film he directed for Tropfest in 2007. Eckersley wrote the Bride of the Dead script in between shooting Big Brother in Queensland last year. “I have always loved zombie films and I set out to write a zombie film that I would want to see,” he told IF. “I also wanted to add in more drama than a typical slasher film. Most zombie films focus on the outbreak, where I wanted to focus on how society would recover after it, ie. insurance companies that still make you jump through hoops after a zombie Apocalypse.” Searching for an Aussie producer who is versed in the horror genre, he found the US-born, Melbourne-based Galinsky on IMBD.com through the latter’s film Prey. Galinsky “has helped me take this from script to advanced development and in cast and investor discussions in a matter of months instead of years,” Ryan said. Galinsky said he is confident of drawing on the pool of investors that financed Prey and is willing to commit funds to two of his other projects, Dust and Glory and Final Four. Simon West is set to direct Dust and Glory, a long-in-the works comedy action-adventure love story set during the RedEx Trials of the 1950s, after he finishes the Heat remake with Jason Statham. Galinsky is producing that film with Blue Star Entertainment’s William Sherak and Jason Shuman and with David Parker and Nadia Tass’ Cascade Pictures. Galinsky is writing the screenplay of Final Four, based on the true story of Australian basketballers who played in the US college basketball league, and he’s working with NBA star Andrew Bogut and Bogut’s business partner Bruce Kaider at One Management Group. Also on his slate is the Michael Hutchence biopic Two Worlds Colliding, adapted from the book Just A Man -The Real Michael Hutchence by the INXS front man’s sister Tina Hutchence and their mother Patricia Glassop. Dominic Cooper is in the frame to play Hutchence.Œ He’s exec producing Nulla, a psychodrama from rookie screenwriter Gary O’Toole and producer Kaarina Lindell. The narrative follows an Australian soldier, an Iraq veteran, as he sets out to drive from Melbourne to Perth with a buddy, a US soldier. En route there’s a horrific accident. Fast & Furious’ Paul Walker is in talks to play the lead. Thu, 23 May 2013 15:09:28 +1000 <![CDATA[Bullets for the Dead heralds Oz-UK co-venture]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/23/article/Bullets-for-the-Dead-heralds-Oz-UK-co-venture/HIOBCKQPJP.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/23/article/Bullets-for-the-Dead-heralds-Oz-UK-co-venture/HIOBCKQPJP.html Don Groves Zombie Western Bullets for the Dead is due to roll in Queensland in July, the first in a slate of low-budget genre films from a new joint venture between Cathy Overett’s Brisbane-based Cathartic Pictures and UK sales agent Stealth Media Group. Overett told IF the aim is to produce two or three films a year, each budgeted at $3 million, using the 40 per cent Australian producer tax offset, which Stealth will sell internationally. The $2 million Bullets for the Dead marks the feature debut of Australian writers-directors Joshua C. Birch and Michael Du-Shane, developed from a 3-minute film, 26 Bullets Dead, which they shot in 2011 when they were students at the Griffith Film School. The plot revolves around a bounty hunter (Christopher Sommers) who escorts a fiery young woman (Kathryn Beck) and her gang of misfits to the sheriff. En route he discovers the remains of a massacre and rescues its sole survivor, a preacher (Hugh Parker). The cast, all locals, includes Troy MacKinder and Renaud Jadin as gang members. Sommers appeared in Overett’s first film, Unfinished Sky, in 2007. Beck’s film credits include Super Awesome!, These Final Hours, Not Suitable for Children and Burning Man. Parker and Jadin appear in director Stephen Lance’s upcoming romantic drama My Mistress, which stars Emmanuelle Béart, Harrison Gilbertson and Rachael Blake. Griffith Film School is an investor in Bullets for the Dead. Next on the slate is vampire movie Bite, a co-production between Cathartic Pictures, Stealth’s production arm Spice Factory, and Yorkshire-based Green Screen Productions. Due to shoot in Oz in October, it’s from Spanish writer-director Alberto Sciamma, who met Birch and Du-Shane when he was artist-in-residence at Griffith Film School. The narrative follows criminals who set out to kidnap a billionaire’s daughter and more than meet their match.Œ Overett was a producer on the Finnish-German-Australian co-prod Iron Sky, which Stealth sold internationally. Sciamma’s credits include The Killer Tongue, Anazapta and Jericho Mansions. As part of the co-venture with Stealth Media, Overett will represent the UK company’s back catalogue in Australia and New Zealand and seek to executive-produce UK-Australian co-productions.Œ “Stealth has a number of Australian films on our books and we are keen for more,” said Stealth’s joint CEO Michael Cowan. “Having worked with Cathy across these three films so far it was a natural progression to partner up with her for sales in ANZ.” Cowan said Stealth Australia is looking to pick up 2-3 films a year out of Australia, in addition to those produced in-house. Œ Thu, 23 May 2013 14:46:05 +1000 <![CDATA[Hard Drive revs up in Queensland]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/22/article/Hard-Drive-revs-up-in-Queensland/JGCKOLQFUH.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/22/article/Hard-Drive-revs-up-in-Queensland/JGCKOLQFUH.html Don Groves John Cusack and Thomas Jane are set to star inŒHard Drive, a thriller that starts shooting in Queensland on June 4. The writer-director is Los Angeles-based Brian Trenchard-Smith. It’s his second film to be shot on the Gold Coast following last year’s Absolute Deception, which stars Cuba Gooding Jr. and Emmanuelle Vaugier and was acquired by Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions in the US.Œ Cusack will play a mysterious American who arrives in Brisbane and goes looking for a getaway driver. He hires a driving school instructor and washed-out Formula One driver (Jane). There follows a chase along the Gold Coast as the duo is pursued by the cops and the Mob. Casting is underway for the supporting roles including the lawyer wife of Jane’s character, a no-nonsense female Australian Federal Police Officer, a ruthless businessman and a corrupt cop. The producers are Odyssey’s Paul O’Kane and Pam Collis, in association with LA-based Voltage Pictures. Odyssey’s Kirk Shaw is the exec producer. Voltage is handling international sales.Œ It’s Trenchard-Smith’s 42rd film. The director started his career in Australia on films such as The Man From Hong Kong, Stunt Rock, BMX Bandits and Turkey Shoot. Odyssey Film Studios Australia and sister company Odyssey Media Inc. Canada’s credits include the Australian shot features Bad Karma, starring Ray Liotta and Dominic Purcell, and Absolute Deception, and the North American produced features Uwe Boll’s Suddenly, starring Purcell, and Out of Reach with Erin Karpluk. Wed, 22 May 2013 15:56:16 +1000 <![CDATA[Creative Fellowships awarded for two short films]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/22/article/Creative-Fellowships-awarded-for-two-short-films/FOEGSKHQBD.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/22/article/Creative-Fellowships-awarded-for-two-short-films/FOEGSKHQBD.html Staff Writer Emerging filmmakers Carl Firth and Damien Power will each receive $50,000 to write and direct a short film. Both have been awarded Creative Fellowships from the AFTRS designed to fund “daring and adventurous projects.” Firth will make The Immortal, which follows a man’s quest for immortality – and what happens when he gets it. Power’s project is Detours, which intercuts the Edgar J. Ulmer’s 1945 film noir thriller Detour with a new story about a woman in the grip of an existential crisis. Last year Power’s films Bat Eyes and Boot were selected among the 50 semi-finalists (from 15,000 submissions worldwide) in YouTube/Scott Free’s inaugural Your Film Festival. Firth directed the short comedy The Water and has worked in various roles on features such as Australia, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Paradise Lost, The Great Gatsby, The Wolverine and the TV series House Husbands.Œ Now in its fourth year, the AFTRS Creative Fellowship is designed to advance the work of outstanding creative voices in the screen arts and broadcasting sector. Wed, 22 May 2013 15:50:47 +1000 <![CDATA[Pig Hunt set to run amok in the Outback]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/22/article/Pig-Hunt-set-to-run-amok-in-the-Outback/ERHXCBPQTT.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/22/article/Pig-Hunt-set-to-run-amok-in-the-Outback/ERHXCBPQTT.html Don Groves Iron Sky producer Mark Overett is developing Pig Hunt, a violent thriller about a family man who gets caught up in a deadly cat-and-mouse game in the Australian Outback. The film will be co-produced by Overett’s New Holland Pictures and UK-based Feature One. The script is by Englishman Ross Williams. No director has yet been announced. It’s set to shoot in the first half of 2014. The project was unveiled during the Cannes Film Market. Overett said, “Pig Hunt is a project that has a clearly defined audience which is currently under-served in the market place. Working with the team at Feature One is an exciting opportunity to further explore the world of co-productions following our successful productions with Denmark, Germany, Holland, Finland and New Zealand.” The plot follows the protagonist Doug Richards as he’s forced to choose between life or death after a young couple is killed and their stash of $2 million is found. Feature One was founded by Tull and director Ben O’Connor in 2007. Its first feature was the drama Ana Begins. The UK company is also developing Lillemor, a co-production with the UK’s Midsummer Films and Sweden’s Little Big Productions, which will star Lina Leandersson (Let the Right One In) and Samantha Morton. Tull also wrote Zombie rom-com The Cannibal Chicken Eaters, which was optioned by UH Films and is currently seeking finance. Wed, 22 May 2013 10:44:21 +1000 <![CDATA[Plaza Films to rep New York directors Down Under]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/22/article/Plaza-Films-to-rep-New-York-directors-Down-Under/QBFGDCICZX.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/22/article/Plaza-Films-to-rep-New-York-directors-Down-Under/QBFGDCICZX.html Don Groves Australian TVC house Plaza Films has secured Australia and New Zealand representation of New York- based affiliate production house aWHITELABELproduct’s roster of international directors. The roster includes visual artists Olivier Gondry and Stephane Sednaoui, photographers/directors Peter Glanz, Eugenio Recuenco and Carter Smith and Icelandic DJs turned directors Arni and Kinski. The alliance was announced at the weekend on Plaza Film’s Facebook page. The Aussie company’s roster includes Nick Robertson, Paul Middleditch, Barney Howells and James Pilkington. Wed, 22 May 2013 10:26:08 +1000 <![CDATA[The curtain falls on International Casting Services]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/21/article/The-curtain-falls-on-International-Casting-Services/SWLQVROGIJ.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/21/article/The-curtain-falls-on-International-Casting-Services/SWLQVROGIJ.html Don Groves One of Australia’s longest-established talent agencies, International Casting Services (ICS), is closing its doors. Other agents expressed sadness and surprise that the agency founded by the late Gloria Payten in 1961 is going out of business. ICS represented dozens of Australian artists working in film, television, theatre, radio and commercial media platforms. Its creatives department looked after choreographers, cinematographers, designers, directors and writers while ICS Voices provided talent for TV and radio commercials, documentaries, corporate presentations, book readings and business events. According to the agency’s website its roster included Jacki Weaver (who now works mostly in the US, where she’s repped by ICM Partners, Elevate Entertainment and Felker Tocezk), Kris McQuade, John Waters, Martin Sacks, Rachel Blake, Helen Morse, Drew Forsythe, John Gaden, Tony Martin, Philip Quast, Debra Lawrance and Lorna Lesley. Word of ICS’s demise spread on Monday after the Darlinghurst-based agency sent emails to its clients advising of the closure, and some approached other agencies. Senior agent Pauline Lee was not available for comment on Tuesday but IF believes she is retiring and that another senior ICS agent, Melina McKenna, is joining Lisa Mann Creative Management. Mark Morrissey of Mark Morrissey & Associates said on Facebook, “I've admired and respected this agency, their agents and client list ever since I began in this business more than 30 years ago. Wonderful characters like Pauline Lee will be sorely missed - never replaced. I admired ICS as old school, tough, sincere, doing the hard work for their clients for all the right reasons. I wish Pauline and everyone at ICS a heartfelt thank you for guiding and caring for the many, many talented people they introduced to this industry.” Actor Andrew McFarlane said, “That is indeed sad news...a wonderful agency. My first agent, Gloria Payten, set me on my theatrical career when I was fresh out of NIDA in 1973. Philomena Moore and then the wonderful Pauline Lee were all instrumental in guiding me in my career for over 25 years. Wonderful memories and many, many thanks to this wonderful agency.Œ Fellow actor Tony Bonner said, “Indeed a sad day when any institution, let alone an iconic one pulls the shutters down. ICS was always held in high regard within the industry.” Casting director Peter Rasmussen said, “That's terrible. A wonderful, respectable agency.” Œ Tue, 21 May 2013 14:20:12 +1000 <![CDATA[Aussie box-office gets the staggers]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/21/article/Aussie-box-office-gets-the-staggers/FQPERZKHAH.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/21/article/Aussie-box-office-gets-the-staggers/FQPERZKHAH.html Don Groves Ticket sales at Australian cinemas this year are running at about 7 per cent below the same period in 2012 despite strong trading in January and April, weighed down by relatively soft results in February and March. Takings for the May 16-19 frame totalled just under $9.5 million, down 22 per cent on the prior weekend, as Star Trek Into Darkness and Iron Man 3 dominated the business. “The market is rather shallow with no robust depth below the top two titles,” observed one distributor. Of the debutants, The Call, the female-skewed thriller starring Halle Berry and Abigail Breslin, overshadowed the male-oriented Dwayne Johnson drama Snitch. Outside the top 10, Tabu, the African-set melodrama from Portuguese auteur Miguel Gomes, posted a healthy $73,000 on 12 screens, which brings the cumulative total to nearly $160,000.Œ Josh Boone’s US indie romantic drama A Place for Me, which stars Greg Kinnear and Jennifer Connelly as a divorced couple, was misplaced, taking $67,000 on 32 screens.Œ Rave reviews for English director Rufus Norris’ brutally violent drama Broken set in North London and starring Tim Roth failed to spark interest as the film earned $32,000 on 10 screens. Drift, the 1970s-set Aussie surfing drama, continues to swim against the tide despite Sam Worthington’s supporting actor role and some positive reviews. The $11.4 million film co-directed by Morgan O’Neill and Ben Nott has earned $727,000 after its third weekend and won’t reach $1 million. It seems the combination of surfing, drugs and the beach culture of the 70s did not resonate with cinemagoers.Œ Œ <img alt="" src="/image/box-office-graph-web-large.bmp" /> Tue, 21 May 2013 12:21:27 +1000 <![CDATA[Tim Worner upped to head of Seven West Media]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/21/article/Tim-Worner-upped-to-head-of-Seven-West-Media/TDSUQFNJKS.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/21/article/Tim-Worner-upped-to-head-of-Seven-West-Media/TDSUQFNJKS.html Staff Writer Veteran broadcaster Tim Worner is taking the reins of Seven West Media on July 1, replacing former oil industry executive Don Voelte who has filled the CEO role for just under a year after David Leckie stepped down.Œ Worner, who has served as the company’s CEO, broadcast television, since 2011, will get $2.6 million per year plus performance-related cash and shares incentives of up to 50 per cent of his salary. Voelte will become SWM's deputy chairman. Chairman Kerry Stokes said Voelte had always intended to remain as CEO in the short-term until a successor was named.Œ Stokes said of Worner, “He deserves it. He’s the right man for the job. He is an outstanding executive and has played a key role in Seven’s success.” Worner takes charge of Seven’s three TV channels, The West Australian, Pacific Magazines and the Yahoo!7 joint venture. He began his career as a reporter with Seven News in Perth before moving to head of sport for the network in Melbourne. He was appointed director of programming and production in 2002. Tue, 21 May 2013 10:37:08 +1000 <![CDATA[Screen Australia announces new internships, almost $360,000 in funding]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/20/article/Screen-Australia-announces-new-internships-almost-360000-in-funding/WDWUFQJHYQ.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/20/article/Screen-Australia-announces-new-internships-almost-360000-in-funding/WDWUFQJHYQ.html Staff Writer Screen Australia has committed almost $360,000 in funding to assist 15 filmmaking teams and three new internships. The announcement, made earlier today, confirmed eight new projects will receive Screen Australia support while another seven teams will benefit from continued funding.Œ The new projects to receive support include I Am Jack, Confessions of a Super Man, Long Tan, Mulan, Common Foe, and Soundtrack.Œ Three internships, developed through Screen Australia’s Talent Escalator Project, will send Australian filmmakers overseas to further develop their chosen crafts.Œ Writer/director Alex Murawski will work alongside Bruce Beresford in Los Angeles for three months on Beresford’s latest production Bonnie and Clyde. Natalie Lindwall will gain six months experience in the UK working with Ecosse Flims as a development producer, and producer Raquelle David will spend six months in Toronto working with Niv Fichman at Rhombus Media.Œ Also through the Talent Escalator Program, Screen Australia will assist directors Cris Jones, Vicki Sugars and Julietta Boscolo, in travelling to the Netherlands to develop their feature projects at the Binger Director Lab. See below for the full list of announced feature projects in development or visit the Screen Australia website:Œ<a href="http://www.screenaustralia.gov.au">http://www.screenaustralia.gov.au</a> SINGLE-PROJECT DEVELOPMENT: FEATURE DEVELOPMENT BAD ANGEL Genre Comedy Producers Antonia Barnard, Nicholas Cole Director Kriv Stenders Writer Shaun Grant Synopsis The transformation of Angelo d'Angelo, a New York hit man who is unwittingly embraced into the bosom of a simple, rural Australian community. For the first time, Angelo learns that love and family are just as effective as any weapon he's ever known. COMMON FOE Genre Action Producer/Writer Rob Gibson Writer/Director Josh Reed CONFESSIONS OF A SUPER MAN Genre Horror Drama Producer Marian Macgowan Writer/Director Angela How Synopsis Brian, an indulged Australian Chinese teenage sociopath, records his violent life via a superhero comic strip of his own creation. When Brian's desire for his father's mistress ends in their death, his mother acts to finally stop her son. DOWNRIVER (AKA SCRATCH THE SURFACE) Genre Thriller Drama Producer Jannine Barnes Writer/Director Grant Scicluna Synopsis Seventeen-year-old James is released from juvenile detention and travels back to the scene of his crime to find the body of the young boy he killed when he was 10. HALFWAY MOTEL Genre Psychological Drama Producer Lyn Norfor Writer/Director Miranda Nation I AM JACK Genre Drama Producer Stephan Wellink Executive Producer David Whealy Writer Susanne Gervay Director Nadia Tass Synopsis Jack's a great guy, but school bullying is insidious, taking Jack and everyone around him to the edge. LONG TAN Genre Drama Producers Charles Hannah, Martin Walsh Executive Producers Meyer Shwarzstein, Peter Wetherell Writers Jack Brislee, James Nicholas, Karel Segers, Paul Sullivan Director Kriv Stenders Synopsis Major Harry Smith and his company of 108 young and mostly inexperienced Australian and New Zealand soldiers hold off an overwhelming enemy force of 2,500 battle-hardened Viet Cong and North Vietnamese soldiers in the Battle of Long Tan. LOS ALAMOS Genre Thriller Producers Iain Canning, Emile Sherman Writer Luke Davies Synopsis Michael Connolly, a disgraced intelligence operative, enters a labyrinth of secrets and espionage when he arrives at the high-security military base of Los Alamos in Spring, 1945. Sent to investigate a seemingly open-and-shut murder case, Connolly is thrown into the heart of the Manhattan Project and must navigate a path through military protocol, political intrigue and personal agendas in order to uncover the truth in the most secretive place in the world. MICHAEL Genre Biopic Producers Richard Lowenstein, Sue Murray Executive Producer Domenico Procacci Writer/Director Richard Lowenstein Synopsis At the height of his internationally renowned career, a sudden blow to the head robs the famously sensual rock star of two of his most cherished senses. A series of personal battles follows, ending tragically with his death at the age of 37, the night before embarking on a world tour. MULAN Genre Action Adventure Producer Emile Sherman Writer Jan Sardi ONE CROWDED HOUR Genre Biopic Producer Todd Fellman Writer Andy Cox Director Lance Kelleher Synopsis Legendary combat cameraman Neil Davis spent over 20 years from the early 60s risking his life on the frontlines of Indo-China to capture some of the most powerful and influential images of war in an effort to save the people and culture he had grown to love. SOUNDTRACK Genre Musical Executive Producer Michael Birnbaum Writer Stephen Chamberlin TALENT ESCALATOR PROGRAMS: INTERNATIONAL WORKSHOPS JULIETTA BOSCOLO – CATCHING SIGHT – BINGER DIRECTOR LAB Genre Drama/Comedy Producer Linda Micsko Writer/Director Julietta Boscolo Synopsis A 30-year-old blind woman regains her sight; but will she be able to accept the flaws she sees in her past and find love? CRIS JONES – BYZANTIUM – BINGER DIRECTOR LAB Genre Drama Producers Melanie Coombs, Mish Armstrong, Alicia Brown Writer/Director Cris Jones Synopsis After a road accident on the highway, a young man finds himself trapped in a strange, remote town, where nothing – and no one – is as it seems. VICKI SUGARS – U-TURN – BINGER DIRECTOR LAB Genre Drama Producers Julie Byrne, Vicki Sugars Director Vicki Sugars Synopsis Fifteen-year-old Babe learns how to turn her family's grief around when her sister is killed in a car accident. TALENT ESCALATOR PROGRAMS: INDUSTRY INTERNSHIPS RAQUELLE DAVID INTERNSHIP Producer Raquelle David will spend six months in Toronto, Canada, working directly with producer Niv Fichman across the development and production slate at Rhombus Media (Blindness, The Red Violin, Antiviral). NATALIE LINDWALL INTERNSHIP Natalie Lindwall will spend six months as a Development Producer across film and television with the award-winning London-based company, Ecosse Films (Diana, Wuthering Heights). ALEX MURAWSKI INTERNSHIPŒ Writer/director Alex Murawski will spend three months in Los Angeles working with director Bruce Beresford (Driving Miss Daisy, Black Robe, Mao's Last Dancer) on his new production of Bonnie & Clyde. Œ Mon, 20 May 2013 15:00:00 +1000 <![CDATA[Veteran film and TV actor Penne Hackforth-Jones passes away]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/20/article/Veteran-film-and-TV-actor-Penne-Hackforth-Jones-passes-away/GTOTWJCSVP.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/20/article/Veteran-film-and-TV-actor-Penne-Hackforth-Jones-passes-away/GTOTWJCSVP.html Don Groves Actor Penne Hackforth-Jones, a pillar of Australian films and TV for more than 40 years, died in Melbourne on Friday from lung cancer, aged 63. Her illness was diagnosed in 2012 but she wished to keep the diagnosis private while her father was still alive. She relocated to Melbourne in 2011 to be close to and care for her elderly parents both of whom died recently. “Penne responded to her own terminal diagnosis with great courage and grace,” said her sisters Jos Hackforth-Jones, Simary Hackforth-Jones and Olivia McNally. “Her health deteriorated in April, but she was able to remain at home because of the wonderful support from her GP, Mercy and Alfred Palliative care units and friends. Her last weeks were peaceful and happy. She died surrounded by flowers and cards from those closest to her and cared for by family and close friends. She was dearly loved by relations and friends and much liked and respected by colleagues and fans. Her sisters will remember her infectious sense of humour and her gentleness, wit and beguiling charm together with the great joy and comfort that she brought our parents at the end of their lives.“Œ There will be a private family service next week followed by a memorial service in Melbourne on May 31. The tributes are flowing for the highly respected performer who made her screen debut in TV’s Riptide in 1969. “Devastated to hear Penne Hackforth-Jones has left us. Generous and beautiful, she will be greatly missed,” producer Jane Scott posted on Facebook. “RIP Penelope Hackforth-Jones (actor), Bellbird and many wonderful Australian film and TV productions,” said radio and TV personality Jono Coleman. “Sadly lost so young. I had a big crush on her after GTK on ABC-TV every night after school.” “A beautiful person with a wonderful voice - worked with Penne for many years at UKTV. Vale Penne - you will be missed,” said Phyllisse Stanton. “RIP Penne a stunningly beautiful woman, “declared actor Chris Haywood. Cinematographer Peter James said, “Penne was a true professional actress who always brought a lightness and fun to the set. I loved working with her.” “I'd often see Penne at the Village and I never stopped to tell her how great an actress she was,” said actor Adam Zwar. “She had such a delicate touch. Funny too, telling Rachel Griffiths' character in Muriel's Wedding: 'You can't come in here and threaten brides. I don't care how unfortunate you are.'” Born in Connecticut US, she was raised in Australia. After her breakthrough in Riptide she was a regular in series such as Bellbird, GP, A Country Practice and All Saints. Among her numerous film credits were Alvin Purple, Muriel’s Wedding, Paradise Road, Black and White, The Tree and Mao's Last Dancer.Œ In 2011 she starred in ABC-TV’s Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries and Foxtel’s Conspiracy 365. Her final screen role was in ABC-TV’s The Doctor Blake Mysteries. She posted the last entry in her personal blog in April last year, a tribute to The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. Identifying with the characters, she wrote, “We are all moving in into this shadowland and dealing with it with as much of our better natures as we can muster.” Mon, 20 May 2013 14:31:11 +1000 <![CDATA[The Rocket set to launch in the US]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/20/article/The-Rocket-set-to-launch-in-the-US/OHHDYPQEWO.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/20/article/The-Rocket-set-to-launch-in-the-US/OHHDYPQEWO.html Don Groves Festival accolades have translated to a significant commercial deal for first-time director Kim Mordaunt’s Laos-set feature The Rocket, which will be released in US cinemas nationwide in the northern autumn. The deal was negotiated at the Cannes Film Market last week with US distributor Kino Lorber by Tine Klint of Danish-based international sales agent LevelK. That’s the fifth Australian film to secure theatrical release in the US this year, or six if The Great Gatsby is included. The Sapphires has raked in $US2 million after nine weeks, now playing on 102 screens, for The Weinstein Co.Œ Dada Films gave P. J. Hogan’s Mental a token exposure at 12 screens in key cities in March, released on the same day on Video-On-Demand platforms. Kieran Darcy-Smith’s Wish You Were Here premieres on June 7 via eOne and Wrekin Hill Entertainment will launch Ben Nott and Morgan O’Neill’s Drift in August. The Rocket will have its Australian premiere at the Sydney Film Festival next month and will debut in cinemas on August 29 via Curious Film. Hailing the US deal, producer Sylvia Wilczynski of Red Lamp Films said, “We're really happy that our film is in the very capable and dedicated hands of Kino Lorber and that a wide US and Canadian audience will have the chance to see it.” Kino Lorber will release the film on digital, VOD and home media platforms in 2014. The plot revolves around a boy, Ahlo, a twin, who fears he is cursed because his tribe is convinced twins bring bad luck. To try to disprove that belief, he sets out to build a giant rocket to compete in the lucrative but dangerous Rocket Festival. Writer-director Mordaunt, Thai-based casting director Raweeporn Jungmeier and location casting director Tanawat Punya auditioned children in schools, markets, temples, drama and youth groups and on the streets. They cast 10-year-old Sitthiphon Disamoe to play Ahlo and eight-year-old Loungnam Kaosainam as his friend Kia. Veteran Lao/Thai actor and comedian Thep Phongam plays Purple, a former CIA soldier who becomes a mentor to the young hero. At this year’s TriBeca Film Festival in New York the film and won best narrative feature, the audience award for best narrative film and best actor in a narrative feature for Disamoe. At the Berlinale festival in February, it nabbed the gongs for best first feature, the Amnesty International prize and the Crystal Bear for best feature in the Generation KPlus section. Œ “Very few Australian films get a cinema release in the US and I think early on in the production nobody would have expected that The Rocket would be one of the few that do, being set in a country most Americans have never heard of, so far away, with a modest budget and in Lao language,” ŒWilczynski told IF.Œ “But Kim and I always aimed to make a film that would be accessible to a wide audience, not an ‘Arthouse’ with a capital A film. We wanted to make a universal story that anyone could relate to whilst also enabling the audience to enter a world they have never seen before.Œ Americans (and Australians) love an underdog story, and New York audiences responded to The Rocket's fresh take on this; they were so taken with the guts and ‘never give up’ attitude of the main character Ahlo that they loved the film. ”Once we started seeing the response of audiences at TriBeca, reading the flood of great press out there, and seeing it at the top of the daily audience favourites, we knew it would have a strong chance at a release in America. And when the film won the awards at TriBeca - especially the Audience Award - we knew it would happen. There were Œmany offers and it was a case of collaborating with the distributor who would treat the film with the love and care it needs and hand-craft a release that suits this film. Kino Lorber is the perfect fit.” As for the next project from Red Lamp, Sylvia says, “It is a love story set between Australia and an international location, within the context of the legacy of war.Œ That is a theme we simply cannot leave.” Read more here:Œ The Rocket wins best debut feature film at Berlin Film Festival <a href="http://if.com.au/2013/02/17/article/The-Rocket-wins-best-debut-feature-film-at-Berlin-Film-Festival/HDEOOWDTFU.html">http://if.com.au/2013/02/17/article/The-Rocket-wins-best-debut-feature-film-at-Berlin-Film-Festival/HDEOOWDTFU.html</a> The Rocket bags a number of awards at TriBeca <a href="http://if.com.au/2013/04/29/article/New-York-Australian-feature-The-Rocket-bags-number-of-awards-at-TriBeca/CFYSGASKVP.html">http://if.com.au/2013/04/29/article/New-York-Australian-feature-The-Rocket-bags-number-of-awards-at-TriBeca/CFYSGASKVP.html</a> Œ Mon, 20 May 2013 09:10:37 +1000 <![CDATA[Don Groves joins IF team as Senior Journalist]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/20/article/Don-Groves-joins-IF-team-as-Senior-Journalist/PJCUNCYEOW.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/20/article/Don-Groves-joins-IF-team-as-Senior-Journalist/PJCUNCYEOW.html Inside Film Correspondent IF is pleased to announce the appointment of Don Groves to the role of Senior Journalist. Groves has spent 24 years with Variety in Sydney and London, and most recently has contributed to Deadline.com Hollywood and SBS Film.Œ He has also worked for Foxtel as the in-house movie critic and as Showtime’s film commentator.Œ IF Editor, Emily Blatchford, says, “It’s an absolute pleasure to welcome Don to the IF team. Don has worked in entertainment reporting for over 20 years, and his knowledge and experience in the industry will no doubt be a huge asset to both our print and online publications.”Œ Groves says, “I am delighted to join the IF Magazine team led by Emily.Œ “My passion is writing about and analysing the Australian screen industries, watching content and talking to the sectors’ executives and creative types. I relish the chance to regularly report the news and write features and analytical pieces for the magazine and newsletters.” Groves commences employment on 20 May, 2013.Œ Mon, 20 May 2013 08:49:18 +1000 <![CDATA[Gatsby receives lukewarm reception at Cannes, Luhrmann defends film to press]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/17/article/Gatsby-receives-lukewarm-reception-at-Cannes-Luhrmann-defends-film-to-press/USKOPTEYFR.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/17/article/Gatsby-receives-lukewarm-reception-at-Cannes-Luhrmann-defends-film-to-press/USKOPTEYFR.html Emily Blatchford Various media reports are claiming Baz Luhrmann’s highly-anticipated film The Great Gatsby received a less than enthusiastic reception at the Cannes Film Festival. Gatsby, though not competing at Cannes, was a surprise choice to open the 66th Festival. In the spirit of the film’s Jazz-age, 1920’s “flapper” dancers hit the red carpet on Wednesday night as well as stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Carey Mulligan, Tobey Maguire and director Luhrmann.Œ Despite the party atmosphere of both the festival and the film, Gatsby did not appear to inspire much excitement in the audience.Œ According to Gregg Kilday of the Hollywood reporter, “instead of a de rigeur standing ovation, the 3D movie’s conclusion was met with polite but muted applause.”Œ ABC Online went one further, claiming “the Roaring Twenties classic got a cool reception at a press screening, where it met prolonged silence punctuated by some whistles of disapproval and a smattering of supportive applause.”Œ Luhrmann has defended his film against the mixed reviews to the press.Œ "I knew that would come. I just care people are seeing it," he said.Œ However he also joked he wouldn’t be adverse to some positive reviews if critics were leaning that way.Œ “I mean I made Moulin Rouge! and Romeo and Juliet, and Strictly Ballroom for that matter,” he said. “And they never got one of those big high critic scores. By the way, don’t get the wrong idea, I love it, so if you’re thinking about it go for it. Don’t hold back!” The Great Gatsby hits Australian cinemas on May 30.Œ Fri, 17 May 2013 09:48:10 +1000 <![CDATA[Troubled Waters: Jane Campion on Top of the Lake]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/17/article/Troubled-Waters-Jane-Campion-on-Top-of-the-Lake/OPAAWLSUSM.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/17/article/Troubled-Waters-Jane-Campion-on-Top-of-the-Lake/OPAAWLSUSM.html Brendan Swift It’s mid-December and Jane Campion is three days away from finishing post-production on the final episode of TV series Top of the Lake. We’re sitting in See-Saw Films’ Paddington office and she’s looking at her phone reading a message from leading lady Elisabeth Moss. She’s pleased and Moss is ecstatic. “‘Jane, you can have whatever you want... you can have my first-born child. I just watched the first two episodes: I’m completely blown away, I’m speechless.’” It’s a ringing endorsement from the American actor whose casting nearly turned the New Zealand-set production on its head before a single frame was even shot. Moss plays Robin Griffin, a straight-talking detective called into investigate the mysterious disappearance of a pregnant twelve year-old in Top of the Lake, Campion’s six-part crime mystery involving lashings of murder, drugs and sex. For the director, Moss’ initial audition was little more than an “experiment” following a long list of Antipodeans. “She very quietly made it riveting and everybody felt she could make it work. There was a lot of discussion about accents as per usual but I’ve always had good luck with accents and confidence about them and knowing someone’s got a good ear they can get there.” The casting of her enigmatic “Mona Lisa” may have cost the production the support of the ABC but was central to the artistic vision that underpins Campion’s first foray into television in more than 20 years. (Her 1990 film An Angel at my Table – about New Zealand novelist Janet Frame – was originally filmed as a three-hour TV miniseries special before being reedited for the big screen.) Her unique work has consistently focused on the lives of women who reside outside of mainstream society in films such as The Piano, Bright Star, In The Cut and Holy Smoke! Campion herself is one of just four women to be nominated for best director at the Academy Awards (she won for best screenplay) and the first to win the Palme d'Or at the Cannes International Film Festival for The Piano in the early-90s. It was Campion’s unique style that BBC controller of drama, Ben Stephenson, first wanted to bring to television screens. His directions were simple: “We want you to be completely yourself – as creative, as dangerous, as out there, as on-the-edge as you can be,” according to Campion. “So that’s a very different invitation than what you normally get: ‘Make it popular’.” By Campion’s side was co-writer Gerard Lee, who she first worked with on her debut feature film Sweetie in the late-80s. “I wasn’t sure how serious Jane was because you know [laughs] I’m just a nobody. I was sort of living on this island off Brisbane with a lot of very strange folk and I’d kind of almost forgotten about being a writer. I was being a dad and stuff like that.” Campion describes Lee as one of the great storytellers like US author David Sedaris. “There was an ease to it and I thought if Gerard would do this with me we could do it – I didn’t want to do it by myself. And I couldn’t really imagine doing it with anyone else.” Directing duties were also shared, this time with newcomer Garth Davis – a new experience for Campion. “You have to find the person that is correctly positioned. People like David Michôd [Animal Kingdom] and Justin Kurzel [Snowtown], well, they’d really created their vision and they needed to go on and make their second features and do other stuff and, even though we could have given them a lot of experience directing – which everybody appreciates – they want to do their own thing. Garth had done amazing commercials and short films but for some particular reason he really identified with the material: the women’s camp, and understood the humour and the tenderness as well as the darkness...” Davis, who has directed several TV commercials including the award-winning Toohey’s Nocturnal Migration, also took the production into some more controversial territory: actors killing sheep (Lee says the sheep were going to be killed regardless). “That’s a pretty new experience for urban actors and they did it – it wouldn’t be something I’d suggest,” Campion says. “I’d be a bit timid to do something so radical but Garth’s quite radical. It’s a ‘guy thing’ I think too.” Aside from Moss, Top of the Lake drew an impressive cast including Holly Hunter (her first collaboration with Campion since her Academy Award-winning performance in The Piano), BAFTA-nominee Peter Mullan (War Horse), AFI Award-winning actor David Wenham (300), Thomas M Wright (Balibo), Genevieve Lemon (Sweetie), theatre actress Robyn Nevin, Robyn Malcolm (Rake), Jay Ryan (Offspring), Kip Chapman (The Cult) and Madeleine Sami (Super City). Just who kills the sheep is yet to be revealed. While the pace was more gruelling than a feature – an 18-week shooting schedule – Campion says she relished the freedom. Top of the Lake is part of a growing trend of complex drama being brought to the small screen rather than cinemas: TV series such as Deadwood, Mad Men and The Killing. Campion cites 2004 crime-thriller documentary The Staircase as a particular inspiration for Top of the Lake. “Its length is six-hours and I felt like it really held me. That’s what we’re trying to do: it’s not like an episodic thing so much as a story which grows and grows... we want to give people that accelerated need to know what’s going to happen.” The crossover – bringing cinematic storytelling to a TV drama – was recognised by the Sundance Film Festival, which screened the series in one six-hour session. It was the first time the prestigious festival included a scripted long-form series in its line-up. “It’s like being force fed a whole novel in a day and all you have to do is sit there and look at it,” Lee says. Moss clearly needs no such forcing. Campion continues to read the message from her leading lady: “‘I was on the edge of my seat – I couldn’t breathe. I was grinning like a fool at the end of episode two knowing what was coming... I have to see the rest. Jane, it looks like we did it didn’t we – we made something really good, didn’t we.’” This article first appeared in IF Magazine issue #151 Fri, 17 May 2013 09:04:16 +1000 <![CDATA[AACTA announces changes to Awards, six new awards created for television craft]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/16/article/AACTA-announces-changes-to-Awards-six-new-awards-created-for-television-craft/LZWVHOHFXY.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/16/article/AACTA-announces-changes-to-Awards-six-new-awards-created-for-television-craft/LZWVHOHFXY.html Emily Blatchford The Australian Academy of Cinema Television Arts has announced a number of changes to their annual awards, including the creation of six television craft awards. Numerous factors prompted AACTA to conduct a review of the Awards earlier this year. Namely, AACTA sought to restructure the awards in light of their current financial situation (AACTA is still looking for a new naming rights sponsor) as well as feedback from AACTA’s guild partnerships and an industry appeal for additional rewards.Œ The 3rd AACTA Awards will feature a total of 40 AACTA awards – just one less than last year – however with the creation of six new awards; others have been placed on hold indefinitely.Œ These include Best Direction in a Documentary, Best Cinematography in a Documentary, Best Sound in a Documentary, Best Editing in a Documentary, Best Visual Effects, Best Young Actor, Best Screenplay in a short film and the discretional Outstanding Achievement in a Short Film Screen Craft Award.Œ The AACTA Award for Outstanding Achievement in Feature Length Documentary Screen Craft will now be a discretionary award, as will the Best Performance in a Television Comedy.Œ Overall, AACTA CEO Damian Trewhella said he was pleased with the restructuring given the organisation’s financial position and the growing need to better recognise television crafts.Œ “We did our own survey later last year and found a unanimous response to the fact there was a lack of recognition in Australia for screen professionals. In particular television was a huge gap,” he says. “The problem is we can’t then just go and introduce [a bunch of new awards], we only have a limited number and we already have 40.Œ “But a recognition of television crafts is a priority for the industry at this time. There is agreement across the guilds on this. Australian television has continued to go from strength to strength and this has led us to a historic position, in that we are able to recognise television as well as film.Œ “It’s about finding the right mix; the most relevant mix for industry at this time.” Trewhella said he was saddened by the temporary loss of the VFX Award, which ultimately was decided too expensive an Award to run at this time.Œ “The VFX award – it’s a really important category and we are very disappointed not to be running that,” he says. “But it’s a labour intensive category. It covers short films, documentaries, TV showsˆ it’s very cost intensive to run and doesn’t have the revenue stream associated with it. “Maybe a campaign from VFX artists coordinated with industry may possibly see us squeeze something else in [in the future] – there’s a lot of jostling.”Œ The changes appear to have been welcomed by a number of guilds, with the APDG, AGSC, ASSG, ADG and ASE all issuing statements of support.Œ AACTA is also currently calling for entries and jurors. More information can be found here:Œ<a href="http://www.acta.org">http://www.acta.org</a> The 3rd AACTA Awards will be held in Sydney in 2014.Œ To see a full list of the 3rd AACTA Awards, see below:Œ 3rd AACTA AWARDS TELEVISION 1. AACTA Award for Best Children’s Television Series 2. AACTA Award for Best Television Comedy or Light Entertainment Series 3. AACTA Award for Best Reality Television Series 4. AACTA Award for Best Documentary Television Program 5. AACTA Award for Best Television Drama Series 6. AACTA Award for Best Telefeature or Mini Series 7. AACTA Award for Best Direction in Television (Drama) 8. AACTA Award for Best Direction in Television (Non-Drama) 9. AACTA Award for Best Screenplay in Television 10. AACTA Award for Best Cinematography in Television 11. AACTA Award for Best Editing in Television 12. AACTA Award for Best Sound in Television 13. AACTA Award for Best Original Music Score in Television 14. AACTA Award for Best Production Design in Television 15. AACTA Award for Best Costume Design in Television 16. AACTA Award for Best Lead Actor in a Television Drama 17. AACTA Award for Best Lead Actress in a Television Drama 18. AACTA Award for Best Guest or Supporting Actor in a Television Drama 19. AACTA Award for Best Guest or Supporting Actress in a Television Drama 20. AACTA Award for Best Performance in a Television Comedy (Discretionary) FEATURE LENGTH DOCUMENTARY 1. AACTA Award for Best Feature Length Documentary 2. AACTA Award for Outstanding Feature Length Documentary Screen Craft (Discretionary) SHORT FILM 1. AACTA Award for Best Short Fiction Film 2. AACTA Award for Best Short Animation FEATURE FILM 1. AACTA Award for Best Film 2. AACTA Award for Best Direction 3. AACTA Award for Best Original Screenplay 4. AACTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay 5. AACTA Award for Best Cinematography 6. AACTA Award for Best Editing 7. AACTA Award for Best Sound 8. AACTA Award for Best Original Music Score 9. AACTA Award for Best Production Design 10. AACTA Award for Best Costume Design 11. AACTA Award for Best Lead Actor 12. AACTA Award for Best Lead Actress 13. AACTA Award for Best Supporting Actor 14. AACTA Award for Best Supporting Actress ADDITIONAL AWARDS 1. AACTA Raymond Longford Award 2. Byron Kennedy Award Audience Choice Award(s) will be announced later in the year, as usual. Œ Thu, 16 May 2013 08:40:45 +1000 <![CDATA[Veteran sound recordist Don Connolly passes away, ASSG calls for tributes]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/15/article/Veteran-sound-recordist-Don-Connolly-passes-away-ASSG-calls-for-tributes/ZJTPXTDLVA.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/15/article/Veteran-sound-recordist-Don-Connolly-passes-away-ASSG-calls-for-tributes/ZJTPXTDLVA.html Emily Blatchford The ASSG has today informed membership of the regrettable passing of veteran sound recordist Don Connolly. Connolly has worked on a number of Australia’s most iconic films including Picnic at Hanging Rock, The Devil’s Playground and Gallipoli.Œ He was awarded two AFI Awards, one for his work on The Last Wave in 1978 and then for Gallipoli in 1981.Œ In 2000, the ASSG recognised his contribution to the Australian Screen Sound industry and awarded him with the ASSG Lifetime Achievement Award. He was also awarded the Australian Centenary Medal in the 2001 Queen's New Years Honours List for his services to Australian society through Australian film production. The ASSG are calling for tributes to Connolly to be emailed to admin@assg.org.au.Œ Tributes are also welcome to be posted below.Œ Wed, 15 May 2013 10:08:41 +1000 <![CDATA[Screen Australia supports second Asian Animation Summit]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/15/article/Screen-Australia-supports-second-Asian-Animation-Summit/GMLJSWUEDO.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/15/article/Screen-Australia-supports-second-Asian-Animation-Summit/GMLJSWUEDO.html Emily Blatchford Screen Australia has announced its support for the second annual Asian Animation Summit. Last year ten Australian television animation projects were presented at the inaugural AAS, which was held in Kuala Lumpur in December.Œ The AAS, this year to be held in Phuket, Thailand, is aimed at promoting the co-production and co-financing of children's animation across Asia.Œ The 2013 AAS has been extended by a day to allow more screening opportunities and will be held from 9-11 December.Œ An initiative of ABC TV and Screen Australia, Korea’s KOCCA and Malaysia’s MDeC, the AAS is produced and owned by Kidscreen and supported by Singapore’s Media Development Authority (MDA).Œ “The first AAS was highly successful, with a significant number of broadcasters and major distributors from the region and key players from Europe and North America in attendance,” said Screen Australia’s Head of Marketing Kathleen Drumm. “The quality of projects was outstanding and the AAS has proved to be a valuable way of tapping into the market potential of the Asian region. We are delighted to be working with our partners again on this exciting event.” This year, the AAS will feature up to 24 projects from the Asian region. Financial support from Screen Australia and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade will be available for up to six Australian producers so that they may attend the summit to present their projects. Applications open in July and online registration can be found hereŒ<a href="http://asiananimationsummit.com">http://asiananimationsummit.com</a> Attendees from Australia, Korea, Malaysia and Singapore can use the promo code AASPARTNER to access an exclusive discounted rate. Œ Wed, 15 May 2013 09:56:49 +1000 <![CDATA[Jo Dillon to join Screen Australia's Development Team, Christopher Sharp departs]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/14/article/Jo-Dillon-to-join-Screen-Australias-Development-Team-Christopher-Sharp-departs/LWHPQCYTFF.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/14/article/Jo-Dillon-to-join-Screen-Australias-Development-Team-Christopher-Sharp-departs/LWHPQCYTFF.html Inside Film Correspondent Screen Australia has today announced Jo Dillon will be replacing Christopher Sharp on its Development Team. Dillon has worked in Australia and in the UK in various roles, including journalist and broadcast commentator, Head of Development of UK production company Yipp Films and as a script and story consultant.Œ She has worked as an assessor and mentor for screen agencies in the UK and has also assessed scripts for Screen Australia previously, as well as Film Victoria and the Australian Writers’ Guild.Œ Sharp will be leaving Screen Australia in June to further his career in New York.Œ Screen Australia’s Head of Development Martha Coleman said, “We wish Christopher the very best at this exciting time in his career and it’s with real pleasure that we welcome Jo to the team. Jo has exceptional craft skills and her insight and sensitivity make her a great developer. She will be a wonderful resource for our filmmakers and a valuable member of the development team.” Jo will commence on 20 May 2013 and will be based in Screen Australia’s Melbourne office.Œ Tue, 14 May 2013 16:11:06 +1000 <![CDATA[AiF announces the 2013 finalists for Heath Ledger Scholarship]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/14/article/AiF-announces-the-2013-finalists-for-Heath-Ledger-Scholarship/RCAVYWVVDI.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/14/article/AiF-announces-the-2013-finalists-for-Heath-Ledger-Scholarship/RCAVYWVVDI.html Inside Film Correspondent Australians in Film President Andrew Warne has announced the fifteen finalists for the 2013 Heath Ledger Scholarship. The Scholarship is named after Oscar-winning Australian actor Heath Ledger, who tragically passed away in January 2008, and has the full support of the Ledger family and friends. Of the final fifteen, an esteemed panel will choose one winner and two runners-up, who will be announced in Los Angeles on June 12. The overall winner will received USD$10,000 in cash, a return ticket to Los Angeles, a one-year Scholarship to Stella Adler Acting School in LA, a trip around California for two a Showcast & Breakdown Services VIP casting package and $5000 worth of visa and immigration services. The runners up will round-trip ticket to Los Angeles plus a Showcast VIP casting package. The 2013 finalists are: Hannah Barlow, Elizabeth Blackmore (Home & Away), Laura Brent, David Coussins, Ashleigh Cummings (Puberty Blues), Georgia Flood (Wentworth & House Husbands), Geraldine Hakewill, Andrew Hazzard (Home & Away), Will Howarth, Reef Ireland(Puberty Blues), Kate Jenkinson (House Husbands and Home & Away), Andrew Lees (Rescue Special Ops), James Mackay (The Straights), Bob Morley (Neighbors and Home & Away) and Alex Williams(Underground, the Julian Assange story). They will be judged by a panel made up of actor Wes Bentley (Heath Ledger's co-star in Four Feathers), casting agents Ann Fay (Maura Fay Casting), Nikki Barrett (Barrett Casting) and Leslee Feldman(Dreamworks), directors Gregor Jordan (Ned Kelly) and Kieran Darcy-Smith (Wish You Were Here), talent manager Will Ward (ROAR) and agent Steve Alexander (Resolution). Benefactors of the Heath Ledger Scholarship include Nicole Kidman, Naomi Watts, Hugh Jackman,Deborra-Lee Furness, Michelle Williams, Phil Noyce, Baz Luhrmann and Catherine Martin. The Australians in Film 2013 Heath Ledger Scholarship is sponsored by Virgin Australia, AusFilm, Visit California, Raynor and Associates, Stella Adler Acting and Theatre and Showcast Breakdown Services. Tue, 14 May 2013 15:49:17 +1000 <![CDATA[Noah Taylor joins Hawke, Snook in Predestination cast]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/13/article/Noah-Taylor-joins-Hawke-Snook-in-Predestination-cast/TIJODGNVSJ.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/13/article/Noah-Taylor-joins-Hawke-Snook-in-Predestination-cast/TIJODGNVSJ.html Emily Blatchford Acclaimed Australian actor Noah Taylor will join Ethan Hawke and AACTA-Award winner Sarah Snook in the upcoming feature Predestination.Œ Taylor has featured in many Australian and international films, includingŒAlmost Famous, Shine, Tomb Raider, Red Dog, Submarine, The Proposition, Vanilla Sky and Simon Magus. Director/writers Peter and Michael Spierig said: “We are thrilled to have Noah join the cast of Predestination, we are big fans of his and his amazing body of work.” PredestinationŒtells the story of a detective sent on a complex mission back in time to seek out his younger self and catch the one criminal who has eluded him his entire life.Œ Principal photography is currently underway at Docklands Studios and other locations around Melbourne.Œ The film is produced by Blacklab Entertainment’s Tim McGahan and Wolfhound Pictures’ Patrick McDonald.Œ Pinnacle Films will distribute in Australia and New Zealand. Mon, 13 May 2013 15:09:40 +1000 <![CDATA[Gatsby posts impressive US box office opening weekend, Iron Man 3 still ahead]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/13/article/Gatsby-posts-impressive-US-box-office-opening-weekend-Iron-Man-3-still-ahead/EHCLHZAJGH.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/13/article/Gatsby-posts-impressive-US-box-office-opening-weekend-Iron-Man-3-still-ahead/EHCLHZAJGH.html Emily Blatchford Despite mixed reviews, Baz Luhrmann’s The Great Gatsby has posted an impressive box office opening weekend in the US, raking in $US51.1 million. However the adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel failed to match the success of Iron Man 3, starring Robert Downey Jr and Gwyneth Paltrow, which took US$72.5 million in North American cinemas for its second weekend.Œ This brings the box office total for Iron Man 3 to almost US$950 million internationally after only three weeks, making the third instalment of the popular franchise the number 21 film ever in the global box office.Œ Gatsby still exceeded expectations by distributor Warner Bros, who estimated the film, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Carey Mulligan, would only amass $35-40 million in its opening weekend.Œ The Great Gatsby Sydney premiere will be held on May 22, with the film hitting Australian cinema screens on May 30.Œ Mon, 13 May 2013 13:58:06 +1000 <![CDATA[Interview: Rebel Wilson on Pitch Perfect]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/13/article/Interview-Rebel-Wilson-on-Pitch-Perfect/ATGIAFFYXT.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/13/article/Interview-Rebel-Wilson-on-Pitch-Perfect/ATGIAFFYXT.html Yasmin Noone If you didn’t know she was a famous LA-resident, a screen star and America’s latest comedy ‘it’ girl, you would have glanced over at the blonde 20-something and then walked right on by. There was no chaos, ‘in your face’ entourage or fanfare. And despite her newfound reputation for being Hollywood’s big, bold and brash funny woman, there were no hilarious stunts or ‘fat girl’ character impressions – only the real Rebel Wilson, back visiting her home town, Sydney, after reaping movie-magic fortune in the US. “I love being an Aussie over there,” says the self-professed, now well-to-do ‘westie’ and star of the new musical comedy from Universal Pictures, Pitch Perfect. “I feel like we get special treatment. I don’t know why? Maybe cos we‘re good! I really do feel they’re like ‘Yay. Rebel’s here’ when I’m coming into auditions and stuff because they like AustraliansˆCos we are good and not divas. And we’re well-trained.” Donning pink and black Adidas ‘trackie-dacks’ with matching trainers, the Fat Pizza, Bogan Pride and The Wedge comedian sits at a familiar table outside the Australian Theatre for Young People, where she originally trained to be an actress. Confident yet slightly shy, Rebel relaxes into the ongoing cycle of media interviews to promote her latest role as Fat Amy in Pitch Perfect. “The writer actually sent me the script on Facebook.” Rebel laughs. “I was the first one cast for the film, three months before anyone else. I guess because this role was so specific. “But a lot of people had seen a lot of raw footage of me from Bridesmaids. So they were considering me for the role and were like ‘come down and audition’ cos then I had to prove that I could sing.” The musical comically depicts the battle between American college a cappella groups who “make music with their mouths’. Honing in on the competitive rivalry between Barden University’s aca-male stars, The Treblemakers, and its struggling female aca-group, The Bellas, the hilarious storyline blends your typical college film with the X-Factor series and a cynical take of the Miss Universe contest. The film is based on the book, Pitch Perfect: The Quest for Collegiate A Capella Glory but you can thank choreographer, Aakomon Jones (who works with Usher) for the film’s wicked dance moves, and both screenwriter, Kay Cannon (30 Rock), and director, Jason Moore (Avenue Q), for its irreverent humour.Œ Take, for example, Rebel’s character ‘the best singer in Tasmania’, who named herself Fat Amy “so that twig bitches like you don’t do it behind my back”.Œ Not your typical member of The Bellas, Fat Amy is an impressible Aussie who’s sure she’s a singing sensation, hates participating in cardio, and is a dab hand at both horizontal running (done lying down) and mermaid dancing (again, movements done on the floor to resemble the fish swimming). “This was probably my favorite [film] out of the ones I have done because I guess it was three months filming in Louisiana and I loved it down there.” “There were times when we had very long days singing and dancing but it was just so much fun. The cast were all a similar age, we all hung out and it was really good. We have reunions all the time with the girlsˆ And not all movies are like that.” The off-screen camaraderie must have done wonders for the team on-screen. Released in the USA in October 2012, Pitch Perfect has gone gangbusters. The $US17 million movie has already grossed $US62 million in the USA alone and after eight weeks, was still in cinemas. Its YouTube trailer has racked up five million hits and over 20,000 likes.Œ “I’m very happy about that because I think I sort of headed the publicity campaign for the movie in America. It was the first time I had that responsibility and it’s done so good. So like, yeahhhˆ” This article first appeared in IF Magazine issue #150Œ Mon, 13 May 2013 13:22:11 +1000 <![CDATA[Flying Bark Productions welcomes new Marketing Manager]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/13/article/Flying-Bark-Productions-welcomes-new-Marketing-Manager/JDPZVQFIJO.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/13/article/Flying-Bark-Productions-welcomes-new-Marketing-Manager/JDPZVQFIJO.html Inside Film Correspondent Raphaela Faetkenheuer has joined Flying Bark Productions as Marketing Manager, it was announced today. Coming from Studio 100 Media GmbH in Munich, Germany, Faetkenheuer will be responsible for Flying Bark’s marketing, public relations, brand development and distribution and will report to Managing Director Jim Ballantine. She will work both in Australia and internationally. “I welcome Raphaela Faetkenheuer to our local team in the role of Marketing Manager. Coming from Studio 100 Media in Germany, Raphaela Faetkenheuer brings with her a wealth of experience and knowledge on key brands including Maya the Bee and Vic the Viking. Raphaela Faetkenheuer will be an invaluable asset to our team as we move forward in our business with a strong focus on the marketing, licensing and merchandising of our key properties,” Ballantine said.Œ Mon, 13 May 2013 13:10:37 +1000 <![CDATA[Director Varcha Sidwell on new ABC1 series Holy Switch]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/09/article/Director-Varcha-Sidwell-on-new-ABC1-series-Holy-Switch/EYYSFDROVL.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/09/article/Director-Varcha-Sidwell-on-new-ABC1-series-Holy-Switch/EYYSFDROVL.html Emily Blatchford Filmmaker Varcha Sidwell had set herself a difficult task. Not only did she have to find six young people of different religions – who were each strongly committed to their faith - she then had to convince them to trade lives for two weeks. This is the premise of new ABC1 show Holy Switch, the experimental three-part series airing on ABC1 from this Sunday evening. (May 12). The participants include an Australian Muslim, Jewish, Catholic, Anglican, Buddhist and Hindu, each of whom claim their religion is a central aspect of their life and community. “It isn’t just about switching religion, it was about switching culture, place and lifestyle,” says director Sidwell, herself a practicing Catholic. “I was very interested in what happens in that situation.” Sidwell looked nation-wide for her six young participants, who hail from Tasmania, Sydney, Melbourne and the Queensland hinterland.Œ “When we first started looking for people we actually thought, ‘Where are we going to find people of that age group?’ so we thought we’d start looking at universities, call out to different faith groups, the interface communityˆ and [through all of these we found] personal contacts who started contacting other people,” she says. “It was very much word of mouth.”Œ However, the battle didn’t end once Sidwell found a willing participant.Œ “It was very difficult convincing the families and communities to participate, which I can understand. There is a natural scepticism of how they may be dealt with. It was much better to get individual switches to agree rather than whole communities. “It’s a huge credit to those who let us come in and let us film what they have to offer and what they do. It’s a very intimate setting – family life.” The switches will see a Western Sydney Maronite Catholic trade places with a Buddhist who lives in a rural Queensland retreat; a committed Anglican youth leader live in a Hindi household (and experience the vegan diet that comes with it) and a young Jewish woman step change places with a committed Muslim.Œ As Sidwell points out, it’s not only the religious differences that take getting used to, but a whole new lifestyle, community, and, at times, diet and climate.Œ “But they all committed themselves to doing it, none of them were prepared to bail out,” Sidwell says. “I think a lot of the time it was not so much the religion difficulty but the culture and being homesick at the end of the day.”Œ It turned out to be a challenging and moving experience for Sidwell, who says she was constantly surprised at circumstances which occurred throughout the shoot.Œ “People just don’t do what you expect. I had no idea that Freeman the Buddhist would find the relationship with the mass and the worship of Jesus and Mary so resonant with his Buddhist faith. That was quite surprising to me. I was really moved myself when [Anglican] Kim is crying overˆ she’s really worried about the spiritual fate of the [Hindu] family she’s staying with, which she’s come to really grow to love. “It was just totally unexpected.” For those watching the show, Sidwell says she hopes they will be able to put faces to the different religions and be inspired by Australia’s multi-cultural society.Œ “I found it quite amazing to think we’ve got so many different communities and faith groups being able to practice their culture and religion and get onˆ. in so many other countries you couldn’t have this,” she says.Œ “It’s inspirational for me.Œ “I am hoping the audience will see those people in their early twenties and see their faith and tradition and think, ‘There is something of value there.’ Even if they don’t agree with it.”Œ Holy Switch will premiere this Sunday on ABC1 at 6pm. Œ Thu, 09 May 2013 16:50:50 +1000 <![CDATA[Network Ten commissions Australian version of US series The Bachelor]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/09/article/Network-Ten-commissions-Australian-version-of-US-series-The-Bachelor/AEBSWZCQQQ.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/09/article/Network-Ten-commissions-Australian-version-of-US-series-The-Bachelor/AEBSWZCQQQ.html Emily Blatchford Popular US reality series The Bachelor is coming to Australia. Network Ten announced it has commissioned an Australian production of the show, to be produced by Shine Australia.Œ Network Ten Chief Programming Officer, Beverley McGarvey, says, “The Bachelor is one of the longest-running and most successful television franchises in the world, with productions in 24 countries. We are thrilled to be working with Shine to take this iconic show and create a uniquely Australian entertainment event.” Shine Australia Chief Executive Officer, Mark Fennessy, says,“There are few marquee brands which have enjoyed the same connection with audiences worldwide as The Bachelor. We're delighted to bring this brilliant series to Australian viewers and look forward to introducing our very own Prince Charming." The Bachelor follows a single bachelor and a number of bachelorettes who all claim to be looking for love. Over the weeks, the bachelor presents his favourite ladies with a red rose during an elimination process which will eventually whittle down the bachelorettes to just one. Network Ten are currently calling for interested bachelors and bachelorettes to register their information hereŒ<a href="http://dating.castasugar.com">http://dating.castasugar.com</a> The Network plans to start production on the series shortly and says it will hit Australian screens later this year.Œ Thu, 09 May 2013 11:39:10 +1000 <![CDATA[Callan McAuliffe to star with Ben Kingsley in UK feature Our Robot Overloads]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/09/article/Callan-McAuliffe-to-star-with-Ben-Kingsley-in-UK-feature-Our-Robot-Overloads/QQPYFMSPOT.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/09/article/Callan-McAuliffe-to-star-with-Ben-Kingsley-in-UK-feature-Our-Robot-Overloads/QQPYFMSPOT.html Emily Blatchford Australian teen actor Callan McAuliffe has secured the lead role in upcoming UK film Our Robot Overloads alongside screen legend Ben Kingsley and Gillian Anderson. McAuliffe, who recently filmed Japanese anime Kite opposite Samuel L. Jackson, is also soon to hit Australian cinema screens playing the young Jay Gatsby in The Great Gatsby.Œ Our Robot Overloads follows the story of Sean Flynn (McAuliffe) who goes in search for his estranged father in the middle of a war between humans and robots.Œ McAuliffe, 18, is the first to admit being involved in an action-robot film is a teenage boy’s dream come true.Œ “Of course I’m pumped,” he tells IF on a long-distance phone call from LA. “As a teenage guy it’s always good fun to do an action film every now and again. “It’s a group piece but I’m definitely one of the leads which I’m very grateful for.”Œ McAuliffe also talks of his excitement about acting opposite industry great Ben Kingsley. “It’s going to be pretty great. I just watched Iron Man 3 in which he was my favourite character, so I’m really looking forward to having some conversations with him about that.”Œ Starring alongside Hollywood royalty is becoming part of everyday life for Sydney-born McAuliffe, who admits that meeting Leonardo DiCaprio on the set of Gatsby was a career highlight.Œ “I’ve been lucky enough to work with some big names over the past few years,” McAuliffe says. “But Leo (DiCaprio) was probably the only person where I had to stand back for a moment and say ‘Wow.’ “I’m more used to it now. There are so many famous people in Los Angeles.”Œ McAuliffe has the next three weeks in LA before flying to London to commence rehearsal on Our Robot Overloads, for which he is required to don a British accent.Œ “I’m often hired to do a US accent, and living in the states it’s not hard to jump onto because I am surrounded by it,” McAuliffe says. “But I’m really looking forward to spending a couple of weeks in London just to pick (the British) accent up. I really want to get an inoffensive and accurate British accent down.”Œ Of his seemingly overnight success, McAuliffe says he has been working away at his career longer than most people may think.Œ “I mean it’s been a slower process than it would seem, I’ve just happened to have a couple of big films in recent years, for which I am immensely grateful for,” he says. “I’ve been in LA for three years nowˆ I’ve been working at it for a while. Obviously far less than other people have been in the industry, but I was lucky in that I had a lot of great people helped me along the way.”Œ The Great Gatsby hits Australian cinemas on May 30.Œ Thu, 09 May 2013 08:50:32 +1000 <![CDATA[Southern Light Alliance secures rights to international thriller Mice]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/08/article/Southern-Light-Alliance-secures-rights-to-international-thriller-Mice/TJYZTCLNEZ.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/08/article/Southern-Light-Alliance-secures-rights-to-international-thriller-Mice/TJYZTCLNEZ.html Inside Film Correspondent A new Adelaide-based production partnership Southern Light Alliance has secured the rights to Gordon Reece’s international thriller Mice. The venture comes from producer Timothy White (Two Hands, The Boys are Back) of Southern Light Films and former film publicity and marketing specialist Anna Vincent. The partnership, formed earlier this year and based in Adelaide, aims to develop Australian projects and international co-productions. White will continue producing through Sydney-based Southern Light Films (which is currently post-producing Ewan McGregor’s Son of a Gun) as well as develop other projects. Mice is the first project for Southern Light Alliance, who has also partnered with Julie Ryan (Red Dog, Ten Canoes) of Cyan films. Mice has been published in 17 countries and released in 12 languages. “Tim White and I have worked together on several projects and saw a real benefitŒwith setting up a production arm in South Australia,” says Vincent. “When JulieŒRyan brought Mice to our attention we saw a great story with international appealŒand were excited to outbid a European company to secure the rights.” The Mice project is currently unnamed.Œ Wed, 08 May 2013 10:54:42 +1000 <![CDATA[Noni Hazlehurst AM joins AACTA board]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/08/article/Noni-Hazlehurst-AM-joins-AACTA-board/VYDEYVWTOI.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/08/article/Noni-Hazlehurst-AM-joins-AACTA-board/VYDEYVWTOI.html Inside Film Correspondent Actress Noni Hazlehurst AM has joined the AACTA board, replacing former member Sigrid Thornton. “We very excited to welcome Noni to the AACTA board,” AACTA CEO Damian Trewhella tells IF. “Sigrid Thornton has been completely amazing, but she is stepping down from the board for the time being and Noni is filling her place. Sigrid has left really big shoes for someone to walk into, but Noni’s experience, expertise, business acumen, and her enormous support for AACTA over the years makes the ideal candidate.”Œ Trewhella states the timing couldn’t be better for Hazlehurst to join the organisation, which he describes as entering a “consolidation phase”.Œ “As an organisation we’re now about 19-20 months oldˆ It’s had a couple of huge years in that early phase and now we’re looking at consolidating for the next three to five years,” he says. “We have just completed the second awards cycle and now we’re really ready to consolidate and revitalise different parts, and it’s great to have people step up to help with those changes. “Noni is someone who has had that real depth of experience and knowledge of the industryˆ Also, and it’s a special time in her trajectory with the roaring success of A Place Called Home.”Œ Hazlehurst has worked in the Australian screen industry for 40 years and her outstanding work has been recognised numerous times. Examples of such awards include four AFI Awards (Little Fish, Waiting at the Royal, Fran and Monkey Grip) two Logies, an Honorary Doctorate of Philosophy from Flinders University, and an Order of Australia.Œ Of her appointment to the board, Hazlehurst says, ““I’m delighted to be asked to serve on the AFI | AACTA board, and hope to help nurture our filmmakers, and to attract local and international audiences as the industry continues to grow. With 40 years’ experience of telling Australian stories in various media, I look forward to this new opportunity to celebrate and promote our culture and history on screen, and I will endeavour to work to ensure the success and recognition of our artists and craftspeople both at home and internationally.” She joins current board members Geoff Brown, Russel Howcroft, Ian Sutherland, Alaric McAusland, Mike Baard, Jennifer Huby, Robert Sessions, and Chair Alan Finney.Œ Wed, 08 May 2013 08:28:12 +1000 <![CDATA[Tanya Phegan joins Porchlight Films as Head of Television]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/07/article/Tanya-Phegan-joins-Porchlight-Films-as-Head-of-Television/GSKUNACOHK.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/07/article/Tanya-Phegan-joins-Porchlight-Films-as-Head-of-Television/GSKUNACOHK.html Inside Film Correspondent Porchlight Films has further committed to expanding into television with the creation of a Head of Television role. The independent production company today announced that Tanya Phegan has been appointed to fill the newly created position. Phegan has spent the last 12 years in the UK and the US working in various development, production and acquisitions roles, and has worked for both BBC Films and DNA Films. Her time at DNA films saw Phegan develop some acclaimed projects such as The Last King of Scotland, 28 Weeks Later, Dredd, Never Let Me Go, Sunshine and Notes on A Scandal. Liz Watts, a founding director of Porchlight Films said, "Since producing two seasons of the comedy series Laid for the ABC, Porchlight has been developing television, but Tanya's appointment marks a new focus on producing high quality content in the television arena. Tanya's background; her creative abilities and understanding of what it takes to make compelling television are a perfect fit for our company".Œ Tue, 07 May 2013 16:06:43 +1000 <![CDATA[Initial reviews for Luhrmann's Gatsby mixed, but all agree Debicki shines]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/07/article/Initial-reviews-for-Luhrmanns-Gatsby-mixed-but-all-agree-Debicki-shines/KHFWSFIGAZ.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/07/article/Initial-reviews-for-Luhrmanns-Gatsby-mixed-but-all-agree-Debicki-shines/KHFWSFIGAZ.html Emily Blatchford The first reviews of Baz Luhrmann’s highly anticipated The Great Gatsby are in - and most aren’t singing praise for the director’s interpretation of the American classic.Œ The adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1925 novel will open the Cannes Film Festival on May 13, but US critics who have seen advance screenings of the film have so far been largely underwhelmed.Œ Luhrmann comes under fire in particular for drowning the story in what Variety’s Scott Foundas describes as a “visual circus”.Œ As The Wrap’s Alonso Duralde notes in his review, “The Great Gatsby is an immortal American tragedy, but the story's impact gets completely buried in Luhrmann's flash and dazzle.” Foundas similarly writes, “Together with cinematographer Simon Duggan, he [Luhrmann] unleashes every manipulation he can think of — sepia flashbacks, smash zooms, split screens, superimpositions, period newsreel footage, new footage degraded to resemble period newsreel footage — all of it coming at you in three steroscopic dimensions.” Foundas, however, did previously admit that to criticise Luhrmann for overkill is “a bit like faulting a leopard for his spots.”Œ Performances from the all-star cast drew mixed reviews with one surprise exception – Australian actress Elizabeth Debicki.Œ “Only newcomer Elizabeth Debicki, who comes off like a combination of Rashida Jones and Kristin Scott Thomas, displays any kind of flair or even an approximation of humanity,” Duralde writes, while Foundas says, “By far the liveliest work in the film comes from two actors with only a few minutes of screen time between them: the lithe, long-limbed newcomer Elizabeth Debicki as gabby golf pro Jordan Baker, and, in a single scene that marks his belated Hollywood debut, Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan as the flamboyant Jewish “gambler,” Meyer Wolfsheim.”Œ Todd McCarthy from The Hollywood Reporter also sings the actresses praise, noting, “Australian newcomer Elizabeth Debicki, who, with her towering slim build, black hair and pool-like blue eyes resembles an elongated Zooey Deschanel, is terrific as far as the part goes, but after a few prominent scenes up front, the character recedes.” Impressions of DiCaprio’s golden-haired Gatsby varied wildly between solid thumbs up and thumbs down.Œ “After a number of roles which, however well acted, may not have been comfortably in his wheelhouse, DiCaprio looks and feels just right as Gatsby; the glamor and allure as at one with his film star persona, he's sufficiently savvy to convince as a successful bootlegger but still young enough to recapture the hopes and innocence of youth,” writes McCarthy.Œ Not so enamoured is Duralde, who scoffs, “DiCaprio has a fluctuating accent that often sounds like it's being delivered through a mouthful of marshmallows. DiCaprio's utterances of Gatsby's pet endearment "old sport" become more and more cringe-worthy with each repetition.” Tobey Maguire’s Nick Carraway is largely accused of being generally dull while Casey Mulligan’s Daisy Buchanan received mixed reviews.Œ “Mulligan is not elegantly beautiful, but she’s a touching actress, and, when Tom and Gatsby fight over Daisy, her face crumples and her eyes tear. Mulligan makes it clear how much Daisy is a shaky projection of male fantasy. The men struggle to possess her; she doesn’t possess herself,” writes David Denby of The New Yorker.Œ Duralde isn’t as kind, stating, “The blank and reactive Maguire and Mulligan are cast as the blank and reactive Nick and Daisy, the result being such a vortex of nothing that they threaten to disappear from the screen entirely.” Whether Gatsby will disappoint Australian audiences is yet to be seen, with the film’s premiere in the country scheduled for May 22.Œ The Great Gatsby will hit Australian cinemas on May 30.Œ View the trailer here:Œ Œ Tue, 07 May 2013 15:32:50 +1000 <![CDATA[SBS commissions long-form interview series to be hosted by Ellen Fanning]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/06/article/SBS-commissions-long-form-interview-series-to-be-hosted-by-Ellen-Fanning/IXLWOBWYMZ.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/06/article/SBS-commissions-long-form-interview-series-to-be-hosted-by-Ellen-Fanning/IXLWOBWYMZ.html Inside Film Correspondent Australian journalist Ellen Fanning will host a new interview series, The Observer Effect, which has been commissioned by the SBS, it was announced today. The 20x60-minute series, produced by Shine Australia, will be broadcast from June 2, 2013 and will invite high-profile Australians to offer their personal opinions on the news and current affairs of that week. In a statement released by the SBS, the broadcaster stated, “By viewing news and events through the eyes of ‘the observer’, the audience will get to know who they are beyond the 24 hour news headlines - whether politician, author, journalist, business leader, academic or philosopher.” SBS Managing Director Michael Ebeid said, “Through The Observer Effect, we wanted to create a show that would continue to build on SBS's reputation for content which provokes debate by bringing audiences a fresh and edgy take on the issues Australians are talking about, and gives them a new insight into the real personalities and perspectives of our prominent Australians.” Shine Australia CEO Mark Fennessy said, “This is an exciting project for Shine. We’re looking forward to bringing to life the long-form interview through meaningful discussion and analysis that genuinely resonates. In this election year it’s essential to go beyond the spin, and by having a stellar team of writers and researchers plus extraordinary guests who influence our national conversation, we have every ambition to make this an appointment to view television each week.” Ellen Fanning said, “A show like this is so critical in an age dominated by 140 characterŒmessages and a dizzying 24 hour news cycle. We will give leading Australians time to reflect on the state of the nation and to vigorously debate the critical issues in this election year. It's a raretreat for an interviewer to have the best part of an hour on prime time TV. I'm honoured that SBS has given me the role." Mon, 06 May 2013 16:30:30 +1000 <![CDATA[What Kids Want: Screen Aus releases report on future of children's television]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/06/article/What-Kids-Want-Screen-Aus-releases-report-on-future-of-childrens-television/PSEDGKZGSJ.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/06/article/What-Kids-Want-Screen-Aus-releases-report-on-future-of-childrens-television/PSEDGKZGSJ.html Emily Blatchford Screen Australia has today released a report which provides new insights into how children engage with screen content. The report, entitled Child’s Play: Issues in Australian Children’s Television 2013, revealed that children appreciate Australian content and prefer programs made specifically for them. (Ninety one per cent of the children interviewed said they “liked” programs designed specifically for them, with over half stating they “liked them the best”). Screen Australia’s Chief Executive, Ruth Harley, said, “This research clearly demonstrates that there’s an appetite for quality children’s television content. Programs made specifically for children are different from material produced for a family audience because they deal with stories and issues of interest to kids in appropriate ways. The delivery of quality Australian children’s programming is essential to the cultural well-being of young Australians, so that they have the opportunity to see Australia’s identity, character and cultural diversity reflected back to them.”Œ Interestingly, the findings of the report also showed financing involved with children’s content has become increasingly difficult in the current media landscape.Œ As stated by Screen Australia, “Children’s programs attract lower broadcast licence fees than programs for adults, and finance is even tighter as audience fragmentation places pressure on advertising revenues. Australian children’s programs also rely heavily on foreign finance, so the global financial crisis together with the strong Australian dollar have created extra challenges for the sector.” The release of the report prompted a reaction from the Screen Producers Association of Australia, who issued their own statement to the press welcoming the research undertaken by Screen Australian and the Australian Children’s Television Foundation.Œ Within the statement, SPAA’s Executive Director Matthew Deaner says, ““This is a more sophisticated picture of what children want to watch. It shows that when compared to family viewing times, television ratings alone often understate the importance of children’s programs to children. What we can now see is the extent to which they are discerning viewers, seeking out content made specifically for them when they have control of the remote. "Following the alarming decline of investment by broadcaster platforms, coupled with the now relaxed quota requirements, the vital and valued role of Australian children’s content runs the risk of being undermined by market forces. This research punctuates the industry’s ongoing calls for an increase in the Producer Offset for television production and the need to nurture new commissioning opportunities for multiplatform content across emerging distribution models.” The report can be downloaded fromŒ<a href="http://www.screenaustralia.gov.au/childsplay.">http://www.screenaustralia.gov.au/childsplay</a> Mon, 06 May 2013 16:13:04 +1000 <![CDATA[Australian Directors Guild announce winners of 2013 Awards]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/06/article/Australian-Directors-Guild-announce-winners-of-2013-Awards/NNEJSXNOWD.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/06/article/Australian-Directors-Guild-announce-winners-of-2013-Awards/NNEJSXNOWD.html Emily Blatchford The Australian Director’s Guild has announced the winners of the 2013 ADG Awards during their annual Awards ceremony held on Friday night in Sydney. Women directors took home several of the coveted awards, with Cate Shortland beating male competitors Wayne Blair (The Sapphires) Tony Krawitz (Dead Europe) and Kieran Darcy-Smith (Wish You Were Here) to scoop Best Direction in a Feature Film for Lore.Œ Women continued to triumph in the television sector, with Rachel Perkins winning Best Direction in a TV Drama Series for Redfern Now (Pretty Boy Blue) and Jessica Hobbs taking home the gong for Best Direction in a TV Mini Series for Devil’s Dust (Parts 1 & 2).Œ Also triumphant in their fields were Jessica Reddenbach, who won the Award for Best Direction in a Short Film for Tender; Jennifer Peedom for Best Direction in a Documentary Series for Life at 7; Grace McKenzie for Best Direction in a Documentary Feature for Audrey of the Alps and the visibly overwhelmed young filmmaker Madeleine Parry, who won Best Direction in a Documentary (Stand Alone) for Meatwork.Œ One of the highlights of the evening was the surprise entrance of Lachy Hulme who presented industry veteran Jamie Leslie with a career achievement award for his outstanding work as First Assistant Director on a number of projects. The Awards were hosted by Adam Zwar and other presenters included Rachel Ward, Bryan Brown, Susie Porter and Denise Roberts. A list of the rest of the winners can be found below.Œ Glendyn Ivin - Best Direction in a Telemovie – for Beaconsfield Daniel Nettheim Esben Storm Award - Best Direction in a Children’s TV Program - for Dance Academy Series 2, Ep 25 “The Second” Nash Edgerton – Best Direction in a Music Video – for DUQESNE WHISTLE Adrian Goodman - Best Direction in a Student Film - for Wakey Wakey David Gould – Best Direction in a TV Drama Serial – for Home and Away EP 5438 Dario Russo – Best Direction in a TV Comedy – for Danger 5 David Barker – Best Direction in a Cross Platform Project – for Bad RealityŒ Tim Bullock – for Best Direction in a TV Commercial – for Flatties Christiaan Van Vuuren and Connor Van Vuuren – Best Direction in an Original Online Project – for Bondi Hipsters Mon, 06 May 2013 14:25:47 +1000 <![CDATA[Shooting on the road: the making of Leongatha]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/03/article/Shooting-on-the-road-the-making-of-Leongatha/GXMEHYCVLM.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/03/article/Shooting-on-the-road-the-making-of-Leongatha/GXMEHYCVLM.html Yuan Liu After the success of mockumentary series It’s Not You. It’s Bree, Channel 31’s writer and producer Shane Dunlop is now bringing another comedy Leongatha to TV audiences. Spanning six weekly episodes, the show features a family road trip to a little town in the south-eastern countryside of Victoria, named Leongatha. It turns out to be a never-ending journey delayed by unexpected situations.Œ Dunlop readily admits the show is largely based on personal experience. “Basically it’s about a struggling filmmaker who’s recently had a relationship breakdown,” Dunlop explains. “And he is asked by his cousin to film his wedding which takes place in a country town called Leongatha.” But Denny, the protagonist in the story, first has to get to another town to meet various members of his extended family before they all get into a mini bus and travel across the country together. Things do not go as planned and the motley crew will come across various obstacles before they reach the final destination.Œ “That is the idea behind the story,” Dunlop says. “A cross-country trip on a bus with all your family members, heading to a wedding during a time when you are not necessarily in the best frame of mind to film somebody else’s wedding.”Œ Different from It’s Not You. It’s Bree, Leongatha takes a more traditional narrative approach, telling a story that takes place in a twelve-hour time frame. Like the characters, Dunlop and his crew hopped on a minibus in November last year and started a five-day shooting trip on location in South Gippsland.Œ According to Dunlop, one of the big hurdles with shooting on a moving vehicle is the limited space. “We had cameras, sound people as well as the family characters themselves, all in the same bus that was travelling along the country road, with all the bumps and all the turns. There were quite a few scary moments. I’m sure we may not have been operating under the strict occupational health and safety rules and guidelines,” he laughs.Œ Moreover, developing a TV show which happens through the course of one day means the actors needed to maintain the same look throughout the filming process. “We had to make sure that we could shoot in November and continue in January and February,” Dunlop says. “So we are talking about a four-month span where we had to ensure that our cast was able to maintain their appearances without losing any continuity. When you see them in the fifth episode, they don’t look so different from the way they look in the fourth because in the series, it takes place 20 minutes after. It would also be a problem if was raining one day and sunny the next. But we got lucky and the weather was great while we were away.” For Dunlop and his crew, the most difficult part in creating Leongatha was finance. Though awarded a grant from the Community Broadcasting Foundation, the producer realized they would have to work on a shoestring if they could not find any other funding sources. Besides running an Indiegogo crowd-sourcing campaign online, the production team had to get creative with how to organize the catering and accommodation. Nevertheless, they were fortunate enough to receive a lot of support from the local community in Leongatha, a region that is seldom chosen as the location of television series. “The local communities were pretty keen and excited that there’s a series with the town’s name in its title and it features a lot of landmarks from that particular area in Victoria which doesn’t get lots of publicity,” Dunlop says. “The local support really helped us achieve the goal without requiring the kind of budget that normally would be required to have 20 people on location for a week.”Œ Despite all the bumps and turns, the journey of the Leongatha crew terminated with a happy ending. “We certainly had a lot of fun while we were on location. As far as any hiccups or misadventures, we actually were quite ok. We haven’t had anything happening that was ridiculously out of control. I think most of the people that were involved, including the cast and crew, actually played as a family, living together and being away on location.”Œ From The Partridge & the Pear Tree and It’s Not You. It’s Bree to this year’s Leongatha, Dunlop has been producing content for Channel 31 since 2010. Turning from a short film director to a TV producer, Dunlop finds his experience in community TV to be one of the most important steps in his career. “The process of finding film festival audiences is costly, tedious and extremely difficult,” he says. “But I find in Channel 31 the various opportunities that community television provides. You are able to really put in the hard work to be able to find an audience, and through that you are able to get some legitimacy to have your productions broadcasted." Producing drama for community TV requires courage. “There are challenges in creating non-lifestyle programming,” Dunlop says. “I think what you find on community TV tends to be lifestyle programs such as fishing shows and car shows. But there tend to be very few comedies or fictions. I definitely feel like that you are disadvantaged if you are doing something that doesn’t have a niche market. If you are pitching a fishing show, you can probably get lots of funding from the fishing businesses. But as far as producing your own fictional program that fits into a more traditional framework, those opportunities don’t get presented a lot. So we were lucky to have the grant from Community Broadcasting Foundation which allowed us to make a series which I don’t see very often on community television. Without the funding, I wasn’t quite sure how successful we would have been in telling the story.”Œ “What we are hoping for next is to get some other ideas and television programs that we’d like to make. We’d like to be able to make them with a little bit more money behind them and move to the next level whether that’s with television or an established production company and ultimately network television. These are the things we’d like to be able to achieve and hopefully Leongatha is another step in that direction.”Œ Leongatha will air on Channel 31 in Melbourne and Geelong from Thursday 9th May 2013. Fri, 03 May 2013 12:18:43 +1000 <![CDATA[Screen Australia appoints new Investment/Development Manager for Documentary]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/03/article/Screen-Australia-appoints-new-InvestmentDevelopment-Manager-for-Documentary/LFVRPMLPKL.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/03/article/Screen-Australia-appoints-new-InvestmentDevelopment-Manager-for-Documentary/LFVRPMLPKL.html Inside Film Correspondent Julia Peters has joined Screen Australia in the role of Investment/Development Manager for Documentary. Coming from Essential Media, Peters started working with Screen Australia’s Production Investment Team on May 1.Œ Peters has over 25 years of experience in the industry and has worked with all of the Australian free-to-air networks in the past.Œ Her recent credits include Raising the Curtain and Do or Die. She has also lectured on Creative Development at AFTRS.Œ Screen Australia’s Documentary Manager, Liz Stevens, said, “I am delighted that Julia will be joining the Screen Australia team. Her extensive and diverse experience in programming will be a valuable asset to both staff and industry.”Œ Peters will be working on a number of projects across documentary, reality, factual and entertainment. Fri, 03 May 2013 11:00:11 +1000 <![CDATA[Government to loan ABC $90m for new Melbourne headquarters]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/02/article/Government-to-loan-ABC-90m-for-new-Melbourne-headquarters/XROWCABMSM.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/02/article/Government-to-loan-ABC-90m-for-new-Melbourne-headquarters/XROWCABMSM.html Emily Blatchford The Australian Broadcasting Corporation could be expanding into a new Melbourne headquarters. This morning, the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Senator Stephen Conroy, announced the Federal Government would support the construction of a new multi-million dollar ABC headquarters in Southbank, Melbourne. “Subject to approval of Parliament, the Government will provide the ABC with a loan of $90 million to assist the construction of a purpose-built facility at Southbank, Melbourne,” Senator Conroy said. “The new headquarters will house the ABC’s radio, television and digital production operations, as well as its broadcasting and support services. “The ABC is currently spread across three sites in Melbourne: two at Elsternwick and one in Southbank. “By consolidating operations, it will allow the ABC to achieve operational savings and productivity benefits that will ensure it can continue delivering high quality content across a broader range of platforms. “The ABC has grown into a multi-platform media organisation, which delivers a range of news, current affairs, sport, and entertainment programs that are accessed by millions of Australians every day. “The new facility will help the ABC meet its needs into the future.” The Government’s $90 million loan will support the construction and fit-out costs of the project, while the ABC will fund the remaining costs itself. The ABC will repay the loan by 2020-21.Œ Thu, 02 May 2013 15:09:34 +1000 <![CDATA[Sarah Keith leaves Fairfax to re-join Network Ten]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/02/article/Sarah-Keith-leaves-Fairfax-to-re-join-Network-Ten/WPAECFYPNV.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/02/article/Sarah-Keith-leaves-Fairfax-to-re-join-Network-Ten/WPAECFYPNV.html Emily Blatchford Sarah Keith has joined Network Ten as Head of Research, Analytics and Inventory Management. Reporting to CEO Hamish McLennan, Keith’s role will include overseeing a newly formed department which the network says will cover “key areas in the company.” McLennan said, “Sarah is a highly experienced media executive, having worked for some of the best media companies in Australia and the UK. “She will play a key role in better valuing our audience delivery and optimising our inventory. The role of analytics and research will help us drive better engagement with our advertisers and media buying partners.” Keith, who is currenly employed as the Director of Ad Strategy and Operations at Fairfax Media, has worked for Network Ten before as a Commercial Airtime Manager. “I have worked in television for the majority of my career and have gained valuableŒinsights working at Network Ten, SBS, Fox Sports and Channel 4 in the UK,” Keith said. “I’ve been very impressed by the changes and drive at Network Ten, and the clear desire of everyone there to do things differently. TEN, ELEVEN and ONE are great brands with great potential, and I’m looking forward to being part of them.” Thu, 02 May 2013 13:53:59 +1000 <![CDATA[Jason van Genderen scoops top prize at UK Sundance for short Red Earth Hip Hop]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/02/article/Jason-van-Genderen-scoops-top-prize-at-UK-Sundance-for-short-Red-Earth-Hip-Hop/ZUXNHQZBST.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/02/article/Jason-van-Genderen-scoops-top-prize-at-UK-Sundance-for-short-Red-Earth-Hip-Hop/ZUXNHQZBST.html Emily Blatchford <img alt="" height="336" src="/image/Jas_Sundance (2) WEB.jpg" width="441" /> Jason van Genderen at Sundance London Terrigal based filmmaker Jason van Genderen has won first prize in the Nokia Music sponsored Sundance London competition for his six-minute short.Œ Shot entirely on a Nokia Lumia 920 Smartphone, van Genderen’s film Red Earth Hip Hop explores how hip hop music is helping preserve Indigenous local languages and stories in remote communities. The film was made after Nokia Music and Sundance asked filmmakers from all over the world to submit a 60 second trailer pitching an underground music story. Of over 280 films, van Genderen and Glasgow’s Bartosz Madejski were selected as the two global finalists. They were each awarded $5000 and two Nokia Lumia 290 smartphones with which to complete their film (with only a week to do it). Both short films premiered and Sundance London, with Red Earth Hip Hop declared as the overall winner. “I was blown away, it was just incredible,” van Genderen says. “I was completely convinced the other finalist was going to win.” Both Madejski and van Genderen were surprised at the quality of their films on the big screen considering they were shot entirely on phones. “Our films were shown after the premiere of the new American Noise series, which are six short films about underground music in America. It was just a beautiful introduction for our two shortsˆ [and the other films] were shot on film or digital and then up came up two films shot up on smart phones. They held up surprisingly well on the big screen, we were both really surprised.” According to van Genderen, both finalist projects were “really well received” and it wasn’t until Monday he found out he was the winner. “It was funny because I wasn’t receiving my emails as I had problem with my wifi,” van Genderen says. “Then Bartosz called me and said, ‘Congratulations, you’re the winner!’” Of Red Earth Hip Hop,ŒDirector of Progamming for Sundance, Trevor Groth, said, "We find this [film] very engaging and illuminating. Red Earth Hip Hop may be as underground and unique as you could get by reframing the way we think about seemingly disparate but intrinsincally linked styles of music." As the overall winner, van Genderen received an additional $5000, some of which he has donated back to the Indigenous community which featured in Red Earth Hip Hop. A cyclone near the area of filming has prevented van Genderen letting the community know the film has won, but he says he can't wait to inform them their participation paid off in more ways than one.Œ "To be able to share a story with a lot of heart in it, about an Indigenous community, to rest of the world, and to let their flavour of music get out there... it's just amazing," he said.Œ View Red Earth Hip Hop below.Œ Œ Œ Thu, 02 May 2013 13:17:44 +1000 <![CDATA[Icon restructures theatrical department, some roles made redundant]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/01/article/Icon-restructures-theatrical-department-some-roles-made-redundant/HCWRLKAPFT.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/01/article/Icon-restructures-theatrical-department-some-roles-made-redundant/HCWRLKAPFT.html Inside Film Correspondent By Emily Blatchford Icon Film Distribution has announced major changes to the structure of its theatrical department, including redundancies. In a statement released to the media, the distribution company confirmed the roles of Publicity/Promotions Manager and Production and Traffic Manager were no longer required. In other changes, Head of Cinemas Nick Hayes has been promoted to Head of Theatrical Operations and will oversee the theatrical department alongside Tracey Whybrew who has been promoted to Head of Theatrical Markets. Two new roles have been created in the theatrical marketing department; Marcoms Manager and Creative Services Manager. Icon plans to fill these roles internally. CEO of Icon and Dendy Greg Hughes said, "Icon has a diverse and dynamic slate in the next 18 months and I am very pleased to announce this innovative new approach to managing our theatrical business. I look forward to seeing Nick and Tracy's team execute our releases and build stronger partnerships with exhibitors." Icon was contacted for further comment regarding the restructure but a representative of the company advised they had nothing to add at this time. Œ Wed, 01 May 2013 14:25:34 +1000 <![CDATA[Working Title bosses evaluate their career highlights]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/01/article/Working-Title-bosses-evaluate-their-career-highlights/OZTUWREJMA.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/01/article/Working-Title-bosses-evaluate-their-career-highlights/OZTUWREJMA.html Tim Kroenert This is a double-milestone year for Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner, heads of UK studio Working Title Films. Not only is it 30 years since the company’s inception, 2013 marks 21 years since Fellner joined original cofounder Bevan at the helm. Surely that would be cause for a celebration. In truth the two affable producers haven’t given it much thought. ‘We were thinking about having dinner with you,’ jokes Fellner. A beat, then: ‘Yeah we probably should do something to celebrate.’ ‘It’s not only us either,’ adds Bevan. ‘There is a core group of people who have worked together for a long time. It is very unusual in the film industry.’ He believes the reasons for this longevity are largely geographical. ‘One is that we’re based in the UK, and there aren’t many other games in town. The other is, we’re based in the UK! If you’re in Hollywood there are all sorts of alternatives and it would be difficult to hold a group together for the same amount of time.’ Whatever the reason, it’s a decent innings. No doubt this pair has gained some sharply honed insights along the way, on the nature of the industry and how it works. ‘It works in mysterious ways,’ says Fellner, drolly; Bevan nominates a more pointed epigram: ‘Nobody knows anything about anything!’ Bevan is laughing, but it’s no joke: ‘That is the shocking truth,’ says Fellner. ‘Just when you think you’ve got it cracked, it all goes horribly wrong. Or you think something will never work, and it’s a massive hit. ‘It’s the most confounding industry. A lot of businesses, you create a product and spend 30 years honing it so you know it’s going to work. We’re starting from scratch every single film. You bring experience of physical production, and some knowledge of the marketplace, but really you’re back to casino odds.’ That unpredictability can be infuriating, but also gratifying, when what was thought to be a ‘tiny film’ turns out to be a massive hit. ‘The cornerstone movie for Working Title was Four Weddings and a Funeral,’ says Bevan. ‘All of a sudden you had a non-American movie, made for no money, become a worldwide box office phenomenon. That opened up the possibility for all sorts of other films that we’d never have been able to make otherwise.’ ‘We made Billy Elliot purely from a point of passion,’ recalls Fellner. Other surprise hits included car-racing doco Senna, Bridget Jones’ Diary and the Keira Knightley vehicle Pride and Prejudice. ‘There’s nothing more gratifying than when you make a film because you love it, and the audience comes,’ says Fellner. You couldn’t accuse Bevan and Fellner of lacking personal investment. ‘Most of what we do, we’ve developed from an idea or a book or whatever, through the screenplay process,’ says Bevan. ‘So we have a strong creative relationship with the material quite often before a director has even come on board. ‘We then like working with good strong directors. Our job at that point is to make sure the creative vision is intact and the right people are brought on board both in front of and behind the camera, and that you’re working to the right price point. If you get all that right then the shoot itself will go quite smoothly.’ Working Title has excelled at a range of genres, from rom-coms (Four Weddings) to horror (Shaun of the Dead) to comedies (Burn After Reading) to period dramas (Pride and Prejudice). Now you can add musicals to the list: Bevan and Fellner were in Australia in December touting their grand adaptation of Les Miserables. ‘Les Miserables was actually a fast movie to make,’ says Bevan, explaining that they first met with Cameron Mackintosh, producer of the theatrical version of the show, just three short years ago. ‘Most movies take a lot longer.’ Nonetheless, Fellner believes it will be a game changer, due to director Tom Hooper’s inspired decision to record the vocal performances live rather than using pre-recorded tracks. ‘I think it will revolutionise how musicals get made.’ He gives credit to the film’s production sound mixer Simon Hayes, who got ‘clean vocal tracks for every musical performance. We’ve had dialogue films where we had to do more additional dialogue recording than on this film,’ says Fellner. Fellner believes the biggest challenge facing filmmakers today is to ‘fight the reality of branded entertainment ˆ the superhero movies, the sequels, the adaptations of board games or things that come with huge brand awareness but aren’t necessarily stories. And that’s what most modern day blockbusters are.’ ‘A lot of filmmakers this past year have made good films,’ notes Bevan. ‘Still, the whole financial model of the way films get made is changing. The branded movies tend to be very, very expensive, and that’s where the studios are putting their resources, so it’s getting the pickings that are left over to make other films.’ Within this climate, ‘getting a good story, telling it well, and hoping it can compete’ is a genuine challenge. ‘So it’s gratifying’, says Fellner, ‘when you see all these films that are doing $100 million, like Argo, Lincoln, Life of Pi ˆ movies that had a tough journey to get made, but they’re doing business. ‘Maybe the audiences are speaking,’ he speculates. ‘Maybe audiences are saying we want a varied diet, we want things that are interesting and intelligent as well.’ This article originally appeared in issue 151 of IF Magazine in February - March 2013. Wed, 01 May 2013 14:04:55 +1000 <![CDATA[Cinedigm and ICAA secure Virtual Print Fee Program]]> http://if.com.au/2013/05/01/article/Cinedigm-and-ICAA-secure-Virtual-Print-Fee-Program/LCELUSWALC.html http://if.com.au/2013/05/01/article/Cinedigm-and-ICAA-secure-Virtual-Print-Fee-Program/LCELUSWALC.html Emily Blatchford The Independent Cinemas Association of Australia and Cinedigm Digital Corp have announced the ICAA-Cinedigm Virtual Print Fee program, which has so far been successful in securing five major studios.Œ The VPF program marks a turning point for Australian and New Zealand independent cinemas and their conversion from 35mm film to digital. ICAA CEO Adrianne Pectotic confirmed the availability of the program during her opening address at the 2013 ICAA Conference held in Melbourne. “At this time last year, we announced that ICAA and Cinedigm had secured commercial terms for a VPF Program for independent cinemas with the US studios. It has taken exhausting and exhaustive efforts to deliver on that program and it is now available. The Independent Cinemas VPF Program will reward all our efforts by enabling studios and independent distributors to help you recoup the significant costs of the conversion to digital technology,” she said. Disney, Fox, Sony, Universal and Paramount have all separately negotiated non-exclusive VPF agreements with the Australian and New Zealand program. Additionally, ICAA and Cinedigm are in final negotiations with Warner Bros, Roadshow and several independent distributors across Australia and New Zealand, including member distributors of the Australian Independent Distributors Association. Pecotic admitted the process had not been easy. “The legal complexities and sheer force of will required to navigate the drafting, and repeated re-drafting, with six separate multinationals, of thousands of pages of complex text, put a whole new definition to the word tenacious,” she said. “And for every independent cinema in Australia and New Zealand waiting for the outcome, – a whole new definition to the word patient.” Pecotic went on to reveal that 75 per cent of cinema screens are now digital and, “cinema owners of the remaining screens are preparing themselves to address this challenge.” ' The ICAA Conference, which started on Tuesday, will conclude tomorrow. Wed, 01 May 2013 12:04:02 +1000 <![CDATA[Iron Man 3 smashes box office over opening weekend, breaks Aus record]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/30/article/Iron-Man-3-smashes-box-office-over-opening-weekend-breaks-Aus-record/JJCAPNHRRW.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/30/article/Iron-Man-3-smashes-box-office-over-opening-weekend-breaks-Aus-record/JJCAPNHRRW.html Emily Blatchford Iron Man 3 has broken an Australian box office record with an opening weekend box office taking of $14,090,713. This means the third instalment of the popular franchise, starring Robert Downey Junior and Gwyneth Paltrow, is now ranked seventh in the top 10 Australian opening weekends of all time.Œ Distributed by Disney, the action film opened in Australia on April 24 and knocked Paramount’s Transformers: the Revenge of the Fallen from its number seven perch. Transformers hit Australian screens on 24 June 2009 with an opening weekend box office of $13,642,520.Œ Big-budget franchises dominate the top ten list, with Warner Bros’ Harry Potter taking three of the top five spots. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part Two comes in at number one with an opening weekend of $18,364,584 in 2011, while The Deathly Hallows: Part One sits at number three with a 2010 opening of $15, 291 926 and The Half Blood Prince of 209 at number five with $14,300,931.Œ Also making the cut is The Twilight Saga: New Moon (Hoyts) at number two with an opening of $16,109,479 in 2009, and The Dark Knight Rises (Warner Bros) which took $15,107,438 over its opening weekend in 2012.Œ Tue, 30 Apr 2013 14:39:59 +1000 <![CDATA[New York: Australian feature The Rocket bags number of awards at TriBeca]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/29/article/New-York-Australian-feature-The-Rocket-bags-number-of-awards-at-TriBeca/CFYSGASKVP.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/29/article/New-York-Australian-feature-The-Rocket-bags-number-of-awards-at-TriBeca/CFYSGASKVP.html Inside Film Correspondent Australian feature The Rocket has triumphed at the TriBeca Film Festival in New York, winning Best Narrative Feature, Audience Awards and Best Actor (awarded to ten-year-old Sitthiphon Disamoe). Set in Laos, the film follows Ahlo (Disamoe) whose family are forced to leave their home due to the construction of a dam. Considered unlucky and blamed for the family’s misfortune, Ahlo tries to prove his worth by entering a rocket into the biggest and most dangerous competition of the year – the Rocket Festival. The success of The Rocket at TriBeca comes after receiving similar acclaim at the Berlin Film Festival, where the film was awarded with the Crystal Bear for Best Feature (Generation Kplus program), Best First Feature (across all sections of the Festival) and the Amnesty International Film Prize. Written and directed by Kim Mordaunt and produced by Sylvia Wilczynski, The Rocket will be released by Curious Distrubution in Australia later this year. Œ Mon, 29 Apr 2013 12:15:52 +1000 <![CDATA[Australian Directors Guild reveals presenters, attendees of 2013 ADG Awards]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/29/article/Australian-Directors-Guild-reveals-presenters-attendees-of-2013-ADG-Awards/IDPTAQNOOE.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/29/article/Australian-Directors-Guild-reveals-presenters-attendees-of-2013-ADG-Awards/IDPTAQNOOE.html Inside Film Correspondent A host of notable industry figures are set to attend the 2013 Australian Directors’ Guild Awards, to be held in Sydney this Friday night. Amongst those attending are Leah Purcell and Catherine Mckenzie, who are both nominated for their work on Redfern Now, as well as feature film director Cate Shortland (Lore) and Tony Kravitz (Dead Europe).Œ Hosted by actor/director/writer/producer Adam Zwar, the Awards will be held at the Hoyts Cinemas at the Entertainment Quarter and will be followed by a dinner at Trackdown Studios.Œ This year, for the first time, the ADG will be acknowledging the work of Assistant Directors, with a special award to be presented to long-serving First A.D. Jamie Leslie.Œ Renowned Australian talent Rachel Ward, Bryan Brown, Susie Porter and Denise Roberts have also been confirmed as presenters.Œ For more information on the Awards or how to purchase tickets, visitŒ<a href="http://www.adg.org.au/">http://www.adg.org.au/</a> Mon, 29 Apr 2013 11:47:41 +1000 <![CDATA[Original cast members return for series 2 of Redfern Now, shooting starts in May]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/29/article/Original-cast-members-return-for-series-2-of-Redfern-Now-shooting-starts-in-May/BQCSXJGVXU.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/29/article/Original-cast-members-return-for-series-2-of-Redfern-Now-shooting-starts-in-May/BQCSXJGVXU.html Emily Blatchford The second season of award-winning series Redfern Now will commence filming in and around Redfern on May 1. Produced by Blackfella Films’ Miranda Dear and Darren Dale, alongside story producer Jimmy McGovern, the second instalment of the popular series will see many of the cast members reuniting to play their original characters. Those returning in season two include Wayne Blair, this year’s Most Outstanding Actress Logie winner, Deborah Mailman, Ursula Yovich, Lisa Flanagan, Stephen Curry, Dean Daley Jones and the AACTA Award-winning Leah Purcell. Adding to the mix will be Aaron Pederson, Craig McLachlan, Meyne Wyatt, Ernie Dingo, Steve Bisley, Sarah Woods and Tammy Clarkson. The first season of the show proved to be successful both with audiences and critics, and was nominated for five AACTA awards in 2013 (taking home the awards for Best Screenplay in Television and Best Lead Actress in a Television Drama) as well as scooping the Most Outstanding Drama Award at this year’s Logies. Sally Riley, Head of ABC TV’s Indigenous Department said, “Redfern Now season two will again be a highlight in ABC Television's schedule, with favourite characters returning, new families with dilemmas that will touch the hearts of audiences, and the wonderful storytelling by Australia's leading Indigenous creatives.” The second series will be written by Leah Purcell, Wayne Blair, John Bell, Adrian Russell Wills and the AACTA Award-winning Steven McGregor, and directed by Wayne Blair, Leah Purcell, Rachel Perkins, Beck Cole and Adrian Russell Wills. Miranda Dear said, “We are so thrilled to have attracted a cast and crew of this calibre. It is a testament to the power of the writing, the resonance of the stories and the success of the first season.” Redfern Now is produced by Blackfella Films’ Darren Dale and Miranda Dear, and presented by ABC TV and Screen Australia in association with Screen NSW.Œ Mon, 29 Apr 2013 11:11:18 +1000 <![CDATA[Rick Kalowski of Quail Television appointed Head of Comedy at ABC]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/24/article/Rick-Kalowski-of-Quail-Television-appointed-Head-of-Comedy-at-ABC/GNTSPRZDHL.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/24/article/Rick-Kalowski-of-Quail-Television-appointed-Head-of-Comedy-at-ABC/GNTSPRZDHL.html Emily Blatchford ABC TV has today announced the appointment of Rick Kalowski as the Head of Comedy. Kalowski, who previously worked as a lawyer and who currently holds the title of Creative Director for Quail television, has extensive experience creating, writing and producing both international and Australian television projects. Most recently, Kalowski was involved in the top rating series At Home with Julia (ABC1) which earned him an AACTA Award nomination for Best TV Comedy Series and two Australian Writers’ Guild Award nominations for Outstanding Comedy Writing. Carole Sklan, ABC TV’s Head of Drama said, “We're delighted Rick is joining ABC TV as Head of Comedy. He is passionate about Australian comedy and brings considerable creative skills and experience to the role. Rick has written and produced hours of sketch and narrative comedy. He also has a background in the law which seems to have only enhanced his sense of humour.” Kalowski said, “I’m hugely honoured and excited to be joining ABC TV as Head of Comedy. The ABC’s greatest comedy shows have been foundation experiences in my life, both as a viewer and a writer, and the opportunity to help continue that tradition is truly a privilege. Hopefully I don’t wreck the joint”. Kalowski will take on his new role in the second half of this year. In the meantime, ABC Fiction will continue to manage the comedy slate.Œ Wed, 24 Apr 2013 16:37:57 +1000 <![CDATA[IF Magazine looking for senior journalist to join team]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/24/article/IF-Magazine-looking-for-senior-journalist-to-join-team/MGGKDTDZWJ.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/24/article/IF-Magazine-looking-for-senior-journalist-to-join-team/MGGKDTDZWJ.html Emily Blatchford IF is looking for a hard-working and enthusiastic senior journalist to join our team here at the Glebe office. The successful applicant will have an interest and understanding of industry news and will have the ability to write for both the print and online mediums. The role involves adhering tight deadlines, producing accurate and original copy, sourcing your own story ideas and analysing industry developments and trends. The successful candidate must be willing to network and attend some conferences/screenings/events outside of normal work hours. Think this sounds like you? Send your resume and cover letter to Mark Kuban at <a href="mailto:mkuban@intermedia.com.au or contact ">mkuban@intermedia.com.au or contact </a>editor Emily Blatchford at <a href="mailto:eblatchford@if.com.au">eblatchford@if.com.auŒ</a> To view the full job description, click here:Œ<a href="http://jobla.com.au/advertmediacomment-and-design-jobs/journalist-senior-journalist/2326613">http://jobla.com.au/advertmediacomment-and-design-jobs/journalist-senior-journalist/2326613</a> Wed, 24 Apr 2013 11:23:09 +1000 <![CDATA[ScreenWest, AWG announce 2013 Tele-Navigator Development Program]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/24/article/ScreenWest-AWG-announce-2013-Tele-Navigator-Development-Program/OPLWZGOTHN.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/24/article/ScreenWest-AWG-announce-2013-Tele-Navigator-Development-Program/OPLWZGOTHN.html Emily Blatchford ScreenWest yesterday launched the 2013 Tele-Navigator Development Program, aimed at supporting the development of television content in Western Australia. The Program, presented in association with the Australian Writers Guild, is designed for projects which can be made in Western Australia. Up to six television projects (television drama or comedy series, telemovies or miniseries) will be chosen to participate in the Tele-Navigator Conference Week held from 15-19 July. Though projects at any stage of development are eligible for entry, the idea is for a team of industry professionals to work with early-stage ideas to develop them from the ground up. Sue Taylor and Sue Masters have already been announced as two of the three producing mentors, with another three writing mentors to be revealed in coming weeks. Writers, directors and producers are welcome to apply as individuals or as a team The deadline for applications is 5:00pm Monday, 27 May 2013. For more information visitŒ<a href="http://screenwest.com.au/go/screenwest-funding-program/tele-navigator-development-program-tv-series">http://screenwest.com.au/go/screenwest-funding-program/tele-navigator-development-program-tv-series</a> Wed, 24 Apr 2013 11:02:07 +1000 <![CDATA[Neighbours crew win right to right to bargain for enterprise agreement]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/24/article/Neighbours-crew-win-right-to-right-to-bargain-for-enterprise-agreement/SFIKNKYDUC.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/24/article/Neighbours-crew-win-right-to-right-to-bargain-for-enterprise-agreement/SFIKNKYDUC.html Inside Film Correspondent The crew on Neighbours have won the right to bargain for their first enterprise agreement after a year-long campaign. In a statement on their website, the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance reported union membership had grown to just under 50 of the 100 crew on site, and that “magnified members have pulled off a massive demonstration of collective action and got management to agree to bargain.” Over 100 signatures out 120 workers (including casuals) collected in the space of a week were presented to FairWork in a majority support determination submission.Œ This led to management reconsidering its earlier statement that it wouldn’t bargain, and negotiations are expected to commence in the coming weeks. For more information, visit the MEAA website here: <a href="http://www.alliance.org.au/">http://www.alliance.org.au/</a> Wed, 24 Apr 2013 09:53:47 +1000 <![CDATA[Get Shorty: the future of short film]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/24/article/Get-Shorty-the-future-of-short-film/JRGEYTNOLH.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/24/article/Get-Shorty-the-future-of-short-film/JRGEYTNOLH.html Lee Zachariah ‘I find it appalling that there is now so little funding for short films,’ said Gillian Armstrong as last year’s SPAA conference. ‘Sadly, only three short films are to be funded in New South Wales this year, none at all from Screen Australia, and I don’t know what’s happening with Film Victoria, who used to lead the way.’ When Gillian Armstrong took to the podium last November to discuss the future of filmmaking in Australia, she pointed to a decreasing amount of support for filmmakers starting out. Most notably, the decline in short film funding. ‘The world’s contracted markedly,’ says Metro Screen’s David Opitz. ‘There are fewer opportunities around for short film funding than there were over the last decade or so. Obviously, we feel that has a strong impact on the development of grassroots filmmaking. Those that we hope will go on and become industry icons in years to come.’ There are numerous reasons for funding programs drying up, but perhaps the most significant one is the global economic downturn. ‘Basically, the reason there’s been a contraction is purely economic,’ says David Opitz. ‘There unfortunately appears to be less funding around from a state government level, and Screen Australia don’t have it in their current charter to support short film as such. They’re interested in promoting feature films, longer form, and new media, online material. There are components within the Screen Australia funding regime to support short films, and we get some funding from them for a program called Raw Nerve, and some from the indigenous unit, but there’s been a contraction in the state budget in supporting the arts. We’ve been told this may change in the future.’ Although AFTRS continues to produce short films – last year, the postgraduate courses alone produced 58 – students have recognised the growing difficulty in getting short films noticed, and have begun branching out. ‘I think the thing is sometimes the short is the right thing to do,’ says Neil Peplow, AFTRS Director of Screen Division. ‘Sometimes it might be directly related to the script you’re trying to get through. The students here are all looking at their next script now. They’re very savvy at contextualising what it is that they produce.’ Thanks to the high profile of quality productions such as The Slap and Puberty Blues, as well as the international series coming from BBC, HBO and AMC, film students are becoming increasingly keen to hone their TV making skills. In this instance, the move away from short film production has been driven by them. ‘For the students, a short film achieves something in being able to state their style and approach and voice,’ says Peplow, ‘but in terms of their career, they recognise that they need to prove that they can do something which is longer form; be able to do something that is half-hour or hour if they want to get into TV. A lot more have their eyes on trying to make features, ’cos they see a crowded shorts market and go, let’s try to make a microbudget feature.’ Before working at AFTRS, Peplow worked in the UK film industry, and noted a similar dwindling in funds for shorts. ‘In the UK, the short film funding also dropped drastically,’ he says. ‘Film Four cut their funds, and the Film Council cut their funds, but it was also about being clever with the way you used the money that you did have, so it wasn’t being put into a generic scheme. And the question is: do you need less funding because people have access to technology and are doing it anyway?’ Despite the downturn in funding, the number of short films being produced has skyrocketed, thanks to the increasing accessibility of equipment. ‘I think what’s changed is the barriers to entry have collapsed,’ says Peplow, ‘so in theory you can shoot a short film on your mobile and then distribute it. It just means there’s a lot more material on the market.’ For filmmakers, finding their place amongst so many competitors is the bigger challenge. In addition to the traditional established film festivals, there is an increasing number of short film festivals, many of them on the internet. This has had the effect of opening up a traditionally niche format to a whole new audience. ‘Hopefully when the NBN comes online, that’ll increase the speed,’ says David Opitz. ‘There’s greater options available to have people see short films than there ever was before.’ Over the past three years, another funding model has emerged from the internet. Crowdfunding sites such as Kickstarter, Pozible and Indiegogo have given filmmakers a forum to solicit smaller donations from a wider audience. Investors can often donate as little as ten dollars towards a project, often with the promise of a prize at the end, be it a souvenir or a DVD of the finished film. Australian short Troll Bridge broke crowdfunding records last year when it raised nearly double its target. The filmmakers had originally attempted to raise the money from government agencies. ‘While I genuinely believe they loved the film,’ says director Daniel Knight, ‘they were ultimately unable to help us out.’ Post-production funding was offered, and the production had to source the budget elsewhere. Due to the story’s popularity – it is based on a short story by award-winning author Terry Pratchett – Knight and producer Ahren Morris were able to reach out to an established fan base that was keen to see the project realised. Metro Screen has now incorporated crowdfunding into its model, seeing it as a necessary complement to the funding they already give. ‘In the past, filmmakers may have held events or hit up friend’s relatives; now Pozible and Kickstarter provide other options.’ Rather than simply being an alternate funding option, Metro views crowdfunding as an important part of the producer’s entrepreneurial development. But even with all the equipment, Gillian is right about support training ground. Director Amiel Courtin-Wilson sees the democratisation of filmmaking tools as a positive, but remains pragmatic. ‘I think ultimately it’s back to that old adage: “It’s still a f--king pencil”. It’s a tool, it’s a means to an end. It means more films can be made, but I don’t think it means better films are made.’ This article first appeared in IF Magazine Issue #151 Wed, 24 Apr 2013 08:56:53 +1000 <![CDATA[FTI announce the return of the Western Australian Screen Awards]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/23/article/FTI-announce-the-return-of-the-Western-Australian-Screen-Awards/FRRHFYBVXA.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/23/article/FTI-announce-the-return-of-the-Western-Australian-Screen-Awards/FRRHFYBVXA.html Emily Blatchford The WA Screen Awards are back after a year-long hiatus. The Western Australian Film and Television Institute (FTI) today announced the return of the Awards after they were put on hold in late 2011. FTI CEO Paul Bodlovich says,“ˆit is our intent through the structure of this year’s awards to recognise excellence and achievement across the sector as broadly and as genuinely as possible”. Changes included a new, broader definition of “short form” and “long form” productions with most categories being allocated an award for each. The 2013 Awards will see 34 categories, to be announced next week, and include the new additions of “Best Game” and “Best Interactive Narrative”. The FTI will be accepting entries from Monday April 29 and confirmed productions delivered between January 1, 2011 and March 31, 2013 will be eligible. A date for the gala WA Screen Awards Night has been confirmed for Monday July 8, as part of a new partnership with the Revelation Film Festival Program. The WASA’s have also announced a new partnership with CinefestOz, which will see the winning short films of WASA offered a place Cinefest’s new short film program in August. Full details of submission requirements will be released in coming weeks.Œ Tue, 23 Apr 2013 15:03:47 +1000 <![CDATA[ABC1 commissions new late night comedy show Wednesday Night Fever]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/22/article/ABC1-commissions-new-late-night-comedy-show-Wednesday-Night-Fever/GILMWAJTAZ.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/22/article/ABC1-commissions-new-late-night-comedy-show-Wednesday-Night-Fever/GILMWAJTAZ.html Emily Blatchford ABC1 has commissioned a new late night weekly comedy series entitled Wednesday Night Fever. From Quail Television, the creators of ABC1’s popular At Home with Julia, Wednesday Night Fever will feature a number of satirical characters, political impersonations and live music performed by an ensemble cast in front of a live audience.Œ Already demonstrating some of the show’s no-holds-barred humour, Creator/Executive Producer Rick Kalowski says, “Defamation lawyers contemplating a first class ski trip to Aspen should book with confidence. This is your year.” Executive Producer Greg Quail spoke of the troubles associated with casting the series, explaining, “We’re still searching for performers willing to join the witness protection program right after the first episode goes to air.” “Wednesday Night Fever promises to entertain and delight audiences with a provocative mid-week serve of satire and musical comedy,” said ABC TV’s Head of Entertainment, Jennifer Collins.Œ “There’s a new wave of young comedic talent in Australia and this series is the perfect vehicle to showcase them, while playing alongside some of Australia’s more established comedians.” Wednesday Night Fever is a Quail and ABC TV co-production for ABC1. Quail Television Executive Producers are Rick Kalowski and Greg Quail. ABC Executive Producer is Sophia Zachariou. The full cast is expected to be announced in coming weeks.Œ Wednesday Night Fever will air mid-2013 on ABC1. Mon, 22 Apr 2013 16:54:11 +1000 <![CDATA[Production set to begin on ABC1 telemovie Carlotta, starring Jessica Marais]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/22/article/Production-set-to-begin-on-ABC1-telemovie-Carlotta-starring-Jessica-Marais/LJJWXJSNSF.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/22/article/Production-set-to-begin-on-ABC1-telemovie-Carlotta-starring-Jessica-Marais/LJJWXJSNSF.html Emily Blatchford Jessica Marais will star as transgender Les Girls performer Carlotta in a new telemovie for ABC 1. Carlotta follows the life of the transgender pioneer, who was born as Richard Byron before transforming into Carol and, on stage, Carlotta in the 1970s. Written by David Hannum, with story consultation from Carlotta, the film will be directed by Samantha Lang (My Place, The Monkey’s Mask) and will feature an acclaimed cast, including Caroline O’Connor, Alex Dimitriades, Anita Hegh, Eamon Farren and Paul Capsis. Carlotta will be produced by Riccardo Pellizzeri (Underbelly: NZ, Siege, MDA, Blue Heelers) and Lara Radulovich (Wentworth, Neighbours) with the ABC’s Carole Sklan and Christopher Gist as executive producers. Developed by Pellizzeri and Radulovich, Carlotta is being produced by their new production company Story Ark Productions. Producers Lara Radulovich and Riccardo Pellizzeri said, “This has been a passion project of ours for many years and we are delighted to be bringing Carlotta’s story to the screen. A love story and an outsider tale about an exceptional woman’s desire to be ordinary, hers is an extraordinary life, lived in changing times.” Story consultant Carlotta said “I am absolutely delighted and flattered that this story is being brought to the screen as my main motivation is to show anyone who may be struggling with their gender, or struggling to gain acceptance from their family and society at large - that you can do it. Stand tall, know who you are and be proud of yourself, as acceptance comes from within." ABC TV Head of Fiction, Carole Sklan said, “The ABC has been dramatising stories of remarkable Australians, from Eddie Mabo to Bernie Banton, individuals who have gone against the grain and contributed to social change. We are thrilled Jessica Marais is playing the remarkable Carlotta.” Carlotta will begin production on May 6 and will be shot in Sydney.Œ Mon, 22 Apr 2013 15:53:33 +1000 <![CDATA[ADG, Screen Aus announce Cut Snake as 2nd film for Directors Attachment Scheme]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/22/article/ADG-Screen-Aus-announce-Cut-Snake-as-2nd-film-for-Directors-Attachment-Scheme/NUMUKRMTUE.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/22/article/ADG-Screen-Aus-announce-Cut-Snake-as-2nd-film-for-Directors-Attachment-Scheme/NUMUKRMTUE.html Emily Blatchford As a result of the Director’s Attachment Scheme, emerging directors now have the opportunity to work alongside Tony Ayres on his new film Cut Snake. The scheme, launched in March this year and aimed at emerging film directors, is funded by Screen Australia and managed by the Australian Directors Guild. Cut Snake is the second project to be tied to the scheme (Kriv Stenders’ Kill Me Three Times was previously announced in March) and applications for the attachment are currently open. Screen Australia and the ADG have committed to providing three director’s attachments per year.Œ “We are very excited that the second film for the attachment scheme is with Tony Ayres,” said ADG Executive Director, Kingston Anderson. “He is one of our most talented screen directors.” Screen Australia’s Head of Development, Martha Coleman, said, “This is another great opportunity for an emerging director to learn from a hugely respected and generous director, Tony Ayres. It’s indicative of the high-quality attachments we intend to continue into the future through this scheme and we are enormously grateful to Tony and Matchbox Pictures for enabling this.”Œ Ayers is best known for his directorial work on The Home Song Stories and, in television, The Slap and more recently, The Turning.Œ Cut Snake will be filmed in Victoria later this year but applications are open to directors Australia-wide. To find out more about the scheme and application requirements, visit r visitŒ<a href="http://www.adg.org.au">http://www.adg.org.au</a> Mon, 22 Apr 2013 14:41:03 +1000 <![CDATA[AACTA meets with guilds to review Awards, discuss partnership]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/19/article/AACTA-meets-with-guilds-to-review-Awards-discuss-partnership/MCVLGJGZTN.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/19/article/AACTA-meets-with-guilds-to-review-Awards-discuss-partnership/MCVLGJGZTN.html Emily Blatchford The Australian Academy of Cinema Television Arts has met with various screen industry guilds today to determine the future of the AACTA Awards. IF understands the Academy is reviewing the 3rd AACTA Awards in light of financial constraints and is proposing to discontinue or change a number of award categories.Œ A renewed partnership between AACTA and the Guilds is also up for discussion and may result in the formation of an AACTA/Guilds Industry Working Group.Œ The AACTA awards were born in 2011 out of the Australian Film Awards, but it has taken only two years for the ceremony to come up against serious fiscal problems.Œ The loss of major sponsor Samsung in September 2012 dealt a huge blow to the fledgling awards and, despite the 2nd awards ceremony being attended by a number of high-profile stars including Russell Crowe, Nicole Kidman, Cate Blanchett and Geoffery Rush, the broadcast on Network Ten averaged just 318,000 viewers. Interestingly, despite AACTA acknowledging their difficult financial situation, (AACTA CEO Damian Trewhella admitted to Fairfax media the Academy was suffering from a lack of support and marvelled the 2013 ceremony “went ahead at all,”) there are no reports of AACTA reviewing the AACTA International Awards held in Los Angeles.Œ Fri, 19 Apr 2013 16:02:25 +1000 <![CDATA[ABC TV announces follow-up series to A Moody Christmas]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/19/article/ABC-TV-announces-follow-up-series-to-A-Moody-Christmas/MXNLOKZSJI.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/19/article/ABC-TV-announces-follow-up-series-to-A-Moody-Christmas/MXNLOKZSJI.html Emily Blatchford The Moody family will be returning to Australian television screens in a follow-up series to the popular comedy A Moody Christmas. ABC TV yesterday confirmed the second series has been given the green light, with scripting currently underway and production slated for later this year in Sydney. The new series will go under a different name but will still focus on the Moody clan and will be based around significant moments in the family’s year. Produced by Jungleboys in association with ABC TC, the 8X30 minute series will reunite some of the original creative team, including Trent O’Donnell, Phil Lloyd and Executive Producer, Jason Burrows. ABC TV Head of Fiction Carole Sklan said: “After spending Christmas with the Moodys we are now delighted to bring audiences a year in the much loved family’s life – eight important occasions brimming with the keenly observed humour, recognisable incidents and heightened flourishes we’ve come to expect from Trent, Phil and the Jungleboys team.” Burrows said, “The feedback we've had on Moody has been amazing, and everyone is really excited about the second series. Moving outside of the Christmas theme will give Trent and Phil a lot more scope to explore the dysfunctionality of the family, but again it will have a lot of heart.” Fri, 19 Apr 2013 10:43:31 +1000 <![CDATA[Matt McGrath joins Network Ten as Chief Brand Officer]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/19/article/Matt-McGrath-joins-Network-Ten-as-Chief-Brand-Officer/ZGXAIRCJWO.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/19/article/Matt-McGrath-joins-Network-Ten-as-Chief-Brand-Officer/ZGXAIRCJWO.html Inside Film Correspondent Network Ten has appointed Matt McGrath in the newly created role of Chief Brand Officer. McGrath, previously the Chief Executive Officer and Executive Chairman of Y&R Brands Australia and New Zealand, will be responsible for brand communications, marketing and promotions for the network. Network Ten Chief Executive Officer, Hamish McLennan, said: “I have known Matt for many years and he is without doubt one of the best creative and strategic minds in the Australian media and marketing sector. “I am delighted he has agreed to join Network Ten to work on our external and internal marketing, including our messaging around our core programs. “Matt will create a consistent view of our brand, on and off air, and bring innovative thinking to howwe communicate with consumers and advertisers.” Fri, 19 Apr 2013 08:51:48 +1000 <![CDATA[Secrets of making a modern day monster: John Cox's latest exhibition]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/18/article/Secrets-of-making-a-modern-day-monster-John-Coxs-latest-exhibition/BVFTWTPBRU.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/18/article/Secrets-of-making-a-modern-day-monster-John-Coxs-latest-exhibition/BVFTWTPBRU.html Rodney Appleyard Cox is renowned for being one of the most talented practical effects experts in Australia, having won an Oscar for creating the animatronic sheep, puppies, mice and dog in Babe. He also won an AFI Award for the mechanical crocodile he produced for Rogue. Œ His interactive show, How to Make a Monster: The Art and Technology of Animatronics, first opened at the Queensland Museum during Christmas in 2004, which quickly became the second most successful exhibition ever staged in Australia (after Tutankhamen). Œ The following year, it was shown at Sydney's Australian Museum in 2005, where it also received rave reviews. Since then, it has been the top three exhibition at almost every other venue it has visited, and the number one show at most, including its tour of the U.S. in 2008 and 2010. The latest version of the exhibition set sail for the U.S. again in February, which includes a tour of Canada for the first time. Œ Cox and his team have changed the show to meet the specific needs of the 10 museums and science centres it will visit in these countries. These changes also reflect how the art form has evolved over the years. Œ The new show features the latest technology used to make modern day monsters. "For example, we reveal how we made the Pteranodons and baby Ankylosaur for a 2012 sci-fi series, which involved using 3D printing technology to manufacture the maquettes from digitally sculptured files," says Cox. Œ "We also illustrate the making of the Megalania, highlighting the relationship between puppet and performer. Additionally, we demonstrate how important the performance is in making these creatures believable." Œ The main feature characters include some of Cox's proudest creations, such as the creatures and animatronics from Pitch Black, the crocodile from Peter Pan and practical effects from Inspector Gadget 2. Œ "The exhibition also provides a history lesson about how the creatures have evolved to achieve their specific skill sets," adds Cox. "On top of that, we teach people about how many 'normal' skills can be applied to create extraordinary practical effects. These techniques include fibreglassing, mechanics, electronics, wig-making, dressmaking and painting." Œ About half of the exhibits designed for these events will be interactive. For example, people will be able to touch the alien guts from Pitch Black, puppeteer the giant crocodile from Peter Pan and run Inspector Gadget into a stop sign. Œ "Audience members will also be able to become a lighting technician, manoeuvre mermaid tails and manipulate a number of the creatures," adds Cox. "We have gone out of our way to explain the science of animatronics by removing the skins from a number of the creatures, so that you can get an inside look at the steel, wires, cables, servo motors, hydraulic cylinders and much more. Œ "This allows people to understand how they are assembled to create the bones and muscles that make movements possible. Maths, chemistry, physics and anatomy all play a crucial role in the creation process. People will also learn about the creative design and artistry that goes into these practical effects." Œ Cox says he expects the exhibition will work just as successfully in the U.S. and Canada as it does in Australia because the art of animatronics is universally appealing. Œ "The exhibition is popular with everyone from four year-olds to 84 year-olds. It brings in the illusive 18-24 age group, who are normally difficult to attract to museums, art galleries and science centres but are keen to see what happens behind the scenes of films." Œ Sadly, Cox is disappointed that practical effects, such as animatronics, are being used less often these days due to the advances in CGI. As a voting member of the Academy of Moving Pictures Arts and Sciences, he regularly feels annoyed when only the CGI artists get a mention in the workflow, with the practical effects teams getting overlooked. Œ "Saying that, some directors still enjoy the realism of a physical creature, especially for close-ups, or where there is interaction between the actors and the creature," adds Cox. "But I don't know if we will ever get to make 25 animals again, like we did for Racing Stripes." Œ Some of the highlights of Cox's career have included seeing his animatronic turtle leave real turtle prints on the sand in Nim's Island, and having a baby Ankylosaur break out of its shell on Terra Nova. Œ Despite the current challenges, Cox now works in other industries that require his effects experience. For example, his team was commissioned recently to create a number of large public art pieces, as well as prototypes for motorbikes and race cars. Cox was also employed to work as a designer and sculptor for the new Justice League ride at Warner Brothers' MovieWorld." Œ Having a flexible skill set means that Cox's team has been able to adapt in the changing business environment. But with the exhibition continuing to be a huge success, Cox is keeping the profile of animatronics alive in the minds of Hollywood filmmakers and new practical effects artists. Œ The latest exhibition opened at the new Telus Spark Centre in Calgary in February. It will also visit Regina and Edmonton in Canada, before heading to a number of other venues in the U.S. This article first appeared in IF Magazine Issue #151 Thu, 18 Apr 2013 16:32:23 +1000 <![CDATA[Nigel Miller appointed General Manager of Screentime Communications]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/18/article/Nigel-Miller-appointed-General-Manager-of-Screentime-Communications/GFJOTURPDQ.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/18/article/Nigel-Miller-appointed-General-Manager-of-Screentime-Communications/GFJOTURPDQ.html Emily Blatchford Founder of Silver Wolf Productions Nigel Miller has joined Screentime as General Manager of Communications. Miller, who previously co-founded Pinstripe Media, has worked in the communications arena for a number of years and says he is thrilled to take on his new role at the television production company.Œ "I am excited to work with an established brand to build it further into the corporate arena and by the opportunity to partner with Screentime to fast-track the development of a range of innovative app and online products,” Miller says.Œ Adds Bob Campbell, CEO of Screentime, “"We are delighted Nigel has accepted the challenge of both working with Screentime Communications' established client list and further developing this aspect of our business including the establishment of Screentime Digital.”Œ Screentime Communications was established three years ago and offers a range of corporate communications services including video production, event management, electronic newsletters and communications training.Œ Miller’s role with the company will see him manage the current client base as well as establish Screentime Digital, a new joint venture between Screentime and Silver Wolf productions which will focus on the development of self-commissioned and third party apps and online offerings.Œ Thu, 18 Apr 2013 10:25:09 +1000 <![CDATA[Screen Queensland commits over $142,000 to assorted programs]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/17/article/Screen-Queensland-commits-over-142000-to-assorted-programs/YTELPAKTPR.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/17/article/Screen-Queensland-commits-over-142000-to-assorted-programs/YTELPAKTPR.html Emily Blatchford Œ Screen Queensland has today announced an injection of over $142,000 in funds to fuel the development of a number of projects. Screen Queensland CEO, Bryan Lowe, made the announcement this morning and said both television and feature film projects would be supported as well as the short film festival SIPFEST. “We are excited to be funding new television concepts from leading Queensland production companies Hoodlum Active and Wild Fury as well as a second series of Jonathan M Shiff’s Reef Doctors,” he said. “Hoodlum are a ground breaking EMMY, BAFTA and LOGIE award-winning team who have found innovative ways to engage global audiences across multiple platforms and are now active in drama production. “We have also been active in supporting feature film development, including a romantic comedy Music of My Life about a couple looking for love in all the wrong songs, and Help a voyeuristic thriller,” he said. The short film festival “SIPFEST is part of the Surfers Paradise Festival and produced by the Surfers Paradise Alliance and will receive Screen Queensland financial support,” he said. Full list of recipients receiving funding support in the current funding round are: DEVELOPMENT TV Conceptual Development Program Changing Minds – Wild Fury Pty Ltd Reef Doctors Series 2 – Jonathan M Shiff Productions Pty Ltd In the Shadows – Hoodlum Active Pty Ltd Production Attachment Sally Wortley - Production Manager – Comic Book Heroes Business Development Grant Ludo Studios Pty Ltd Project and Business Development Program The Torres Straits – Bunya Productions Pty Ltd 7 Days Later – Ludo Studios Pty Ltd Music of My Life – Papermoon Productions Help – Katia Nizic Plague – Visionquest Entertainment Pty Ltd SCREEN CULTURE SIPFEST (Shorts in Paradise) – Surfers Paradise Alliance Wed, 17 Apr 2013 10:17:11 +1000 <![CDATA[WA film Drift named best narrative feature in Puerto Rico]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/17/article/WA-film-Drift-named-best-narrative-feature-in-Puerto-Rico/WEEGVBFYRD.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/17/article/WA-film-Drift-named-best-narrative-feature-in-Puerto-Rico/WEEGVBFYRD.html Emily Blatchford West Australian surf film Drift has been judged best narrative feature at the Rincon International Film Festival held in Puerto Rico. The film, starring Myles Pollard, Xavier Samuel and Sam Worthington, beat hundreds of other features to claim the title.Œ Drift tells the story of the Kelly brothers (Pollard and Xavier) who start up their own surf-wear business in a small coastal WA town in the 60s and 70s.Œ The film screened during the week-long film festival to an audience of over 500, with producer Tim Duffy in attendance to participate in a Q&A session afterwards.Œ Leading actors Pollard, Xavier and Worthington will be in Perth this Friday to take part in similar Q&A events, for which the tickets to the first session have already sold out.Œ Pollard and Worthington both hail from Western Australia, as do many of the other supporting cast, including actors Greg McNeill (The Circuit, September), Sarah Louella (Cloudstreet), Maurie Ogden (The Shark Net), David Bowers (Cloudstreet), Igor Sas (Lockie Leonard), Murray Dowsett (The Circuit), Laura Fairclough (Cloudstreet) and Phil Miolin. Youngsters Sean Keenan (Lockie Leonard) from Busselton and Kai Arbuckle from Clarkson play the young Kelly brothers. Drift is co-directed by Morgan O'Neill and Ben Nott and is produced by Tim Duffy, Michele Bennet and Myles Pollard. Drift hits Australian cinemas on May 2. View the trailer here: <a href="http://if.com.au/2013/02/28/article/Drift-Trailer/HXHSXTHMQJ.html">http://if.com.au/2013/02/28/article/Drift-Trailer/HXHSXTHMQJ.html</a> Wed, 17 Apr 2013 08:34:14 +1000 <![CDATA[Jason van Genderen to premiere short film Red Earth Hip Hop at Sundance London]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/17/article/Jason-van-Genderen-to-premiere-short-film-Red-Earth-Hip-Hop-at-Sundance-London/HAIGMFSRXG.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/17/article/Jason-van-Genderen-to-premiere-short-film-Red-Earth-Hip-Hop-at-Sundance-London/HAIGMFSRXG.html Emily Blatchford Terrigal-based filmmaker Jason van Genderen has been announced as one of two finalists of the Sundance Nokia Music competition. As a result, his short film Red Earth Hip Hop will premiere at Sundance London, held from the 25-28 April at Cineworld at the O2. Van Genderen first heard about the competition, which calls for the submission of a 60-second trailer capturing an underground music story, via social media. “Someone sent me a link for this trailer competition and I thought, ‘What a fantastic way to test the content,’” he says. “Then later I was talking with friends and someone mentioned how an indigenous hip hop scene starting to grow and mature.” A meeting with a Triple J producer put van Genderen in contact with Melbourne based Hip Hop artist Morganics and the idea for Red Earth Hip Hop was born.Œ The film – which van Genderen is currently in the midst of editing - tells the story of indigenous hip hop and how it is paving the way for Aboriginal youth to reconnect with their culture and traditional languages.Œ Though van Genderen says he is passionate and proud of the subject, he says he was still surprised his trailer was chosen.Œ “I was genuinely stunned to be selected, there were hundreds of brilliant entries submitted,” says Van Genderen. “I think there were 280 in total. When I went through and started watching the other entries, my hope sank, there were so many high calibre concepts there. I am genuinely stunned that we got in.”Œ Along with a return trip to Sundance London to see his film premiere, van Genderen’s prize included two Nokia 920 smartphones and $5000 with which to complete his film. The filmmaker then had just over a week to shoot and edit the project. “It was a whirlwindˆ we had no time to plan things. We just scrambled and got it together,” he says. The film was shot in four days in Lockhart River, Queensland, and looks at how hip hop is impacting indigenous youth in the community.Œ “(The film is about) how hip hop is giving today’s Aboriginal youth a way to reconnect with what their story-telling elders passed on, only through a new tool,” he says. “It’s also preserving local language which has been a struggle for decades. Now kids are wanting to learn the language because they want to rap it. It’s coming full circle.”Œ Van Genderen is quick to point out the differences between indigenous hip hop and the US variety.Œ “American hip hop is seated in the Bronx, it’s the language of struggle from the streets,” he says. “It’s all bling and bitches and hoes and crime and that sort of stuff.Œ “Indigenous hip hop also addresses problematic issues in the community such as isolation but it’s very culturally rich and very empowering.”Œ Currently in the editing process (the final version of the film is due tomorrow) van Genderen says he hopes the final film will run around the five minute mark.Œ Of the two finalists, an overall winner will be announced.Œ “I hope I’ll bring home a gong, but really I think I’ve already won by just being there,” he says.Œ Wed, 17 Apr 2013 08:16:35 +1000 <![CDATA[Tasmanian filmmaker Pawel Achtel scoops Innovation Award at NAB]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/15/article/Tasmanian-filmmaker-Pawel-Achtel-scoops-Innovation-Award-at-NAB/ISASJBBCXK.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/15/article/Tasmanian-filmmaker-Pawel-Achtel-scoops-Innovation-Award-at-NAB/ISASJBBCXK.html Emily Blatchford Tasmanian film-maker Pawel Achtel has been awarded the Innovation Prize at the Studiodaily Prime Awards in Las Vegas, USA, for his underwater 3D film camera systems. The Awards were announced during the esteemed National Association of Broadcasters Conference held in Las Vegas in April each year. The six-day conference showcases the latest innovations in the film industry across a range of areas and attracts more than 100, 000 international guests annually. This year, Achtel was honoured to be nominated twice out of 19 finalists for the award for best invention in film production. “It’s an extraordinary honour,” says Achtel. “I’ve put hundreds of hours of work, and a lot of thought, into designing these new systems for filming underwater. None of the existing equipment did justice to the magic of the underwater world.” Achtel’s innovations – DeepX and 3Deep – allow film-makers to film underwater with equipment that weights a fraction of what a typical underwater 3D camera rig would weigh – 20kg compared to the average 120kg. His camera systems also feature lenses specifically designed for optical condition underwater and as a result, images from the systems are sharp enough to screen on the largest cinema screens in the world. “I created these new housings so that I could make the best possible films underwater – trying to capture images of sea creatures that look astounding on the big screen,” said Achtel. “That’s what I’m really passionate about. But to get such an award for this is something I never imagined!” In a further honour, Tasmanian Premier Lara Giddings has issued a statement to the press congratulating Achtel on his achievement. “This is a wonderful achievement for a Tasmanian filmmaker who has dedicated his time to developing this innovative underwater camera system that produces outstanding 3D vision for film and television,” Ms Giddings said. “Pawel was competing against inventions by multi-national companies including Sony and Canon, and came out the winner for cutting edge equipment developed at his workshop in Coles Bay on Tasmania’s East Coast. “This international win will not only bring him worldwide attention, it will also generate interest in these exciting documentaries and shine another light on a rarely seen aspect of Tasmania’s natural beauty. “The screen industry in Tasmania is the strongest it has ever been, with recent successes including Goddess, The Hunter and The First Fagan, driving investment to the state and creating jobs and training opportunities,” she said.Œ Mon, 15 Apr 2013 16:51:26 +1000 <![CDATA[TVC director Fabio Nardo joins Digital Pulse as creative director]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/15/article/TVC-director-Fabio-Nardo-joins-Digital-Pulse-as-creative-director/SWSMUEAVFY.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/15/article/TVC-director-Fabio-Nardo-joins-Digital-Pulse-as-creative-director/SWSMUEAVFY.html Emily Blatchford Fabio Nardo has joined Australian production company Digital Pulse in the role of Creative Director.Œ The award-winning TVC director has a body of work which includes campaigns such as Demazin’s “man-flu” character and the bouncy birds for Bird’s Eye. He has also worked for well-known brands such as Eveready, Lexus, Toyota, Ford and Hyundai. Digital Pulse Managing Director Brett Heil said, “Fabio is widely recognised for his cinematic visuals and the seamless integration of visual effects into live action.” “His extensive experience designing and directing high-end television commercials will be a valuable asset to Digital Pulse as it aspires to provide the highest quality end-to-end post production services to Australian and international clients.” “Fabio’s experience and expertise adds momentum to our team’s passion and creativity to produce and deliver engaging and powerful messages.” Before joining Digital Pulse, Nardo worked both freelance as a TVC director and in-house with Filmgraphics Entertainment as a designer. Nardo is also an acclaimed illustrator and has contributed to works such as the popular children’s book Rosie’s Really a Country Dog by Ann Carrigy. Of joining the production house, Nardo says, “Digital Pulse has a great vision and it’s exciting for me to play a key role in a studio that is driven by design. “I’m thrilled to join a company which has the insight to involve post production experience from the conception of any project in order to deliver the most outstanding and efficient creative and design outcomes.” Mon, 15 Apr 2013 15:51:55 +1000 <![CDATA[Twisted sisters stick the knife into their latest film American Mary]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/15/article/Twisted-sisters-stick-the-knife-into-their-latest-film-American-Mary/WLXEILJVZR.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/15/article/Twisted-sisters-stick-the-knife-into-their-latest-film-American-Mary/WLXEILJVZR.html Rodney Appleyard Œ <img alt="" height="299" src="/image/SoskaSisters-1-web.jpg" width="448" /> The Soska sisters in American MaryŒ American Mary follows a medical student, called Mary Mason, who becomes disenchanted with the surgical world she once loved. Following her desire for easy money, she leaves medical school and is lured into the corrupt world of underground surgery. ŒSoon afterwards, she finds herself executing a series of bizarre and gruelling emergency surgeries and is left traumatised by the actions of one of the more experienced surgeons. This leads her to take revenge, with horrific consequences. The movie received critical acclaim last year from a number of high profile horror film festivals, including the Film4 FrightFest in the UK, the Toronto After Dark Festival and the Monster Fest in Australia. The Canadian Soska sisters said they came up with the storyline, which they wrote, directed and acted in (including the stunts), at a time when they were experiencing severe difficulties with their own lives. "When we wrote it, we were struggling after making Dead Hooker in a Trunk, before its release," recalls Sylvia Soska. "In fact, we were very poor, starving, meeting monsters in the industry and having all sorts of personal troubles. "But the script was very therapeutic - we put everything we were going through and ourselves into that story, using mainstream medicine versus body modification as analogies for the mainstream film industry versus the horror scene." They were also motivated to write this film after being fascinated about the body modification culture when they stumbled upon it years ago. So they decided to research more thoroughly into the subject matter. "In the end, we wanted to shift people's opinions on appearances on the surface, as well as one person's struggle for success." "The body modification community is largely misunderstood and seems to be the subject of modern day witch hunts. It makes no sense to me that cosmetic surgery is fully accepted, whereas body modification (such as making sexual enhancements) is ridiculed. We wanted to educate people on body mod. It is also a perfect vessel for telling our story." Their debut movie, Dead Hooker in a Trunk, which was inspired by Grindhouse, directed by Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino, also received critical acclaim when it was released in 2009. This amusing horror movie is about a group of friends who discover a dead hooker in their trunk, but they find it much harder to dispose of the body in real life, as compared to the movies. ŒFollowing the success of this film, they contacted every director they could to drum up support for American Mary. One of the people who responded was Eli Roth, who played a big part in helping them to get the film off the ground. The twisted sisters are big horror fans and the film features a number of gruesome revenge killings. In particular, they have deliberately included strong female characters to do some "serious ass-kicking," as they describe it. "One of Mary's victims ends up with an apparatus in her mouth that is used for spreading vaginas, which is a special way to finish him off," adds Sylvia Soska. They have also deliberately killed off blondes very easily in the movie, which they claim is inspired by Hitchcock's theory that: "blondes make the best victims." "It has nothing to do with us being raven heads," adds Sylvia Solska. "It just happens for some reason. The script writes itself and suddenly the blondes are all dead and mutilated. I don't know what happens. It's my Mac - it just hates blondes." The sisters deliberately decided to avoid using CGI effects in the movie because they are such big fans of practical effects, in particular the work of Todd Masters, who owns MastersFX. Masters' company has been responsible for creating a number of award-winning effects for many Hollywood films and series in the past, including Underworld, The Twilight Saga: New Moon, True Blood and Six Feet Under. The opportunity to work with MastersFX was a dream come true for the pair, who were particularly delighted when Masters showed them his secret stash of fake prosthetic penises when they asked him for a special kind of genital for American Mary. The next film they are working on is called Bob. It is a monster horror film, which stars an effeminate man who gets even with his persecutor by committing a rape revenge. The sisters have written the script, which features werewolves, vampires and zombies, specifically with MastersFX in mind because they are so keen to work with the company again. Stylistically, the twisted sisters say it will look like a cross between American Mary and Dead Hooker in a Trunk, which should please their growing army of fans. ŒIn January, American Mary was released theatrically in the UK. Check out the trailer here:Œ<a href="http://if.com.au/2013/03/14/article/American-Mary-Trailer/CCJLRQIGXW.html">http://if.com.au/2013/03/14/article/American-Mary-Trailer/CCJLRQIGXW.html</a> This article first appeared in IF Magazine Issue #151 Mon, 15 Apr 2013 15:29:52 +1000 <![CDATA[Deluxe to close doors on Australian film lab as "the industry has moved on"]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/04/article/Deluxe-to-close-doors-on-Australian-film-lab-as-the-industry-has-moved-on/KFRFAUASKY.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/04/article/Deluxe-to-close-doors-on-Australian-film-lab-as-the-industry-has-moved-on/KFRFAUASKY.html Emily Blatchford Deluxe has announced it will close the doors to its Australian film laboratory on April 19, losing four employees in the process. The decision comes less than two weeks after Peter Jackson’s famous Park Road film laboratory announced plans to discontinue business this coming June.Œ Managing director of Deluxe Australia Alaric McCausland described the announcement as being a “very sad day for us” and a “long, thought-through decision.”Œ McCausland said, regrettable as the decision was, it was “a reflection of what has been happening over the past few years.” “The move to digital has been a global trend and Australia is not immune to that. It’s a transition that has been happening in various part of the film business for the past ten years and a reflection of preferred format of cinematographers the world over.” “The industry has moved on.”Œ McCausland confirmed Deluxe was forced to discontinue the employment of four Deluxe employees (out of the 300 working in Australia) as a result of the lab’s closure.Œ “The announcement means that we are regrettably and very sadly saying good-bye to four very valued team members,” he said.Œ But McCausland went on to say that to continue with the Australian film laboratory open was simply not viable in the current climate.Œ “It’s a very tough ask for us to sustain the losses that we have and more importantly provide the quality of work, when the volume (of work) is insignificant, if not existent.”Œ McCausland said the company had been informing key stake holders of the decision over the last couple of days.Œ Thu, 04 Apr 2013 17:13:54 +1100 <![CDATA[Ten announces release of Offspring app]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/04/article/Ten-announces-release-of-Offspring-app/WXISUTZSFA.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/04/article/Ten-announces-release-of-Offspring-app/WXISUTZSFA.html Emily Blatchford Network Ten has capitalised on the success of drama series Offspring by releasing a corresponding app entitled Offspring: Moving In. The free app, announced today, will provide fans with puzzles, exclusive scenes and information about a character yet to appear on the show. Network Ten’s Chief Digital Officer, Rebekah Horne, said: “Offspring fans have received exclusive content ahead of on-air broadcast throughout the entire series. This year, we are delighted to reward fans with something innovative ahead of the launch of Series Four.” The decision to create the app reflects an industry-wide evolution toward multi-platform content. Horne said Offspring had already enjoyed strong audience engagement through their social media sites and the network wanted to enhance that level of communication. “Offspring’s social extensions are hugely popular, with audiences increasingly engaged from series to series. The addition of Offspring: Moving In should deepen the level of engagement with TEN’s hit Australian drama,” she said. The first series of Offspring screened on Channel 10 in 2010. The show was renewed for a fourth and fifth season on July 12 last year. Offspring: Moving In is powered by Intel and is available to download from Apple iTunes app story and Google Play from today.Œ Thu, 04 Apr 2013 16:56:08 +1100 <![CDATA[Game On: enhancing a screen production over multiple platforms]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/04/article/Game-On-enhancing-a-screen-production-over-multiple-platforms/MLITOUTAPK.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/04/article/Game-On-enhancing-a-screen-production-over-multiple-platforms/MLITOUTAPK.html Emily Blatchford It is no secret the screen industry is rapidly evolving to embrace more and more platforms. The ultimate film experience is no longer confined just to the big screen; but has extended into numerous apps, games, webisodes, e-books, social media platforms and even real-life missions. It’s a process we have seen grow rapidly and successfully in the Australian industry the last few years; so much so, last November Arts Minister Simon Crean announced $20 million in funding to create an Australian Interactive Games Fund.Œ The ever-evolving nature of the industry has meant these additional elements, once seen as separate entities, can now be used to direct traffic to the film’s website, attract new markets or drum up interest in a movie before its release. However, the traditional method thus far has seen these platforms treated as “extras” that support the main star – the film itself.Œ Feature film producer Keith Sweitzer and Christopher Ferriter, Managing Director of Divisive Media, claim to have turned this way of thinking on its head.Œ The duo, in conjunction with the producing and creative teams respectively, have launched what they describe as “the first transmedia/game combination of its kind” in Australia and New Zealand.Œ The browser- based game, named Vigilante: Speak for the Dead, precedes the accompanying Australian film, John Doe (written by Stephen M Coates and directed by Kelly Dolen), which is currently in post-production in Los Angeles and is expected to be released later this year.Œ What makes this package different, Sweitzer and Ferriter argue, is that both game and film were developed in conjunction with each other. In other words, the game is not the ‘additional extra’ to the film, or vice versa.Œ “This is unique in that (the film and the game) were developed at the same time,” says Ferriter. “In the past, we would build games on TV shows or films that already had fan bases.Œ “For example, I worked on CSI for years and a number of other properties, and I thought they were great games and great properties. However, in that position you can’t influence what that TV show does and you have to work very hard not to step on the toes of that property.Œ “It’s the same old model in that one medium leads and another complements. This is very unique in that they kind of go out together and work together as a team. “Œ The pair stumbled across the idea almost by accident.Œ Sweitzer, who refers to Ferriter as an “old associate of mine” was discussing his latest work on the project John Doe.Œ “He was immediately interested in the world and the character, and the possibility of what could be done with them,” Sweitzer remembers.Œ “I have not an ounce of experience in the game world, but I knew Chris, and I was developing the script at the time with Stephen and Kel, and (when Chris expressed interest) I was like, ‘I can’t wait to hear what this is.’” Ferriter adds, “The first thing that popped into my mind was, ‘we could do something really unique here.’”Œ The result is a visually impressive and artistic game which allows the player to create their own vigilante identity. The task is then to act as “judge, jury and executioner” in a city teeming with crime.Œ Players can exact battles, punish wrong-doers in the community, chat to friends and unlock various cars and weapons as the game progresses. “The game lays the ground work of the world we see in John Doe,” Ferriter says. “It’s a world that can live from two to three to four monthsˆ so by the time the film comes out, people are already invested in the world and the characters.Œ “It’s opened up very different, very new distribution possibilities. It will be a new model.”Œ However, Ferriter is quick to maintain the big appeal about this project was not the potential marketing value.Œ “We didn’t care about just driving traffic to a website or building a rough brand awareness,” he says. “We wanted to build something that people cared about and invested in.”Œ To achieve this, Ferriter concentrated on two aspects they considered to be crucial.Œ Firstly - that the game had legs of its own.Œ “I think if you make a game that simply mirrors the storyline of the film you are not providing incentiveˆ you won’t get people to look to the other medium to get additional information,” Ferriter says.Œ “There’s things left out in the game right now,” adds Sweitzer. “And the beautiful part is that, in a game, anything can happen at any moment. For instance I can tell you that at some point in the game the audience will be excited about the mysteriousness of this John Doe character.”Œ The second important aspect was to achieve a visual integrity in the game comparable to that of the film.Œ “Visually we went to great lengthsˆ the goal that we set was if you look at the game there can be no mistake you’re in the world (of John Doe). The art style is so different and unique, and that is so necessary (once you see) the film. We would not have done it justice to go out there and make a game with cartoony characters, so we spent a lot of time trying to create a game with a look that complemented the film,” Ferriter says.Œ It was a process aided rather than abetted by John Doe director Kelly Dolen, who Ferriter describes as someone who was “open to telling stories in different ways.”Œ “It took a lot of faith on Kel’s part, to hear me say, ‘I want to make a game like this, you have to trust me.’ It took a lot of faith to give me that level of trust. I didn’t want a game to ruin the artistic integrity of the movie. Instead, I like to think I have enhanced it.”Œ Ferriter and Sweitzer have no plans to stem the platform flow after John Doe’s release – in fact, they plan to keep expanding.Œ “The creative team and great minds at Divisive have a very large universe mapped out and it encompasses books and comics and web seriesˆ something unique,” says Sweitzner.Œ “I think this is a new model, I think it’s innovative – really I’m just excited about what we’ve been able to accomplish.”Œ Vigilante: Speak for the Dead is available to download over iTunes, wifi or 3G in Australia and New Zealand and will be available to download in the US mid-February.Œ John Doe is currently in post-production and will be released at a later date.Œ This article first appeared in IF magazine #151.Œ Vigilante: Speak for the Dead is now available to download in the US.Œ Thu, 04 Apr 2013 15:37:59 +1100 <![CDATA[A Current Affair in hot water after ACMA picks holes in Neil Brooks story]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/04/article/A-Current-Affair-in-hot-water-after-ACMA-picks-holes-in-Neil-Brooks-story/CGMHPXZXKJ.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/04/article/A-Current-Affair-in-hot-water-after-ACMA-picks-holes-in-Neil-Brooks-story/CGMHPXZXKJ.html Emily Blatchford Channel Nine’s A Current Affair is under fire from the Australian Communications and Media Authority after the organisation found the program to have breached provisions on factual accuracy, privacy and complaints handling. The story in question, presented by reporter Amanda Paterson in March last year and running over 19 minutes, concerned former Olympic gold medallist Neil Brooks and his wife. ACMA’s 32-page investigation report, released today, found that “the program had insufficient evidence to support its claim during a 5 March, 2012 broadcast that police in Australia, the United States and France were investigating allegations of fraud against the former swimmer and his wife.”Œ The ACMA also found the program had breached the privacy of Brooks’ wife by showing her driver’s licence and French address on camera and that the program had failed to adequately respond to the complaints of Brooks after the segment went to air.Œ However there were also a number of alleged breaches ACMA has dismissed, namely because they were not considered to be “factual material,” had inconclusive evidence or that an “ordinary reasonable viewer” would not interpret statements as fact.Œ For instance, statements from Paterson such as “The gold medal Olympian turned gold medal conman,” and “[The Brooks] are currently holed up in a villa somewhere hatching their next plan” were deemed by ACMA as “emotive, hyperbolic and/or opinion” and subsequently dismissed as breaches.Œ Channel Nine has accepted the organisation’s findings and will be acknowledging the incidents on their website.Œ Contact Emily Blatchford at eblatchford@if.com.au or on Twitter at @EmilyBlatchford Thu, 04 Apr 2013 15:20:07 +1100 <![CDATA[Hoyts Distribution renamed STUDIOCANAL in Australia and New Zealand]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/03/article/Hoyts-Distribution-renamed-STUDIOCANAL-in-Australia-and-New-Zealand/MBDQJXMERM.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/03/article/Hoyts-Distribution-renamed-STUDIOCANAL-in-Australia-and-New-Zealand/MBDQJXMERM.html Inside Film Correspondent Hoyts Distribution in Australia and New Zealand has been renamed STUDIOCANAL. The re-branding, effective yesterday, comes after the French production house and distribution company acquired Hoyts Distribution in July last year. The decision was made in order to provide clarity to the international market and strengthen STUDIOCANAL’s positioning worldwide. STUDIOCANAL Chairman and CEO Olivier Courson said, “The company is fully integrated and despite the long distance, our collaboration is doing great. Having a single name is important for us but also for our partners around the world”. Robert Slaviero, CEO Australia/New Zealand says: “We are extremely proud andŒexcited to be part of such a prestigious organization and look forward to deliveringŒgreat films and great results to Australia and New Zealand”. Wed, 03 Apr 2013 09:25:37 +1100 <![CDATA[Foxtel commissions a second series of Tony Robinson's Time Walks]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/02/article/Foxtel-commissions-a-second-series-of-Tony-Robinsons-Time-Walks/AWKYGQWDEA.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/02/article/Foxtel-commissions-a-second-series-of-Tony-Robinsons-Time-Walks/AWKYGQWDEA.html Emily Blatchford Foxtel has today announced the commissioning of a second series of Tony Robinson’s Time Walks, to be shot in various locations around Australia and New Zealand later this year. The first series, which aired late last year, proved to be hugely successful and is currently the second highest rating series ever on The History Channel (following the enormously popular Tony Robinson Explores Australia). In season two, the 10 x 30 minute series will once again see the Robinson as host, bringing his unique storytelling style to ten new locations: The Barossa Valley, Canberra, Parramatta, Geelong, Townsville, Kalgoorlie, Wellington, Christchurch, Alice Springs and Uluru. In a statement made to the media, Foxtel’s General Manager of Factual Channels, Jim Buchan said, “The first series of Tony Robinson’s Time Walks was a runaway success for The History Channel, redefining how relevant and accessible our brand commissions can be in delivering new untold histories to our audiences.” “Tony brings such great energy and perspective to the series and we’re delighted to have him back on board for another series.” British actor/comedian/TV presenter Robinson said, “I’m over the moon to be making a second series of Time Walks and can’t wait to get back to Australia to discover even more of the hidden history that lies behind, above and below the places Australians walk every day.” Tony Robinson’s Time Walks will commence production in April 2013 and will go to air on The History Channel in early 2014. Tony Robinson’s Time Walks is produced by WTFN Entertainment and is exclusive to The History Channel. Œ Tue, 02 Apr 2013 17:34:56 +1100 <![CDATA[UPDATE: Federal Govt commits $21.6m to lure 20,000 Leagues to Australia]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/02/article/UPDATE-Federal-Govt-commits-21-6m-to-lure-20000-Leagues-to-Australia/XCMCLLTWHS.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/02/article/UPDATE-Federal-Govt-commits-21-6m-to-lure-20000-Leagues-to-Australia/XCMCLLTWHS.html Emily Blatchford The Gillard Government has today announced a one-off payment of $21.6m to attract the Walt Disney Studios film 20, 000 Leagues Under the Sea: Captain Nemo to Australia. The project, at one stage rumoured to have Brad Pitt attached, is expected to create up to 2,000 jobs and result in significant investment in Australian businesses working on the big-budget production. The additional funding can be likened to the one-off payment of $12.8m made to Hugh Jackman’s The Wolverine, which was filmed in New South Wales and Tokyo last year. The Wolverine, which is due to be released in Australia on July 25, created over 1750 jobs, used over 1,000 Australian companies and generated $80 million worth of investment nationally, according to an Ausfilm statement released to the press. “There has been renewed interest in Australia as a preferred location following the one-off grant provided by the Federal Government to The Wolverine, and the substantial benefits such a production brings,” said Ausfilm CEO Debra Richards. “The announcement of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea to film in Australia will result in meaningful benefits for the industry and the economy; including jobs, skills and training, and investment back into the local industry. This one-off payment highlights the importance of an attractive Location Offset which can successfully compete for large scale international production to shoot in Australia,” she said. “Today’s announcement along with the additional $20 million announced in Creative Australia as part of the national cultural policy to attract international production, will be an excellent boost to the Australian film industry and as we have seen most recently with The Wolverine, to the wider Australian economy," she said. In a separate statement, The Media Entertainment & Arts Alliance have also welcomed the Gillard Government announcement.Œ “We congratulate the Gillard Government on today’s announcement,” said Mal Tulloch, director of the Entertainment Crew & Sport section of the Alliance. “The local production of 20,000 Leagues will generate much needed work for the industry as well as injecting millions of dollars into the local economy.” The Alliance has been lobbying the Federal Government to increase the location offset from 16.5 per cent to 30 per cent to attract large-scale productions such as The Wolverine and 20, 000 Leagues to Australia. The Federal Government’s decision last year to grant The Wolverine the one-off payment of $12.8m effectively lifted the location offset to 30 per cent. “The Gillard Government has listen to our members concerns and today’s announcement is a win for the industry but without a permanent increase to the location offset, we will see other big-budget international productions head elsewhere.” said Tulloch. Tue, 02 Apr 2013 17:06:29 +1100 <![CDATA[Adelaide the seventh region in Australia to convert to digital-only television]]> http://if.com.au/2013/04/02/article/Adelaide-the-seventh-region-in-Australia-to-convert-to-digital-only-television/IRWQYACEHF.html http://if.com.au/2013/04/02/article/Adelaide-the-seventh-region-in-Australia-to-convert-to-digital-only-television/IRWQYACEHF.html Staff writer The city of Adelaide has officially made the switch to digital-only television. In an announcement made this morning, The Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Senator Stephen Conroy, confirmed over half a million Adelaide households had crossed over to digital at 9am. “At 9am, over 560,000 households in Adelaide switched to digital-only TV, as analog signals across the Adelaide switchover region were switched off,” he said. “I would like to thank the local broadcasters for their support and assistance and congratulate Adelaide on a very smooth transition to digital-only free-to-air TV. “Adelaide is the seventh region in Australia to switch to digital-only free to air television, meaning Australia is well on the way to watching digital-only television by the end of this year.” Tasmania and Perth are scheduled to follow in Adelaide’s footsteps later this month, while Brisbane is due to make the switch in May. Remote and regional Western Australia should follow suit in June; Darwin in July and Sydney, Melbourne and Remote and Central Eastern Australia toward the end of this year. In his announcement, Senator Conroy expressed his enthusiasm for the new format, stating, “Australians are embracing the benefits of digital TV, with its 17 free-to-air channels and better quality picture and sound. “Nearly 8 million of a total 8.6 million households across the country are already watching digital TV.” For more information on converting to digital TV, visit the Digital Ready website <a href="http://www.digitalready.gov.au ">http://www.digitalready.gov.au </a> Tue, 02 Apr 2013 16:41:07 +1100 <![CDATA[Sydney Film Festival launches free online publication to celebrate anniversary]]> http://if.com.au/2013/03/27/article/Sydney-Film-Festival-launches-free-online-publication-to-celebrate-anniversary/JDJEMDVZGP.html http://if.com.au/2013/03/27/article/Sydney-Film-Festival-launches-free-online-publication-to-celebrate-anniversary/JDJEMDVZGP.html Inside Film Correspondent A free online publication has been launched to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Sydney Film Festival. Sydney Film Festival 1954 to Now: A Living Archive was launched by NSW minister for the arts, George Souris. “This new digital archive is not only a comprehensive anthology of Sydney Film Festival and the Australian film industry, but it is also a celebration of Sydney and NSW as the nation’s hub of film and creative industries,” the minister said. The publication employs Realview technology and was partially funded by a special history grant via the City of Sydney's History Publication Sponsorship Program. “The City of Sydney is pleased to support this wonderful archive which shows how significant the festival’s impact has been to the evolution of the city’s cultural life over the past 60 years,” said Lord Mayor of Sydney, Clover Moore. Sydney Film Festival's festival director Nashen Moodley said: “This free digital archive provides a thorough historical overview of the festival, which has challenged, delighted and entertained Sydneysiders for six decades. Within its pages you will find a multi-layered, multi-dimensional chronicle of Sydney Film Festival – its past, present and future, seen from many perspectives and told with many voices. It is an amazing resource full of multimedia, interviews and analysis of the history of the festival, its relationship to the local and international film industries, its position in cinema history and its role in the development of local art, culture and entertainment.” The publication can be viewed <a href="http://online.sffarchive.org.au/#folio=1" target="_blank">here</a>. Wed, 27 Mar 2013 09:37:36 +1100 <![CDATA[Village Roadshow Entertainment Group sells Concord to focus on film production]]> http://if.com.au/2013/03/26/article/Village-Roadshow-Entertainment-Group-sells-Concord-to-focus-on-film-production/CRODSZRAOL.html http://if.com.au/2013/03/26/article/Village-Roadshow-Entertainment-Group-sells-Concord-to-focus-on-film-production/CRODSZRAOL.html Inside Film Correspondent Village Roadshow Entertainment Group (VREG) has sold Concord Music Group and will use the proceeds to reduce debt and free up cash flow to focus on film production. VREG is 47 per cent owned by listed entertainment company Village Roadshow. The acquisition price was not disclosed although Village Roadshow said the transaction was not material. Concord Music Group was acquired by Wood Creek Capital Management LLC on behalf of funds it advises and an investor group comprised of Concord's senior management and industry veterans Steve Smith and Scott Pascucci. Concord's catalogue includes artists such as John Coltrane, John Fogerty, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Ray Charles, Miles Davis and others. Village Roadshow has previously flagged plans to fund more films. Among its past slate are films such as Happy Feet Two, Gangster Squad, and Baz Luhrmann'sŒupcoming The Great Gatsby. Tue, 26 Mar 2013 17:34:12 +1100 <![CDATA[ABC TV commissions four Indigenous short documentaries]]> http://if.com.au/2013/03/26/article/ABC-TV-commissions-four-Indigenous-short-documentaries/XQIMLBPHPG.html http://if.com.au/2013/03/26/article/ABC-TV-commissions-four-Indigenous-short-documentaries/XQIMLBPHPG.html Inside Film Correspondent ABC TV has commissioned four Western Australian Indigenous filmmakers to create positive and inspirational mini documentary stories encapsulating the theme of Seasons. It follows an announcement last September by the WA State Government that it had formed a partnership with the ABC TV's Indigenous Department to produce the short documentaries for ABC1. WA culture and the arts minister John Day said ScreenWest had invested $250,000 into the initiative to provide ongoing opportunities for WA Indigenous writers and directors. “It is a source of great pride for the Western Australian government to be supporting this initiative. We’re particularly proud that three out of four films are regional stories. “The applicants were encouraged to think outside the usual documentary format and explore new approaches to telling stories that will engage and entertain a national audience. ScreenWest have a great collaborative relationship with the ABC which enables these types of projects to come to fruition.” Following a writing/development workshop, the following filmmakers and their documentary projects were selected for production: Tyson Mowarin, writer/director - Ngurra Wanggagu (Pilbara). A poetic and intimately observed love story about a day in the life of a family and the country that nurtures them. Dot West, writer, Kim West, director - Muster Up (Kimberley). An observational documentary set on a Kimberley cattle station where two young Aboriginal men try to find their place in life. Perun Bonser (first time filmmaker) writer/director – Unspoken (Perth). A dance documentary that explores artistic compatibility between Aboriginal and contemporary Australia culture. Karla Hart (first time filmmaker) writer/director – Magic Quandong (Great Southern). An observational documentary about a special fruit that brings a Noongar family together and makes them feel at one wherever they are. The series will be produced by Joined Up Films, which specialises in documentary and factual television formats and series. Tue, 26 Mar 2013 12:03:08 +1100 <![CDATA[New law raises bar for importing workers on Aus film and TV productions]]> http://if.com.au/2013/03/26/article/New-law-raises-bar-for-importing-workers-on-Aus-film-and-TV-productions/KHZOADDZVY.html http://if.com.au/2013/03/26/article/New-law-raises-bar-for-importing-workers-on-Aus-film-and-TV-productions/KHZOADDZVY.html Inside Film Correspondent New legislation will ensure that productions bringing people in to the country to work on Australian film and TV programs must demonstrate a net employment benefit for local crew and consult the union, according to the Media Entertainment & Arts Alliance. The new legislation (Migration Amendment Regulation 2013 (No. 1) closes a loophole that was exploited by the global sports industry to wholly import overseas television crews for the Phillip Island Motorcycle GP, MotoGP, the President’s Cup Golf tournament and the Superbikes as well as the Oprah programme, the MEAA said. “Victorian crew particularly felt the brunt of this exploitation of the visa system,” said Louise O’Connor, Victorian branch secretary. “Their strong feeling on this matter culminated in a demonstration last month outside the Department of Immigration and Citizenship. This new legislation will come as a great relief to the crew in our state. “We have some of the most talented and skills production workers in the world– all willing and to step up to the plate and work on the next major televised international sporting event. These changes will bring great benefits to Australian workers and small businesses.” The new regulations provide a strictly limited set of circumstances in which workers in the entertainment industry will be able to use a Subclass 400 visa and not a Subclass 420 visa including those working on television commercials that will never be shown in Australia and for those entertainers in Australia promoting a performance. Tue, 26 Mar 2013 10:33:44 +1100 <![CDATA[AWG slams new Australian content quota bill]]> http://if.com.au/2013/03/26/article/AWG-slams-new-Australian-content-quota-bill/GHSWCJHWLV.html http://if.com.au/2013/03/26/article/AWG-slams-new-Australian-content-quota-bill/GHSWCJHWLV.html Andrea McCullagh The Australian Writers’ Guild has branded the passing of a controversial broadcasting reform bill a disgrace – and believe it is an insult to TV audiences. The legislation sets new Australian content transmission quotas which, the production industry argues, will do little to protect local content. AWG executive director Jacqueline Elaine said: “After a farcical four days in Canberra since the media reform package was announced – this crucial piece of legislation determining the future of Australian stories on Australian screens was hurriedly passed without any meaningful discussion or debate. “Overshadowed by debate on press regulation, media concentration and even Labor Party leadership challenges, this legislation was not given the airspace it rightly needed as the primary instrument protecting the future of Australian stories on free-to-air television.” The Broadcasting Legislation Amendment (Convergence Review and Other Measures) Bill 2013 was passed by both Houses last week. The bill amends the Broadcasting Services Act 1992 and provides a range of measures to ensure Australian content is broadcast on the combined digital channels run by channels 7, Nine and Ten. It states that commercial broadcasters must broadcast at least 730 hours of Australian programs in the current calendar year on their digitial channels. This increases to 1095 hours for 2014 and 1460 hours from the start of 2015. The shows must also be broadcast during the targeted viewing hours from 6am to midnight. It also provides an incentive to broadcasters to show new drama by allowing one hour to count for two in the year’s tally. The AWG also pointed out that the minimum hours of Australian content can now be spread out across digital channels and argued that the obligation for Australian content could be filled up with repeats. “I think Australian drama is at an exciting place now but it won’t be in 12 months time. We are at a turning point. We have proven we have the capacity to produce children’s drama but we don’t have the broadcaster's support and now we don’t have the government support. “It will reduce the amount of high quality drama, that is our fearˆthis could easily end up as a race to the bottom.” The AWG believe that there needs to be government intervention to ensure that quality and culturally significant Australian shows continue to be made. They pointed out that these kind of shows are less profitable for TV broadcasters than other forms of programming. The Television Licence Fees Amendment Bill 2013 was also passed but the federal government dumped four of the six media reform bills after failing to secure enough backing. Elaine said: “If people were given the opportunity to understand this piece of reform they would understand that it’s just as contentious. “You need to balance the commercial interests of the broadcasters against the cultural imperatives of Australian stories.” Reaction on the issue was sought from the Department of Communications and the Shadow Communications Minister Malcom Turnbull. Tue, 26 Mar 2013 10:24:11 +1100 <![CDATA[Peter Jackson's Park Road Post Production lab set to close in June]]> http://if.com.au/2013/03/25/article/Peter-Jacksons-Park-Road-Post-Production-lab-set-to-close-in-June/UHOYMEODSF.html http://if.com.au/2013/03/25/article/Peter-Jacksons-Park-Road-Post-Production-lab-set-to-close-in-June/UHOYMEODSF.html Andrea McCullagh Peter Jackson’s famous Park Road film laboratory is set to close in June after over seven decades bringing movies to the silver screen. The New Zealand facility built a reputation around the world for producing high quality work and they have urged filmmakers to get in touch before the doors close. General Manager Cameron Harland said: “We have always been incredibly proud of the quality of the Lab and said we would be the last Lab standing. “That has been true in New Zealand for the last 12 months or so, but unfortunately the shift in digital acquisition and exhibition, has meant that this part of our business has now become commercially unsustainable. “We hope that providing notice of the closure will ensure that the key archive agencies and any filmmakers out there that need Film Lab services can get material to us quickly.” The closure is expected to take place on June 28 and the date will mark the end of an era for film production in New Zealand. With the advancement of digital technology the demand for film laboratory services have dramatically fallen around the world. Head of Laboratory Brian Scadden said: “I am very proud of all that we have achieved over the very long life of the Lab. “I have been privileged to work with some of the best people in the business and we just hope we can use the remaining few months to complete some important work. “All you filmmakers out there with unprocessed film – see us now!” Park Road Post Production is based in Miramar, Wellington and is privately owned by Peter Jackson. The lab has been in operation since the establishment of the National Film Unit in 1941 and was New Zealand’s first post production facility. It has worked on major films such as Lord of the Rings, King Kong, Heavenly Creatures, District 9, Boy and Came a Hot Friday. Meanwhile, Deluxe stated that they are the only company providing film facilities in Australia but their film services are under continual evaluation. They currently provide services such as negative processing and recording digital files onto print for cinemas. Managing Director Alaric McAusland said: “We are one of the longest running labs in Australia. It is an important part of what we do. It is something we evaluate on a regular basis.” Deluxe provide large digital services to the industry and McAusland said that the closure of the Park Road film lab is part of a global trend. He added: “Park Road are the latest and they won’t be the last.” Œ Mon, 25 Mar 2013 16:10:41 +1100 <![CDATA[Tony Burke appointed new Federal Arts minister]]> http://if.com.au/2013/03/25/article/Tony-Burke-appointed-new-Federal-Arts-minister/WDSPDCFTZZ.html http://if.com.au/2013/03/25/article/Tony-Burke-appointed-new-Federal-Arts-minister/WDSPDCFTZZ.html Brendan Swift The Labor Government has appointed Tony Burke as its new Arts Minister after long-standing incumbent Simon Crean was sacked following last week's aborted leadership coup. The new Arts Minister has also backed Creative Australia <a href="http://if.com.au/2013/03/13/article/Gov-pledges-20m-Location-incentive-Offset-still-at-16-5/ITWYOYOQPD.html" target="_blank">Cultural Policy</a>, which was announced by Minister Crean earlier this month. "It's an honour to implement it as Arts Minister," he tweeted. Simon Crean produced an inspiring cultural policy in Creative Australia.It's an honour to implement it as Arts Minister. <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23auspol">#auspol</a> — Tony Burke (@Tony_Burke) <a href="https://twitter.com/Tony_Burke/status/315994336783392768">March 25, 2013</a> The <a href="http://www.pm.gov.au/press-office/changes-ministry-2" target="_blank">announcement</a> of Prime Minister Julia Gillard's new cabinet was prompted by Crean calling for a leadership spill, however, the move backfired when former prime minister Kevin Rudd refused to stand. Burke will have Arts added to his existing portfolio work: sustainability, environment, water, population and communities. "He has a longstanding interest in the arts and was a keen recruit to the task," the government said when announcing the new cabinet. "He will be assisted by Michael Danby as his Parliamentary Secretary whose lifelong commitment to the arts started when, as a teenager, he worked in his mother’s art gallery." Contact this reporter at <a href="mailto:bswift@if.com.au" style="widows: 2; text-transform: none; background-color: rgb(255,255,255); text-indent: 0px; letter-spacing: normal; font: 12px/17px arial, helvetica, sans-serif; white-space: normal; orphans: 2; color: rgb(232,0,0); word-spacing: 0px; text-decoration: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px">bswift@if.com.au</a> or on Twitter at <a href="http://twitter.com/bcswift" style="widows: 2; text-transform: none; background-color: rgb(255,255,255); text-indent: 0px; letter-spacing: normal; font: 12px/17px arial, helvetica, sans-serif; white-space: normal; orphans: 2; color: rgb(232,0,0); word-spacing: 0px; text-decoration: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px" target="_blank">@bcswift</a>. Mon, 25 Mar 2013 15:04:05 +1100 <![CDATA[The Sapphires posts solid limited US release]]> http://if.com.au/2013/03/25/article/The-Sapphires-posts-solid-limited-US-release/YXHEFYUAIW.html http://if.com.au/2013/03/25/article/The-Sapphires-posts-solid-limited-US-release/YXHEFYUAIW.html Brendan Swift The Sapphires has posted a solid $US40,900 across four screens in its <a href="http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=sapphires.htm" target="_blank">opening weekend</a> in the US. The musical, about four Aboriginal singers who perform for the troops in Vietnam during the late-60s, was the biggest local hit of 2012, grossing $14.46 million in Australia. It also took just under £700,000 in the UK. The US marketing campaign has been led by The Weinstein Company and has centred on Chris O'Dowd, who plays the singers' manager, and has a high profile in North America after appearing in Bridesmaids, Friends With Kids, and This is 40. The film has attracted largely <a href="http://www.latinospost.com/articles/14657/20130318/sapphires-review-roundup-australian-film-dazzles-critics.htm" target="_blank">positive reviews</a> and a strong publicity campaign by the five lead actors and director Wayne Blair has included spots on <a href="http://www.nbc.com/the-tonight-show/video/chris-odowd-part-2/n34050/" target="_blank">The Jay Leno Show</a> and the The Ellen Show. Mental will also have a limited US release on March 29. Contact this reporter at <a href="mailto:bswift@if.com.au" style="widows: 2; text-transform: none; background-color: rgb(255,255,255); text-indent: 0px; letter-spacing: normal; font: 12px/17px arial, helvetica, sans-serif; white-space: normal; orphans: 2; color: rgb(232,0,0); word-spacing: 0px; text-decoration: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px">bswift@if.com.au</a> or on Twitter at <a href="http://twitter.com/bcswift" style="widows: 2; text-transform: none; background-color: rgb(255,255,255); text-indent: 0px; letter-spacing: normal; font: 12px/17px arial, helvetica, sans-serif; white-space: normal; orphans: 2; color: rgb(232,0,0); word-spacing: 0px; text-decoration: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px" target="_blank">@bcswift</a>. Australian Films at the Box Office 2013 <img alt="" height="158" src="/image/Box office(22).jpg" width="650" /> Œ Œ Mon, 25 Mar 2013 11:09:59 +1100 <![CDATA[Madman posts $4.99 million first-half earnings]]> http://if.com.au/2013/03/25/article/Madman-posts-4-99-million-first-half-earnings/PNUOMNAWPK.html http://if.com.au/2013/03/25/article/Madman-posts-4-99-million-first-half-earnings/PNUOMNAWPK.html Inside Film Correspondent Madman Entertainment has posted a 16.7 per cent decline in first-half earnings to $4.99 million as the distributor invested in the digital conversion of its catalogue and its inventory increased. Madman is a division of listed entertainment company Funtastic, which posted an 8.1 per cent lift in underlying earnings to $11.47 million over the same period. “The product line-up for the second half for Madman is strong which indicates that another solid performance should be achieved in the second half,” Funtastic said in its half-year report. In May 2012, Madman was approved as an official iTunes aggregator and it offers management and distribution services to producers and companies wanting to distribute their content on iTunes. The company said it has recently implemented a new digital workflow and media library production technologies which enable rapid and efficient deployment of content across numerous digital platforms. “Madman’s first-half profit performance was better than anticipated, driven by higher than forecast revenues as it continues to buck the broader category trend,” Funtastic said. “Short-term investment in costs, associated with the digital conversion of the catalogue and increased inventory holding costs resulted in constrained profits of $4,998,000, down from $6,003,000 in the prior corresponding period.” Madman began as a specialist distributor of Japanese Anime but has since expanded into all types of film and television content. It holds a 6.1 per cent share of the Australian home entertainment market. Mon, 25 Mar 2013 11:41:27 +1100 <![CDATA[Look skywards for solutions: cloud computing in screen production]]> http://if.com.au/2013/03/22/article/Look-skywards-for-solutions-cloud-computing-in-screen-production/KTNURWBSXZ.html http://if.com.au/2013/03/22/article/Look-skywards-for-solutions-cloud-computing-in-screen-production/KTNURWBSXZ.html Inside Film Correspondent Œ Cloud computing enables organisations to rent their information technology (IT) needs on a monthly basis, with data and applications accessed from remote data centres via the Internet. This eliminates the high upfront costs of buying servers and software licences for new projects. Œ The model has attracted clients ranging from Australia’s biggest banks to its smallest enterprises, and is starting to catch on in the screen production industry. The massive cost of hardware needed to render animated and visual effects-heavy productions has led producers to look at renting hardware for the periods when they need it. Œ Some production companies are using cloud services to supplement their own resources, including California-based Atomic Fiction, which has utilised US company Amazon Web Services for VFX production with positive results. Œ Australia has a wide range of cloud service providers, ranging from the large telecommunications companies such as Optus and Telstra to smaller service providers such as ninefold, UltraServe and OrionVM. But most are focused on standard business applications and are yet to engage with the Australian screen production industry beyond initial discussions. Œ But some specialist film and TV cloud services do exist, with many of them focused on streamlining production workflow. The German company 101Media, for example, has created a cloud-based secure content management and distribution service whereby producers can store media on its cloud service and access it from anywhere in the world on a pay-as-you-go basis. Mojo Media Solutions has represented 101Media in Australia since late 2011 but is yet to announce local clients. Œ Media delivery service provider Dubsat has also created a cloud-based broadcast media management service, called Dubsat Syndicate, which is being used in Australia by Foxtel. According to Dubsat, Syndicate has enabled Foxtel to streamline its traditional workflow requirements with media agencies MCN and Ignite Media Brands and take advantage of their modern broadcast environment. Œ Numerous tools are also available as cloud-based services. Adobe has launched several services within its Creative Cloud package, for instance, including services for file sharing, collaboration, and publishing, that are accessed through the Internet. Œ The focus on business computing by most Australian cloud service providers has created a wide opening for Stefan Gillard and his company StudioEngine. Gillard has extended the cloud concept by creating an entire VFX and rendering facility delivered as a service. StudioEngine includes a complete studio solution, backed by a high-performance cloud computing facility called EngineRoom. Œ Gillard says EngineRoom has been used by companies including Rising Sun Pictures, Dr D Studios, Ambience Entertainment and ZSpace, with low cost being its primary attraction. He says the facility was used to render approximately 90 per cent of Happy Feet 2 for Dr D. Œ EngineRoom was also used by production company Ambience Entertainment to render its children’s series Figaro Pho. Ambience co-founder David Webster says his company utilised the complete StudioEngine service for the project, as well as 32 remote render nodes from EngineRoom. Œ “I’ve done 15 years of having all the headache of the overheads, and so this is a great situation,” Webster says. “As soon as we are finished we walk out the door and it is all Gillard’s equipment to deal with.” Œ Webster says when working with a cloud provider it is important that the right effort be put into ensuring both organisations have determined the right hardware specifications for the project. Œ The cloud model also enables some productions to make better use of the 30 per cent PDV (post, digital and visual effects) offset and the 40 per cent producers offset. The cloud service is considered to be operational expenditure, which means it can be claimed in full in a single year rather than over three years as is the case for capital expenditure. Œ Gillard says Dr D achieved massive savings on Happy Feet 2: “The cost of building an environment to render that film, including all of your ongoing op-ex, is probably about $8 million. They were able to rent the capacity they needed for a quarter of that -- because they only needed it for six months -- and then claim the rebate.” Œ He says he has taken great care to ensure the security of the service, given the sensitivity that many producers have to data being processed and stored outside of their premises. But he does not see cloud computing as a complete replacement for a production company’s internal resources. Œ “We are in a position where we can offer 40 to 50 per cent of the capacity they need over a short period, because over a three-year term you are probably better off buying the gear yourselves,” he says. “But for any period shorter than that, in a short burst, it actually stacks up that you are better off renting it.” Œ For this reason cloud computing has proven popular with many smaller businesses. Rotor Studios, for instance, uses EngineRoom when its workload exceeds its equipment’s capacity. Œ Rotor technology administrator Oliver Timm says the service integrated easily with Rotor’s existing IT, acting as an extension of its network. Œ “We needed a lot more grunt and more processing power for a period of time,” Timm says. “The work came from nowhere, and then all of a sudden we needed to fill a hole that we couldn't fill otherwise.” ŒThis article first appeared in IF Magazine Issue #147 Fri, 22 Mar 2013 10:35:53 +1100 <![CDATA[Screen Australia invests over $2.3m in 10 documentaries]]> http://if.com.au/2013/03/21/article/Screen-Australia-invests-over-2-3m-in-10-documentaries/FTTHUYIMNP.html http://if.com.au/2013/03/21/article/Screen-Australia-invests-over-2-3m-in-10-documentaries/FTTHUYIMNP.html Inside Film Correspondent Screen Australia will invest more than $2.3 million in 10 documentary projects, which it says will trigger more than $8 million in production. Screen Australia’s documentary manager Liz Stevens said: “It’s very encouraging to see so many projects with solid international deals in this round. Australian producers are creating good opportunities in the international marketplace with strong stories, know-how and support from domestic broadcasters and Screen Australia – it’s a great collaboration. In the domestic arena the National Documentary Program continues to fund significant Australian stories that will resonate with Australian audiences.” NATIONAL DOCUMENTARY PROGRAM AFGHANISTAN: THE AUSTRALIAN WAR 3 x 55 mins Essential Media and Entertainment Pty Ltd Producer Alan Erson Writer/Director Victoria Midwinter-Pitt Sales Agent ABC Commercial Broadcaster ABC TV Synopsis The complete story of Australia’s longest and most expensive modern war told by the generation of Australians who fought it, those who ordered it, our allies and enemies. GENERAL DOCUMENTARY PROGRAM BODYLINE: THE ULTIMATE TEST 57 mins Serendipity West Pty Ltd Producers Kate Pappas, Charlotte Wheaton Executive Producers Alex West, Margie Bryant Writer Alex West Director Bruce Permezel Sales Agent ABC Commercial Broadcaster ABC1 Synopsis This is the story of one of the most extraordinary, well-known, but perhaps least understood, moments of conflict and controversy in the history of sport: the infamous Bodyline test cricket series of 1932/33. THE BOFFIN, THE BUILDER AND THE BOMBARDIER 28 mins For Valour Pty Ltd trading as Bearcage Television Producers Michael Tear, Serge Ou, Harriet Pike, John Concannon Writer John Concannon Directors Chris Bamford, Serge Ou Sales Agent Flame Distribution Broadcaster ABC TV Synopsis The Boffin, the Builder and the Bombardier is a fast-paced, fun, living history documentary in which three mates deconstruct history by reconstructing the devices that made it. MARY & MOHAMMAD 28 mins Jotz Productions Pty Ltd Producers Tom Zubrycki, Heather Kirkpatrick Writer/Director Heather Kirkpatrick Broadcaster ABC TV Synopsis Mary is 71 years old and has been a Christian all her life. When the government announces the arrival of a detention centre, her local knitting club agrees to knit beanies for the asylum seekers, though Mary is originally not in support. She meets Mohammad, a 26-year-old Muslim from Afghanistan, and begins to question her own beliefs. THE TIPPING POINTS: OCEANS THE LAST FRONTIER 52 mins Unboxed Media Pty Ltd Producers Liz Courtney, Veronica Sive Writer/Director Liz Courtney Sales Agent Electric Sky UK Broadcaster NITV Synopsis For generations families have lived off the oceans – and off the grid – on islands across Oceania. But after seasons of extreme weather tracked across these lands, people are now finding themselves facing a whole set of new challenges and the ultimate question: how long before they become climate refugees? This documentary sets out to identify and explore the culprits that are altering the oceans existence and our very way of life. INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY PROGRAM FRANK GEHRY’S TREEHOUSE 57 mins Essential Media and Entertainment Pty Ltd Producer Alan Erson Writer Helen Vatsikopoulos Director Sally Aitken Sales Agent Essential Media and Entertainment Broadcasters ABC TV, BBC Imagine Synopsis Drawing on a life’s work defined by controversial and ground-breaking ideas, the world’s greatest architect creates his first Australian building in Sydney – where debate already rages over whether it will be an eyesore or icon. JFK: THE SMOKING GUN 90 mins Cordell Jigsaw Productions and Muse Entertainment Producers Michael Cordell, Jesse Prupas Executive Producers Simon Egan, Michael Prupas Writer Steve Lucas Sales Agents Cordell Jigsaw Distribution, Muse Distribution International, Zodiak Rights Broadcasters Discovery Canada, SBS Australia, ReelzChannel USA Synopsis A former undercover Australian police detective/crime writer sets out to uncover the truth behind the JFK assassination. THE REAL JAWS 52 mins Prospero Productions Producers Ed Punchard, Julia Redwood Writer/Director Adam Geiger Sales Agent PBS Distribution Broadcasters Nine Network Australia, NOVA Synopsis Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the water... a series of fatal shark attacks in Western Australia shows it is anything but. TALES OF THE UNEXPECTED 3 x 60 mins Genepool Productions Pty Ltd Executive Producers Sonya Pemberton, Michael Cordell Series Producer Peter Rees Sales Agent Cordell Jigsaw Distribution Broadcasters SBS, Smithsonian Networks Synopsis Tales of the Unexpected is a contemporary science documentary series that will take you out of your comfort zone and into a world where you need to think, and then think againˆThe science is contemporary, counterintuitive and often controversial. TRUCKING HELL 44 mins Prospero Productions Producers Ed Punchard, Julia Redwood Director Eliot Buchan (Field Director) Sales Agent NGTI Broadcaster Seven Network Australia Synopsis Behind the wheel of monstrous road trains, daredevil Aussie truckers put their lives on the line to drive some of the world’s toughest roads. Their mission – to haul crucial supplies, thousands of kilometres across the vast island continent of Australia. Thu, 21 Mar 2013 15:10:43 +1100 <![CDATA[SBS commissions two documentaries]]> http://if.com.au/2013/03/21/article/SBS-commissions-two-documentaries/NULQBJMBTV.html http://if.com.au/2013/03/21/article/SBS-commissions-two-documentaries/NULQBJMBTV.html Inside Film Correspondent SBS has commissioned two new documentaries: Tales of the Unexpected and JFK: The Smoking Gun. SBS director of TV and online content, Tony Iffland, said both documentaries "demonstrate how we want to challenge and entertain viewers with compelling Australian-produced content”. Both are international co-productions and will be shown on SBS later this year. The three-part science series Tales of the Unexpected will take a contemporary, counter-intuitive and sometimes controversial approach, turning what is commonly known about a particular subject, upside down. Through science, each film presents a new take on old ideas and reopens subjects usually considered closed. The series is produced by Emmy Award-winning director Sonya Pemberton. The 90-minute JFK: The Smoking Gun delves into the mystery surrounding the death of American president, John Fitzgerald Kennedy, and is produced by Cordell Jigsaw Zapruder/Muse Entertainment. November 22, 2013, will mark the fiftieth anniversary since JFK's assasination. One of Australia’s most experienced investigative detectives, Colin McLaren, will examine the controversial case revealing uncovered evidence of a disquieting truth, buried for so long. Thu, 21 Mar 2013 11:08:18 +1100