Baz Luhrmann’s Faraway Downs, a six-part series cut from his 2008 film Australia, will have its world premiere on the closing night of the SXSW Sydney Screen Festival.
The director will be on hand to present the adventure-romance, which again brings audiences into the world of English aristocrat Lady Sarah Ashley (Nicole Kidman), who travels halfway across the world to confront her wayward husband and sell an unusual asset: Faraway Downs, a million-acre
cattle ranch in the Australian outback.
Following the death of her husband, a ruthless Australian cattle baron, King Carney (Bryan Brown) plots to take her land, and she reluctantly joins forces with a rough-hewn cattle drover (Hugh Jackman) to protect her ranch. The story is explored through the eyes of young Nullah (Brandon Walters), an Indigenous Australian child removed from his family as part of the government’s policies. Together, the trio experiences four life-altering years, which include a love affair between Lady Ashley and the drover, and the unavoidable impact of World War II on Northern Australia.
It comes nearly 15 years after the release of Australia, which is the second highest grossing Australian film of all time, behind Crocodile Dundee, earning $37.6 million at home and $US211 worldwide.
Luhrmann, who wrote the film alongside Stuart Beattie, Ronald Harwood, and Richard Flanagan, and also produced with Catherine Knapman and G. Mac Brown, revealed in an interview last year that he had re-edited the original version into a six-part series that would stream on Disney+.
Faraway Downs received support through the Queensland Government through Screen Queensland’s Post-Production, Digital and Visual Effects (PDV) Incentive as well as the Screen NSW PDV rebate.
The series will premiere all at once on Hulu in the US, Star+ in Latin America, and on Disney+ in all other territories on November 26.
Speaking ahead of the SXSW Sydney premiere, Luhrmann said he was inspired to re-approach the original film after seeing how episodic storytelling had been “reinvigorated” by the world of streaming.
“With over 2 million feet of film from the original piece, my team and I were able to revisit the central themes of the work,” he said.
“I am honored to world premiere Faraway Downs in Australia, the place that has inspired me and my work my entire life, and with a partner like SXSW, which deeply recognises the intersection of film, television, and music with storytelling.”
The SXSW Sydney Screen Festival will take place October 15-22.