Amanda Duthie.
This year’s Adelaide Film Festival marks CEO and artistic director Amanda Duthie’s last – she is moving on to take up a new role as the South Australian Film Corporation’s head of production, development, attraction and studios.
Due to start at SAFC in November, Duthie will be responsible for the agency’s production and development investment, as well as attracting both national and international production.
Duthie has helmed the Adelaide Film Festival since 2012, curating some five festivals despite it being officially a biennial event. Her tenure has also seen her run two Hybrid World Adelaide events and the 2013 Adelaide Festival of Ideas.
Duthie’s role also saw her responsible for the Adelaide Film Festival Fund, and she has led the commissioning of 58 projects, including 15 features and nine documentary features, as well as a variety of animation, VR and installation works. Among them has been Jennifer Kent’s The Nightingale, which recently won two prizes at the Venice Film Festival, Anthony Maras’ Hotel Mumbai, Warwick Thornton’s Sweet Country, Rolf de Heer’s Charlie’s Country, Sophie Hyde’s 52 Tuesdays, Rosemary Myer’s Girl Asleep and Jeffrey Walker’s Ali’s Wedding. Still upcoming is Hyde’s adaptation of Emma Jane Unsworth’s novel Animals and Top End Wedding, directed by Wayne Blair and co-written and starring Miranda Tapsell.
On her departure from festival, Duthie said: “After six amazing years working with some truly exceptional people, it is time to pursue new challenges and I would particularly like to acknowledge the extraordinary team of talented people working across both the Hybrid World Adelaide and Adelaide Film Festival events, and the utter privilege it has been of being able to work with such brilliant minds across the Australian screen industry. I would particularly like to thank the AFF Board and Festival Patrons, Margaret Pomeranz and David Stratton, for their support.”
Duthie has previously worked under SAFC CEO Courtney Gibson at the ABC. Of her appointment Gibson said: “Amanda Duthie brings to the SAFC a peerless track record in identifying and nurturing award-winning screen projects, along with extensive relationships within the local, national, international screen communities. Her creative vision and strategic leadership will be hugely advantageous to the agency moving forward and we couldn’t be happier that she’s joining us.”
South Australian Minister for Industry and Skills David Pisoni said: “Amanda Duthie’s proven track record in promoting South Australia’s brand of exceptional screen culture and delivering investment and jobs into the State will be an asset to the SAFC in this key executive role. The Marshall Liberal Government is committed to supporting the important opportunities that come with a vital and forward thinking South Australian Creative Industries which includes the biennial Adelaide Film Festival.”
Recruitment for a new CEO for the Adelaide Film will begin ahead of the next iteration in 2020.
There were hopes that the festival would move to a permanently annual event with 2017 and 2018 held back-to-back (the former Labor government made it an election promise to make the festival annual if reelected). However, in the recent state budget the new Liberal government outlaid $1.1 million towards a festival in 2020, noting in the budget paper: “The former government elected to bring forward the 2019 Adelaide Film Festival to occur in 2018. In the absence of this additional funding, the next Adelaide Film Festival would be in 2021. This funding ensures the festival continues to occur every two years from 2018.”
Adelaide Film Festival runs October 10 – 21, and the program was launched last week.