Joy Hopwood’s The Gift That Gives, starring Takaya Honda (Neighbours) and Haiha Le (Boy Swallows Universe), will follow in the footsteps of the director’s previous film Get A Life, Alright in screening on commercial TV.
Set to premiere on Nine at midday on April 19, the film follows an author who catches the eye of a television presenter but ends up falling for her bookstore owner best friend, with his brother and some hidden love letters soon added to the mix.
The cast includes Lily Brown Griffiths, Damien Sato, Susan Ling Young, Genevieve Craig, Atharv Kolhatkar, Andy Trieu, Maria Tran, and Lex Marinos.
Hopwood wrote the script and oversaw a creative team that included cinematographer Caz Dickson, production designer Valentina Lastrebova, sound recordist and designer Lara Cross, and editor Jon Cohen.
The Gift That Gives had a theatrical release at the start of this year and was awarded Best Cinematography at The New York International Women’s Festival.
Hopwood was pleased to bring the film to a new audience.
“The Gift that Gives is a feel-good film with life hacks which I hope the audience will take away with them after watching,” she said.
“As we come here on earth with nothing and will leave with nothing; it’s what we do in between that matters- making a difference in each other’s lives,” she said.
It comes as writer/director heads into post-production on It’s Our Time, which stars Tiana Hogben as a filmmaker on the verge of being evicted who applies for funding through the fictional organisation Film Reach to get her script financed and appease her landlord (Lex Marinos).
Funding officer Shannon Edmunds (Peter Thurnwald) is her only hope, but he soon falls for her best friend, Zoe Chadwick (Bianca Bradey), leading them to open a can of worms on their past. The cast also includes Tran.
Shot on the streets of Sydney earlier this year, the creative team is eyeing a February 2025 theatrical release.
Hopwood is also in early stage development on her next feature Her Last Laugh with frequent collaborators, cinematographer Linda Ung and sound designer Lara Cross.
The story follows siblings in line to inherit a casting agency, following the death of their stepmother, but only if they can keep it profitable for a year. If not, the agency will come under the care of their uncle, who will stop at nothing to claim it. Casting for the film will take place in 2025.