South Australian not-for-profit screen organisation The Mercury has unveiled the twelve short films that will share more than $100,000 in production funding as part of its Quiksilver initiative.
Designed to provide opportunities for skills and talent escalation among emerging filmmakers, the program is part of a suite of industry development programs at The Mercury that are funded by the South Australian Film Corporation.
Films from 27 creatives spanning a range of genres, formats, and subject matter were selected by an industry panel to enter production, with teams to now be supported with a series of workshops and networking opportunities and industry mentoring, as well as access to The Mercury’s new on-site production facilities which include edit suite, Sound Lab and production offices. The subsequent productions will also serve as a platform for emerging crew to gain hands-on experience.
Unsuccessful teams will also be invited to participate in a slate of events and programs designed to strengthen their projects for future submissions to Quicksilver.
The Mercury general manager Sarah Lancaster said the Quicksilver initiative was a cornerstone of the organisation’s commitment to supporting the next generation of filmmakers in South Australia.
“We are excited to create opportunities for new voices and stories and provide a platform to showcase emerging talent to the local industry and audiences,” she said.
“We look forward to assisting this cohort of Quicksilver projects through production and post-production and celebrating their works on the big screen.”
Suriyna Sivashanker, producer of chosen concept I’m the Most Racist Person I Know from writer/director Leela Varghese, said the funding was crucial for the growth of film careers.
“It presents a valuable opportunity to produce our project at the highest quality and showcases our creative capabilities in filmmaking,” she said.
“I am immensely grateful that Mercury supports a diverse range of filmmakers, from entry-level to mid-career practitioners. Having an organization like this advocating budding talent and projects is crucial for the growth of film careers, such as mine, in South Australia.”
The selected projects are as follows:
$20,000 (two projects)
Great Divide
Producer: Adam Camporeale
Writer/Director: Stephen Packer
Burnout
Producer/Writer: Lilla Berry
Director/Writer: Johanis Lyons-Reid
Writer: Piri Eddy
$10,000 (five projects)
Guts
Producer: Ben Galotta
Director/Writer: Scarlet Scherer
Dancing Dragon
Producers: Wei Gao + Dante Niedzwiedz
Director/Writer: Shuying (Grace) Liu
The Hitcher
Producers: Tom Schaefer + Cooper Rees-Jones
Director/writer: Henry Reimer Meaney
I’m the Most Racist Person I Know
Producer: Suriyna Sivashanker
Director/Writer: Leela Varghese
The Shifting Eyes
Producer: Bryce Kraehenbuehl
Director/Writer: Alex Salkicevic
$7,000 (three projects)
A Nightmare on Felt Street
Producer: Craig Jackson
Director/Writer: Brendan Godfrey
Liability
Producer: Jasmine Leech
Director/Writer: David Daradan
Additional Creative: Joshua Campton
Great Deliverance
Producer: Jasmine Leech
Director/Writer: Guy Henderson
First Nations Quicksilver Production Funding
$8,000 (two projects)
Second Chance
Producer: Tim Harkness
Director/Writer: Thibul Nettle
The Mysterious Maiden of Montefiores
Producer: Josh Trevorrow
Director/Writer: Travis Akbar