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Screen NSW unveils recipients of Emerging Filmmakers Fund

(L-R): Yingna Lu, Hyun Lee, Natalie van den Dungen and Nicole Coventry. 

Screen NSW has announced grant funding for three new short films as part of its Generator: Emerging Filmmakers Fund.  

This year’s applications required the inclusion of a female director and priority was given to teams including people from under-represented groups. Each funding grant of $30,000 covers the shoot and/or post-production.

Aquarius Films’ Cecilia Ritchie and Polly Staniford will executive produce all three titles. Aquarius' slate includes the upcoming Lion, directed by Garth Davis, and Berlin Syndrome, directed by Cate Shortland – recently selected for the 2017 Sundance Film Festival.

The filmmaking teams will also be supported by Screen NSW development and production exec Andrea Ulbrick.

Screen NSW CEO Courtney Gibson said the three projects were "bursting with fresh ideas and creativity".  

“It’s particularly exciting that the films will be directed by women and that the key creative roles are also being performed by people from other under-represented groups in our industry, including those with a disability, from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, from the LGBTQI community and from western Sydney.”

The following three films and teams have been selected:

  • Asian Girls

Writer/director: Hyun Lee

Producer: Hannah-Florence Macgregor

Confirmed cast includes Hong Kong-Australian pop musician Rainbow Chan.

Synopsis: A Chinese girl lives alone in her apartment but every night she is visited by a horrific ghost who has an uncanny resemblance to her foreign neighbour.

  • Sherbet Rozencranz, You're Beautiful 

Writer/director: Natalie van den Dungen

Producer: Nicole Coventry

Synopsis: Milly's world revolves around her pet guinea pig. When her mother attempts to engineer for her a 'real' friend, it results in ridicule and forces Milly to question her sense of self.

  • Bodies

Director: Laura Nagy

Writers: Laura Nagy and Daniel Monks (Daniel Monks is also an intern in the Screenability NSW program); 

Director mentor: Rachel Ward

Producer: Yingna Lu

Confirmed cast includes Bridie McKim.

Synopsis: A toxic friendship between two teenage girls is brought to breaking point as they compete for the attention of their gym class teacher.

  1. Ok, so if you’re male and trying to emerge as a filmmaker in NSW at the moment where’s that leave you?

    There is a lot of funding in Australia being handed out at the moment just for being female, rather than based on merit of the material or directorial talent. That’s a problem because then it isn’t about talent anymore. It’s pure politics and it is ridiculous..

    Of course politics always play a part in funding decisions, always have and always will, but in these latest schemes we’re seeing, it’s nothing but that.

    All projects in whatever fund should be assessed on quality of script and the filmmaker behind it. If you’re good, you’ll be recognised. If you’re not, then you won’t, regardless of gender. Its up to the assessors and those who oversee them to make sure this occurs.

    The support for Indigenous filmmakers – male and female – in this country is far more important. It would be good to see such focus and media promotion in this area, rather than hearing gender matters screamed from the rooftops all the time, because while it does matter, it doesn’t matter nearly as much.

  2. Sexist misandrist racist funding strand. Add a new women’s strand. Don’t remove all access to young male directors. I am an aboriginal first Australian. A white female is more privaleged than an aboriginal male. This strand is discriminatory and racist. Someone should apply and take screen nsw to court on discrimination charges. Maybe I will.

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