A dramedy about friendship, cultural differences, and romance has received $10,000 in funding through Screen Queensland’s NQ Discovering New Online Voices initiative.
Michelle La’s Chopsticks & Chippies was the winning pitch for the two-stage development program, delivered in partnership with Screenworks, which is designed to upskill North and Far North Queensland screen practitioners to develop short-form online projects.
La had previously joined finalists Garth Edwards, Jannah Dryden, Kate Boylan-Ascione, and Shawn Drieberg in receiving 1:1 mentoring with industry experts and pitch training with Abi Tabone of Compton School.
The group then pitched their concepts before a judging panel including Screen Australia’s Margaret Ross and Screen Queensland’s Jesse McCart and Danielle Ah Boo, with the winner named at an industry networking event in Cairns yesterday.
Ross said she was excited to see La take her story “from Mareeba to the world”.
“As judges we had our work cut out for us, with five unique and distinct pitches that showcased the talent and creativity in this region,” she said.
“After an extremely tough deliberation process, the judges selected Michelle La’s short-form comedy, Chopsticks & Chippies. Michelle gave a really strong pitch, well prepared and funny, filled with nostalgia, showcasing personal and cultural resonance of her project.”
Screen Queensland CEO Jacqui Feeney identified NQ Discovering New Online Voices as an important element of the North Queensland Regional Program, which provided Queensland screen practitioners with transformative opportunities to develop their skills and connect with industry leaders.
“Screen Queensland’s $4 million, multi-year North Queensland Regional program focuses on growing the creative community’s capacity and capability through opportunities for practitioner skills development,” she said.
“We are excited by the potential of the genres, voices, and formats emerging from North and Far North Queensland and are committed to championing these online creators to reach global audiences.”