Sophie Hyde's 'Animals' launched in Australia yesterday, but the director has "no idea" if local audiences will come out to see it.
It is a rare feat to translate a six season network TV hit into box office bankability but 'Downton Abbey' loyalists have swarmed to the occasion, with the Universal Pictures film adaptation steam-training to the top of the box office.
Exhibitors have renewed calls to address the challenges facing most Aussie films in the crowded theatrical market.
The creative team at Closer Productions has resumed pre-production on the ABC comedy 'Aftertaste' (working title), which stars Erik Thomson as a temperamental chef, using a new risk development tool.
First-time feature directors Thomas Wright ('Acute Misfortune'), John Sheedy ('H is for Happiness'), Ben Lawrence ('Hearts and Bones') and Natalie Erika James ('Relic') will vie for the Australian Directors' Guild Award for Best Direction in a Feature Film ($1 million or over) against Sophie Hyde ('Animals') and Wayne Blair ('Top End Wedding').
Emma Thompson will play a widow who hires a sex worker for a "night of bliss" in the UK comedy Good Luck To You, Leo Grande, directed by Sophie Hyde.