Second features from directors Natalie Erika James (Relic) and Samuel Van Grinsven (Sequin in a Blue Room) are among the 28 projects to recently share in $1 million worth of development funding from Screen Australia.
The agency announced the funding recipients today, with money going towards seven features, 16 TV drama and five online projects.
These are the first projects to be announced for the 2020-21 financial year, from both the Premium and Generate funds.
Projects funded via Premium Plus, the additional development funding allocation Screen Australia launched to support the industry through Covid-19, are expected to be announced later today.
Screen Australia head of development Nerida Moore said: “It’s great to see producers thinking globally and developing unique stories for Australian audiences and the world. We’re excited to support these original story ideas, many with distinct storyworlds and fantastic comedic imaginations that I’m confident will resonate. We’re also...
The agency announced the funding recipients today, with money going towards seven features, 16 TV drama and five online projects.
These are the first projects to be announced for the 2020-21 financial year, from both the Premium and Generate funds.
Projects funded via Premium Plus, the additional development funding allocation Screen Australia launched to support the industry through Covid-19, are expected to be announced later today.
Screen Australia head of development Nerida Moore said: “It’s great to see producers thinking globally and developing unique stories for Australian audiences and the world. We’re excited to support these original story ideas, many with distinct storyworlds and fantastic comedic imaginations that I’m confident will resonate. We’re also...
- 10/28/2020
- by Staff Writer
- IF.com.au
Rosemary Kariuki of ‘Rosemary’s Way’.
Screen Australia has announced the final round of documentary funding for the 2018-19 financial year, which sees $3.8 million spread across 18 projects – five under the commissioned program and 13 under the producer program.
The announcement comes as Screen Australia prepares to seek industry feedback on proposed updates to its documentary funding programs; the agency will release an issues paper in late September.
“The last time our documentary programs were revised was in 2014-15, and since that time there has been substantial change in screen business models, content creation and audience viewing habits,” said Screen Australia head of documentary Bernadine Lim.
“We will be looking to discuss the challenges and opportunities facing the sector, and how Screen Australia can best support quality, culture and innovation in the documentary industry.”
A review of the documentary programs was first announced in January, when the agency flagged that the base...
Screen Australia has announced the final round of documentary funding for the 2018-19 financial year, which sees $3.8 million spread across 18 projects – five under the commissioned program and 13 under the producer program.
The announcement comes as Screen Australia prepares to seek industry feedback on proposed updates to its documentary funding programs; the agency will release an issues paper in late September.
“The last time our documentary programs were revised was in 2014-15, and since that time there has been substantial change in screen business models, content creation and audience viewing habits,” said Screen Australia head of documentary Bernadine Lim.
“We will be looking to discuss the challenges and opportunities facing the sector, and how Screen Australia can best support quality, culture and innovation in the documentary industry.”
A review of the documentary programs was first announced in January, when the agency flagged that the base...
- 8/2/2019
- by jkeast
- IF.com.au
Jane Corden, CEO of industry financial and accounting services company Moneypenny, writes that the Australian screen industry is facing a worrying shortage of experienced production accountants.
2019 has started with a bang; I suspect there’s more concurrent production than we have seen for a long while going on right now in Australia. However, the ever-growing worldwide thirst for content is putting strain on available crews. Experienced line producers, production accountants, and accounts assistants are in short supply. Yet the dire shortage of people to fill these positions is not simply a passing phenomenon that has come about due to a spike in demand. There is also a shortage of trainees coming through the ranks. Unfortunately experienced line producers and production accountants are not created in a classroom. The suitably qualified people needed on the shows that have started in the last few months should have been in training over the last five years.
2019 has started with a bang; I suspect there’s more concurrent production than we have seen for a long while going on right now in Australia. However, the ever-growing worldwide thirst for content is putting strain on available crews. Experienced line producers, production accountants, and accounts assistants are in short supply. Yet the dire shortage of people to fill these positions is not simply a passing phenomenon that has come about due to a spike in demand. There is also a shortage of trainees coming through the ranks. Unfortunately experienced line producers and production accountants are not created in a classroom. The suitably qualified people needed on the shows that have started in the last few months should have been in training over the last five years.
- 3/4/2019
- by jkeast
- IF.com.au
Alastair McKinnon.
A generational change is sweeping through Matchbox Pictures as the NBCUniversal-owned production company develops a raft of projects with emerging writers and producers.
“Talent development has always been a priority for Matchbox,” says Alastair McKinnon, who started as MD last December after three years with the ABC, most recently as head of content investment and planning,
McKinnon signed on just as the company founded by Penny Chapman, Tony Ayres, Helen Bowden, Michael McMahon and Helen Panckhurst was celebrating its 10th anniversary. “That was the perfect time to reflect and think about what Matchbox has done incredibly successfully over that time as the leading drama production company in Australia,” he tells If in his first interview since taking charge.
“But the industry has transformed in that 10 years and is unrecognisable if you think about the sorts of shows, how they are financed and the distribution models of drama.
A generational change is sweeping through Matchbox Pictures as the NBCUniversal-owned production company develops a raft of projects with emerging writers and producers.
“Talent development has always been a priority for Matchbox,” says Alastair McKinnon, who started as MD last December after three years with the ABC, most recently as head of content investment and planning,
McKinnon signed on just as the company founded by Penny Chapman, Tony Ayres, Helen Bowden, Michael McMahon and Helen Panckhurst was celebrating its 10th anniversary. “That was the perfect time to reflect and think about what Matchbox has done incredibly successfully over that time as the leading drama production company in Australia,” he tells If in his first interview since taking charge.
“But the industry has transformed in that 10 years and is unrecognisable if you think about the sorts of shows, how they are financed and the distribution models of drama.
- 2/10/2019
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
Michael McMahon.
Screen Producers Australia will present Matchbox Pictures co-founder and executive chairman Michael McMahon with a Lifetime Achievement Award at this year’s Spa Awards.
McMahon began his career in the industry as an entertainment lawyer, and produced his first short, Cruel Youth, in 1988. In the 30 years since, McMahon has driven some of Australia’s most notable features, documentaries and television dramas, including Ali’s Wedding, The Slap and Nowhere Boys.
In 1999, he formed Big and Little Films with partner Tony Ayres, and then a decade later, the two – together with Helen Bowden, Penny Chapman and Helen Panckhurst – formed Matchbox Pictures. In 2011, NBCUniversal took a majority stake in the company and acquired full ownership in 2014.
Over his career, McMahon has served on the boards of both Screen Tasmania and Film Victoria, and has recently expanded his career into teaching at Swinburne University and the University of South Australia.
“The...
Screen Producers Australia will present Matchbox Pictures co-founder and executive chairman Michael McMahon with a Lifetime Achievement Award at this year’s Spa Awards.
McMahon began his career in the industry as an entertainment lawyer, and produced his first short, Cruel Youth, in 1988. In the 30 years since, McMahon has driven some of Australia’s most notable features, documentaries and television dramas, including Ali’s Wedding, The Slap and Nowhere Boys.
In 1999, he formed Big and Little Films with partner Tony Ayres, and then a decade later, the two – together with Helen Bowden, Penny Chapman and Helen Panckhurst – formed Matchbox Pictures. In 2011, NBCUniversal took a majority stake in the company and acquired full ownership in 2014.
Over his career, McMahon has served on the boards of both Screen Tasmania and Film Victoria, and has recently expanded his career into teaching at Swinburne University and the University of South Australia.
“The...
- 10/18/2018
- by jkeast
- IF.com.au
Film won best screenplay from Australian Academy.
Netflix has acquired worldwide rights excluding China, Australia and New Zealand to the Australian rom-com Ali’s Wedding from Beta Cinemas.
Ali’s Wedding won best original screenplay from the Australian Academy and the Sydney Film Festival audience award, as well as the Awgie Award from the Australian Writers’ Guild for best original feature film.
Jeffrey Walker directed Ali’s Wedding, based on a convoluted true-life state of affairs in which the film’s star and co-writer Osamah Sami found himself in an arranged marriage that lasted less than two hours, while falling in love with another person.
Netflix has acquired worldwide rights excluding China, Australia and New Zealand to the Australian rom-com Ali’s Wedding from Beta Cinemas.
Ali’s Wedding won best original screenplay from the Australian Academy and the Sydney Film Festival audience award, as well as the Awgie Award from the Australian Writers’ Guild for best original feature film.
Jeffrey Walker directed Ali’s Wedding, based on a convoluted true-life state of affairs in which the film’s star and co-writer Osamah Sami found himself in an arranged marriage that lasted less than two hours, while falling in love with another person.
- 5/6/2018
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Sophie Lowe in Rachel Ward's Beautiful Kate.
Screen Australia has received 452 applications - the most applications ever received for any funding program - for Brilliant Stories and Brilliant Careers, the two programs announced last December under the Gender Matters initiative..
334 female-led creative teams applied for Brilliant Stories, according to a Screen Australia statement..
Successful applicants for Brilliant Stories will receive up to $100,000 for feature films; up to $50,000 for teams to develop an inventive concept into a scripted television series of any genre or budget size; and up to $50,000 for scripted online and interactive projects.
The Brilliant Careers fund is for proposals of up to $250,000 that generate sustainable careers in the screen industry for women; identify gaps in career development pathways for female creatives; and support slates of projects and businesses that connect content to audiences..
118 companies from all around Australia applied for this program, Screen Australia said.
.Screen Australia...
Screen Australia has received 452 applications - the most applications ever received for any funding program - for Brilliant Stories and Brilliant Careers, the two programs announced last December under the Gender Matters initiative..
334 female-led creative teams applied for Brilliant Stories, according to a Screen Australia statement..
Successful applicants for Brilliant Stories will receive up to $100,000 for feature films; up to $50,000 for teams to develop an inventive concept into a scripted television series of any genre or budget size; and up to $50,000 for scripted online and interactive projects.
The Brilliant Careers fund is for proposals of up to $250,000 that generate sustainable careers in the screen industry for women; identify gaps in career development pathways for female creatives; and support slates of projects and businesses that connect content to audiences..
118 companies from all around Australia applied for this program, Screen Australia said.
.Screen Australia...
- 4/13/2016
- by Staff Writer
- IF.com.au
Northern Rivers based Screen Producer Lois Randall with Writer Sue McPherson on location at St Patrick's Church Wardell filming Nan and a Whole Lot of Trouble. .
.
Some of Australia.s most accomplished screen producers will be in Byron Bay next month to present at Screenworks. two-day seminar: The Business of Producing. .
The event, to be held at Sae Institute on March 11-12, is aimed boosting the production skills of local filmmakers, with a view to increasing screen production opportunities in the region.
One of the event.s key speakers and the Head of Production at Matchbox Pictures, Helen Panckhurst said she was looking forward to connecting with local producers.
"There.s something fantastically rewarding about sharing knowledge and connecting with new people and fresh ideas - especially in such a beautiful part of the world." .
For anyone interested in film and television production, this event will provide advice through presentations...
.
Some of Australia.s most accomplished screen producers will be in Byron Bay next month to present at Screenworks. two-day seminar: The Business of Producing. .
The event, to be held at Sae Institute on March 11-12, is aimed boosting the production skills of local filmmakers, with a view to increasing screen production opportunities in the region.
One of the event.s key speakers and the Head of Production at Matchbox Pictures, Helen Panckhurst said she was looking forward to connecting with local producers.
"There.s something fantastically rewarding about sharing knowledge and connecting with new people and fresh ideas - especially in such a beautiful part of the world." .
For anyone interested in film and television production, this event will provide advice through presentations...
- 2/24/2016
- by Inside Film Correspondent
- IF.com.au
Matchbox Pictures has won the Production Business of the Year award at the 15th annual Screen Producers Australia Awards.
The awards, were hosted by television and radio presenter James Mathison at Melbourne.s Palladium at Crown during the 30th Screen Forever Conference.
For a full list of awards, see below.
Matchbox Pictures was founded by Australian producers Tony Ayres, Penny Chapman, Helen Bowden, Michael McMahon and Helen Panckhurst in 2008.
It was acquired by NBC Universal in 2014..
Matchbox specialises in television drama, children.s programming, factual and entertainment content, animation and feature films for the domestic and international marketplace..
Most recently, Matchbox has produced the popular reality television series Real Housewives of Melbourne, feature film Ali.s Wedding, Lally Katz.s comedy mini-series Stories I Want To Tell You In Person for the ABC, and the youth television drama series Nowhere Boys for ABC Television, which was honoured with the Screen...
The awards, were hosted by television and radio presenter James Mathison at Melbourne.s Palladium at Crown during the 30th Screen Forever Conference.
For a full list of awards, see below.
Matchbox Pictures was founded by Australian producers Tony Ayres, Penny Chapman, Helen Bowden, Michael McMahon and Helen Panckhurst in 2008.
It was acquired by NBC Universal in 2014..
Matchbox specialises in television drama, children.s programming, factual and entertainment content, animation and feature films for the domestic and international marketplace..
Most recently, Matchbox has produced the popular reality television series Real Housewives of Melbourne, feature film Ali.s Wedding, Lally Katz.s comedy mini-series Stories I Want To Tell You In Person for the ABC, and the youth television drama series Nowhere Boys for ABC Television, which was honoured with the Screen...
- 11/24/2015
- by Inside Film Correspondent
- IF.com.au
When Jeffrey Walker was offered the chance to direct his first feature, Ali.s Wedding, he hesitated initially, feeling intimidated by the milieu of a Muslim immigrant who is torn between his upbringing and the Australian way of life. But as he got deeper into the screenplay by Osamah Sami and his frequent collaborator Andrew Knight, he saw a universal theme in the romantic comedy based on Sami.s experiences. .I got a real feel for the characters and their journey,. says Walker, who started shooting in Melbourne today with a cast of familiar and new faces. Sami plays Ali, the affable son of a Muslim cleric (Don Hany) who had migrated to Australia from Iraq. In an attempt to live up to the expectations of his community and his father, Ali tells a series of well-intentioned lies, which result in him pretending to be a medical student based on forged exam marks.
- 11/8/2015
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
In his feature debut Jeffrey Walker will direct Ali.s Wedding, a romantic comedy based on a true story for Matchbox Pictures.
Scripted by actor Osamah Sami and Andrew Knight, the plot follows Ali, the son of a Muslim cleric, who is caught between his sense of duty to his family and following his heart.
The film is inspired by Sami.s first marriage which lasted precisely one hour and 48 minutes.
Shooting is due to start in Melbourne in the first week of November, produced by Sheila Jayadev and Helen Panckhurst. No casting has been confirmed yet.
"Jeffrey is one of Australia.s most exciting directors and we are thrilled to be working with him on Ali.s Wedding," Jayadev tells If. "With his extensive experience in directing comedy both in Australia and the Us, he will create a fresh, contemporary and hugely entertaining film."
Osamah has just launched his memoir Good Muslim Boy,...
Scripted by actor Osamah Sami and Andrew Knight, the plot follows Ali, the son of a Muslim cleric, who is caught between his sense of duty to his family and following his heart.
The film is inspired by Sami.s first marriage which lasted precisely one hour and 48 minutes.
Shooting is due to start in Melbourne in the first week of November, produced by Sheila Jayadev and Helen Panckhurst. No casting has been confirmed yet.
"Jeffrey is one of Australia.s most exciting directors and we are thrilled to be working with him on Ali.s Wedding," Jayadev tells If. "With his extensive experience in directing comedy both in Australia and the Us, he will create a fresh, contemporary and hugely entertaining film."
Osamah has just launched his memoir Good Muslim Boy,...
- 6/25/2015
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
Wayne Blair, Rachel Perkins, Greg McLean, Cameron and Colin Cairnes get green lights for new Australian films, including a new feature starring Kevin Bacon.
The directors of two of Australia’s biggest hits of the last five years, Rachel Perkins (Bran Nue Dae) and Wayne Blair (The Sapphires) have had new films financed in Screen Australia’s last funding round for the year.
Six films in all got a green light: another is Jungle from Wolf Creek director Greg McLean, who recently made his first Us film, 6 Miranda Drive, and has cast Kevin Bacon in this cinematic recreation of the true story of Yossi Ghinsberg managing to survive in the Amazon rainforest.
Perkins will direct the adaptation of the extremely popular book Jasper Jones in Western Australia next year. No cast are yet attached to the coming-of-age murder mystery written by Shaun Grant who was thrust into the limelight when the film of his debut script [link=tt...
The directors of two of Australia’s biggest hits of the last five years, Rachel Perkins (Bran Nue Dae) and Wayne Blair (The Sapphires) have had new films financed in Screen Australia’s last funding round for the year.
Six films in all got a green light: another is Jungle from Wolf Creek director Greg McLean, who recently made his first Us film, 6 Miranda Drive, and has cast Kevin Bacon in this cinematic recreation of the true story of Yossi Ghinsberg managing to survive in the Amazon rainforest.
Perkins will direct the adaptation of the extremely popular book Jasper Jones in Western Australia next year. No cast are yet attached to the coming-of-age murder mystery written by Shaun Grant who was thrust into the limelight when the film of his debut script [link=tt...
- 11/27/2014
- by Sandy.George@me.com (Sandy George)
- ScreenDaily
During a break in filming the Sbs telemovie Saved in 2009, actor Osamah Sami told director Tony Ayres and his co-star Claudia Karvan an amazing story.
Sami related how his first marriage lasted precisely one hour and 48 minutes. .I immediately thought, .there.s a film in that,.. Ayres tells If.
Andrew Knight came on board to collaborate with Sami on the screenplay of Ali.s Wedding and Screen Australia has agreed to invest in the project.
At one point Ayres was keen to direct but he has a full schedule as the Ep of Glitch and Nowhere Boys, so Wayne Blair will direct the romantic comedy.
Sheila Jayadev and Helen Panckhurst will produce for Matchbox Pictures, with Ayres, Michael McMahon, Greg Sitch and Nina Stevenson as EPs.
The plot follows Ali, the son of a Muslim cleric, who is caught between his sense of duty to his family and following his heart.
Sami related how his first marriage lasted precisely one hour and 48 minutes. .I immediately thought, .there.s a film in that,.. Ayres tells If.
Andrew Knight came on board to collaborate with Sami on the screenplay of Ali.s Wedding and Screen Australia has agreed to invest in the project.
At one point Ayres was keen to direct but he has a full schedule as the Ep of Glitch and Nowhere Boys, so Wayne Blair will direct the romantic comedy.
Sheila Jayadev and Helen Panckhurst will produce for Matchbox Pictures, with Ayres, Michael McMahon, Greg Sitch and Nina Stevenson as EPs.
The plot follows Ali, the son of a Muslim cleric, who is caught between his sense of duty to his family and following his heart.
- 11/26/2014
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
Screen Australia announced today it will invest nearly $10.7 million in 11 television and film projects which will trigger production worth almost $59 million.
In one of the most hotly contested funding rounds, six features succeeded. They include Wayne Blair.s romantic comedy Ali.s Wedding; Joe Cinque.s Consolation, a thriller about a troubled law student who tries to kill her boyfriend, from director Sotiris Dounoukos, whose A Single Body won best short at the Toronto International Film Festival, and Cameron and Colin Cairnes. horror movie Scare Campaign.
The other three are Taboo, the narrative feature debut of documentary filmmakers Bentley Dean and Martin Butler; Rachel Perkins. murder mystery Jasper Jones, based on the novel and play by Craig Silvey, adapted by Shaun Grant;. and Greg Mclean.s true-life thriller Jungle.
The TV projects are Shine Australia.s Peter Allen: Not the Boy Next Door for the Seven Network; a Jack...
In one of the most hotly contested funding rounds, six features succeeded. They include Wayne Blair.s romantic comedy Ali.s Wedding; Joe Cinque.s Consolation, a thriller about a troubled law student who tries to kill her boyfriend, from director Sotiris Dounoukos, whose A Single Body won best short at the Toronto International Film Festival, and Cameron and Colin Cairnes. horror movie Scare Campaign.
The other three are Taboo, the narrative feature debut of documentary filmmakers Bentley Dean and Martin Butler; Rachel Perkins. murder mystery Jasper Jones, based on the novel and play by Craig Silvey, adapted by Shaun Grant;. and Greg Mclean.s true-life thriller Jungle.
The TV projects are Shine Australia.s Peter Allen: Not the Boy Next Door for the Seven Network; a Jack...
- 11/26/2014
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
Matchbox Pictures, the prolific producer of Nowhere Boys, Devil.s Playground, The Slap, the movie Cut Snake, Real Housewives of Melbourne, Formal Wars and upcoming miniseries Deadline Gallipoli, is now fully owned by a Us studio.
NBCUniversal International Television Production, which bought a 60% stake in 2011, today announced a further investment which gives it 100% ownership.
Tony Ayres, Penny Chapman, Michael McMahon, Helen Bowden and Helen Panckhurst, who founded the firm in 2008, sold their shares to NBCUniversal.
.They pursued us, primarily due to the success of the partnership and they are keen to invest and further grow the company internationally, so owning the company fully makes sense to do that,. Matchbox managing director Chris Oliver-Taylor tells If. "There is more incentive for NBCU to drive the business further."
The company will continue to operate as a distinct entity led by Oliver-Taylor and creative heads Chapman and Ayres (scripted ) and Kylie Washington (unscripted).. McMahon becomes executive chairman.
NBCUniversal International Television Production, which bought a 60% stake in 2011, today announced a further investment which gives it 100% ownership.
Tony Ayres, Penny Chapman, Michael McMahon, Helen Bowden and Helen Panckhurst, who founded the firm in 2008, sold their shares to NBCUniversal.
.They pursued us, primarily due to the success of the partnership and they are keen to invest and further grow the company internationally, so owning the company fully makes sense to do that,. Matchbox managing director Chris Oliver-Taylor tells If. "There is more incentive for NBCU to drive the business further."
The company will continue to operate as a distinct entity led by Oliver-Taylor and creative heads Chapman and Ayres (scripted ) and Kylie Washington (unscripted).. McMahon becomes executive chairman.
- 1/29/2014
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
Bryan Brown and Sam Neill will star in Old School, an ABC series in the vein of the BBC comedy-drama New Tricks. Brown will play Ted, a retired cop, with Neill as Lennie, an ex-crim. The odd couple turn sleuth to solve crimes, unravel scams and earn much-needed dosh.
The cast includes Sarah Peirse as Ted.s feisty, sports-mad wife; Hanna Mangan Lawrence as Lennie.s granddaughter Shannon; Mark Coles-Smith as Jason, the mechanic son of one of Lennie.s prison mates; and Damian Walshe-Howling as a charming opportunist who woos Shannon.
The show was created by Paul Oliver and Steve Wright and will be produced by Matchbox Pictures. Helen Panckhurst and exec produced by Tony Ayres and Penny Chapman.
Production of the eight-part series starts in Sydney in June with the directing chores shared by Gregor Jordan (Two Hands, Buffalo Soldiers), Peter Templeman (Not Suitable For Children) and Oliver.
The cast includes Sarah Peirse as Ted.s feisty, sports-mad wife; Hanna Mangan Lawrence as Lennie.s granddaughter Shannon; Mark Coles-Smith as Jason, the mechanic son of one of Lennie.s prison mates; and Damian Walshe-Howling as a charming opportunist who woos Shannon.
The show was created by Paul Oliver and Steve Wright and will be produced by Matchbox Pictures. Helen Panckhurst and exec produced by Tony Ayres and Penny Chapman.
Production of the eight-part series starts in Sydney in June with the directing chores shared by Gregor Jordan (Two Hands, Buffalo Soldiers), Peter Templeman (Not Suitable For Children) and Oliver.
- 5/30/2013
- by Staff Writer
- IF.com.au
Don Groves is a Deadline contributor based in Sydney. Exclusive: The Australian Broadcasting Corp. has ordered Old School, an eight-part series about an ex-criminal and an ex-cop who go into business together, from Matchbox Pictures. Global sales outside Australia will be handled by NBCUniversal International, which owns 60% of Matchbox, producers of The Slap, Underground – The Julian Assange Story and The Straits. In the vein of New Tricks, the BBC comedy-drama series about a bunch of retired cops turned sleuths, Old School was created by Paul Oliver and will be executive produced by Matchbox’s Tony Ayres and Helen Panckhurst. Matchbox has a busy slate for 2013 including reality shows The Real Housewives for Foxtel, Formal Wars for the Seven Network, Next Stop Hollywood for ABC, children’s drama Lost Boys for ABC, drama series Return To The Devil’s Playground for Foxtel and Ayres’ theatrical feature Cut Snake, which will star Sullivan Stapleton and Ryan Kwanten.
- 12/21/2012
- by THE DEADLINE TEAM
- Deadline TV
The team behind Australian film Wish You Were Here is among seven film-making teams to receive funding from Screen Australia.
Writer director Kieran Darcy-Smith, with his Wish You Were Here producer Angie Fielder as well as Ted Hope, producer of 21 Grams and Martha Marcy May Marlene, have received a share in the $216,000 of development support from the national screen agency for their film Memorial Day.
Billed as a crime drama, Memorial Day’s synopsis reads: “Two brothers – one out of his depth in a hard world he doesn’t understand, the other recently returned from a period of self-imposed exile – struggle to redress the fallout from a past family tragedy.”
Both Darcy-Smith and Fielder have been nominated for AACTAs for Wish You Were Here.
Two Australian film-makers have received professional internships through Screen Australia’s Talent Escalator Program. Bec Cubitt will join Ridley Scott’s production company Scott Free under...
Writer director Kieran Darcy-Smith, with his Wish You Were Here producer Angie Fielder as well as Ted Hope, producer of 21 Grams and Martha Marcy May Marlene, have received a share in the $216,000 of development support from the national screen agency for their film Memorial Day.
Billed as a crime drama, Memorial Day’s synopsis reads: “Two brothers – one out of his depth in a hard world he doesn’t understand, the other recently returned from a period of self-imposed exile – struggle to redress the fallout from a past family tragedy.”
Both Darcy-Smith and Fielder have been nominated for AACTAs for Wish You Were Here.
Two Australian film-makers have received professional internships through Screen Australia’s Talent Escalator Program. Bec Cubitt will join Ridley Scott’s production company Scott Free under...
- 12/13/2012
- by Colin Delaney
- Encore Magazine
Screen Australia will invest $216,000 in development funding across seven feature film projects, including three that the funding agency has previously supported.
Three of the four new projects are comedies: Pandamonium, Versus Vampire, and They Shoot Hostages, Don.t They? The final new project is horror film The Rapture. The three projects which will receive another round of development support are Matchbox Pictures comedy Ali's Wedding, See-Saw Films' biopic Life, and Kieran Darcy-Smith's crime drama Memorial Day.
Meanwhile, producer Bec Cubitt and writer/director Will Kuether have also been selected to undertake professional internships through Screen Australia.s Talent Escalator Program.
Cubitt will spend six months working in London at Ridley Scott.s production company Scott Free under the mentorship of executive producer Jack Arbuthnott. Australian producer interns Caroline Gerard and Sheila Jayadev.have previously worked there with Screen Australia support..
Kuether will work in Los Angeles for five...
Three of the four new projects are comedies: Pandamonium, Versus Vampire, and They Shoot Hostages, Don.t They? The final new project is horror film The Rapture. The three projects which will receive another round of development support are Matchbox Pictures comedy Ali's Wedding, See-Saw Films' biopic Life, and Kieran Darcy-Smith's crime drama Memorial Day.
Meanwhile, producer Bec Cubitt and writer/director Will Kuether have also been selected to undertake professional internships through Screen Australia.s Talent Escalator Program.
Cubitt will spend six months working in London at Ridley Scott.s production company Scott Free under the mentorship of executive producer Jack Arbuthnott. Australian producer interns Caroline Gerard and Sheila Jayadev.have previously worked there with Screen Australia support..
Kuether will work in Los Angeles for five...
- 12/12/2012
- by Brendan Swift
- IF.com.au
Screen Australia has invested almost $750,000 across five one-off documentary projects.
The projects, which will trigger over $2.1 million in production, include 10 Days That Shocked the Nation, an online Sbs documentary which will tells the story of the events that occurred in the lead-up to and consequent Cronulla Riots, and Canberra Confidential, an ABC program which uncovers a century of secrets from inside the nation.s capital.
Screen Australia.s documentary Manager Liz Stevens said: .Both these documentaries will make a significant contribution to the national dialogue. 10 Days That Shocked the Nation joins other recent Ndp-funded award-winning online properties Big Stories, Small Towns and Asylum: Exit Australia. Canberra Confidential will be broadcast to coincide with Canberra.s Centenary in early 2013..
The projects also include biographical film, Peter Sculthorpe, A Journey Through My Life, about one of the world.s greatest living composers. Writer/director Gregor Jordon.s Ian Thorpe: The Swimmer...
The projects, which will trigger over $2.1 million in production, include 10 Days That Shocked the Nation, an online Sbs documentary which will tells the story of the events that occurred in the lead-up to and consequent Cronulla Riots, and Canberra Confidential, an ABC program which uncovers a century of secrets from inside the nation.s capital.
Screen Australia.s documentary Manager Liz Stevens said: .Both these documentaries will make a significant contribution to the national dialogue. 10 Days That Shocked the Nation joins other recent Ndp-funded award-winning online properties Big Stories, Small Towns and Asylum: Exit Australia. Canberra Confidential will be broadcast to coincide with Canberra.s Centenary in early 2013..
The projects also include biographical film, Peter Sculthorpe, A Journey Through My Life, about one of the world.s greatest living composers. Writer/director Gregor Jordon.s Ian Thorpe: The Swimmer...
- 6/28/2012
- by Staff reporter
- IF.com.au
An ABC documentary about Olympic swimmer Ian Thorpe directed by Gregor Jordan is one of the films to receive funding from Screen Australia.
Jordan, who directed Ned Kelly and Two Hands, followed Thorpe as the swimmer made his failed comeback for the 2012 London Olympics.
The project, Ian Thorpe: The Swimmer is produced for the ABC by Jordan Helen Panckhurst, Michael Hilliard, Simone Kessell and executive producer Rob Galluzzo.
Five documentaries have received funding from the national screen agency, two from the National Documentary Program and three from the General Documentary Program.
The $750,000 investment is expected to trigger $2.1m in production.
Also slated for funding is 10 Days That Shocked The Nation, about the 2005 Cronulla riots, to be broadcast on Sbs Online; the life story of music composer Peter Sculthorpe for the ABC; 1960s pop artist Martin Sharp called The Sharp End; and Canberra Confidential – a hundred years inside the nation’s capital.
Jordan, who directed Ned Kelly and Two Hands, followed Thorpe as the swimmer made his failed comeback for the 2012 London Olympics.
The project, Ian Thorpe: The Swimmer is produced for the ABC by Jordan Helen Panckhurst, Michael Hilliard, Simone Kessell and executive producer Rob Galluzzo.
Five documentaries have received funding from the national screen agency, two from the National Documentary Program and three from the General Documentary Program.
The $750,000 investment is expected to trigger $2.1m in production.
Also slated for funding is 10 Days That Shocked The Nation, about the 2005 Cronulla riots, to be broadcast on Sbs Online; the life story of music composer Peter Sculthorpe for the ABC; 1960s pop artist Martin Sharp called The Sharp End; and Canberra Confidential – a hundred years inside the nation’s capital.
- 6/27/2012
- by Colin Delaney
- Encore Magazine
An Australian production company has sold the rights to one of its series across Eastern and Western Europe.
Matchbox Pictures struck the deal with AMC/Sundance Channel Global which will see the Tropical gangster story aired across Eastern Europe, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Turkey, France, Benelux as well as selected territories in Asia.
Helen Panckhurst, producer at Matchbox Pictures said: “We’re delighted to be receiving significant international interest in The Straits and that the ABC has given us the opportunity to develop such distinctive contemporary Australian drama series.”
The deal was struck through NBCU International, who bought into Matchbox Pictures last year.
Also purchased in the deal was for Matchbox Pictures‘ other stand out series The Slap to air in Benelux on the Sundance Channel, which is in addition to previously secured rights for Eastern Europe, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Turkey and Asia.
Locally, The Straits struggled to secure the audience...
Matchbox Pictures struck the deal with AMC/Sundance Channel Global which will see the Tropical gangster story aired across Eastern Europe, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Turkey, France, Benelux as well as selected territories in Asia.
Helen Panckhurst, producer at Matchbox Pictures said: “We’re delighted to be receiving significant international interest in The Straits and that the ABC has given us the opportunity to develop such distinctive contemporary Australian drama series.”
The deal was struck through NBCU International, who bought into Matchbox Pictures last year.
Also purchased in the deal was for Matchbox Pictures‘ other stand out series The Slap to air in Benelux on the Sundance Channel, which is in addition to previously secured rights for Eastern Europe, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Turkey and Asia.
Locally, The Straits struggled to secure the audience...
- 4/13/2012
- by Colin Delaney
- Encore Magazine
From drama to reality and factual – meet the production house powerhouses responsible for Australia’s greatest television.
Andrew Denton
Owner/ Creative guy
Zapruder’s Other Films The Gruen Transfer, Hungry Beast, Country Town Rescue, Randling
With producers Anita Jacoby and Peter Thompson, Andrew Denton’s Zapruder’s Other Films is known for intelligent and often funny television.
Denton came to prominence as the host of ABC’s 1988 comedy show Blah Blah Blah and was quick to get involved behind the scenes. His first executive producing credit came in 2001 when he gave The Chaser team their break with The Election Chaser.
Denton is responsible for adland favourite The Gruen Transfer, with five series including Gruen Planet and Nation under its belt. The show is one of the ABC’s highest rating formats attracting international interest.
Denton’s great skill is fostering young talent with his 2008 Project Next experiment resulting in Hungry Beast.
Andrew Denton
Owner/ Creative guy
Zapruder’s Other Films The Gruen Transfer, Hungry Beast, Country Town Rescue, Randling
With producers Anita Jacoby and Peter Thompson, Andrew Denton’s Zapruder’s Other Films is known for intelligent and often funny television.
Denton came to prominence as the host of ABC’s 1988 comedy show Blah Blah Blah and was quick to get involved behind the scenes. His first executive producing credit came in 2001 when he gave The Chaser team their break with The Election Chaser.
Denton is responsible for adland favourite The Gruen Transfer, with five series including Gruen Planet and Nation under its belt. The show is one of the ABC’s highest rating formats attracting international interest.
Denton’s great skill is fostering young talent with his 2008 Project Next experiment resulting in Hungry Beast.
- 2/17/2012
- by Colin Delaney
- Encore Magazine
It seems controversy leads to awards. The two big winners at last night.s inaugural Aacta Awards were thriller feature film Snowtown and TV drama series The Slap. Both renowned for their controversial nature, the film and TV series netted four and five gongs respectively.
Snowtown, about Australian serial killer John Bunting who befriends a 16-year-old, was honoured in the Best Direction (Justin Kurzel), Best Adapted Screenplay (Shaun Grant), Best Actor (Daniel Henshall) and Best Supporting Actress (Louise Harris) categories.
The last two awards were particularly impressive as neither actor had appeared in a feature film before. While Henshall had previously acted in such shows as Out of the Blue, it was Harris. first ever acting role.
The four gongs awarded last night at the Sydney Opera House brings the film.s tally to an impressive six Aacta Awards after receiving Best Editing (Veronika Jenet Ase) and Best Sound (Frank Lipson Mpse,...
Snowtown, about Australian serial killer John Bunting who befriends a 16-year-old, was honoured in the Best Direction (Justin Kurzel), Best Adapted Screenplay (Shaun Grant), Best Actor (Daniel Henshall) and Best Supporting Actress (Louise Harris) categories.
The last two awards were particularly impressive as neither actor had appeared in a feature film before. While Henshall had previously acted in such shows as Out of the Blue, it was Harris. first ever acting role.
The four gongs awarded last night at the Sydney Opera House brings the film.s tally to an impressive six Aacta Awards after receiving Best Editing (Veronika Jenet Ase) and Best Sound (Frank Lipson Mpse,...
- 1/31/2012
- by Sam Dallas
- IF.com.au
Australian cinematographer Don McAlpine (Acs/Asc) received two standing ovations after tributes from longtime colleagues Jack Thompson and Bruce Beresford at the inaugural Australian Academy Cinema Television Arts (Aacta) awards yesteryday.
McAlpine was awarded the coveted Raymond Longford Award for a lifetime achievement in cinema. McAlpine’s career spans over 50 films including Moulin Rouge and William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet, Breaker Morant and most recently Mental.
The ceremony, hosted by Sigrid Thornton, was the first for the newly formed academy. The ceremony also included the announcement of the Australian academy’s international awards to recognise excellence in film. The announcements were made during a live cross to actress Jackie Weaver at the G’Day USA Gala in Los Angeles.
Further awards for both Australian cinema and TV and the international awards will be presented on January 31 at the Opera House.
The Winners
Raymond Longford Award
Don McAlpine
Byron Kennedy Award...
McAlpine was awarded the coveted Raymond Longford Award for a lifetime achievement in cinema. McAlpine’s career spans over 50 films including Moulin Rouge and William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet, Breaker Morant and most recently Mental.
The ceremony, hosted by Sigrid Thornton, was the first for the newly formed academy. The ceremony also included the announcement of the Australian academy’s international awards to recognise excellence in film. The announcements were made during a live cross to actress Jackie Weaver at the G’Day USA Gala in Los Angeles.
Further awards for both Australian cinema and TV and the international awards will be presented on January 31 at the Opera House.
The Winners
Raymond Longford Award
Don McAlpine
Byron Kennedy Award...
- 1/15/2012
- by Brooke Hemphill
- Encore Magazine
Local programs My Place and The Amazing Race Australia.have done.the country proud at this year.s Asian Television Awards. My Place, the ABC3 Logie-winning series, netted Best Children.s Program at the prestigious awards show which recognises .excellence in programming, production and performance.. The popular show, produced by Matchbox Pictures' Helen Panckhurst and Penny Chapman, won for the first episode in series two: 1878 Henry and beat fellow ABC3 show Dance Academy (which was nominated for Episode 26: Learning To Fly Part 2). Chapman, who last year won the inaugural If Award for Contribution to Television, said she was "thrilled" with its success overseas. "This has been a bit of a passion project for me because...
- 12/13/2011
- by Sam Dallas
- IF.com.au
The Hunter has lead the Aacta Awards with 14 nominations including best film.
The film, by Daniel Nettheim, is also up for best direction, adapted screenplay, cinematography, sound, production design, costume, original music score, and visual effects. Meanwhile, Willem Dafoe, Frances O’Connor, Sam Neill and Morgana Davies are all up for acting awards.
The film has currently made just over $1m at the local box office.
It’s the first year for the re-launched AACTAs, formerly the AFI awards.
The technical awards will be given out at a luncheon on 15 January at the Sydney Opera House, with an evening ceremony for the more ‘public-friendly’ awards held at the Opera House on 31 January.
Running against The Hunter for best film is Red Dog, Mad Bastards, The Eye of the Storm, Snowtown and Oranges and Sunshine.
The Eye of the Storm, was second in the nominations race with 12, of which six are...
The film, by Daniel Nettheim, is also up for best direction, adapted screenplay, cinematography, sound, production design, costume, original music score, and visual effects. Meanwhile, Willem Dafoe, Frances O’Connor, Sam Neill and Morgana Davies are all up for acting awards.
The film has currently made just over $1m at the local box office.
It’s the first year for the re-launched AACTAs, formerly the AFI awards.
The technical awards will be given out at a luncheon on 15 January at the Sydney Opera House, with an evening ceremony for the more ‘public-friendly’ awards held at the Opera House on 31 January.
Running against The Hunter for best film is Red Dog, Mad Bastards, The Eye of the Storm, Snowtown and Oranges and Sunshine.
The Eye of the Storm, was second in the nominations race with 12, of which six are...
- 11/30/2011
- by Colin Delaney
- Encore Magazine
Helen Bowden and Helen Panckhurst, photo: Cynthia Sciberras
Matchbox Pictures has been named Independent Producer of the Year at the 2011 Spaa Independent Producers Awards.
The production company is behind adult drama series The Slap, children’s show My Place and the upcoming crime series The Straits. Matchbox Pictures was formed by executives Helen Bowden and Helen Panckhurst, and producers Penny Chapman, Tony Ayres and Michael McMahon.
Winners were announced across a number of categories at the awards night on Monday night as part of the Spaa Conference.
See-Saw Films won best feature film for The Kings Speech. The production company run by Emile Sherman and Iain Canning also produced Oranges and Sunshine.
Breakthrough award went to the producers of The Tunnel, Julian Harvey and Enzo Tedeschi with their innovative business model to maximise viewership through an agreement with BitTorrent.
Essential Media and Entertainment won best television drama for their series Rake starring Richard Roxburgh.
Matchbox Pictures has been named Independent Producer of the Year at the 2011 Spaa Independent Producers Awards.
The production company is behind adult drama series The Slap, children’s show My Place and the upcoming crime series The Straits. Matchbox Pictures was formed by executives Helen Bowden and Helen Panckhurst, and producers Penny Chapman, Tony Ayres and Michael McMahon.
Winners were announced across a number of categories at the awards night on Monday night as part of the Spaa Conference.
See-Saw Films won best feature film for The Kings Speech. The production company run by Emile Sherman and Iain Canning also produced Oranges and Sunshine.
Breakthrough award went to the producers of The Tunnel, Julian Harvey and Enzo Tedeschi with their innovative business model to maximise viewership through an agreement with BitTorrent.
Essential Media and Entertainment won best television drama for their series Rake starring Richard Roxburgh.
- 11/15/2011
- by Colin Delaney
- Encore Magazine
Six local documentaries will screen across five categories at Amsterdam’s Idfa (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam) from 16-27 November.
Screen Australia’s documentary manager, Liz Stevens said in a statement: “The inclusion of Australian documentaries at Idfa, one of the world’s top-tier documentary events, is a strong vote of confidence in Australian documentary and a significant achievement for the filmmakers.”
“The quality and range of work chosen for Idfa reflects the strength of craft and creativity found in Australian documentaries which are engaging audiences both at home and abroad.”
Then the Wind Changed, written/directed by Celeste Geer and My Thai Bride, directed by David Tucker and written by Ashleigh Hooker will screen in competition for the mid-length documentary.
Screening in the Green Screen Documentary competition, for environmental films is Tom Zubrycki’s The Hungry Tide while Goa Hippy Tribe, written and directed by Darius Devas will screen in the DocLab section,...
Screen Australia’s documentary manager, Liz Stevens said in a statement: “The inclusion of Australian documentaries at Idfa, one of the world’s top-tier documentary events, is a strong vote of confidence in Australian documentary and a significant achievement for the filmmakers.”
“The quality and range of work chosen for Idfa reflects the strength of craft and creativity found in Australian documentaries which are engaging audiences both at home and abroad.”
Then the Wind Changed, written/directed by Celeste Geer and My Thai Bride, directed by David Tucker and written by Ashleigh Hooker will screen in competition for the mid-length documentary.
Screening in the Green Screen Documentary competition, for environmental films is Tom Zubrycki’s The Hungry Tide while Goa Hippy Tribe, written and directed by Darius Devas will screen in the DocLab section,...
- 10/17/2011
- by Colin Delaney
- Encore Magazine
Seventeen feature films have received support for development by Screen Australia, with a spend totalling $500,000.
The productions include projects involving Emile Sherman, Johnathan Teplitzky, Helen Pankhurst and Jan Sardi.
Martha Coleman, Screen Australia’s head of development, said: “I’m proud of our association with this compelling group of feature projects by such talented filmmaking teams. The quality and range of projects we are seeing is hugely inspiring and our development team care passionately about assisting the filmmakers we are working with to achieve the best possible version of their story. This is a very exciting time.”
Projects include:
Tim Winton’s best selling surfing story, Breath will get an adaptation by Simon Baker producing with Jamie Hilton and Mark Johnson and written by Peter Duncan. Four comedies have received funding including Ali’s Wedding, written by Osamah Sami and Andrew Knight will be developed by producers Helen Panckhurst, Michael McMahon...
The productions include projects involving Emile Sherman, Johnathan Teplitzky, Helen Pankhurst and Jan Sardi.
Martha Coleman, Screen Australia’s head of development, said: “I’m proud of our association with this compelling group of feature projects by such talented filmmaking teams. The quality and range of projects we are seeing is hugely inspiring and our development team care passionately about assisting the filmmakers we are working with to achieve the best possible version of their story. This is a very exciting time.”
Projects include:
Tim Winton’s best selling surfing story, Breath will get an adaptation by Simon Baker producing with Jamie Hilton and Mark Johnson and written by Peter Duncan. Four comedies have received funding including Ali’s Wedding, written by Osamah Sami and Andrew Knight will be developed by producers Helen Panckhurst, Michael McMahon...
- 10/14/2011
- by Colin Delaney
- Encore Magazine
Matchbox Pictures – the production house behind ABC and Sbs programmes such as The Slap, Leaky Boat, My Place and Sex: An Unnatural History – has announced the arrival of Chris Oliver-Taylor, previously with the ABC, as its managing director.
Oliver-Taylor was the ABC’s head of business and operations.
Matchbox was formed two years ago by Tony Ayres, Helen Bowden, Penny Chapman, Michael McMahon and Helen Panckhurst. Its output includes drama, children’s, factual TV and feature films.
The company said of Oliver-Taylor: “He is a talented executive with a great breadth of experience, solid commercial knowledge and strong business acumen. Through his role at the ABC he has played a key role in development and production for the Australian television industry.”
Oliver‐Taylor said: “I am delighted to join a growing company made up of an exceptional group of talented people with a very exciting and diverse slate of projects.
Oliver-Taylor was the ABC’s head of business and operations.
Matchbox was formed two years ago by Tony Ayres, Helen Bowden, Penny Chapman, Michael McMahon and Helen Panckhurst. Its output includes drama, children’s, factual TV and feature films.
The company said of Oliver-Taylor: “He is a talented executive with a great breadth of experience, solid commercial knowledge and strong business acumen. Through his role at the ABC he has played a key role in development and production for the Australian television industry.”
Oliver‐Taylor said: “I am delighted to join a growing company made up of an exceptional group of talented people with a very exciting and diverse slate of projects.
- 10/7/2011
- by Tim Burrowes
- Encore Magazine
The Australian Film Institute (AFI) have launched a new festival to showcase the local films of the past year vying for an Aacta (Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Award).
The Festival will run from 6 October to 14 November in Sydney and 11 October to 14 November in Melbourne and showcase the 21 feature films, as well as 12 non feature nominees including best short fiction film, Best short animation and Best feature length documentary in lead up for the inaugural Aacta Awards held in January 2012.
“Through Aacta,” Damian Trewhella, AFI Aacta CEO said, “we not only celebrate Australia’s best screen practitioners, but also engage audiences with our great stories; the Samsung AFI І Aacta Festival of Film provides a perfect platform for this at an exciting time for our screen industry.”
The festival aims to showcase the films to generate greater audience reach and engagement. “Having increased awareness of our screen industry...
The Festival will run from 6 October to 14 November in Sydney and 11 October to 14 November in Melbourne and showcase the 21 feature films, as well as 12 non feature nominees including best short fiction film, Best short animation and Best feature length documentary in lead up for the inaugural Aacta Awards held in January 2012.
“Through Aacta,” Damian Trewhella, AFI Aacta CEO said, “we not only celebrate Australia’s best screen practitioners, but also engage audiences with our great stories; the Samsung AFI І Aacta Festival of Film provides a perfect platform for this at an exciting time for our screen industry.”
The festival aims to showcase the films to generate greater audience reach and engagement. “Having increased awareness of our screen industry...
- 9/21/2011
- by Colin Delaney
- Encore Magazine
The AFI (Australian Film Institute) and Aacta (Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts) have announced the first nominees for the inaugural Aacta Awards to be held in January 2012.
The nominations for best Feature Length Documentary, Best Animated Short Film, and Best Short Film accompany the announcement of 23 feature films at the Aacta launch.
Said Damian Trewhella, AFI Aacta CEO, “From the concert hall to the Outback, and spanning decades, countries and genres, nominees announced today demonstrate the breadth and depth of Australian filmmaking talent. We look forward to recognising Australia’s best and brightest screen practitioners at the inaugural Samsung Aacta Awards in January, building on the proud, 53-year-old tradition of celebrating screen excellence in Australia established by the AFI.”
The nominees for the Aacta for best Feature Length Documentary are:
Life In Movement – about dancer Tanja Liedtke, produced by Sophie Hyde, Bryan Mason Mrs Carey’s Concert – follows...
The nominations for best Feature Length Documentary, Best Animated Short Film, and Best Short Film accompany the announcement of 23 feature films at the Aacta launch.
Said Damian Trewhella, AFI Aacta CEO, “From the concert hall to the Outback, and spanning decades, countries and genres, nominees announced today demonstrate the breadth and depth of Australian filmmaking talent. We look forward to recognising Australia’s best and brightest screen practitioners at the inaugural Samsung Aacta Awards in January, building on the proud, 53-year-old tradition of celebrating screen excellence in Australia established by the AFI.”
The nominees for the Aacta for best Feature Length Documentary are:
Life In Movement – about dancer Tanja Liedtke, produced by Sophie Hyde, Bryan Mason Mrs Carey’s Concert – follows...
- 8/30/2011
- by Colin Delaney
- Encore Magazine
Logie award-winning ABC TV drama My Place is about to grace our screens for a second time. Produced by Penny Chapman and Helen Panckhurst and based on the acclaimed, multi-award winning children.s book penned by Nadia Wheatley, the.children's drama will continue to journey further into Australian history. This time the 13-part, half-hour series will share stories ranging from 1878 to a time before European settlement. Filmed across Sydney (in such places as Old Sydney Town, the Manly Dam and the Lane Cove National Park), the second series has taken on the production design challenges of recreating eras that viewers will not be able to locate within their own memories. Nevertheless, My Place doesn.t burden itself with historical earnestness but aims to...
- 6/22/2011
- by Hannah Lee
- IF.com.au
ABC1′s new 10 hour drama, The Straits, produced by Matchbox Films’ Penny Chapman and Helen Panckhurst begins shooting today. Scottish actor Brian Cox (The Bourne Supremacy, Troy, Braveheart) joins the troupe of Australian actors assembling in Cairns and Torres Strait Islands.
The Montebello family are Far North Queensland’s Corleones, running drugs into Australia and guns and exotic animals out with ambitious bikies in Australia and Papau New Guinean raskols across the Strait also wanting a piece of the action. Cox plays Patriach Harry Montebello, with actress Rena Owen playing his part Torres Strait Island, part Maori wife, Kitty.
Joining Cox and Owen in the cast will be AFI Nominated Aaron Fa’aoso (East West 101, Ran), Logie winner Firass Dirani (Underbelly, Pitch Black) as well as new Australian talent; Jimi Bani (Ran, The Sapphires) and Suzannah Bayes-Morton (All Saints, The Tumbler), who together play the Montebello’s children.
In a statement,...
The Montebello family are Far North Queensland’s Corleones, running drugs into Australia and guns and exotic animals out with ambitious bikies in Australia and Papau New Guinean raskols across the Strait also wanting a piece of the action. Cox plays Patriach Harry Montebello, with actress Rena Owen playing his part Torres Strait Island, part Maori wife, Kitty.
Joining Cox and Owen in the cast will be AFI Nominated Aaron Fa’aoso (East West 101, Ran), Logie winner Firass Dirani (Underbelly, Pitch Black) as well as new Australian talent; Jimi Bani (Ran, The Sapphires) and Suzannah Bayes-Morton (All Saints, The Tumbler), who together play the Montebello’s children.
In a statement,...
- 6/14/2011
- by Colin Delaney
- Encore Magazine
ABC1's new 10-part one-hour drama series, The Straits, has started production in Cairns and the Torres Strait Islands. The crime drama series stars Emmy Award-winning Scottish actor Brian Cox (The Bourne Supremacy, Troy) as Harry Montebello, the head of a family of smugglers, which transports drugs into Australia and guns and exotic wildlife out, making use of ties of blood and loyalty in the Torres Strait Islands. When Harry starts to plan his succession he sparks a vicious family power struggle, forcing the family to hold together through torture, assassination and imprisonment. The Straits is produced by Matchbox Pictures. Penny Chapman and Helen Panckhurst, who were the team behind the Torres Strait-set TV series Ran: Remote Area Nurse. .We have assembled...
- 6/14/2011
- by Brendan Swift
- IF.com.au
Us Studio NBCUniversal has bought a majority interest in local production company Matchbox Pictures for an undisclosed amount.
Matchbox Pictures was founded in 2008 by Tony Ayres, Michael McMahon, Helen Bowden, Penny Chapman and Helen Panckhurst.
The company is currently adapting Christos Tsiolkas’s The Slap for television; producing a second series of My Place; developing a six-part documentary series called Aussiewood about Australian hopefuls trying to make it in Hollywood; and a third series of Anatomy – consisting of three documentaries exploring art, sex and the body. Both Aussiewood and Anatomy 3 have received investment from Screen Australia.
Matchbox Pictures was founded in 2008 by Tony Ayres, Michael McMahon, Helen Bowden, Penny Chapman and Helen Panckhurst.
The company is currently adapting Christos Tsiolkas’s The Slap for television; producing a second series of My Place; developing a six-part documentary series called Aussiewood about Australian hopefuls trying to make it in Hollywood; and a third series of Anatomy – consisting of three documentaries exploring art, sex and the body. Both Aussiewood and Anatomy 3 have received investment from Screen Australia.
- 5/23/2011
- by Colin Delaney
- Encore Magazine
The Nsw Government has used almost a quarter of its recently announced $25m budget for the film industry to fund five features, four TV series, one telemovie, 12 docos and one cross-platform project.
The projects include Mei Mei, an Australia/China co-production starring Guy Pearce, and The Hunter, with American actor Willem Dafoe.
The biggest winner is Joanna Werner’s children’s drama Dance Academy, with $500,000 towards production of season two.
Vincent Sheehan’s production The Hunter will be shot in Tasmania and China, with a majority of crew from Nsw and post-production also taking place in this state – it will receive $400,000 from the Government.
The production expenditure of these projects is expected to reach $62m.
These are the projects receiving funds from the Nsw Government in this round:
Features
Mei-mei
Production Company: Portal Pictures Finance: $200,000 Writers: Martin Edmond, Pauline Chan, Philip Dalkin. Producers: Penny Carl-Nelson, Pauline Chan, Lesley Stevens,...
The projects include Mei Mei, an Australia/China co-production starring Guy Pearce, and The Hunter, with American actor Willem Dafoe.
The biggest winner is Joanna Werner’s children’s drama Dance Academy, with $500,000 towards production of season two.
Vincent Sheehan’s production The Hunter will be shot in Tasmania and China, with a majority of crew from Nsw and post-production also taking place in this state – it will receive $400,000 from the Government.
The production expenditure of these projects is expected to reach $62m.
These are the projects receiving funds from the Nsw Government in this round:
Features
Mei-mei
Production Company: Portal Pictures Finance: $200,000 Writers: Martin Edmond, Pauline Chan, Philip Dalkin. Producers: Penny Carl-Nelson, Pauline Chan, Lesley Stevens,...
- 8/4/2010
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
It’s been four years since Encore published its Top 20 Directors and Producers list, and we felt it was time to compile a new, more comprehensive list that included professionals working across all areas – film, television and Tvc production – as well as the leaders and decision-makers that determine the direction of the industry.
Instead of having a limited list of panellists, we consulted with the main agencies and organisations, and also asked our readers to nominate their candidates. We ended up with a list of more than 200 screen industry professionals, and deciding the final 50 was indeed a difficult task. Of course, some other very influential and successful people didn’t make the final cut, but there were only 50 spots and too many talented men and women!
We hope you’ll enjoy – or not, and if so, debate it passionately – the selection of what will become our annual Power 50 list.
1. Christopher Mapp...
Instead of having a limited list of panellists, we consulted with the main agencies and organisations, and also asked our readers to nominate their candidates. We ended up with a list of more than 200 screen industry professionals, and deciding the final 50 was indeed a difficult task. Of course, some other very influential and successful people didn’t make the final cut, but there were only 50 spots and too many talented men and women!
We hope you’ll enjoy – or not, and if so, debate it passionately – the selection of what will become our annual Power 50 list.
1. Christopher Mapp...
- 6/22/2010
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
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