In-person Screenings
The Melbourne Film Festival will return to cinemas after two turbulent years caused by Covid-related disruptions – the city endured one of the world’s longest pandemic lockdowns – and will run Aug 4-21, 2022. It will open with powerful Australian-u.K.-Serbian-made first film “Of An Age,” by renown shorts director Goran Stolevski. Festival organizers pitch it as “a heart-meltingly tender, quintessentially Melbourne queer coming-of-age tale that will make you swoon from beginning to end.” The Mff is scheduled to close with another Aussie title, documentary “Clean.” Directed by Lachlan McLeod, it examines how so-called trauma cleaner Sandra Pankhurst responded to an unseen world with radical kindness. The festival has also teased some of the titles that it will program between the gala bookend events. They include: Kamila Andini’s “Yuni”; Ari Folman’s “Where Is Anne Frank”; John Hughes and Tom Zubrycki’s “Senses of Cinema”; Ulrich Seidl’s...
The Melbourne Film Festival will return to cinemas after two turbulent years caused by Covid-related disruptions – the city endured one of the world’s longest pandemic lockdowns – and will run Aug 4-21, 2022. It will open with powerful Australian-u.K.-Serbian-made first film “Of An Age,” by renown shorts director Goran Stolevski. Festival organizers pitch it as “a heart-meltingly tender, quintessentially Melbourne queer coming-of-age tale that will make you swoon from beginning to end.” The Mff is scheduled to close with another Aussie title, documentary “Clean.” Directed by Lachlan McLeod, it examines how so-called trauma cleaner Sandra Pankhurst responded to an unseen world with radical kindness. The festival has also teased some of the titles that it will program between the gala bookend events. They include: Kamila Andini’s “Yuni”; Ari Folman’s “Where Is Anne Frank”; John Hughes and Tom Zubrycki’s “Senses of Cinema”; Ulrich Seidl’s...
- 6/9/2022
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Eva Orner’s Burning is the winner of Sydney Film Festival’s inaugural Sustainable Future Award.
Selected from eight nominees, the $10,000 cash prize will be presented to the Amazon Australian Original for deepening the knowledge and awareness of the impact of the global climate emergency.
The award, which has been funded by climate activists, is philanthropically motivated.
Burning, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), looks
at the unprecedented and catastrophic Australian bushfires of 2019-2020 from the perspective of victims of the fires, activists and scientists.
Produced by Propagate Content, Cate Blanchett’s Dirty Films and Amazon Studios, the film marks Amazon’s first feature-length Australian documentary commission. In addition to directing, Orner produces with Ben Silverman, Howard T. Owens, and Jonathan Schaerf.
Burning was selected as the winner by a jury of filmmakers and climate advocates: school student and Strike4Climate activist Natasha Abhayawickrama; documentary filmmaker Bettina Dalton...
Selected from eight nominees, the $10,000 cash prize will be presented to the Amazon Australian Original for deepening the knowledge and awareness of the impact of the global climate emergency.
The award, which has been funded by climate activists, is philanthropically motivated.
Burning, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), looks
at the unprecedented and catastrophic Australian bushfires of 2019-2020 from the perspective of victims of the fires, activists and scientists.
Produced by Propagate Content, Cate Blanchett’s Dirty Films and Amazon Studios, the film marks Amazon’s first feature-length Australian documentary commission. In addition to directing, Orner produces with Ben Silverman, Howard T. Owens, and Jonathan Schaerf.
Burning was selected as the winner by a jury of filmmakers and climate advocates: school student and Strike4Climate activist Natasha Abhayawickrama; documentary filmmaker Bettina Dalton...
- 10/10/2021
- by Jackie Keast
- IF.com.au
Members of the Australian Directors’ Guild have had the chance to hear from some of the country’s most established filmmakers over the past five months as part of the Adg-40 ‘First-Hand’ sessions.
Consisting of 40 weekly one-hour webinars fronted by industry mentors, the initiative is due to start again this week following a short break, with Claire McCarthy (The Turning) to share insights from her career on Thursday.
It comes after contributions from Gillian Armstrong, Rachel Perkins, Rolf de Heer, Samantha Lang, Corrie Chen, Ben Lawrence, Ana Kokkinos, Megan Riakos, Josephine Mackerras, Robert Connolly, Garth Davis, Sally Aitken, Jub Clerc, Kriv Stenders, Tom Zubrycki, Anna Broinowski, Peter Andrikidis, Jasmin Tarasin, and Glendyn Ivin.
The sessions are moderated by Adg strategy and development executive Ana Tiwary who is responsible for collating questions from those tuning in.
She has tried to focus on topics covering the practical aspects of directing that cannot be learned from a book,...
Consisting of 40 weekly one-hour webinars fronted by industry mentors, the initiative is due to start again this week following a short break, with Claire McCarthy (The Turning) to share insights from her career on Thursday.
It comes after contributions from Gillian Armstrong, Rachel Perkins, Rolf de Heer, Samantha Lang, Corrie Chen, Ben Lawrence, Ana Kokkinos, Megan Riakos, Josephine Mackerras, Robert Connolly, Garth Davis, Sally Aitken, Jub Clerc, Kriv Stenders, Tom Zubrycki, Anna Broinowski, Peter Andrikidis, Jasmin Tarasin, and Glendyn Ivin.
The sessions are moderated by Adg strategy and development executive Ana Tiwary who is responsible for collating questions from those tuning in.
She has tried to focus on topics covering the practical aspects of directing that cannot be learned from a book,...
- 9/6/2021
- by Sean Slatter
- IF.com.au
To celebrate the 40 years since its inception, the Australian Directors’ Guild (Adg) will launch a series of mentoring sessions from some of its most high profile members, starting this week.
Adg-40 ‘First-Hand’ consists of 40 60-minute Zoom forums in a moderated Q&a format that will be held each Tuesday and Thursday from April 8.
Each Adg-40 ‘First-Hand’ webinar will be provided free-of-charge to Adg members across Australia and will include on-notice and ‘from the floor’ questions.
Adg strategy and development executive Ana Tiwary will moderate the forums, with president Samantha Lang to introduce the inaugural session mentor – Adg’s first president, Gillian Armstrong.
Armstrong said she was “delighted” to have the opportunity to “hopefully assist and inspire” the next generation of director members.
“It’s hard to believe it’s 40 years since a passionate and noisy group of us gathered around my kitchen table to form some sort of guild to protect Australian directors,...
Adg-40 ‘First-Hand’ consists of 40 60-minute Zoom forums in a moderated Q&a format that will be held each Tuesday and Thursday from April 8.
Each Adg-40 ‘First-Hand’ webinar will be provided free-of-charge to Adg members across Australia and will include on-notice and ‘from the floor’ questions.
Adg strategy and development executive Ana Tiwary will moderate the forums, with president Samantha Lang to introduce the inaugural session mentor – Adg’s first president, Gillian Armstrong.
Armstrong said she was “delighted” to have the opportunity to “hopefully assist and inspire” the next generation of director members.
“It’s hard to believe it’s 40 years since a passionate and noisy group of us gathered around my kitchen table to form some sort of guild to protect Australian directors,...
- 4/5/2021
- by Sean Slatter
- IF.com.au
Producers of narrative features and feature documentaries fear that reducing the Producer Offset for films to 30 per cent will have a crippling impact on theatrical releases.
They say the government’s proposal to double the minimum qualifying Australian production expenditure (Qape) threshold for feature length content to $1 million will exclude many lower-budgeted films and feature docs.
Screen Producers Australia CEO Matt Deaner predicted the media reforms announced today will slash production by at least 50 per cent and remove thousands of jobs from the sector as well as opportunities for audiences across the world to engage with Australian stories.
Reducing the Offset could well mean the end of the line for many Australian feature films, he said.
“The effective abolition of children’s content quotas, the watering down of drama and documentary requirements and the halving of requirements for subscription TV doesn’t meet the government’s articulated desire for forward-thinking policy-making,...
They say the government’s proposal to double the minimum qualifying Australian production expenditure (Qape) threshold for feature length content to $1 million will exclude many lower-budgeted films and feature docs.
Screen Producers Australia CEO Matt Deaner predicted the media reforms announced today will slash production by at least 50 per cent and remove thousands of jobs from the sector as well as opportunities for audiences across the world to engage with Australian stories.
Reducing the Offset could well mean the end of the line for many Australian feature films, he said.
“The effective abolition of children’s content quotas, the watering down of drama and documentary requirements and the halving of requirements for subscription TV doesn’t meet the government’s articulated desire for forward-thinking policy-making,...
- 9/30/2020
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
Rod Webb.
Former Sydney Film Festival, Australian Film Institute, Sbs and ABC executive Rod Webb died on Friday after a long struggle with Parkinson’s disease. He was 76.
Among the numerous tributes on social media, former Aftrs director, degree programs, Ben Gibson said: “Rod was a great mate around the festival circuit back in the 80s when I was a distributor and he was doing Sff. Fondly remember his very definite opinions and style of argument – and a certain dandyish.”
Documentary maker Tom Zubrycki observed: “Rod and I were friends for a long time. He was a keen judge and critic of film and a sharp wit. Loved a good party. Was always very supportive to filmmakers trying out new ideas. Will be much missed.”
Antidote Films’ Gil Scrine said: “I knew him as a great curator and film buff but also as someone who challenged some of my Orthodox leftist beliefs.
Former Sydney Film Festival, Australian Film Institute, Sbs and ABC executive Rod Webb died on Friday after a long struggle with Parkinson’s disease. He was 76.
Among the numerous tributes on social media, former Aftrs director, degree programs, Ben Gibson said: “Rod was a great mate around the festival circuit back in the 80s when I was a distributor and he was doing Sff. Fondly remember his very definite opinions and style of argument – and a certain dandyish.”
Documentary maker Tom Zubrycki observed: “Rod and I were friends for a long time. He was a keen judge and critic of film and a sharp wit. Loved a good party. Was always very supportive to filmmakers trying out new ideas. Will be much missed.”
Antidote Films’ Gil Scrine said: “I knew him as a great curator and film buff but also as someone who challenged some of my Orthodox leftist beliefs.
- 5/18/2020
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
Screen Australia-funded ‘Alick and Albert’ (Photo: Freshwater Pictures).
Screen Australia has decided to postpone the introduction of the revised documentary programs from July 1 until 2021, to the dismay of some factual filmmakers who wanted the new regime to happen sooner.
Announcing the move, Screen Australia CEO Graeme Mason said: “Documentary has a unique set of challenges in this current situation and many creators in this space were already operating in difficult circumstances. As such, my focus right now is on giving the documentary sector as much stability as possible.”
The existing documentary programs including the Producer Equity Program (Pep) will remain in place for the rest of 2020. The budget for documentary in 2019/20 remains unchanged and Mason said the documentary team headed by Bernadine Lim is now working on a very large number of new applications.
In a letter to Lim from 360 Degree Films’ Sally Ingleton on behalf of the Australian Independent Documentary Group,...
Screen Australia has decided to postpone the introduction of the revised documentary programs from July 1 until 2021, to the dismay of some factual filmmakers who wanted the new regime to happen sooner.
Announcing the move, Screen Australia CEO Graeme Mason said: “Documentary has a unique set of challenges in this current situation and many creators in this space were already operating in difficult circumstances. As such, my focus right now is on giving the documentary sector as much stability as possible.”
The existing documentary programs including the Producer Equity Program (Pep) will remain in place for the rest of 2020. The budget for documentary in 2019/20 remains unchanged and Mason said the documentary team headed by Bernadine Lim is now working on a very large number of new applications.
In a letter to Lim from 360 Degree Films’ Sally Ingleton on behalf of the Australian Independent Documentary Group,...
- 4/16/2020
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
Prince Albert II with Alick Tipoti (© Monaco Expeditions/Ariel Fuchs).
Screen Australia’s Indigenous department is contributing $745,000 in production funding to four documentary projects including two for Nitv and one for the ABC.
Co-funded by Stan, Freshwater Pictures’ Alick and Albert looks at the unlikely friendship between art activist Alick Tipoti and Prince Albert of Monaco.
Commissioned by Nitv, Tamarind Tree Pictures and Roar Film’s Looky Looky Here Comes Cooky is billed as a fresh, funny and provocative look at Captain Cook’s arrival from a First Nations’ perspective.
Also for Nitv, Kalori Productions and Jotz Productions’ feature documentary Kindred explores friendship, adoption and belonging through the relationship between filmmakers Gillian Moody and Adrian Russell Wills.
Commissioned by the ABC, Blackfella Films’ Maralinga Tjarutja will chronicle the history of the Maralinga Tjarutja people and the impact the British nuclear testing in the 1950s and 1960s had on their land and community.
Screen Australia’s Indigenous department is contributing $745,000 in production funding to four documentary projects including two for Nitv and one for the ABC.
Co-funded by Stan, Freshwater Pictures’ Alick and Albert looks at the unlikely friendship between art activist Alick Tipoti and Prince Albert of Monaco.
Commissioned by Nitv, Tamarind Tree Pictures and Roar Film’s Looky Looky Here Comes Cooky is billed as a fresh, funny and provocative look at Captain Cook’s arrival from a First Nations’ perspective.
Also for Nitv, Kalori Productions and Jotz Productions’ feature documentary Kindred explores friendship, adoption and belonging through the relationship between filmmakers Gillian Moody and Adrian Russell Wills.
Commissioned by the ABC, Blackfella Films’ Maralinga Tjarutja will chronicle the history of the Maralinga Tjarutja people and the impact the British nuclear testing in the 1950s and 1960s had on their land and community.
- 3/25/2020
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
Flickchicks’ ‘Bowled Over’ for Sbs’s ‘Untold Australia.’
The Australian International Documentary (Aid) group is urging Screen Australia to increase funding of single one-hours and feature documentaries.
This could be achieved by the agency reducing funding to broadcasters for format-based productions and by allocating a set percentage of its annual documentary spend ($16.26 million in 2018/19) on singles.
In response, Screen Australia reports it has 29 feature docs in various states of production which are yet to be released, compared with 27 TV docs, eight online and two Vr.
The group, which represents a broad church of factual producers, directors, writers and editors, supports the majority of Screen Australia’s proposed changes to docs funding guidelines.
The Aid welcomed the increase of up to $500,000 for development, the funds allocated to the Producer Program, reducing the cap for Commissioned Programs from $1 million to $750.000 and opening up funding to all major platforms.
However the group continues...
The Australian International Documentary (Aid) group is urging Screen Australia to increase funding of single one-hours and feature documentaries.
This could be achieved by the agency reducing funding to broadcasters for format-based productions and by allocating a set percentage of its annual documentary spend ($16.26 million in 2018/19) on singles.
In response, Screen Australia reports it has 29 feature docs in various states of production which are yet to be released, compared with 27 TV docs, eight online and two Vr.
The group, which represents a broad church of factual producers, directors, writers and editors, supports the majority of Screen Australia’s proposed changes to docs funding guidelines.
The Aid welcomed the increase of up to $500,000 for development, the funds allocated to the Producer Program, reducing the cap for Commissioned Programs from $1 million to $750.000 and opening up funding to all major platforms.
However the group continues...
- 1/8/2020
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
Pat Fiske.
After 45 years as a documentary filmmaker, Pat Fiske has some simple advice for aspiring practitioners: “Have many strings to your bow if you want to survive.”
The Us-born Fiske credits her multiple roles as a director, writer, producer, sound recordist and stills photographer for helping to sustain her career.
All that, plus she served as a documentary consultant at Sbs Independent and was co-head of the documentary department at Aftrs with Mitzi Goldman from 2002 to 2008.
The documentarian will be feted by her peers at an event hosted by the Australian Documentary Forum (OzDox) at the Aftrs Theatre on Wednesday November 13.
OzDox initiated the annual celebration with posthumous salutes to cinematographer Tony Wilson and filmmaker Dennis O’Rourke, followed by the very much alive Martha Ansara and Curtis Levy.
Speakers on the night will include Documentary Australia Foundation CEO Goldman, who says: “Pat is a legend – she’s supported so many,...
After 45 years as a documentary filmmaker, Pat Fiske has some simple advice for aspiring practitioners: “Have many strings to your bow if you want to survive.”
The Us-born Fiske credits her multiple roles as a director, writer, producer, sound recordist and stills photographer for helping to sustain her career.
All that, plus she served as a documentary consultant at Sbs Independent and was co-head of the documentary department at Aftrs with Mitzi Goldman from 2002 to 2008.
The documentarian will be feted by her peers at an event hosted by the Australian Documentary Forum (OzDox) at the Aftrs Theatre on Wednesday November 13.
OzDox initiated the annual celebration with posthumous salutes to cinematographer Tony Wilson and filmmaker Dennis O’Rourke, followed by the very much alive Martha Ansara and Curtis Levy.
Speakers on the night will include Documentary Australia Foundation CEO Goldman, who says: “Pat is a legend – she’s supported so many,...
- 10/30/2019
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
Graeme Mason.
Screen Australia expects to support the same number of documentary projects each year despite the proposed scrapping of the Producer Equity Program (Pep).
The Pep program had no qualitative controls and was becoming unsustainable due to the sheer volume of people who were trying to access that scheme, according to Screen Australia CEO Graeme Mason.
Mason told a Senate Estimates committee in Canberra earlier this week that the creatively-assessed completion fund for low budget projects, which the agency is proposing to replace Pep, would help producers develop projects and at completion.
Asked by Labor Senator Anne Urquhart if the proposed funding regime may result in fewer projects getting assistance, Mason said: “It would be fair to say that some would not be eligible or would not be successful that could have been in the past.
“In the last two years the scheme was going so far over its...
Screen Australia expects to support the same number of documentary projects each year despite the proposed scrapping of the Producer Equity Program (Pep).
The Pep program had no qualitative controls and was becoming unsustainable due to the sheer volume of people who were trying to access that scheme, according to Screen Australia CEO Graeme Mason.
Mason told a Senate Estimates committee in Canberra earlier this week that the creatively-assessed completion fund for low budget projects, which the agency is proposing to replace Pep, would help producers develop projects and at completion.
Asked by Labor Senator Anne Urquhart if the proposed funding regime may result in fewer projects getting assistance, Mason said: “It would be fair to say that some would not be eligible or would not be successful that could have been in the past.
“In the last two years the scheme was going so far over its...
- 10/24/2019
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
‘The Dreamlife of Georgie Stone’.
Screen Australia has announced $2 million in production funding for 11 documentary projects, seven through the Documentary Producer Program and four through the Commissioned Program.
They include two projects for Sbs’s documentary strand Untold Australia, a digital series on the recent climate strikes for Junkee Media, a short doco following transgender activist Georgie Stone from director Maya Newell, as well as feature documentary Democracy Project, exploring money in politics, written and directed by Craig Reucassel and presented by Christiaan Van Vuuren.
The funding announcement comes as the agency revises its documentary programs; industry has until this Sunday to provide feedback on proposed changes to guidelines.
Screen Australia head of documentary Bernadine Lim said, “We are thrilled to support such a range of projects from all over Australia that shed light on a number of critical issues including climate change, human rights, inclusion and wildlife protection.”
“It...
Screen Australia has announced $2 million in production funding for 11 documentary projects, seven through the Documentary Producer Program and four through the Commissioned Program.
They include two projects for Sbs’s documentary strand Untold Australia, a digital series on the recent climate strikes for Junkee Media, a short doco following transgender activist Georgie Stone from director Maya Newell, as well as feature documentary Democracy Project, exploring money in politics, written and directed by Craig Reucassel and presented by Christiaan Van Vuuren.
The funding announcement comes as the agency revises its documentary programs; industry has until this Sunday to provide feedback on proposed changes to guidelines.
Screen Australia head of documentary Bernadine Lim said, “We are thrilled to support such a range of projects from all over Australia that shed light on a number of critical issues including climate change, human rights, inclusion and wildlife protection.”
“It...
- 10/23/2019
- by jkeast
- IF.com.au
‘Backtrack Boys’ director Catherine Scott is among those who spearheaded the campaign.
More than 250 filmmakers have co-signed an open letter calling for a “radical overhaul” of government policy in order to sustainably support the independent documentary sector now and into the future.
The letter, from the newly formed Australian Independent Documentary (Aid) group, argues that recent policy changes have undermined the viability of the independent documentary sector and its ability to produce distinct and original Australian content for both local and international audiences.
It calls variously for Screen Australia to work with the public broadcasters to create a dedicated strand on Australian public broadcast television for original Australian documentary, and for the federal agency to stop allocating funds to foreign majority owned companies at development and production stage; to increase funding support for original Australian formats; recognise cinema-on-demand as a legitimate form of cinema distribution, and to establish a dedicated fund for international co-production.
More than 250 filmmakers have co-signed an open letter calling for a “radical overhaul” of government policy in order to sustainably support the independent documentary sector now and into the future.
The letter, from the newly formed Australian Independent Documentary (Aid) group, argues that recent policy changes have undermined the viability of the independent documentary sector and its ability to produce distinct and original Australian content for both local and international audiences.
It calls variously for Screen Australia to work with the public broadcasters to create a dedicated strand on Australian public broadcast television for original Australian documentary, and for the federal agency to stop allocating funds to foreign majority owned companies at development and production stage; to increase funding support for original Australian formats; recognise cinema-on-demand as a legitimate form of cinema distribution, and to establish a dedicated fund for international co-production.
- 3/5/2019
- by jkeast
- IF.com.au
Essential Media’s ‘Living Universe’.
Tom Zubrycki is veteran Australian documentary filmmaker, who has directed and/or produced over 36 projects, including The Diplomat and Molly & Mobarak. The following is an extract from his new Platform Paper ‘The Changing Landscape of Australian Documentary’, published by Currency House and available at https://www.currencyhouse.org.au.
In recent years we have seen a radical shake out in the old television broadcast model. So what place will documentary have in this new factual environment? According to statistics released by Screen Australia, documentary series production rose from 295 hours in 2011–12 to 366 hours in 2016–17. Yet only 21 single title documentaries were shown on television or cable in 2016–17 compared to 51 five years earlier. This includes commissions and acquisitions.
The two public broadcasters are largely format and series driven; though they still commission a small number of one-offs. Sbs annually commissions four single documentaries for the Untold Australia series,...
Tom Zubrycki is veteran Australian documentary filmmaker, who has directed and/or produced over 36 projects, including The Diplomat and Molly & Mobarak. The following is an extract from his new Platform Paper ‘The Changing Landscape of Australian Documentary’, published by Currency House and available at https://www.currencyhouse.org.au.
In recent years we have seen a radical shake out in the old television broadcast model. So what place will documentary have in this new factual environment? According to statistics released by Screen Australia, documentary series production rose from 295 hours in 2011–12 to 366 hours in 2016–17. Yet only 21 single title documentaries were shown on television or cable in 2016–17 compared to 51 five years earlier. This includes commissions and acquisitions.
The two public broadcasters are largely format and series driven; though they still commission a small number of one-offs. Sbs annually commissions four single documentaries for the Untold Australia series,...
- 2/4/2019
- by jkeast
- IF.com.au
‘Gurrumul’
While Australian feature documentaries are punching above their weight at home and internationally, leading filmmakers say the sector is facing several daunting challenges.
Some are critical of Screen Australia’s continued funding of TV programs based on overseas formats. Others lament the lack of support for one-off docs from Sbs and the ABC.
And there is widespread dissatisfaction with the federal government’s inaction over imposing local content quota obligations on streaming services.
“Despite the digital era presenting new opportunities, most of us working in the sector are facing a grim and uncertain future,” veteran filmmaker Tom Zubrycki tells If.
“Fashioning a career from making documentaries has never been easy. As one colleague commented: ‘We are awaiting the new dawn, it’s not there yet.’”
Australian Directors Guild CEO Kingston Anderson observes: “Australian documentary directors are producing world class documentaries in cinemas and on television. But the continued increase...
While Australian feature documentaries are punching above their weight at home and internationally, leading filmmakers say the sector is facing several daunting challenges.
Some are critical of Screen Australia’s continued funding of TV programs based on overseas formats. Others lament the lack of support for one-off docs from Sbs and the ABC.
And there is widespread dissatisfaction with the federal government’s inaction over imposing local content quota obligations on streaming services.
“Despite the digital era presenting new opportunities, most of us working in the sector are facing a grim and uncertain future,” veteran filmmaker Tom Zubrycki tells If.
“Fashioning a career from making documentaries has never been easy. As one colleague commented: ‘We are awaiting the new dawn, it’s not there yet.’”
Australian Directors Guild CEO Kingston Anderson observes: “Australian documentary directors are producing world class documentaries in cinemas and on television. But the continued increase...
- 1/10/2019
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
Ryan Corr and Rachael Taylor in ‘Ladies in Black.’
The good news for Australian cinema: Last year ranks as the third biggest ever for Oz films and feature docs released theatrically in the home market.
Another encouraging trend: Eight of the top 30 grossing titles were feature docs, led by Paul Damien Williams’ Gurrumul, Mark Joffe’s Jimmy Barnes: Working Class Boy, Ray Argall’s Midnight Oil 1984, Naina Sen’s The Song Keepers and Catherine Scott’s Backtrack Boys.
The not-so-good news: The top two films, Will Gluck’s Peter Rabbit and Bruce Beresford’s Ladies in Black accounted for nearly 70 per cent of total revenues, while 39 of the 61 new releases each made less than $100,000.
Collectively, local titles including holdovers racked up $57.4 million in 2018, trailing the 2001 total of $63.1 million, according to the Motion Picture Distributors Association of Australia (Mpdaa)
The all-time record is 2015’s $88.1 million, the year of Mad Max: Fury Road,...
The good news for Australian cinema: Last year ranks as the third biggest ever for Oz films and feature docs released theatrically in the home market.
Another encouraging trend: Eight of the top 30 grossing titles were feature docs, led by Paul Damien Williams’ Gurrumul, Mark Joffe’s Jimmy Barnes: Working Class Boy, Ray Argall’s Midnight Oil 1984, Naina Sen’s The Song Keepers and Catherine Scott’s Backtrack Boys.
The not-so-good news: The top two films, Will Gluck’s Peter Rabbit and Bruce Beresford’s Ladies in Black accounted for nearly 70 per cent of total revenues, while 39 of the 61 new releases each made less than $100,000.
Collectively, local titles including holdovers racked up $57.4 million in 2018, trailing the 2001 total of $63.1 million, according to the Motion Picture Distributors Association of Australia (Mpdaa)
The all-time record is 2015’s $88.1 million, the year of Mad Max: Fury Road,...
- 1/6/2019
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
Erica Glynn..
Indigenous writer-director Erica Glynn was today named the recipient of this year's David and Joan Williams Documentary Fellowship. .
Glynn, whose latest film.In My Own Words.is.screening at the Sydney Film Festival, played a central role in the development of Indigenous filmmakers and their work through the Indigenous Unit of Screen Australia.
The fellowship is bestowed by former News Limited, Foxtel and Fox Studios Australia CEO Kim Williams in honour of his parents, and is worth $50,000.
Inaugurated in 2010 through the Australian International Documentary Conference, management of the fellowship was transferred to the Documentary Australia Foundation in 2015, when it became biennial. .
The recipient is selected by a panel comprising Bob Connolly, Victoria Treole and Julia Overton, supported by Daf CEO Dr Mitzi Goldman.
The fellowship is intended to give an independent filmmaker enough money and time to reflect and prepare for his or her next work or to undertake relevant study and research.
Indigenous writer-director Erica Glynn was today named the recipient of this year's David and Joan Williams Documentary Fellowship. .
Glynn, whose latest film.In My Own Words.is.screening at the Sydney Film Festival, played a central role in the development of Indigenous filmmakers and their work through the Indigenous Unit of Screen Australia.
The fellowship is bestowed by former News Limited, Foxtel and Fox Studios Australia CEO Kim Williams in honour of his parents, and is worth $50,000.
Inaugurated in 2010 through the Australian International Documentary Conference, management of the fellowship was transferred to the Documentary Australia Foundation in 2015, when it became biennial. .
The recipient is selected by a panel comprising Bob Connolly, Victoria Treole and Julia Overton, supported by Daf CEO Dr Mitzi Goldman.
The fellowship is intended to give an independent filmmaker enough money and time to reflect and prepare for his or her next work or to undertake relevant study and research.
- 6/8/2017
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
Zacharia Machiek and Janet Dyne in 'Hope Road'..
When Tom Zubrycki set out five years ago to make a feature documentary on a South Sudan refugee in Sydney who returns to his village to build a school, he had no idea how the story would unfold.
Almost nothing went to plan on Zacharia Machiek.s emotion-filled mission, as chronicled in director/writer/producer Zubrickyi.s Hope Road. Funded by Screen Nsw and Screen Australia.s now defunct Signature Fund, the film will have its world premiere at the Sydney Film Festival.
.From the very start I knew that things wouldn.t all go smoothly — the funds were low, the committee was inexperienced — and building a school in an African village .by remote. was going to be a big task,. he told If. .
.As it was I was proved correct and the many twists and turns far exceeded my earlier expectations.
When Tom Zubrycki set out five years ago to make a feature documentary on a South Sudan refugee in Sydney who returns to his village to build a school, he had no idea how the story would unfold.
Almost nothing went to plan on Zacharia Machiek.s emotion-filled mission, as chronicled in director/writer/producer Zubrickyi.s Hope Road. Funded by Screen Nsw and Screen Australia.s now defunct Signature Fund, the film will have its world premiere at the Sydney Film Festival.
.From the very start I knew that things wouldn.t all go smoothly — the funds were low, the committee was inexperienced — and building a school in an African village .by remote. was going to be a big task,. he told If. .
.As it was I was proved correct and the many twists and turns far exceeded my earlier expectations.
- 5/30/2017
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
Stanley Hawes.
The Australian International Documentary Conference's 30th anniversary edition will take place in Melbourne from March 5-8 next year.
Aidc will again be held at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (Acmi) in Melbourne, with the full program to be unveiled November 8..
Entries are now open for The Documentary Australia Foundation (Daf) Impact Strategy Hack and The Stanley Hawes Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Documentary Sector.
The Daf Impact Strategy Hack is the centrepiece of Aidc 2017.s Impact Day, devoted to documentary media with a change and advocacy agenda. Now in its second year, the event brings together international advisors with a focus on providing documentary teams with a pathway to a solid impact campaign strategy..
Filmmakers keen to participate are invited to submit their films for consideration. Entries close November 11.
Aidc is also seeking nominations for the 2017 Stanley Hawes Award, presented annually in recognition of an...
The Australian International Documentary Conference's 30th anniversary edition will take place in Melbourne from March 5-8 next year.
Aidc will again be held at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (Acmi) in Melbourne, with the full program to be unveiled November 8..
Entries are now open for The Documentary Australia Foundation (Daf) Impact Strategy Hack and The Stanley Hawes Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Documentary Sector.
The Daf Impact Strategy Hack is the centrepiece of Aidc 2017.s Impact Day, devoted to documentary media with a change and advocacy agenda. Now in its second year, the event brings together international advisors with a focus on providing documentary teams with a pathway to a solid impact campaign strategy..
Filmmakers keen to participate are invited to submit their films for consideration. Entries close November 11.
Aidc is also seeking nominations for the 2017 Stanley Hawes Award, presented annually in recognition of an...
- 10/16/2016
- by Harry Windsor
- IF.com.au
Aidc has selected two films to participate in the event's first-ever Impact Strategy Hack..
The Wake (Rowena Potts, Ella Rubeli, Tom Zubrycki) and Defiant Lives (Liz Bourke, Sarah Barton) were the two films selected..
The Wake is a story of how community leaders across Fiji are coming together to share the experience of relocation, and the threats and challenges these communities, and others in the world, are facing in the wake of climate change..
The Wake.
Defiant Lives.documents the emergence of disability activism since the post-war era, and the revolutionary changes that have allowed more disabled people to fully take part in society.
Defiant Lives.
Both were selected by a jury which included Alex Kelly (Impact Producer, This Changes Everything), who said:
"It was an honour - and quite a challenge - to be part of the selection team for the Aidc Impact Hack. There was an incredibly powerful...
The Wake (Rowena Potts, Ella Rubeli, Tom Zubrycki) and Defiant Lives (Liz Bourke, Sarah Barton) were the two films selected..
The Wake is a story of how community leaders across Fiji are coming together to share the experience of relocation, and the threats and challenges these communities, and others in the world, are facing in the wake of climate change..
The Wake.
Defiant Lives.documents the emergence of disability activism since the post-war era, and the revolutionary changes that have allowed more disabled people to fully take part in society.
Defiant Lives.
Both were selected by a jury which included Alex Kelly (Impact Producer, This Changes Everything), who said:
"It was an honour - and quite a challenge - to be part of the selection team for the Aidc Impact Hack. There was an incredibly powerful...
- 1/27/2016
- by Staff Writer
- IF.com.au
The Australian International Documentary Conference is calling for entries to The Impact Strategy Hack Competition and The Stanley Hawes Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Documentary Sector..
Winners will join the first keynote speakers:The Jinx filmmakers, Marc Smerling and Zac Stuart-Pontier, for Aidc 2016, which takes place at Acmi Melbourne, February 28 to March 2.
The Impact Strategy Hack Competition is the centrepiece of Aidc 2016.s Impact Producing strand, which is devoted to finding lasting ways for documentary media to generate strategic and innovative social change..
Aidc 2016 dedicates an entire afternoon to providing two selected films a pathway towards a solid campaign strategy.
The two winning films will be .hacked. on the day, with a focus on maximum impact..
Expert hackers confirmed to attend include Jennifer MacArthur (Borderline Media/Impact Producers Group, New York), Sam Griffin (Screen Australia), Mitzi Goldman (Documentary Australia Foundation), Alex Kelly (Impact Producer on This Changes Everything) Malinda...
Winners will join the first keynote speakers:The Jinx filmmakers, Marc Smerling and Zac Stuart-Pontier, for Aidc 2016, which takes place at Acmi Melbourne, February 28 to March 2.
The Impact Strategy Hack Competition is the centrepiece of Aidc 2016.s Impact Producing strand, which is devoted to finding lasting ways for documentary media to generate strategic and innovative social change..
Aidc 2016 dedicates an entire afternoon to providing two selected films a pathway towards a solid campaign strategy.
The two winning films will be .hacked. on the day, with a focus on maximum impact..
Expert hackers confirmed to attend include Jennifer MacArthur (Borderline Media/Impact Producers Group, New York), Sam Griffin (Screen Australia), Mitzi Goldman (Documentary Australia Foundation), Alex Kelly (Impact Producer on This Changes Everything) Malinda...
- 12/8/2015
- by Inside Film Correspondent
- IF.com.au
Spotlight, Truth and Concussion are also among the festival’s programme.
Lenny Abrahamson’s Oscar-contender Room will open the 12th Dubai International Film Festival (Diff) this year, which will run December 9-16.
The film, an adaptation of Emma Donoghue’s novel, tells the story of a young mother and her 5-year-old son who are held captive in a small room. Lead actress Brie Larson has already received nominations at the Gotham Awards and yesterday’s Independent Spirits for her performance, and is a favourite for the Academy Awards next year.
The festival will be closed by Adam McKay’s The Big Short, which has an ensemble cast featuring Ryan Gosling, Steve Carell, Christian Bale and Brad Pitt, and recently premiered at Los Angeles’ AFI Fest (Nov 5-12).
Other films screening include: Tom McCarthy’s Spotlight; James Vanderbilt’s Truth; Peter Landesman’s Concussion; Nicholas Hytner’s The Lady In The Van; and Hany Abu-Assad’s The Idol...
Lenny Abrahamson’s Oscar-contender Room will open the 12th Dubai International Film Festival (Diff) this year, which will run December 9-16.
The film, an adaptation of Emma Donoghue’s novel, tells the story of a young mother and her 5-year-old son who are held captive in a small room. Lead actress Brie Larson has already received nominations at the Gotham Awards and yesterday’s Independent Spirits for her performance, and is a favourite for the Academy Awards next year.
The festival will be closed by Adam McKay’s The Big Short, which has an ensemble cast featuring Ryan Gosling, Steve Carell, Christian Bale and Brad Pitt, and recently premiered at Los Angeles’ AFI Fest (Nov 5-12).
Other films screening include: Tom McCarthy’s Spotlight; James Vanderbilt’s Truth; Peter Landesman’s Concussion; Nicholas Hytner’s The Lady In The Van; and Hany Abu-Assad’s The Idol...
- 11/25/2015
- ScreenDaily
The challenges of making observational documentaries in Australia can be so daunting that some filmmakers may be afraid of tackling that genre.
That.s the rationale for an upcoming session of Ozdox which is designed to help and encourage people to work in that format.
Ozdox is inviting pitches which will be workshopped in front of an expert panel on September 16 at Aftrs. The aim is to evaluate up to five projects.
The session will be introduced by Tom Zubrycki (The Diplomat, Molly & Mobarak, The Hungry Tide), who will give advice on such topics as choosing a viable subject, following an unfolding narrative, using many .characters' vs telling one person.s story, the use of narration and music, evolving a personal style and the crucial role of editors.
.Ob-docs are becoming a lost art, and the special challenges they present are not fully understood or appreciated,. filmmaker Martha Ansara says...
That.s the rationale for an upcoming session of Ozdox which is designed to help and encourage people to work in that format.
Ozdox is inviting pitches which will be workshopped in front of an expert panel on September 16 at Aftrs. The aim is to evaluate up to five projects.
The session will be introduced by Tom Zubrycki (The Diplomat, Molly & Mobarak, The Hungry Tide), who will give advice on such topics as choosing a viable subject, following an unfolding narrative, using many .characters' vs telling one person.s story, the use of narration and music, evolving a personal style and the crucial role of editors.
.Ob-docs are becoming a lost art, and the special challenges they present are not fully understood or appreciated,. filmmaker Martha Ansara says...
- 7/21/2015
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
After tackling children held in detention as the subject of her Aftrs graduate film, Blue Lucine is shooting a feature documentary on another controversial topic.
The writer-director is examining the plight of residents who are being evicted from public housing in Millers Point in Sydney by the Nsw government.
She is focussing on six people, three who have moved out after their houses were sold, and three who say they refuse to budge and the police or army will have to forcibly remove them.
Lucine has teamed up with experienced documentary makers Tom Zubrycki and Helen Barrow, who are serving as the producers. Screen Australia and Screen Nsw funded the early development.
She showed. the rushes to Zubrycki when she was doing some filming and editing work for him and he readily agreed to come aboard.
The doc.s working title is Forced Out. She is aiming for festival exposure...
The writer-director is examining the plight of residents who are being evicted from public housing in Millers Point in Sydney by the Nsw government.
She is focussing on six people, three who have moved out after their houses were sold, and three who say they refuse to budge and the police or army will have to forcibly remove them.
Lucine has teamed up with experienced documentary makers Tom Zubrycki and Helen Barrow, who are serving as the producers. Screen Australia and Screen Nsw funded the early development.
She showed. the rushes to Zubrycki when she was doing some filming and editing work for him and he readily agreed to come aboard.
The doc.s working title is Forced Out. She is aiming for festival exposure...
- 7/7/2015
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
It.s taken five years but the makers of Stolen feel their documentary.s revelations of slavery in the Sahrawi refugee camps in Algeria controlled by the Polisario Front have been vindicated. After the world premiere at the 2009 Sydney Film Festival, controversy erupted after one of the women interviewed was flown to Australia by the Polisario to say she wasn't a slave. The Polisario began an international campaign to discredit the film, to the chagrin of writers/directors Violeta Ayala and Dan Fallshaw and producer Tom Zubrycki. Last month Human Rights Watch published a report based on a research mission to the remote camps titled Off the Radar. The report concluded that though slavery is not widespread, nevertheless .some practices of slavery have persisted among Sahrawis... in the Tindouf refugee camps and - perhaps in particular - in the remote areas of Western Sahara under Polisario control.. In 2011 the penal...
- 11/26/2014
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
Screen Australia has released the final guidelines for its new suite of documentary programs, sparking a wave of criticism that little has changed since the draft guidelines were published in September.
Australian Directors Guild executive director Kingston Anderson said, "We are very disapointed. This is a missed opportunity."
Simon Nasht told If, "Documentary has been hit with a totally unjustifed cut of more than $2 million while feature film remains a protected species mired in failure."
Fellow filmmaker Tom Zubrycki said, "Of all the drafts Screen Australia has issued the initial ones issued back in June which recognised the changing nature of documentary production were far preferable to this comprised final version.
.It's very disappointing that the overall allocation for documentary has dropped by $1.1 million. Moreover this figure hides a far greater reduction because feature documentaries are no longer allowed to apply via the feature film production door and instead will...
Australian Directors Guild executive director Kingston Anderson said, "We are very disapointed. This is a missed opportunity."
Simon Nasht told If, "Documentary has been hit with a totally unjustifed cut of more than $2 million while feature film remains a protected species mired in failure."
Fellow filmmaker Tom Zubrycki said, "Of all the drafts Screen Australia has issued the initial ones issued back in June which recognised the changing nature of documentary production were far preferable to this comprised final version.
.It's very disappointing that the overall allocation for documentary has dropped by $1.1 million. Moreover this figure hides a far greater reduction because feature documentaries are no longer allowed to apply via the feature film production door and instead will...
- 11/16/2014
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
Screen Australia has explained the rationale for the revised guidelines on documentary funding after criticism from the Australian Directors Guild and some filmmakers. Senior manager, documentary, Liz Stevens says the new guidelines are designed to strike a balance between the medium-to-large screen businesses and the true independents.
She acknowledges the Adg.s concerns that the proposed Broadcast program ($9 million.$10 million) reintroduces the funding allocations for domestic broadcasters, with 45% for ABC-backed projects, 40% for Sbs projects and 15% for other platforms. The Adg had argued the funds should be uncoupled from the broadcasters and that the system will not give Screen Australia sufficient oversight over the types of projects commissioned by the ABC.
.We have reinstated the percentages because producers and broadcasters told us they needed certainty,. she said. .They need to know the projects they are developing will go ahead.. In the past five years the ABC received about 50% of the funding for broadcaster-backed projects.
She acknowledges the Adg.s concerns that the proposed Broadcast program ($9 million.$10 million) reintroduces the funding allocations for domestic broadcasters, with 45% for ABC-backed projects, 40% for Sbs projects and 15% for other platforms. The Adg had argued the funds should be uncoupled from the broadcasters and that the system will not give Screen Australia sufficient oversight over the types of projects commissioned by the ABC.
.We have reinstated the percentages because producers and broadcasters told us they needed certainty,. she said. .They need to know the projects they are developing will go ahead.. In the past five years the ABC received about 50% of the funding for broadcaster-backed projects.
- 9/22/2014
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
Screen Australia.s guidelines for funding documentaries will remain in place for the rest of this year after the agency decided to extend a review of its funding policy.
The reasons for the postponement have been questioned by the Australian Directors Guild and some documentary filmmakers who want the draft guidelines to be implemented.
"It is concerning," Adg executive director Kingston Anderson told If today. "We have been discussing this for the last six months. We think the draft guidelines are a great step forward. We need to know why the process is being delayed." .
Yarra Bank Films' Dr Trevor Graham said, "The draft documentary guidelines composed by Screen Australia were a welcome attempt to address the decline in the one-off documentary in the Oz landscape that resulted from public broadcasters turning their back on them in favour of factual series.
"Screen Australia.s own research acknowledges this decline. And...
The reasons for the postponement have been questioned by the Australian Directors Guild and some documentary filmmakers who want the draft guidelines to be implemented.
"It is concerning," Adg executive director Kingston Anderson told If today. "We have been discussing this for the last six months. We think the draft guidelines are a great step forward. We need to know why the process is being delayed." .
Yarra Bank Films' Dr Trevor Graham said, "The draft documentary guidelines composed by Screen Australia were a welcome attempt to address the decline in the one-off documentary in the Oz landscape that resulted from public broadcasters turning their back on them in favour of factual series.
"Screen Australia.s own research acknowledges this decline. And...
- 7/30/2014
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
Family, racial and sexual identity, history and science are just some of the themes that will be explored in the 13 documentary projects selected under the National Documentary Program and General Documentary Program.
The projects will receive over $3.8 million of Screen Australia funding support in the final round of documentary funding for this financial year, generating an estimated production value of more than $13.2 million.
Screen Australia.s Senior Manager of Documentary, Liz Stevens, said, .We are excited about this final round of well-researched projects that will entertain and inform. Appealing to a wide audience the projects should stimulate conversation about contemporary concerns such as parenting, poverty and identity..
Three projects will be supported through the National Documentary Program; DNA Nation, Priscilla: Monster in a Party Frock and Stop Laughing, This is Serious.
From Blackfella Films, DNA Nation goes back in time genetic time travel, written/produced by Jacob Hickey and produced by Darren Dale for Sbs.
The projects will receive over $3.8 million of Screen Australia funding support in the final round of documentary funding for this financial year, generating an estimated production value of more than $13.2 million.
Screen Australia.s Senior Manager of Documentary, Liz Stevens, said, .We are excited about this final round of well-researched projects that will entertain and inform. Appealing to a wide audience the projects should stimulate conversation about contemporary concerns such as parenting, poverty and identity..
Three projects will be supported through the National Documentary Program; DNA Nation, Priscilla: Monster in a Party Frock and Stop Laughing, This is Serious.
From Blackfella Films, DNA Nation goes back in time genetic time travel, written/produced by Jacob Hickey and produced by Darren Dale for Sbs.
- 6/6/2014
- by Staff Writer
- IF.com.au
The instigator of a petition calling on the National Film and Sound Archive to be more transparent in the restructure of the Archive and the resulting job losses is disappointed with the response from Nfsa chair Gabrielle Trainor.
Former Melbourne Film Festival director Geoff Gardner says there is little in the letter he got from Trainor to suggest the issues raised in the petition are being addressed.
Signed by 140 directors, producers, writers, actors, academics and journalists, the petition called on the Nfsa to release a business review carried out by CEO Michael Loebenstein and to hold a series of open forums before final decisions are made on terminations and personnel restructures.
The signatories include Acs president Ron Johanson, Adg president Ray Argall, producers Tony Buckley, Richard Brennan and Sue Milliken, actor Jack Thompson, former Nfsa development manager Dominic Case, writer Frank Moorhouse, documentary makers Bob Connolly, Sharon Connolly, David Bradbury,...
Former Melbourne Film Festival director Geoff Gardner says there is little in the letter he got from Trainor to suggest the issues raised in the petition are being addressed.
Signed by 140 directors, producers, writers, actors, academics and journalists, the petition called on the Nfsa to release a business review carried out by CEO Michael Loebenstein and to hold a series of open forums before final decisions are made on terminations and personnel restructures.
The signatories include Acs president Ron Johanson, Adg president Ray Argall, producers Tony Buckley, Richard Brennan and Sue Milliken, actor Jack Thompson, former Nfsa development manager Dominic Case, writer Frank Moorhouse, documentary makers Bob Connolly, Sharon Connolly, David Bradbury,...
- 5/21/2014
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
The instigator of a petition calling on the National Film and Sound Archive to be more transparent in the restructure of the Archive and the resulting job losses is disappointed with the response from Nfsa chair Gabrielle Trainor.
Former Melbourne Film Festival director Geoff Gardner says there is little in the letter he got from Trainor to suggest the issues raised in the petition are being addressed.
Signed by 140 directors, producers, writers, actors, academics and journalists, the petition called on the Nfsa to release a business review carried out by CEO Michael Loebenstein and to hold a series of open forums before final decisions are made on terminations, sackings and personnel restructures.
The signatories include Acs president Ron Johanson, Adg president Ray Argall, producers Tony Buckley, Richard Brennan and Sue Milliken, actor Jack Thomson, former Nfsa development manager Dominic Case, writer Frank Moorhouse, documentary makers Bob Connolly, Sharon Connolly, David Bradbury,...
Former Melbourne Film Festival director Geoff Gardner says there is little in the letter he got from Trainor to suggest the issues raised in the petition are being addressed.
Signed by 140 directors, producers, writers, actors, academics and journalists, the petition called on the Nfsa to release a business review carried out by CEO Michael Loebenstein and to hold a series of open forums before final decisions are made on terminations, sackings and personnel restructures.
The signatories include Acs president Ron Johanson, Adg president Ray Argall, producers Tony Buckley, Richard Brennan and Sue Milliken, actor Jack Thomson, former Nfsa development manager Dominic Case, writer Frank Moorhouse, documentary makers Bob Connolly, Sharon Connolly, David Bradbury,...
- 5/21/2014
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
The National Film and Sound Archive and the Australian Film Television and Radio School have not escaped unscathed from the federal Budget cuts.
Meanwhile, the lack of transparency in a pending restructure of the Nfsa has been criticised by producers, directors, writers, actors, academics and journalists.
The Nfsa received $27.07 million from the government in the current financial year. That falls to $25.9 million for each of the next two fiscal years. The allocations beyond that are $25.74 million and $26.01 million.
It is not clear how the government.s announcement that $2.4 million will be saved over four years by consolidating the back office functions of a number of Canberra-based collection agencies including the Nfsa, National Gallery of Australia, National Library of Australia and Old Parliament House will affect the Archive.
In April, Nfsa CEO Michael Loebenstein announced a restructuring entailing shedding jobs and reducing its touring program and the number of events at its Arc cinema in Canberra,...
Meanwhile, the lack of transparency in a pending restructure of the Nfsa has been criticised by producers, directors, writers, actors, academics and journalists.
The Nfsa received $27.07 million from the government in the current financial year. That falls to $25.9 million for each of the next two fiscal years. The allocations beyond that are $25.74 million and $26.01 million.
It is not clear how the government.s announcement that $2.4 million will be saved over four years by consolidating the back office functions of a number of Canberra-based collection agencies including the Nfsa, National Gallery of Australia, National Library of Australia and Old Parliament House will affect the Archive.
In April, Nfsa CEO Michael Loebenstein announced a restructuring entailing shedding jobs and reducing its touring program and the number of events at its Arc cinema in Canberra,...
- 5/14/2014
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
Australian documentary makers today launched a campaign to boost the ailing numbers of single docs commissioned by the ABC and Sbs and for more investment from Screen Australia.
Indiedoco is campaigning for five key changes to the current distribution of Australia's public documentary subsidies, calling for:
- The ABC and Sbs to follow the example of BBC2 by reinstating single documentary strands that 'will allow the very best filmmakers to find and tell stories that will illuminate, provoke and reveal modern Australia in all its staggering variety.'
- Screen Australia to remove the requirement for a broadcaster pre-sale for the National Documentary Program and to set up a new panel to select projects for Ndp funding based on creative, cultural and artistic criteria.
- Screen Australia to reinstate a slate development program for documentary filmmakers similar to the General Development Investment Program that was offered by the Australian Film Commission.
Indiedoco is campaigning for five key changes to the current distribution of Australia's public documentary subsidies, calling for:
- The ABC and Sbs to follow the example of BBC2 by reinstating single documentary strands that 'will allow the very best filmmakers to find and tell stories that will illuminate, provoke and reveal modern Australia in all its staggering variety.'
- Screen Australia to remove the requirement for a broadcaster pre-sale for the National Documentary Program and to set up a new panel to select projects for Ndp funding based on creative, cultural and artistic criteria.
- Screen Australia to reinstate a slate development program for documentary filmmakers similar to the General Development Investment Program that was offered by the Australian Film Commission.
- 11/6/2013
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
The single documentary is an endangered species in Australia but there are a number of solutions to address the crisis in the documentary industry.
That.s according to documentary filmmaker Jennifer Crone, who aims to use a session at next week.s Australian Directors Guild conference to explore new paths to financing docus.
Bob Connolly will moderate the November 7 session entitled Tell Us the Truth: The Demise of the One-Off Documentary with a panel comprising Crone, Tom Zubrycki, Trevor Graham and Genevieve Bailey.
Crone quotes a new study by Sharon Connolly which shows just 21% of TV documentaries funded by Screen Australia in 2012-2013 were single docs, versus 79% for series. Since 2008 when Screen Australia launched, the average number of hours of single docs funded by the agency has fallen by 22%.
.Documentary filmmakers are in an absolute state of crisis,. Crone tells If. .It.s really very dire. Very few people are making a living any more.
That.s according to documentary filmmaker Jennifer Crone, who aims to use a session at next week.s Australian Directors Guild conference to explore new paths to financing docus.
Bob Connolly will moderate the November 7 session entitled Tell Us the Truth: The Demise of the One-Off Documentary with a panel comprising Crone, Tom Zubrycki, Trevor Graham and Genevieve Bailey.
Crone quotes a new study by Sharon Connolly which shows just 21% of TV documentaries funded by Screen Australia in 2012-2013 were single docs, versus 79% for series. Since 2008 when Screen Australia launched, the average number of hours of single docs funded by the agency has fallen by 22%.
.Documentary filmmakers are in an absolute state of crisis,. Crone tells If. .It.s really very dire. Very few people are making a living any more.
- 10/29/2013
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
Australian TV drama is being widely hailed for its excellence but many directors are being treated badly by networks and production companies, according to Australian Directors Guild executive director Kingston Anderson.
The perceived lack of respect for TV directors is one of the key issues to be addressed at the Adg.s conference Directing in the Digital Age next month. Among other topics to be canvassed are the demise of the one-off documentary, the Adg.s fight to ensure directors get a share of the copyright, and the need to train new directors in how to work with actors.
Anderson will moderate a plenary session with the provocative title Do We Really Need Directors? with producer Brian Rosen, director Michael Thornhill and transmedia director Michaela Ledwidge of Mod Productions.
.In the past two years we.ve seen a lack of respect for directors, particularly TV drama directors,. Anderson tells If.
The perceived lack of respect for TV directors is one of the key issues to be addressed at the Adg.s conference Directing in the Digital Age next month. Among other topics to be canvassed are the demise of the one-off documentary, the Adg.s fight to ensure directors get a share of the copyright, and the need to train new directors in how to work with actors.
Anderson will moderate a plenary session with the provocative title Do We Really Need Directors? with producer Brian Rosen, director Michael Thornhill and transmedia director Michaela Ledwidge of Mod Productions.
.In the past two years we.ve seen a lack of respect for directors, particularly TV drama directors,. Anderson tells If.
- 10/22/2013
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
Screen Australia will invest more than $2.3 million in 10 documentary projects, which it says will trigger more than $8 million in production.
Screen Australia.s documentary manager Liz Stevens said: .It.s very encouraging to see so many projects with solid international deals in this round. Australian producers are creating good opportunities in the international marketplace with strong stories, know-how and support from domestic broadcasters and Screen Australia . it.s a great collaboration. In the domestic arena the National Documentary Program continues to fund significant Australian stories that will resonate with Australian audiences..
National Documentary Program
Afghanistan: The Australian War 3 x 55 mins Essential Media and Entertainment Pty Ltd Producer Alan Erson Writer/Director Victoria Midwinter-Pitt Sales Agent ABC Commercial Broadcaster ABC TV Synopsis The complete story of Australia.s longest and most expensive modern war told by the generation of Australians who fought it, those who ordered it, our allies and enemies.
Screen Australia.s documentary manager Liz Stevens said: .It.s very encouraging to see so many projects with solid international deals in this round. Australian producers are creating good opportunities in the international marketplace with strong stories, know-how and support from domestic broadcasters and Screen Australia . it.s a great collaboration. In the domestic arena the National Documentary Program continues to fund significant Australian stories that will resonate with Australian audiences..
National Documentary Program
Afghanistan: The Australian War 3 x 55 mins Essential Media and Entertainment Pty Ltd Producer Alan Erson Writer/Director Victoria Midwinter-Pitt Sales Agent ABC Commercial Broadcaster ABC TV Synopsis The complete story of Australia.s longest and most expensive modern war told by the generation of Australians who fought it, those who ordered it, our allies and enemies.
- 3/21/2013
- by Inside Film Correspondent
- IF.com.au
This article first appeared in If Magazine issue #150
Producer Lizzette Atkins justifies the theatrical nature of Aim High In Creation! on several levels: the scale and scope of the ideas; its experimental style; the broad interest in the closed society of North Korea; and director Anna Broinowski.s cinematic eye.
.And Anna has proven she can sustain a story for 90 minutes,. says Atkins, referring to the bold Forbidden Lie$..
If the various threads can be woven neatly together, this intriguing project could be a pearler. Cinematic propaganda is the key theme and the film follows Broinowski as she travels to North Korea to meet with that industry.s leading lights and examine former leader Kim Jong-il.s passion for cinema and the filmmaking manifesto he published. Back in Australia, applying the advice she got on a script she took with her, Broinowski makes a short about a community overcoming gas frackers . after all,...
Producer Lizzette Atkins justifies the theatrical nature of Aim High In Creation! on several levels: the scale and scope of the ideas; its experimental style; the broad interest in the closed society of North Korea; and director Anna Broinowski.s cinematic eye.
.And Anna has proven she can sustain a story for 90 minutes,. says Atkins, referring to the bold Forbidden Lie$..
If the various threads can be woven neatly together, this intriguing project could be a pearler. Cinematic propaganda is the key theme and the film follows Broinowski as she travels to North Korea to meet with that industry.s leading lights and examine former leader Kim Jong-il.s passion for cinema and the filmmaking manifesto he published. Back in Australia, applying the advice she got on a script she took with her, Broinowski makes a short about a community overcoming gas frackers . after all,...
- 3/14/2013
- by Sandy George
- IF.com.au
“The organizers of the International Film Festival of Kerala (Iffk) have decided to have Australians serving as chairperson of the main jury for two years in succession – Bruce Beresford last year and Paul Cox this year. It is instructive to note that while there was some space for aborigines in Beresford’s films, there has been practically none in Cox’s body of work.”
Year – 1987. Even as ‘white’ Australia was preparing to celebrate 200 years of white settlement, the oppression of aborigines – the original inhabitants of the continent – continued apace. The oppression is naked and heartless in outback settlements, but exists in subtler forms in Australian towns and cities. I have in one of my scrapbooks an agency report dating back to that year which speaks of a high court judge who wept as he listened to harrowing accounts of racism and denial of justice to aborigines in a remote New South Wales community.
Year – 1987. Even as ‘white’ Australia was preparing to celebrate 200 years of white settlement, the oppression of aborigines – the original inhabitants of the continent – continued apace. The oppression is naked and heartless in outback settlements, but exists in subtler forms in Australian towns and cities. I have in one of my scrapbooks an agency report dating back to that year which speaks of a high court judge who wept as he listened to harrowing accounts of racism and denial of justice to aborigines in a remote New South Wales community.
- 12/6/2012
- by Vidyarthy Chatterjee
- DearCinema.com
A four-part Sbs series leads a new round of Screen Australia funding for documentaries.
The announcement of funding is worth $1.8m across six one off documentaries and one series, and is expected to trigger $4.8m worth of production.
Following on from Sbs’s four part series Once Upon a Time in Cabramatta, which aired earlier this year and took 0.850m viewers across SBS1 in English, and Sbs 2 in Vietnamese will be Once Upon A Time in Punchbowl.
The series will examine the Lebanese migrant settlement in Western Sydney and produced by Tim Toni and executive produced by Sue Clothier.
Liz Stevens, Screen Australia’s documentary manager said: “I’m thrilled to announce investment in the Sbs series Once Upon a Time in Punchbowl. This important series will again strongly resonate with the local community.”
Also receiving funding are one-off documentaries about the lead singer of punk band The Sunnyboys, a...
The announcement of funding is worth $1.8m across six one off documentaries and one series, and is expected to trigger $4.8m worth of production.
Following on from Sbs’s four part series Once Upon a Time in Cabramatta, which aired earlier this year and took 0.850m viewers across SBS1 in English, and Sbs 2 in Vietnamese will be Once Upon A Time in Punchbowl.
The series will examine the Lebanese migrant settlement in Western Sydney and produced by Tim Toni and executive produced by Sue Clothier.
Liz Stevens, Screen Australia’s documentary manager said: “I’m thrilled to announce investment in the Sbs series Once Upon a Time in Punchbowl. This important series will again strongly resonate with the local community.”
Also receiving funding are one-off documentaries about the lead singer of punk band The Sunnyboys, a...
- 5/18/2012
- by Colin Delaney
- Encore Magazine
The Australian Director’s Guild has announced its nominees for the 2012 Adg Awards
Across the various categories, the nominations include Justin Kurzel for Snowtown, Matthew Saville for The Slap, Tony Krawitz for The Tall Man, Paul Scott for documentary series Outback Fight Club and Bruce Hunt for Subaru Xv’s Carwash.
The ceremony will be held as part of the Adg’s 30th anniversary at the Australian Maritime Museum in Sydney on May 11.
Kingston Anderson, general manager of the Adg said: “This will be the largest celebration and Awards ceremony the Adg has ever hosted and will be an opportunity to highlight the many achievements of Adg members over the past 30 years and the significant role they have played in the development of the Australian screen industry, as well as to honour the best directors of 2012.”
The nominations are:
Feature film
Brendan Fletcher - Mad Bastards
Justin Kurzel – Snowtown
Julia Leigh...
Across the various categories, the nominations include Justin Kurzel for Snowtown, Matthew Saville for The Slap, Tony Krawitz for The Tall Man, Paul Scott for documentary series Outback Fight Club and Bruce Hunt for Subaru Xv’s Carwash.
The ceremony will be held as part of the Adg’s 30th anniversary at the Australian Maritime Museum in Sydney on May 11.
Kingston Anderson, general manager of the Adg said: “This will be the largest celebration and Awards ceremony the Adg has ever hosted and will be an opportunity to highlight the many achievements of Adg members over the past 30 years and the significant role they have played in the development of the Australian screen industry, as well as to honour the best directors of 2012.”
The nominations are:
Feature film
Brendan Fletcher - Mad Bastards
Justin Kurzel – Snowtown
Julia Leigh...
- 4/16/2012
- by Colin Delaney
- Encore Magazine
Filmmaker Julia Overton will receive the 2012 Aidc Stanley Hawes Award at this month's Australian International Documentary Conference in Adelaide.
The Aidc said Overton's long tenure at government funding agencies was characterised by humanity rather than bureaucracy, and she never viewed guidelines as rules.
"She will go to great lengths to assist individual filmmakers and promote the documentary genre as a whole, and has opened more doors for documentaries, both in Australia and to the rest of the world, then anyone in the business," the Aidc said in a statement.
The co-chair of the Aidc board, Mitzi Goldman, said Overton was a "powerhouse" and her "imprint on Australian documentary has been immeasurable".
Overton has worked for the Australian Film Commission, the Film Finance Corporation, and Screen Australia, and has also produced feature films (Cut, Spider and Rose, Fistful of Flies, Until the End of the World, Travelling North), TV dramas (Aftershocks,...
The Aidc said Overton's long tenure at government funding agencies was characterised by humanity rather than bureaucracy, and she never viewed guidelines as rules.
"She will go to great lengths to assist individual filmmakers and promote the documentary genre as a whole, and has opened more doors for documentaries, both in Australia and to the rest of the world, then anyone in the business," the Aidc said in a statement.
The co-chair of the Aidc board, Mitzi Goldman, said Overton was a "powerhouse" and her "imprint on Australian documentary has been immeasurable".
Overton has worked for the Australian Film Commission, the Film Finance Corporation, and Screen Australia, and has also produced feature films (Cut, Spider and Rose, Fistful of Flies, Until the End of the World, Travelling North), TV dramas (Aftershocks,...
- 2/20/2012
- by Brendan Swift
- IF.com.au
Australian directors have walked away with three of the five awards handed out at the Pacific International Documentary Festival in Tahiti, Fifo 9.
The festival showcases documentaries that centre on issues relating to the Pacific or the lives of the people inhabiting the area.
Natasha Gadd and Rhys Graham picked up the Grand Prix prize for Murandak, Songs of Freedom. The documentary provides an insight into Aboriginal protest music as it follows Indigenous musician supergroup, the Black Arm Band, from the Outback to the Sydney Opera House. Murundak, which means .alive. in Woirurrung language, explores the elements of sorrow and resistance in Indigenous protest music, and features pioneering singes such as Archie Roach, Bart Willoughby, and the late Ruby Hunter.
The Special Jury prize was shared by The Hungry Tides director, Tom Zubrycki, and Ochre & Ink director, James Bradley.
The Hungry Tides explores the vulnerability of the Pacific in relation to climate change.
The festival showcases documentaries that centre on issues relating to the Pacific or the lives of the people inhabiting the area.
Natasha Gadd and Rhys Graham picked up the Grand Prix prize for Murandak, Songs of Freedom. The documentary provides an insight into Aboriginal protest music as it follows Indigenous musician supergroup, the Black Arm Band, from the Outback to the Sydney Opera House. Murundak, which means .alive. in Woirurrung language, explores the elements of sorrow and resistance in Indigenous protest music, and features pioneering singes such as Archie Roach, Bart Willoughby, and the late Ruby Hunter.
The Special Jury prize was shared by The Hungry Tides director, Tom Zubrycki, and Ochre & Ink director, James Bradley.
The Hungry Tides explores the vulnerability of the Pacific in relation to climate change.
- 2/13/2012
- by Fay Al-Janabi
- IF.com.au
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
Edouard Deluc’s short ¿Dónde Está Kim Basinger? has won the Flickerfest Award for Best Short Film.
The Best Australian Film went to Andrew Ruhemann and Shaun Taun’s The Lost Thing, while the Jury Prize was awarded to the British short Baby, by Daniel Mulloy.
The 20th edition of Flickerfest Short Film Festival came to an end last night at Bondi Pavilion, Sydney. The best films from the festival will now embark on a 30-stop national tour, starting in Byron Bay on January 21 and traveling through to March.
The winners – selected by a Jury consisting of Kryzystof Geirat (Director Krakow Film Festival), Eileen Arandiga (Festival Director of the Worldwide Short Film Festival in Toronto,) Renee Brack (face of Movie Extra), Hannah Hillard (director), Susie Porter (actress), Luke Doolan (director), Peta Watermayer (National Geographic Channel’s Program and Acquisitions Manager) and Tom Zubrycki (director) – are:
National Geographic Award – Best Documentary...
The Best Australian Film went to Andrew Ruhemann and Shaun Taun’s The Lost Thing, while the Jury Prize was awarded to the British short Baby, by Daniel Mulloy.
The 20th edition of Flickerfest Short Film Festival came to an end last night at Bondi Pavilion, Sydney. The best films from the festival will now embark on a 30-stop national tour, starting in Byron Bay on January 21 and traveling through to March.
The winners – selected by a Jury consisting of Kryzystof Geirat (Director Krakow Film Festival), Eileen Arandiga (Festival Director of the Worldwide Short Film Festival in Toronto,) Renee Brack (face of Movie Extra), Hannah Hillard (director), Susie Porter (actress), Luke Doolan (director), Peta Watermayer (National Geographic Channel’s Program and Acquisitions Manager) and Tom Zubrycki (director) – are:
National Geographic Award – Best Documentary...
- 1/16/2011
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
Polish film expert and instigator of the Krakow Film Foundation and the Film Polski Foundation Kryzystof Geirat will head the jury for the 20th Flickerfest Short Film Festival.
The international program jury includes Movie Extra’s Renee Brack and Franswa Sharl director Hannah Hillard. The Australian program includes Eileen Arandiga (Toronto’s Worldwide Short Film Festival), actress Susie Porter and Oscar-nominated Miracle Fish and Cryo director Luke Doolan.
The documentary strand will be judged by Anne Vierhout (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam), Peta Watermayer (National Geographic Channel’s Program and Acquisitions Manager) and director Tom Zubrycki.
The program for the Academy Award-accredited festival is available at www.flickerfest.com.au, and includes
Flickerfest runs from January 7-16 at Bondi Beach Pavillion, Sydney, followed by a national tour.
The international program jury includes Movie Extra’s Renee Brack and Franswa Sharl director Hannah Hillard. The Australian program includes Eileen Arandiga (Toronto’s Worldwide Short Film Festival), actress Susie Porter and Oscar-nominated Miracle Fish and Cryo director Luke Doolan.
The documentary strand will be judged by Anne Vierhout (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam), Peta Watermayer (National Geographic Channel’s Program and Acquisitions Manager) and director Tom Zubrycki.
The program for the Academy Award-accredited festival is available at www.flickerfest.com.au, and includes
Flickerfest runs from January 7-16 at Bondi Beach Pavillion, Sydney, followed by a national tour.
- 12/20/2010
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
More than 84 Australian documentary filmmakers have signed a petition asking Prime Minister Julia Gillard “to confirm publicly Australia’s commitment to freedom of political comunication”, in support of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange.
They’re being coordinated by Carmela Baranowska, as part of a broader petition started on the ABC’s website and incorporating more than 500 signatures.
The petition has been signed by:
Carmela Baranowska – director, journalist Sharon Connolly – producer Bree Mckilligan – filmmaker Jono Van Hest – director Sarah Zadeh – filmmaker Joan Robinson – director Kerry Negara – director, producer Rebecca McLean – director Daryl Dellora – director, producer Sharyn Prentice – producer Fabio Cavadini – director, producer Mandy King – director, producer Sally Ingleton – documentary filmmaker Trish FitzSimons – filmmaker Georgia Wallace-Crabbe – producer, director Lana Schwarcz – puppeteer, filmmaker Tim Anderson – filmmaker Nick Torrens – director, producer Deborah Szapiro – producer Liz Burke – producer Nicholas Hansen – director, producer Philippa Campey – filmmaker Marsha Emerman – director, producer Trevor Blainey – producer Gil Scrine – distributor and...
They’re being coordinated by Carmela Baranowska, as part of a broader petition started on the ABC’s website and incorporating more than 500 signatures.
The petition has been signed by:
Carmela Baranowska – director, journalist Sharon Connolly – producer Bree Mckilligan – filmmaker Jono Van Hest – director Sarah Zadeh – filmmaker Joan Robinson – director Kerry Negara – director, producer Rebecca McLean – director Daryl Dellora – director, producer Sharyn Prentice – producer Fabio Cavadini – director, producer Mandy King – director, producer Sally Ingleton – documentary filmmaker Trish FitzSimons – filmmaker Georgia Wallace-Crabbe – producer, director Lana Schwarcz – puppeteer, filmmaker Tim Anderson – filmmaker Nick Torrens – director, producer Deborah Szapiro – producer Liz Burke – producer Nicholas Hansen – director, producer Philippa Campey – filmmaker Marsha Emerman – director, producer Trevor Blainey – producer Gil Scrine – distributor and...
- 12/16/2010
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.