All articles by Sandy George – Page 38
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Foreign films dominate Australian production spending
Spending on foreign films made in Australia over the last year was more than double thatspent on local films and Australian/international co-productions for the thirdconsecutive year.The Australian Film Commission's comprehensive annualproduction survey revealed 22local projects worth £80m (A$106m), including three Australian/UKco-productions, spent £66m (A$87m) in Australia after beginning principalphotography during ...
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Oz censor sparks spat with exhibitors, distributors
About 20 senior exhibitorsand distributors held an impromptu meeting on the final night (Aug 18) of theAustralian International Movie Convention, to express their anger over thepublic way they were criticised on the first day of the event.Des Clark, directorof the Office of Film & Literature Classification, pulled no punches earlyin ...
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UIP, Fox take Oz Movie Convention prizes
UIP and Fox were the most high profile distributors at last night'sAustralian International Movie Convention's box achievement awards.UIP won six of the 18 awards which are given to films that grossed morethan $7.5m (A$10m) in the previous 12 months.Top of the list for UIP was Meet The Fockers but it ...
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Producers urged to focus on older cinemagoers
Prompted by new research,Nielsen EDI has suggested putting more of a focus on cinemagoers aged 55 yearsand over as a way of addressing Australia's current box office demise. General manager Simon Burton toldthe Australian International Movie Convention today that a key finding from thesurvey of 1,428 moviegoers was that the ...
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FFC Australia revamps board
The Film Finance Corporation Australia (FFC) has revamped its board,appointing investment banker Alastair Walton and the high-profile entertainmententrepreneur Paul Dainty.The terms of four of the eight-member board have expired in the past sixweeks and a further two people are likely to be appointed soon by theAustralian Government, although it may ...
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Roadshow takes on Oz distribution for Wolf Creek
Roadshow has acquireddirector Greg McLean's horror film Wolf Creek for an October 27 localrelease. Australia's biggestindependent distributor acquired the film from Miramax sister companyDimension, which bought a raft of territories from Arclight early this year. Producer David Lightfoot said the UKrelease through Optimum on September 16 will be the biggest ...
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Turtles takes Melbourne audience prize
Iranian drama Turtles CanFly was the most popular featurefilm at the 54th Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF), organisersannounced today. Its director Bahman Ghobadiwas a guest at Australia's most prestigious film festival, which wrapped lastweek.The homegrown drama LookBoth Ways, which was directed bySarah Watts and opens theatrically on Thursday, was voted ...
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Queensland unveils post-production incentive
TheQueensland Government has added a post-production incentive scheme to the raftof temptations it already offers local and overseas film and televisionproducers who decide to shoot in the North-East corner of Australia.Themove makes Queensland a one-stop production shop, said the Minister for ArtsRod Welford, who announced the scheme when he officially ...
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Circle Work scores at Oz pitching contest
Afeature called Circle Work by Edwina Exton, a Melbourne-basedactor-turned-screenwriter, has won the high-profile pitching competition heldas part of the annual Australian producers conference.Shedescribed the film as a highly commercial romantic comedy set amid the chaos ofa B&S (bachelor and spinster's) ball, an iconic event in rural Australia. Thetitle refers to ...
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Wine guru to advise Australian film industry
IanSutton, founding chief executive of The Winemakers Federation of Australia, hasbeen hired as a consultant to the working party advising on the creation of anAustralian Screen Council (ASC).Suttonis credited as the architect of the evolution of the modern Australian wineindustry.Usingthe first day of the annual conference of the Screen Producers ...
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Oz opens applications for $15.5m tax fund
The Australian government has called for applications fromlocal companies interested in winning a licence giving them the right to raise$15.5m (A$20m) over the next two years for investment in the film andtelevision industry.Investment inproduction in Australia already delivers a 100% tax deduction but under theFilm Licensed Investment Company (FLIC) Scheme ...
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Sydney festival poised for major overhaul
The SydneyFilm Festival (SFF) is to hold a major review of its activities, including areassessment of it dates and venues.The movefollows news that both president Cathy Robinson and general manager JenniferNaughton have stepped down. "The festival has to finditself a position of prominence in the hectic international film festivalcalendar, and ...
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Oz producers navigate funding Puzzle
Writer/director Mark Forstmann and producers MiriamStein and Tamara Popper go into production on October 31 on Monkey Puzzleafter extensive workshops with a cast of young emerging actors.The coming of age, character-driven drama centres onfive friends who go looking for world's rarest tree. As they descend into theravines and canyons of ...
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Watt's Ways takes Fipresci prize at Brisbane
Australian film Look BothWays, US coming-of-age tale Mysterious Skin, and South Koreanpicture Spying Cam (Frakchi) have each won major awards at the BrisbaneInternational Film Festival.Writer/director Sarah Watt'sdebut Look Both Ways won the FIPRESCI (Federation Internationale de laPresse Cinematographique) award for best Asia Pacific film. Watt was previouslybest known for her ...
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Ex-Renaissance exec Canning joins Becker Films
Former Renaissance executive Iain Canning has joinedBecker Films International (BFI) as head of worldwide acquisitions, and willalso act as a consultant on acquiring Australian rights for sister companyDendy Films. He will continue to be based in London.In a statementreleased on Friday, Canning said he looked forward to working with BFIpresident ...
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Barclay signs on for Suburban Mayhem
Emily Barclay, who came toattention via the critically acclaimed New Zealand film In My Father's Den,has been cast in the lead role of a conniving single mother with murder on hermind in the Australian black comedy Suburban Mayhem.Playing her besotted boyfriendwill be Michael Dorman, who is named as one of ...
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Armstrong's Houdini feature wins crucial FFC backing
A UK/Australian co-production from director GillianArmstrong (Little Women, Charlotte Gray), a new film by the team behind2002 local comedy hit Crackerjack, and two documentary features, will gointo production as a result of decisions made today by Film Finance CorporationAustralia (FFC).Myriad Pictures is handling international sales onArmstrong's Death Defying Acts, based ...
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Oz financing market SPAAmart unveils 12 projects
A mix of experienced directors and producers and unknownsare attached to the 12 projects selected for next month's financing marketSPAAmart.Actor Richard Roxburgh (Van Helsing, Moulin Rouge)is hoping to make his big screen directorial debut with Romulus, My Father.UK scriptwriter Nick Drake has adapted the memoir by academic Raymond Gaita,Robert Connolly ...
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Solo Project Greenlight winner rounds out cast
Veteran Australian actor Colin Friels is to star in Solo,the winner of Australia's Project Greenlight film-making competition.Friels,who has been in about 30 films, is taking the starring role of Barrett, anenforcer who wants to get out of working for a group of Sydney underworldbusinessmen known as The Gentlemen. BojanaNovakovic, Angie ...
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Working Title hops on board Australian thriller
Working Title is to come inon British commercials director Ringan Ledwidge's directorial debut, MiddleOf Nowhere. Co-produced by Sydney-based Deborah Balderstone WBP outfit and London-based Nira Park, it will start shooting in September in Australia.Middle of Nowhere is a psychological thriller about young Britishtravellers who encounter a charismatic American with ulterior ...