• National Indigenous Documentary Fund 6 Loved Up is calling on Indigenous filmmakers from across the country to submit half-hour documentary ideas that explore this universal human expression. Deadline Friday 27 February


• The AFC is calling for Travel Grant applications (Types B and C) to attend the Cannes Market in France. Type B and C Travel Grants are available for producers who have projects ready to pitch. Deadline 5pm, Monday 1 March


• Guidelines changes: Strand H applicants - for short film production investment - will now need to submit a budget at application stage and not only on request. Deadline Friday 12 March


• The AFC is calling for applications to its Fellowship Program from producers, directors and script editors who have at least five hours of broadcast television or two feature film credits. Deadline Friday 7 May


• The AFC's Industry and Cultural Development Funding Program supports activities and events that provide the wider community with access to screen activities and are critical to the development of filmmakers. New guidelines are now available for January to June 2004


• SPARK Script Development Workshop participants and advisors were announced in January and the creative teams behind the seven projects attended an intensive residential workshop in country Victoria in early February. An interview with participants will feature in the March edition of AFC News


• XIMediaILab for digital practitioners was held in Sydney from 6-11 February, and explored the creative content opportunities in broadband, mobile, internet, interactive television, DVD and electronic publishing


• AFC Film Development and Industry and Cultural Development funding approvals


• AFC funding deadlines

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• Following a decision made at the Commission Meeting in December 2003, the AFC's International Co-production Guidelines will change to broaden the types of projects eligible for co-production status


• The AFC has developed a Co-Production Treaty Policy which sets out the criteria to be applied for the selection of new treaty partners and for the review of existing treaties

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• The latest Trade Bulletin outlines the scenarios for the Australian film and digital media industries now that the Australia-US Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations have concluded


• AFC Chief Executive Kim Dalton will be speaking at the APEC Study Centre Conference, Canberra, on 1 March about the Australian film industry and the implications of the FTA


• The Allens Consulting Group has produced a paper for the Australian Broadcasting Authority on the options for Trading Regulatory Obligations for Broadcasters. The AFC has made a submission on the issue and remains of the view that this is not an attractive option, while acknowledging that The Allens Consulting Group has produced a thorough analysis

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• The Australian short film Fugue won a Panorama Short Film Award at the Berlin International Film Festival


• Two Australian films - Deluge and the AFC-funded We Have Decided Not to Die - received major awards at the Clermont-Ferrand Short Film Festival, the world's most prestigious showcase of short films, held annually in France


• Nine Australian projects were invited to screen as part of the Official Selection at the International Film Festival Rotterdam. Selected films include documentary The Ister and the AFC-funded experimental film Connected


• Congratulations to Adam Elliot who received an Academy Award® nomination and a Special Mention by the Sundance Film Festival Shorts Jury for Harvie Krumpet. Read our feature interview below


• Find out about other recent international awards and screenings


• The Jurlique Australian Film Festival screened at the Arclight Cinema in Hollywood from 15-19 January. The AFC was represented by Commissioner Helen Leake whose film Black and White screened at the festival


• The British Academy Film and Television Awards winners were announced on 15 February and included Australian husband-and-wife team Peter Weir and Wendy Stites for Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World


• Sony Tropfest screened to packed audiences around Australia on 22 February. Gary Eck (NSW) was awarded first prize for The Money. Find out more about the winners


• Naomi Watts was nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role Award at the 10th US Screen Actors Guild Awards for her performance in 21 Grams. A number of other Australians received nominations including Anthony LaPaglia, Rachel Griffiths, David Wenham, Miranda Otto, Hugo Weaving and Cate Blanchett. The awards were announced 22 February and while Watts and LaPaglia missed out, the Lord of the Rings ensemble cast were recognised. See the full list of winners


• To mark its 10th anniversary in March, the London Australian Film Festival will screen the all-time Top 10 of Australian films alongside its 2004 lineup


• March/April deadlines are approaching for international film festivals. See International Festival Profiles for information on the New Festival/NY Lesbian and Gay, Hamburg, Banff, Cannes, Margaret Mead, Karlovy Vary, Hiroshima and Edinburgh film festivals

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• The AFC is producing a booklet with details of Australians attending MiPTV and MILIA markets and their projects. If you would like to be featured, fill out our online form. Deadline Friday 27 February


• Australia had an expanded presence at the Berlin International Film Festival and European Film Market, with the AFC funding filmmakers to participate in various market and film festival activities

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• Harvie Krumpet is screening in a double bill with the award-winning short feature Roy Höllsdotter Live at Cinema Nova (Melbourne) and Dendy Newtown (Sydney) throughout February. Then Harvie will screen on SBS Television in March


• The AFC is holding a Marketing Talk with Mr Jean Rabinovici, Preselector for La Semaine Internationale de la Critique (Critics' Week), Cannes Film Festival in Sydney, 25 February, and Melbourne, 3 March


• AFC Director, Film Development Carole Sklan will be speaking at a number of sessions at the Australian International Documentary Conference including 'Documenting the Future' on 26 February and 'Defining Documentary' on 27 February. Manager, Research and Information Rosemary Curtis will be launching a new publication, Documentary production in Australia: A collection of key data on the opening day of the conference. The AFC will also have an information stand with a variety of resources available on documentary filmmaking including a new FAQ, Guide to AFC and ScreenSound Australia's Documentary Resources and the discussion paper Documentary Production and Funding in Australia. Project Managers Lori Flekser, Megan Simpson-Huberman and Karin Altmann will be in attendance


• The inaugural Hip Hop Film Festival, which features Australian hip hop documentaries and Def Jux music videos, is screening in Melbourne and Sydney from 26 February to 6 March


• The Women Working in Television project kicks off in 2004 with a lunch at the Nine Network in Sydney on 27 February that will be addressed by Posie Graeme-Evans, Head of Drama. The project theme for 2004 is Women Towards Leadership. The first Women Working in Television Breakfast will be held as part of the ASTRA (Australian Subscription Television Radio Association) Conference at the Arena Restaurant at Fox Studios on 8 April, 8-9.30am. The confirmed panel of speakers is Cathy Payne (CEO International Sales and Distribution - Southern Star Group), Dana Strong (COO - Austar), and Posie Graeme-Evans. The MC will be Deanne Weir, Group Director Corporate Development Legal Affairs at Austar


• The Embassy Roadshow is a travelling film festival that, through Australian embassies abroad, showcases a selection of contemporary Australian films. It is an initiative of the Australia International Cultural Council, and managed by Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the AFC. Late February will see six Spanish-subtitled films screening in Madrid and Cordoba and early March sees the roadshow return to Kuala Lumpur, the site for the first-ever Embassy Roadshow event held in April 2001


• d>art04 is the seventh edition of dLux media arts' acclaimed annual showcase of Australian and international single-channel, short experimental digital cinema and video art works, web and sound art. Deadline Monday 1 March


• Blast Theory is working with local practitioners to create a new interactive game, I Like Frank in Adelaide, which will connect online virtual participants with live players on Adelaide's streets during the fringe festival, 1-14 March


• Financial planning for filmmakers doesn't have to be impossible. An intensive ASDA/Moneypenny workshop can help you sort out the logistics, Sydney, 3 March


• The Sydney Travelling Film Festival reaches Wagga Wagga in NSW at the Forum Cinemas, 12-16 March. For more information email eguest@sydneyfilmfestival.org


• Mountain Film Festival is an international short film festival held in Hobart, 18-20 March


• QPIX, the Queensland Filmmaker's Centre, is developing a TV series in the spirit of the films of Cronenberg, Lynch, Jarmusch and others, and is calling for applications from writers and producers for its ScreenSkills program. Deadline Thursday 18 March


• The Big Screen 2004 touring program will be launched on 19 March in Wangaratta, Victoria. Find out other regional destinations


• The 15/15 Film Festival provides filmmakers from a diverse section of both the Australian and wider-world community with an opportunity to produce their own short films and engage with the film industry. It is touring from March-August


• The ASDA Awards Dinner will be held in Sydney in March. The date is still to be confirmed


• FLiCKERFEST International Short Film Festival will travel to 13 venues in Australia, ranging from Broome to Byron Bay, in the next two months


• The Over the Fence Comedy Film Festival Tour travels to more than 30 venues around regional, remote and metropolitan Australia until 30 June. Selected films have just been announced


• The Australian Teachers of Media Conference and Awards will be held in Melbourne, 2-4 July. The conference is looking for papers. Deadline Sunday 29 February


• The ReelDance International Dance on Screen Festival is touring 30 July - 4 August. Submissions are now open for the general program and the ReelDance Awards


• The Australian features A Cold Summer, Love's Brother, Old Man Who Read Love Stories, One Perfect Day, Strange Bedfellows and Thunderstruck are being released February-April so keep an eye out for them at your local cinema


• IF magazine's What's On in Film January to June 2004 guide to screen events has been released. What's On in Film is sponsored by the AFC


• Other AFC-supported activities and events

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• AFC Travel Grants are designed to provide independent producers and directors with professional development opportunities at key international events. A clear outline of eligible festivals and markets is now available in the newly designed Travel Grant section


• The Recent Australian Short Films Catalogue 2003 was dispatched to the Clermont-Ferrand Short Film Festival on 19 January. It is available online or email publishing@afc.gov.au for a hard copy


• A new addition to the AFC's Frequently Asked Questions series, Guide to AFC and ScreenSound Australia's Documentary Resources, has been produced for the Australian International Documentary Conference. It is available to download or email publishing@afc.gov.au for a hard copy


• In Conversation With... features interviews with writer/directors from films including Molly and Mobarak and Harvie Krumpet


• Read about the latest AFC-funded success stories including Children of Tibet, Harvie Krumpet, Love's Brother, Martha's New Coat, Roy Höllsdotter Live and Ward 13


• The AFC has published a number of lists with contact details for Australian distributors in the areas of theatrical, non-theatrical, video, free-to-air and pay TV


• The Searchable Film Database includes Australian and co-produced features, TV drama and documentaries from 1990 and shorts from 1998. It is now updated on the website each month


• The AFC is obliged to provide a list of AFC files, excluding personnel and internal administration files. You can now download a list of file titles created between 1 July and 31 December 2003


• The 2003/04 Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements (PAES) for the agencies under the Communications, Information Technology and the Arts Portfolio were posted to the DCITA website after tabling of the 2003/04 Additional Estimates Bills on 11 February. The AFC website links to the DCITA website


• Upcoming Production Report


• Latest updates to Get the Picture Online industry statistics

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• The Discussion Paper and Directions Paper on the integration of the AFC and ScreenSound are available on the AFC website, as well as submissions received and transcripts from stakeholder forums


• Manager, Indigenous Unit Sally Riley, Leah Purcell and Bain Stewart have joined the National Geographic Film Project Advisory Board with high-profile actors and directors including Stockard Channing, Shekhar Kapur, Spike Lee, Kiefer Sutherland and Forest Whitaker. The All Roads Film Project is a new National Geographic initiative that will provide a global platform for indigenous and under-represented minority-culture filmmakers around the world to showcase their talents and teach a broader audience about their culture. The program will host an international film festival in Los Angeles and Washington later in the year


• Welcome to Acting Research Coordinator Sophie Harper, Acting Research Assistant Asha Ardill and Senior Researcher Karina Aveyard. Farewell Research Coordinator Carla Austin, Acting Research Assistant Talei Goater and Policy Assistant David Varga


• Positions vacant - Manager, Technology Services. Deadline Friday 12 March

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• Harvie Krumpet, Adam Elliot's fourth animated short film, has been garnering audience affection, critical praise and major awards all over the world. Harvie Krumpet is now up for the biggest award of them all - an OSCAR®, as the first Australian animated short film nominated for an Academy Award® since 1976.
  
  Adam, through his signature mix of comedy and pathos, carries us through the 'upside down and back-to-front' turns of Harvie's unusual, imaginative and imaginary life. Continuing the themes of the intriguing outsider that Adam explored in his previous trilogy of short films - Uncle, Cousin, Brother - Harvie Krumpet is his most endearing character to date.  
  
  Adam speaks to Sarah Runcie, AFC Film Development Administration Officer, about the process of creating the world of Harvie Krumpet. Follow up questions by Susan Danta, Information Officer - Marketing Unit, cover some aspects of Harvie's incredible success in the festival circuit.
  
  SR: What attracts you to telling stories using the technique of animation? What has been your training as an animator?
  
  AE: I have drawn, as far back as I can remember, and fall into some sort of satisfying meditative bliss when I doodle and scribble my wobbly pictures onto a page. My little plasticine blobby characters are an extension of this and it is a thrill to watch them 'come alive' through the magic of cinema. Storytelling using animation, I think, also has an edge over storytelling using live action, because the audience automatically 'suspend' their disbelief. They know straight away that what they are seeing is not 'real' and need less convincing to participate with the story they are about to be told.  
  
  I studied animation at the Victorian College of the Arts in 1996 and completed the one-year postgraduate diploma. A lot of my model making skills have been self-taught, however, I owe a great deal to the guidance and advice of Robert Stephenson and Darren Burgess. Sarah Watt was also a fantastic influence at the VCA, helping me understand the importance of a good script.
  
  SR: What is your process as a writer/animation director? What part does the medium of claymation play in the development of your script? Do you think of characters first and then develop incident and then story or do you work from specific imagery?
  
  AE: I suppose I have an unconventional way of creating my films, but then I suppose all animators create their works differently. Of course I start with a very polished and detailed script way before I sketch or mould any figures. With Harvie I spent three months full-time writing almost 14 drafts of the script. I deliberate and ponder every word till the point of obsession. A finely tuned script is paramount and I am constantly amazed at how many animators forget this. I think, write and even dream in plasticine. I memorise the narration so I can recall the script at any place and any time; playing with timing and rhythm until my instincts tell me a sequence is working. When I begin with a script I plough through my detailed notebooks, which contain my observations of human behaviour. I never stare at a blank screen and if I feel writers' block approaching, I jump on a tram and study the people and places around me. I have developed so many ideas sitting on the number 96 from St Kilda! I never obsess with plot and start with the detail and work backwards. I know what ingredients I want in my films and then find a way to string them all together into potent and vivid vignettes.
  
  SR: What inspired Harvie Krumpet?
  
  AE: Harvie has been in my head for over 10 years and I am so glad he is 'out'. All my films deal with 'difference'; people who are afflicted or marginalised. I am interested in people who don't seem to fit in; the underdogs and the forgotten. I am far more interested in the little old man gluing up a billboard of Tom Cruise's new film than the image of Tom Cruise. Harvie is an amalgamation of many people I know. My cub scout leader had a steel plate in his head which fascinated me endlessly. I just had to make that a component of Harvie. Ultimately I wanted to make Harvie universal and an archetype - somebody who everyone can identify and empathise with. There is a lot of myself in Harvie and I'm sure everyone can see a bit of themselves in him too.  
  
  Read the full interview.
  
  *AFC News banner image: Harvie Krumpet

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