• Legislation to establish Screen Australia and the National Film and Sound Archive as separate statutory authorities was passed by both Houses of the Australian Parliament on 13 March. The media release is available on Minister Garrett's website.



• The Australia-China Co-production Agreement and the Australia-Singapore Co-production Agreement signed last year were tabled in Parliament on 12 March 2008 as part of Australia's treaty approval process. The two treaties are expected to come into force in the second half of 2008. Both Co-production Agreements are now available on the AFC website. More details.



• Three upcoming film festivals, Creteil International Women's Film Festival, Hong Kong International Film Festival and Singapore International Film Festival have all announced their programs, with a combined total of 13 Australian films screening. More details.



• On 12 March the AFC and Opera Australia presented the first live transmission of an opera from the Sydney Opera House. Carmen screened to eight regional cinemas that form the AFC's Regional Digital Screen Network, as well as to live sites on the Sydney Opera House forecourt and Federation Square, Melbourne. More details



• We congratulate Australian producer Eva Orner on winning the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature at the 80th Annual Academy Awards® for Taxi to the Dark Side. She shares the Oscar with director Alex Gibney. Media release.



• The AFC's 2008 IndiVision Project Lab, held in February, was the most successful to date. Lab advisors and guest speakers included acclaimed American producer Christine Vachon (Boys Don't Cry, I'm Not There), award-winning London-based writer Laurence Coriat (Wonderland), internationally renowned development executive Vinca Wiedemann from Demark, and actors Rachel Griffiths and Claudia Karvan. Subscribe to IndiVision News to receive a full lab rundown in the March edition. More details.



• The AFC has launched a new support program for producers and production companies - the Screen Business Venture Program. The SBVP builds on the work of the AFC's General Development Investment (GDI) program. Guidelines.



• The AFC and BigPond have launched a new mobile phone animation initiative, Great Moments in History - (or funny stuff that happened between the Big Bang and the End of the World. Applications close 28 April. Guidelines.



• The AFC is preparing a catalogue of Australian Indigenous films. We are aiming to list all drama and documentary titles made by Indigenous people in the key credits of producer, director, writer or DOP over recent decades. If you would like to check on the inclusion of your film in the catalogue please contact the AFC by 31 March 2008. More details.



• The AFC congratulates the two filmmakers of te Australian films that won awards at the Berlin International Film Festival. The AFC-supported films The Black Balloon and Nana both won Crystal Bears in competition. More details.

Top

• The AFC and ABC TV's are inviting the Good Game audience to bring their creative ideas together to help build their own playable online game. A selection of the best ideas will be judged by the online audience and a panel of industry judges. Entries close 28 March. Visit the ABC website for more details.



• At the SBS and AFC Pitch and Punt at AIDC 2008 two documentary series, Urban Hunter (Michael Cordell) and We'll Meet Again (Ray Pedretti), were funded for further development.



• AFC funding deadlines in March and April:
  
  FILM DEVELOPMENT
  DRAMA
  IndiVision Low-budget Feature Production - 14 March
  
  DOCUMENTARY
  Documentary Development (formerly Strands J and K) - 18 April
  Shooting Time-critical Material - 4 April
  
  ANIMATION
  Animation Development and Pilot Production (formerly Strands S and T2) - 28 March
  Short Animation Production (formerly Strand T1) - 28 March
  Great Moments in History - 28 April
  
  DIGITAL MEDIA
  Cross-Platform Digital Media Production - 14 March
  
  PRACTITIONER SUPPORT
  Production Cashflow Facility - 28 March
  
  SCREEN BUSINESS VENTURE PROGRAM
  Business Growth Strand, Expression of Interest - 14 March
  Business Support Strand - 11 April
  
  INDIGENOUS
  Documentary Development - 4 April
  
  INDUSTRY AND CULTURAL DEVELOPMENT
  National Touring Fund - 21 April
  For further information and selection criteria, please refer to the ICD Funding Guidelines.
  
  See the results of the October 2007 ICD funding rounds.
  



• AFC funding approvals.

Top

• The NFSA is calling on all Australians to participate in this year's Sounds of Australia nominations. Launched in 2007, Sounds of Australia is a National Registry of Recorded Sound, which includes iconic recordings by a diverse range of artists and personalities from Dame Nellie Melba to Gough Whitlam. Any Australian recorded sound can be nominated, provided it has been recorded in Australia or by an Australian before 1988. Nominations for the 2008 list will close on 1 April. More details.



• Dr Jeannette Delamoir has joined the NFSA as program manager of the National Filmography project, which aims to catalogue every Australian-made film since 1896. Along with a doctorate in media studies, Delamoir brings her extensive academic and research experience to a project that will be an invaluable resource to researchers, educators and the general film-loving public. More details.



• In February a large and enthusiastic audience were treated to The Tears of Timor - a special musical event on the music and politics of Australian composer-activist Martin Wesley-Smith. As part of a three-year joint project between the NFSA and the National Library of Australia, Wesley-Smith's The Tears of Timor brought together with him long-time collaborators Julia Ryder and Ros Dunlop to explore the struggles of the Indigenous Timor peoples through music, recorded sound and images. More details.
  
  
• In early March the NFSA was privileged to host the world-renowned film expert Paul Read. Read, who has been a leading film archive advisor since the late 1970s, presented three general tutorials as well as specialised training courses for NFSA staff. More details.



• Throughout March the NFSA's Arc Cinema continues its popular program with highlights such as Roman Polanski's Macbeth (1971), Andy Warhol's Lonesome Cowboys (1968), Fargo (1996) by the Coen brothers, Rolf de Heer's Bad Boy Bubby (1994), and Laszlo Benedek's The Wild One (1954) starring Marlon Brando. Complete calendar.



• Professor Michael Hannan, a recent Centre for Scholarly and Archival Research (CSAR) Fellow who specialises in Australian film music and composition, has recently looked into the National Collection to identify trends in Australian feature film scores. His research project not only aims to document these trends in Australian features from 1930 to 1961, but also to develop film music scholarship more generally. More details.

Top

• Toronto Film Festival pre-selector Jane Schoettle will be in Australia in April to view Australian feature films and feature documentaries for the 2008 festival. Contact Martina Vascotto at the AFC's Marketing Branch if you have an eligible film to be viewed. More details.



• The AFC is calling for Cannes 2008 attendees. If you are attending the festival and/or market in 2008 please contact Julie Archet to take advantage of discounted rates and be included in the market screenings booklet. More details.



• Meetmarket 2008 took place 19-22 March at the Australian International Documentary Conference in Fremantle. During MeetMarket more than 150 scheduled meetings took place between the 31 participating buyers and filmmakers from the 20 Australian projects selected. More details.



• Congratulations to all the filmmakers whose AFC-funded / supported films have recently won awards or been selected to screen at other festivals around the world. More details.



• The Australian films
  Night
  The Black Balloon
  Death Defying Acts
  Hey, Hey It's Esther Blueburger
  Global Haywire
  Unfinished Sky and
  Black Water
  are screening in March and April so keep an eye out for them at your local cinema.

Top

• The AFC is pleased to announce the release of the 2008 edition of The Satchel - Production Budgeting & Film Management. Fully revised and updated, The Satchel is the ultimate how-to guide by practitioners, for practitioners. Details and order form.
  
  
• The AFC released its statistical publication Audiovisual Production in Australia providing key data on Australia's audiovisual production and Australian films and programs in the marketplace. Visit Get the Picture online for further details and to download the pdf, or contact publishing@afc.gov.au for a hard copy.



• Other new or recently updated AFC publications are:
  Australians at Miptv and Milia 2008,
  Australian TV Drama and Documentary Catalogue March 2008
  Download the pdfs or contact publishing@afc.gov.au for a hard copy.

Top

• Award-winning actor Wendy Hughes will introduce the Qld and NSW premieres of her new comedy The View From Greenhaven Drive for Big Screen at Nanango (14-16 Mar) and Yamba (4-6 Apr). Cactus was introduced by its executive producer Bryan Brown at the Big Screen Festival in Mildura on 29 February. more details. Visit the Big Screen website for other Big Screen programs.



• Screening on the AFC's Regional Digital Screen Network in April is the Berlinale winner The Black Balloon and a live via satellite transmission of Swan Lake (presented in collaboration with The Australian Ballet and ABC2). Visit the RDSN webpage for more details.



• In partnership with Central Australian Aboriginal Media Association (CAAMA), Black Screen compiles will screen in four remote Northern Territory communities and Alice Springs during March and April. In March, Black Screen Indigenous films will also be screened at the Australian Public Service Commission Conference in Sydney, Oorala Centre at the University of New England and in conjunction with the In the Bin Short film festival and workshops in Western Australia. Visit the Black Screen webpage for more details.



• School Screen continues to join forces with Big Screen in March with screenings in Mildura of Dr Plonk, Kokoda and Romulus, My Father to over 400 primary and secondary school children. Further screenings will be in Nanango (14 March), Yamba in April and across the AFC's Regional Digital Screen Network in April. Visit the School Screen webpage for more details.



• Yolngu Boy was selected as the opening night film for the Indian-Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation (IOR-ARC) Film Festival in New Delhi, India. Director Stephen Johnson was flown over as guest of honour for the event. In March, the Embassy Roadshow will be screening 13 features and one short film in New Dehli, Hyderabad and Bangalore in India. The Moscow Embassy will be hosting its 3rd Embassy Roadshow event in April, screening 10 features and three shorts.

Top

• Recent additions to australianscreen include the features Exile in Sarajevo and Mad Dog Morgan with its remarkable cast that includes Graeme Blundell, David Gulpilill, John Hargreaves, Dennis Hopper, Jack Thompson and Frank Thring, plus landmark ABC television programs: Four Corners and Chequerboard. Visits to the website have risen since school returned to a mid-week peak of around 2,500 visitors a day - up from around 1,750 late last year. The AFC received 45 expressions of interest for curators through the recent tender process.



• Positions vacant: for current vacant positions at the AFC.



• Are you looking for details of a particular Australian film title - feature, short, TV drama or documentary? The Searchable Film Database includes Australian and co-produced features, TV drama and documentaries from 1990 and shorts from 1998. It is updated on the AFC website each month.



• Latest updates to industry statistics in Get the Picture Online.

Top

• The AFC's Industry and Cultural Development Division proudly supports the following upcoming festivals and events:
  
  ASTRA WWIT Breakfast & ASTRA Conference
  18 March at The Hilton Sydney
  
  Flickerfest International Short Film Festival National Tour 2008
  Until March 2008
  
  In the Bin Touring Film Festival 2008
  Until April 08
  
  World of Women (WOW) National and Regional Tour
  Until May 2008
  
  Sydney Travelling Film Festival (TFF) 2007/08
  Until June 2008
  
  
• The five successful Headlands 2008 documentary projects were announced at AIDC. The selected filmmakers will participate in the intensive documentary development program and the projects they develop will be taken to the AIDC to pitch in 2009. Visit the AFTRS website for more details.



• SPAA and Holding Redlich are holding a master class, Dealing with the Investment Community - How to Leverage the Producer Offset, to assist producers in dealing with investors using the Producer Offset. The classes will run in Melbourne 26 March and Sydney 2 April. Visit the SPAA website to register.



• The Revelation Perth International Film Festival 2008 is calling for entries. Deadline: 4 April. More details.



• The 2008 EnhanceTV ATOM Awards are now open for entries. Deadline 10 June. Visit the ATOM Awards website for entry forms and further details.



• QPIX is calling for applications for RAW NERVE 2008, applications close 30 June; NOVA INTERNATIONAL 2, applications close 1 August; and interested crew for their Short Film Productions. Visit the QPIX website for more details.



• The ACT Filmmakers' Network is a not-for-profit cultural film and television industry agency that delivers a range of workshops for practitioners in the national capital and region.



• Metro Screen is a non-profit organisation that offers training, equipment hire and production support to filmmakers and digital media practitioners. They have monthly Metro Screen Network meetings and Filmmakers' Studio events.



• mo:life monthly is an informal gathering on the second Monday of every month, that offers the opportunity to discuss the latest advances and opportunities in mobile media technology and culture. Contact d.opitz@metroscreen.org.au



• OPEN CHANNEL is a screen resource organisation located in Melbourne's Docklands. They run training courses, have support programs and hire out production equipment.



• OzDox, a joint initiative of documentary filmmakers, industry bodies and academics, to foster, promote and provide a monthly forum for documentary culture, holds regular industry events.



• ScreenWest and PAC Screen Workshops run the PAC Script Labs, rehearsed readings of WA feature film scripts on the last Wednesday of every second month. The aim is to hone WA scripts and increase the profile, quality and awareness of WA film projects.



• Popcorn Taxi, a regular film event where filmmakers and film lovers can meet, watch films of all types, and discuss the filmmaking process all year round, runs in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane and Darwin.



• Other AFC-supported activities and events.

Top

Australian writer-director Elissa Down is best known for her innovative and engaging short films, including Pink Pyjamas (2001) and the 2004 Tropfest finalist Summer Angst. The Black Balloon, Elissa's directorial feature film debut starring Rhys Wakefield, Gemma Ward, Luke Ford, Erik Thomson and Toni Collette, was released nationally on 6 March. The AFC-supported film has already had an auspicious start with its success at the Berlin International Film Festival in February, opening the Generation 14plus program and going on to win the Crystal Bear for the Best Feature-length film. The AFC's EFFIE RASSOS spoke to Elissa about the film's development and production just before she set off for Berlin.

Effie Rassos: The Black Balloon is based upon your own experiences growing up with autistic brothers. Could you talk a little about the challenges (and the benefits) of bringing such a personal story to the screen?
Elissa Down: When I was first tackling the script there was maybe a subconscious and then conscious moment where I thought, "How much do I want to show this is my story?" And then while the script was going through Aurora [the NSWFTO's script development workshop], I remember speaking to Jane Campion who said, "Don't worry what people think". And she was absolutely right. It was from that point on that everything was up for grabs! That was a turning point for me because I said to myself, "I've got nothing to hide, just say how you feel and go for it."

ER: You received AFC development funding for the film. How did this contribute to realising the film?
ED: Basically Jimmy Jack [aka Jimmy the Exploder] and I wrote this script firstly as a 50-minute script for the Family Matters Initiative [a joint production initiative between SBS Independent, Screen Tasmania, Showtime Australia] that was running a few years ago. At the time they loved the script but they didn't want me attached as the director. So we withdrew the script and then we put it into the AFC who were just amazing. It was because of the AFC support we were able to convert the script from a 50-minute short feature into a feature film and start that journey.


Read the full article.

Top