Good preservation allows films to survive the test of time decades after their original release. Miguel Gonzalez reports on the challenges of preserving the country’s audiovisual history.
Human lifespan and collective memory are both so short that it’s no surprise many films are condemned to disappear from the face of the Earth, completely forgotten by its audience. But when the work is being archived and preserved properly, there’s always the possibility of a second chance. Take, for example, the work of Giorgio Mangiamele.
‘Giorgio who?’ Many may ask.
Italian-born Mangiamele made his first feature Il Contratto in Melbourne in 1953. A pioneer, he was the first to document the experience of migrants in post-war Australia, and was one of the few art cinema directors working in the industry in the difficult decades of 1950 and 1960. Although his feature Clay was the first Australian film to screen at Cannes to critical acclaim,...
Human lifespan and collective memory are both so short that it’s no surprise many films are condemned to disappear from the face of the Earth, completely forgotten by its audience. But when the work is being archived and preserved properly, there’s always the possibility of a second chance. Take, for example, the work of Giorgio Mangiamele.
‘Giorgio who?’ Many may ask.
Italian-born Mangiamele made his first feature Il Contratto in Melbourne in 1953. A pioneer, he was the first to document the experience of migrants in post-war Australia, and was one of the few art cinema directors working in the industry in the difficult decades of 1950 and 1960. Although his feature Clay was the first Australian film to screen at Cannes to critical acclaim,...
- 8/31/2011
- by Colin Delaney
- Encore Magazine
Rumors about Grand Theft Auto V have surfaced pertaining to the setting, codename, and characters for the highly anticipated spectacle. A reported casting call has outed the codename “Rush” and a character list has also been revealed. The setting is rumored to be what most people have speculated it would be, and that is a modern times Los Angeles.
One final rumor about the game is Gilbert Gottfried and Robert De Niro will be voice actors in GTA V.
Here is the list of rumored characters:
Mitch Hayes:
38 – Annoying, wise cracking, highly successful FBI agent. In great shape. Does triathlons, drinks low cal beer, but still has a sense of humor. Miguel Gonzalez:
25 Young Mexican American FBI agent, caught between a few mob bosses. Very clean cut Clyde:
23 – Moronic, almost inbred and creepy white trash hillbilly. Very naïve but in a creepy ‘it’s only incest sort of way...
One final rumor about the game is Gilbert Gottfried and Robert De Niro will be voice actors in GTA V.
Here is the list of rumored characters:
Mitch Hayes:
38 – Annoying, wise cracking, highly successful FBI agent. In great shape. Does triathlons, drinks low cal beer, but still has a sense of humor. Miguel Gonzalez:
25 Young Mexican American FBI agent, caught between a few mob bosses. Very clean cut Clyde:
23 – Moronic, almost inbred and creepy white trash hillbilly. Very naïve but in a creepy ‘it’s only incest sort of way...
- 8/9/2011
- by Matt Mann
- Obsessed with Film
Sydney-based vendor Fuel VFX completed 120 shots on Captain America: The First Avenger, consolidating its relationship with Marvel Studios and reputation as a world-class company. Miguel Gonzalez reports.
The last piece in the billion dollar Marvel Studios superhero puzzle is Captain America: The Last Avenger. Since his 1941 creation by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby as a symbol of Us patriotism, the character has been synonymous with the red, white and blue of the American flag, but the latest incarnation of Captain America is quite global, with a number of international vendors contributing to the creation of this visual extravaganza. One of them is Sydney-based Fuel VFX.
Most of the film is set in the 1940s and tells the story of Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) a man who is physically unfit to join the Us Army to fight in the Second World War, and instead volunteers for a military experiment that turns him into a super-soldier.
The last piece in the billion dollar Marvel Studios superhero puzzle is Captain America: The Last Avenger. Since his 1941 creation by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby as a symbol of Us patriotism, the character has been synonymous with the red, white and blue of the American flag, but the latest incarnation of Captain America is quite global, with a number of international vendors contributing to the creation of this visual extravaganza. One of them is Sydney-based Fuel VFX.
Most of the film is set in the 1940s and tells the story of Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) a man who is physically unfit to join the Us Army to fight in the Second World War, and instead volunteers for a military experiment that turns him into a super-soldier.
- 8/9/2011
- by Colin Delaney
- Encore Magazine
Every year dozens of new film festivals pop up around the world, and Australia is no exception. Miguel Gonzalez asked Australia’s festival directors what the proliferation of these events mean to screen culture and the local film industry.
As the screen industry migrates to the digital world, there’s one experience that cannot yet be replicated online: the excitement of a film festival.
Festivals are not only major community events, but essential to the survival of film culture; they provide audiences with alternative visions of the world and content that not only differs from the standards established by Hollywood blockbusters, but also goes beyond the release limitations of the local art house distribution system. They can provide the film industry with a space for the exchange of ideas and cooperation.
For Adelaide Film Festival director Katrina Sedgwick, the ultimate goal is to create a critical mass of energy that...
As the screen industry migrates to the digital world, there’s one experience that cannot yet be replicated online: the excitement of a film festival.
Festivals are not only major community events, but essential to the survival of film culture; they provide audiences with alternative visions of the world and content that not only differs from the standards established by Hollywood blockbusters, but also goes beyond the release limitations of the local art house distribution system. They can provide the film industry with a space for the exchange of ideas and cooperation.
For Adelaide Film Festival director Katrina Sedgwick, the ultimate goal is to create a critical mass of energy that...
- 6/23/2011
- by Colin Delaney
- Encore Magazine
Every year, thousands of writers around the world pay hundreds of dollars to attend this man’s seminar. Miguel Gonzalez spoke with the one and only Robert McKee about how he’s planning to educate Australian writers.
His official website (mckeestory.com) boasts the names of hundreds of former students turned celebrities with a combined 35 Academy Awards (and 160+ nominations) and billions of dollars earned at the worldwide box office.
He’s been famously celebrated and satirised in Spike Jonze’s 2002 film Adaptation (where he was played by his friend, actor Brian Cox). He claims there are no money-making formulas or rigid rules, but forms and principles of story structure and design. He is Robert McKee, and in a world where content is king, he is the Emperor.
This is the Encore interview with McKee, prior to his Australian tour later this month.
Screen Australia is supporting your visit. In a...
His official website (mckeestory.com) boasts the names of hundreds of former students turned celebrities with a combined 35 Academy Awards (and 160+ nominations) and billions of dollars earned at the worldwide box office.
He’s been famously celebrated and satirised in Spike Jonze’s 2002 film Adaptation (where he was played by his friend, actor Brian Cox). He claims there are no money-making formulas or rigid rules, but forms and principles of story structure and design. He is Robert McKee, and in a world where content is king, he is the Emperor.
This is the Encore interview with McKee, prior to his Australian tour later this month.
Screen Australia is supporting your visit. In a...
- 6/14/2011
- by Colin Delaney
- Encore Magazine
Singapore may be geographically small but it has big plans for its screen industry, including making good use of its co-production treaty with Australia. Miguel Gonzalez reports.
Next month, the screen industry’s eyes will be in Singapore, as the island nation hosts its first market/conference/ trade and technology exhibition, simply called ScreenSingapore.
It is part of the country’s plan to become a regional media hub. The local media industry employs 60,000 people, with about a 30 production companies, 20 animation studios and a dozen post-production houses. Plans for growth include the development of Mediapolis @ one-north – a 19-hectare innovation and R&D complex that by 2020, will host soundstages, digital production and broadcast facilities.
The country’s Media Development Authority launched the blueprint for the nation’s media industries in 2009. The Media Fusion Plan aims to make Singapore “the trusted global capital for New Asia Media” by strengthening the media infrastructure and...
Next month, the screen industry’s eyes will be in Singapore, as the island nation hosts its first market/conference/ trade and technology exhibition, simply called ScreenSingapore.
It is part of the country’s plan to become a regional media hub. The local media industry employs 60,000 people, with about a 30 production companies, 20 animation studios and a dozen post-production houses. Plans for growth include the development of Mediapolis @ one-north – a 19-hectare innovation and R&D complex that by 2020, will host soundstages, digital production and broadcast facilities.
The country’s Media Development Authority launched the blueprint for the nation’s media industries in 2009. The Media Fusion Plan aims to make Singapore “the trusted global capital for New Asia Media” by strengthening the media infrastructure and...
- 5/25/2011
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
Australia’s screen professionals must be free to practice their skills anywhere in the world, but how do we stop this healthy career development from becoming a dangerous brain drain? Miguel Gonzalez reports.
If we were to make a list of all the Australian screen practitioners who have made it overseas, it would be a very long list indeed. It would probably start with the A-list creatives everybody knows, followed by the more anonymous and numerous executives, directors, producers, editors, cinematographers, VFX artists and technicians working all over the world.
While it is to be expected that many – if not all – industry practitioners would seek to expand their horizons and work internationally at some point in their careers to reach other markets, work in other systems and cultures and develop new skills, leaving Australia should not be an act of professional desperation.
The historical fluctuation in the volume of international...
If we were to make a list of all the Australian screen practitioners who have made it overseas, it would be a very long list indeed. It would probably start with the A-list creatives everybody knows, followed by the more anonymous and numerous executives, directors, producers, editors, cinematographers, VFX artists and technicians working all over the world.
While it is to be expected that many – if not all – industry practitioners would seek to expand their horizons and work internationally at some point in their careers to reach other markets, work in other systems and cultures and develop new skills, leaving Australia should not be an act of professional desperation.
The historical fluctuation in the volume of international...
- 5/24/2011
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
Australia’s most tragic serial murders have been re-imagined as Snowtown, a psychological thriller that will prove its early detractors wrong. Miguel Gonzalez reports.
Few Australian films have attracted as much attention as Snowtown, and it’s easy to see why. The ‘Bodies in Barrels’ murders it’s based on shocked the nation in 1999, when eight bodies were found in barrels of acid in a disused building in the small town of Snowtown, South Australia. Four people were arrested and charged over the murder of 12 victims; John Justin Bunting was the central figure behind the killings, with the assistance of Robert Joe Wagner, Mark Ray Haydon, and James Vlassakis, the son of Bunting’s partner Elizabeth Harvey.
Ever since the project was announced and it was revealed it would receive public funding, some were eager to cast the first stone and dismiss the film as “a shocking way to spend...
Few Australian films have attracted as much attention as Snowtown, and it’s easy to see why. The ‘Bodies in Barrels’ murders it’s based on shocked the nation in 1999, when eight bodies were found in barrels of acid in a disused building in the small town of Snowtown, South Australia. Four people were arrested and charged over the murder of 12 victims; John Justin Bunting was the central figure behind the killings, with the assistance of Robert Joe Wagner, Mark Ray Haydon, and James Vlassakis, the son of Bunting’s partner Elizabeth Harvey.
Ever since the project was announced and it was revealed it would receive public funding, some were eager to cast the first stone and dismiss the film as “a shocking way to spend...
- 5/9/2011
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
Content creators heading to Miptv, Cannes and any other international markets must plan their activities carefully if they want to stand out at these extremely competitive events. Miguel Gonzalez reports.
Every year hundreds of content creators from all over the world travel to Europe, Asia and the Us to do business at the big festivals – Cannes, Berlin, Toronto and Sundance – because they feature a market component for buying, selling, screening and financing films. Television creators have Miptv and Mipcom; documentary filmmakers have Idfa and HotDocs. There are, of course, many more markets – old and new – taking place in different territories and filmmakers, whether they’re financing their next project or looking for a sales agent or distributor, must identify the one that is right for each film, documentary and TV program.
While the idea of warm spring nights in Cannes, in designer outfits and sipping drinks while selling/ buying the...
Every year hundreds of content creators from all over the world travel to Europe, Asia and the Us to do business at the big festivals – Cannes, Berlin, Toronto and Sundance – because they feature a market component for buying, selling, screening and financing films. Television creators have Miptv and Mipcom; documentary filmmakers have Idfa and HotDocs. There are, of course, many more markets – old and new – taking place in different territories and filmmakers, whether they’re financing their next project or looking for a sales agent or distributor, must identify the one that is right for each film, documentary and TV program.
While the idea of warm spring nights in Cannes, in designer outfits and sipping drinks while selling/ buying the...
- 5/2/2011
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
Just like other drama directors before him, Kenneth Branagh faced the challenge of being an industry veteran, yet a novice in the ultra high budget, VFX intensive level of filmmaking. Miguel Gonzalez reports.
Better known for his Shakespearean work on film and on the stage, Kenneth Branagh was an inspired yet unusual choice to direct the film adaptation of the Marvel Comics superhero and god of Thunder, Thor… and he didn’t hesitate when he was approached to helm this project.
“I knew Thor would be an epic on a scale that I had not worked on before, so I was excited and surprised,” admitted Branagh.
He even finds similarities between the work of Shakespeare and the world of Thor – the Norse god of thunder sent to Earth to learn humility: “They’re both about royal families, the tension between the private world of public individuals, and the jobs they have to do.
Better known for his Shakespearean work on film and on the stage, Kenneth Branagh was an inspired yet unusual choice to direct the film adaptation of the Marvel Comics superhero and god of Thunder, Thor… and he didn’t hesitate when he was approached to helm this project.
“I knew Thor would be an epic on a scale that I had not worked on before, so I was excited and surprised,” admitted Branagh.
He even finds similarities between the work of Shakespeare and the world of Thor – the Norse god of thunder sent to Earth to learn humility: “They’re both about royal families, the tension between the private world of public individuals, and the jobs they have to do.
- 4/17/2011
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
Miguel Gonzalez spoke with Us director Zack Snyder about Sucker Punch, the first film he’s conceived from beginning to end. It’s also another step in his successful relationship with Australia’s Animal Logic.
Sucker Punch is Zack Snyder’s fifth film, but only the first one not to be adapted from existing material. It’s an original script co-written with Steve Shibuya; it tells the story of Baby Doll (Emily Browning), a teenager locked up by her stepfather in a psychiatric hospital. With the help of her inmate friends (including Abbie Cornish) she’ll have to enter and conquer a series of fantasy worlds in order to escape her real life prison before being lobotomised by her captors.
Snyder admits that, being his own script, he felt more pressure working on Sucker Punch, at least in the early stages.
“But once it’s written, the script takes a life of its own,...
Sucker Punch is Zack Snyder’s fifth film, but only the first one not to be adapted from existing material. It’s an original script co-written with Steve Shibuya; it tells the story of Baby Doll (Emily Browning), a teenager locked up by her stepfather in a psychiatric hospital. With the help of her inmate friends (including Abbie Cornish) she’ll have to enter and conquer a series of fantasy worlds in order to escape her real life prison before being lobotomised by her captors.
Snyder admits that, being his own script, he felt more pressure working on Sucker Punch, at least in the early stages.
“But once it’s written, the script takes a life of its own,...
- 4/12/2011
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
From Nirvana (and Isabel Lucas) fans to seventy-year-olds, Gale Edwards’ debut feature A Heartbeat Away targets an unusually wide demographic. Miguel Gonzalez reports.
Originally titled Montague Municipal, the script was submitted by a Queensland Investment Corporation equities dealer, Julia Kincade, to an initiative set up by the Pftc and Pictures in Paradise to find new writers.
“New writers come up with fantastic ideas and they’re very open to changes, which I’m not sure more experienced writers are. The downside is that it can sometimes take a long time, because they’re not full-time writers and they’ve got other jobs,” said producer Chris Fitchett.
Two scripts from that scheme were soon made into films, Blurred in 2002 and Under the Radar in 2004, but the process for this one would be much slower. Chris Fitchett was working on the film as script editor with Brown producing, but both got distracted by other projects.
Originally titled Montague Municipal, the script was submitted by a Queensland Investment Corporation equities dealer, Julia Kincade, to an initiative set up by the Pftc and Pictures in Paradise to find new writers.
“New writers come up with fantastic ideas and they’re very open to changes, which I’m not sure more experienced writers are. The downside is that it can sometimes take a long time, because they’re not full-time writers and they’ve got other jobs,” said producer Chris Fitchett.
Two scripts from that scheme were soon made into films, Blurred in 2002 and Under the Radar in 2004, but the process for this one would be much slower. Chris Fitchett was working on the film as script editor with Brown producing, but both got distracted by other projects.
- 3/13/2011
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
Our content classification system is about to be reviewed to ensure it remains relevant in the digital age, allowing Australians to make informed content choices. Miguel Gonzalez reports.
Just before Christmas, Attorney-General Robert McClelland and Minister for Home Affairs Brendan O’Connor announced they would ask the Australian Law Reform Commission to review the nation’s classification categories and, indeed, the entire classification system. O’Connor said it needs to be modernised to accommodate current and future technologies, and to allow people to make informed choices about their content consumption The last enquiry into classification laws took place in 1991.
Videogames that have received most of the attention, with some members of the community the introduction of an R18+ classification for violent games, as well as a review of the current MA15+ and Rc. More traditional screen content, however, is not free of controversy, with the occasional groups openly complaining about...
Just before Christmas, Attorney-General Robert McClelland and Minister for Home Affairs Brendan O’Connor announced they would ask the Australian Law Reform Commission to review the nation’s classification categories and, indeed, the entire classification system. O’Connor said it needs to be modernised to accommodate current and future technologies, and to allow people to make informed choices about their content consumption The last enquiry into classification laws took place in 1991.
Videogames that have received most of the attention, with some members of the community the introduction of an R18+ classification for violent games, as well as a review of the current MA15+ and Rc. More traditional screen content, however, is not free of controversy, with the occasional groups openly complaining about...
- 3/10/2011
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
After a long absence, director Bob Connolly returns with Mrs. Carey’s Concert. Miguel Gonzalez spoke with him about his life in documentary.
Connolly was not the type of child that dreamt of working on TV or film. When he dropped out of an Arts Law degree in 1964, he joined the ABC as a cadet journalist. He did “reasonably well” and ended up doing a stint in New York. When he returned in 1968, he joined a current affairs program, first as an assistant producer, and ultimately working as an on camera reporter.
“But I was hopeless at the studio, like a stunned mullet, terrified of live stuff. My brain used to go blank!” he admitted.
So Connolly was sent to work on the show’s “Sunday stories”, doing five-minute reports until, three years later, he was asked to do a half-hour story for the documentary series A Big Country. It was his first observational work,...
Connolly was not the type of child that dreamt of working on TV or film. When he dropped out of an Arts Law degree in 1964, he joined the ABC as a cadet journalist. He did “reasonably well” and ended up doing a stint in New York. When he returned in 1968, he joined a current affairs program, first as an assistant producer, and ultimately working as an on camera reporter.
“But I was hopeless at the studio, like a stunned mullet, terrified of live stuff. My brain used to go blank!” he admitted.
So Connolly was sent to work on the show’s “Sunday stories”, doing five-minute reports until, three years later, he was asked to do a half-hour story for the documentary series A Big Country. It was his first observational work,...
- 3/10/2011
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
Dario Russo got millions of hits online with his Italian Spider-Man. He told Miguel Gonzalez how he’s going to bring that existing audience to his new TV show, Danger 5.
When Dario Russo first conceived Italian Spider-Man – a parody of Italian action films of the 70s – as a short film for his final year at Flinders University and uploaded it to YouTube in late 2007, just as he had done with all his previous work, he did not anticipate that the fake trailer would find a cult following online… but it did.
“It was shot on a Jvc prosumer HD camera, and it reflected the absolute zero budget we were working on then. It was made essentially with what we could borrow, but for some reason a whole bunch of people decided to watch the trailer,” he said.
The initial success helped Russo secure funding for 10 more shorts, which were also released via YouTube.
When Dario Russo first conceived Italian Spider-Man – a parody of Italian action films of the 70s – as a short film for his final year at Flinders University and uploaded it to YouTube in late 2007, just as he had done with all his previous work, he did not anticipate that the fake trailer would find a cult following online… but it did.
“It was shot on a Jvc prosumer HD camera, and it reflected the absolute zero budget we were working on then. It was made essentially with what we could borrow, but for some reason a whole bunch of people decided to watch the trailer,” he said.
The initial success helped Russo secure funding for 10 more shorts, which were also released via YouTube.
- 2/25/2011
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
The work of editors is often overlooked. Miguel Gonzalez found that, as if that wasn’t bad enough, they now have more footage to work through but not more time to do so, and tight budgets mean assistant editors are becoming a rare luxury.
“It’s like cuttting off three of an editor’s fingers,” said Underbelly editor Deb Peart about the absence of assistant editors during the crucial moments of the editing process.
Due to budgetary reasons, assistants are frequently taken off jobs once the film has been shot, and then brought back at the end.
“I started as an assistant, learning from sitting with directors and editors and observing them work together in the cutting room and watching the cut develop. They’re now taking away that period of learning from assistants, because when they’re doing rushes they’re chained to their desk, getting what they can...
“It’s like cuttting off three of an editor’s fingers,” said Underbelly editor Deb Peart about the absence of assistant editors during the crucial moments of the editing process.
Due to budgetary reasons, assistants are frequently taken off jobs once the film has been shot, and then brought back at the end.
“I started as an assistant, learning from sitting with directors and editors and observing them work together in the cutting room and watching the cut develop. They’re now taking away that period of learning from assistants, because when they’re doing rushes they’re chained to their desk, getting what they can...
- 1/13/2011
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
Pamela Wilson Endrina, coordinator for research programs at the Victoria University, told Miguel Gonzalez how the Professional Certificate in Executive Screen Production is helping producers develop their skills, particularly in the areas of budgeting, financing and fundraising.
Does Australia need more courses for producers?
Absolutely – there are very few producer focused courses to begin with and of these only a handful consider the business end of making product. Apart from our course I can only think of a few short courses offered by Aftrs and the Diploma offered by Aftrs at the Centre for Screen Business.
What does your course offer in those areas?
We look at what avenues are available in Australia and overseas to obtain financing for screen projects, the typical legals and budgets involved as well as sales, marketing and distribution. We also cover the nuts and bolts of putting together an investment funding package and how...
Does Australia need more courses for producers?
Absolutely – there are very few producer focused courses to begin with and of these only a handful consider the business end of making product. Apart from our course I can only think of a few short courses offered by Aftrs and the Diploma offered by Aftrs at the Centre for Screen Business.
What does your course offer in those areas?
We look at what avenues are available in Australia and overseas to obtain financing for screen projects, the typical legals and budgets involved as well as sales, marketing and distribution. We also cover the nuts and bolts of putting together an investment funding package and how...
- 12/15/2010
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
Encore will host its first Question Time live event on November 30, with an A-list panel including Screen Australia head of development Martha Coleman, Omnilab Media Group managing director Christopher Mapp, Sony Pictures Releasing Australia managing director Stephen Basil-Jones and Red Hill director Patrick Hughes.
This Q&A session will be moderated by Encore editor Miguel Gonzalez, giving the audience a chance to ask any question about the film, television and TV commercial sectors of the screen industry.
The breakfast event will be held at L’Aqua at Cockle Bay Wharf in Sydney’s Darling Harbour, the morning of November 30, 2010 from 7:30 to 9:30am.
Our panellists have experience a wealth of experience that anyone in the industry can learn from:
Martha Coleman is the head of development at Screen Australia. Martha worked in the United Kingdom as the head of development at Icon Entertainment International, the head of creative affairs...
This Q&A session will be moderated by Encore editor Miguel Gonzalez, giving the audience a chance to ask any question about the film, television and TV commercial sectors of the screen industry.
The breakfast event will be held at L’Aqua at Cockle Bay Wharf in Sydney’s Darling Harbour, the morning of November 30, 2010 from 7:30 to 9:30am.
Our panellists have experience a wealth of experience that anyone in the industry can learn from:
Martha Coleman is the head of development at Screen Australia. Martha worked in the United Kingdom as the head of development at Icon Entertainment International, the head of creative affairs...
- 11/11/2010
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
It all started with the vision of a kid in a bloody tuxedo, tied to a chair. Who is this kid? How did he get here? Who’s done this to him? And most importantly, how is he going to get out? Miguel Gonzalez talked to the creators of The Loved Ones to find the answers.
Knowing horror is a popular genre, Tasmanian writer/director Sean Byrne saw an opportunity to create his first feature– if only he could find a point of difference that would make him stand out from the pack; from the countless generic horror films saturating the market. His inspiration came from classics such as Carrie and The Evil Dead, taking the prom sub-genre into a cabin in the woods, and turning prom rituals like the dancing and the crowning of the king and queen
into the actual instruments of torture. Byrne then had the tuxedo...
Knowing horror is a popular genre, Tasmanian writer/director Sean Byrne saw an opportunity to create his first feature– if only he could find a point of difference that would make him stand out from the pack; from the countless generic horror films saturating the market. His inspiration came from classics such as Carrie and The Evil Dead, taking the prom sub-genre into a cabin in the woods, and turning prom rituals like the dancing and the crowning of the king and queen
into the actual instruments of torture. Byrne then had the tuxedo...
- 11/2/2010
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
The third series of The Librarians is bigger than its predecessors. Miguel Gonzalez visited the Melbourne set of the cult ABC comedy.
Most of the time, the Melbourne Showgrounds are an exhibition and functions venue, but occasionally, they are also the home of the Middleton Interactive Learning Centre and her manager, head librarian Frances O’Brien. ABC TV’s comedy The Librarians – launched in 2007 – was originally shot at an old car dealership in Melbourne, but people kept trying to come in thinking it was a real library. Taking advantage of the fire that destroyed the original library in the first series, the show moved during its second season to building 13 at the Showgrounds, a much more private and spacious location.
Gristmill’s Robyn Butler and Wayne Hope – wearing their writing, producing and acting hats as Frances and her husband Terry – pitched the ABC their idea for a third series just...
Most of the time, the Melbourne Showgrounds are an exhibition and functions venue, but occasionally, they are also the home of the Middleton Interactive Learning Centre and her manager, head librarian Frances O’Brien. ABC TV’s comedy The Librarians – launched in 2007 – was originally shot at an old car dealership in Melbourne, but people kept trying to come in thinking it was a real library. Taking advantage of the fire that destroyed the original library in the first series, the show moved during its second season to building 13 at the Showgrounds, a much more private and spacious location.
Gristmill’s Robyn Butler and Wayne Hope – wearing their writing, producing and acting hats as Frances and her husband Terry – pitched the ABC their idea for a third series just...
- 10/12/2010
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
There is so much television content generated around the world that if a program is to have a fighting chance in the marketplace, it needs a distributor who knows what they’re doing. Miguel Gonzalez spoke with a number of experts about what’s selling, and what they need to do to get the interest of broadcasters.
Each television program needs a good distributor in order to travel the world. Production companies and networks entrust their creations to these experts, and they discussed their current challenges
with .
Endemol Worldwide Distribution represents product such as Packed to the Rafters and Home and Away (Seven Network), Hi-5 (Nine Network), Bananas in Pyjamas (ABC) and Southern Star’s Rush and Rescue: Special Ops, in addition to all international Endemol brands. While the company has positioned Australian content in a number of countries, it has found resistance trying to place home grown drama in...
Each television program needs a good distributor in order to travel the world. Production companies and networks entrust their creations to these experts, and they discussed their current challenges
with .
Endemol Worldwide Distribution represents product such as Packed to the Rafters and Home and Away (Seven Network), Hi-5 (Nine Network), Bananas in Pyjamas (ABC) and Southern Star’s Rush and Rescue: Special Ops, in addition to all international Endemol brands. While the company has positioned Australian content in a number of countries, it has found resistance trying to place home grown drama in...
- 10/5/2010
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
There is an ongoing love affair between established filmmakers and Tvc work, and the new Commonwealth Bank campaign is a perfect example of this phenomenon, having been helmed by acclaimed French director Jean-Pierre Jeunet (Amelie, Micmacs).
How did this high-profile filmmaker end up shooting a poodle in the streets of Melbourne? Miguel Gonzalez writes.
The new Cba campaign is a departure from the previous ‘Agency’ concept.
“The main message is still the same, that the bank is determined to support the community in different ways (Grants, which presents a little girl in pure Amelie style and highlights the staff’s community efforts) and to solve your problems quickly (Bulldog, in which the romantic advances of a CGI-enhanced bulldog are frustrated by the bank’s quick service) or by calling you back if they don’t answer first time (Call You Back, the melodramatic story of a housewife rescued by bank staff),” explained Goodby,...
How did this high-profile filmmaker end up shooting a poodle in the streets of Melbourne? Miguel Gonzalez writes.
The new Cba campaign is a departure from the previous ‘Agency’ concept.
“The main message is still the same, that the bank is determined to support the community in different ways (Grants, which presents a little girl in pure Amelie style and highlights the staff’s community efforts) and to solve your problems quickly (Bulldog, in which the romantic advances of a CGI-enhanced bulldog are frustrated by the bank’s quick service) or by calling you back if they don’t answer first time (Call You Back, the melodramatic story of a housewife rescued by bank staff),” explained Goodby,...
- 8/10/2010
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
Director Shirley Barrett didn’t get to shoot South Solitary on her dream island, but she found that Plan B is sometimes better. Miguel Gonzalez writes.
Eight years ago Barrett stayed at the first cast concrete lighthouse in Australia, Green Cape, in southern Nsw – it now provides accommodation for visitors. She was there doing research for a film she had written, about whaling in the early 1900s. Eventually Barrett came to the conclusion that it was unlikely that the project would ever be made, due to its cost and the VFX it required. Barrett then started reading copies of the lighthouse log book, which described local shipwrecks and how homing pigeons were so well fed and lovingly tended to that, when they were required to fly home, they simply refused to do it. Barrett had found a new idea for a film.
“A small group of people who have to...
Eight years ago Barrett stayed at the first cast concrete lighthouse in Australia, Green Cape, in southern Nsw – it now provides accommodation for visitors. She was there doing research for a film she had written, about whaling in the early 1900s. Eventually Barrett came to the conclusion that it was unlikely that the project would ever be made, due to its cost and the VFX it required. Barrett then started reading copies of the lighthouse log book, which described local shipwrecks and how homing pigeons were so well fed and lovingly tended to that, when they were required to fly home, they simply refused to do it. Barrett had found a new idea for a film.
“A small group of people who have to...
- 7/28/2010
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
Gone are the days when TV networks only had to compete with a few rivals to get the attention of potential viewers. Creating compelling content is only the beginning; in a world of fragmented audiences and thousands of platforms and products competing for the same eyeballs, everyone is trying to stand out. Miguel Gonzalez reports.
It’s no secret that television has become a segmented market where audiences are no longer limited by the offerings of the five networks that for years were Australia’s preferred source of entertainment and information. It is a world of multi-channels, pay TV, Iptv, games and an explosion of local and international content available at home or on the go. All of these options are competing for the same viewers so, more than ever, broadcasters must remain visible and attractive.
“Marketing is really under the pump to make whatever it is we are selling unique,...
It’s no secret that television has become a segmented market where audiences are no longer limited by the offerings of the five networks that for years were Australia’s preferred source of entertainment and information. It is a world of multi-channels, pay TV, Iptv, games and an explosion of local and international content available at home or on the go. All of these options are competing for the same viewers so, more than ever, broadcasters must remain visible and attractive.
“Marketing is really under the pump to make whatever it is we are selling unique,...
- 7/23/2010
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
Director Claire McCarthy and producer Jamie Hilton have made a film with an Australian heart and dressed up in a colourful sari, taking our cinema to a new land full of creative and business opportunities. Miguel Gonzalez reports.
The Waiting City tells the story of an Australian couple who arrive in Calcutta, India, to pick up the girl they have adopted. Unaware that local bureaucracy will force them to wait for days before they can see her for the first time, the stress of waiting, amplified by the culture shock, will test their relationship as they are forced to confront the problems they’ve been avoiding for a long time.
It is not based on a true story, but many that writer/director Claire McCarthy witnessed as she built her own relationship with India.
McCarthy’s connection with the country was born in 2002 when, along with her younger sister Helena,...
The Waiting City tells the story of an Australian couple who arrive in Calcutta, India, to pick up the girl they have adopted. Unaware that local bureaucracy will force them to wait for days before they can see her for the first time, the stress of waiting, amplified by the culture shock, will test their relationship as they are forced to confront the problems they’ve been avoiding for a long time.
It is not based on a true story, but many that writer/director Claire McCarthy witnessed as she built her own relationship with India.
McCarthy’s connection with the country was born in 2002 when, along with her younger sister Helena,...
- 7/6/2010
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
First-time feature director David Michôd tamed the beasts that inhabit his Animal Kingdom; a Melbourne crime thriller that is the Australian success story of 2010. Miguel Gonzalez reports from Melbourne.
I/E Gus’S Car – Day
J looks down the street. It’s empty. Gus puts the car in drive and moves off. J cranes
around to look out the back window, down the street. Then –
Crack. The car is clipped hard from the front. It spins wildly, then comes to a rest. Through the window J can see Pope behind the wheel of Darren’s car, undoing his seat belt. Pope’s car is jammed between Gus’s car and another parked in the street. Pope can’t open any doors – he’s trapped inside.
J clambers into the backseat, past Gus who is dazed, blood trickling down his forehead. J stumbles out the backdoor into the street. He looks back.
I/E Gus’S Car – Day
J looks down the street. It’s empty. Gus puts the car in drive and moves off. J cranes
around to look out the back window, down the street. Then –
Crack. The car is clipped hard from the front. It spins wildly, then comes to a rest. Through the window J can see Pope behind the wheel of Darren’s car, undoing his seat belt. Pope’s car is jammed between Gus’s car and another parked in the street. Pope can’t open any doors – he’s trapped inside.
J clambers into the backseat, past Gus who is dazed, blood trickling down his forehead. J stumbles out the backdoor into the street. He looks back.
- 6/1/2010
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
In this exclusive interview, Camera d’Or-winning Australian expat director Michael Rowe talks about his career in Mexico, and how the lack of a treaty or MoU with that country might make production of his next project more difficult.
“It would seem logical [for Screen Australia] to take advantage of this level of international exposure. I spoke to them on the very first day in Cannes, and that was before the award, so maybe now it’s a different story. I have to talk to them again,” Rowe told Encore.
His new script is a story about an Australian expat living in Mexico City.
“[Head of development] Martha Coleman was very enthusiastic about the whole thing. [Head of production investment] Ross Matthews was a little less enthusiastic because he has to deal with the harsh realities of legal agreements.
“He said it could be done theoretically, that it would be a huge amount of work and, unless there’s a clear significant Australian content,...
“It would seem logical [for Screen Australia] to take advantage of this level of international exposure. I spoke to them on the very first day in Cannes, and that was before the award, so maybe now it’s a different story. I have to talk to them again,” Rowe told Encore.
His new script is a story about an Australian expat living in Mexico City.
“[Head of development] Martha Coleman was very enthusiastic about the whole thing. [Head of production investment] Ross Matthews was a little less enthusiastic because he has to deal with the harsh realities of legal agreements.
“He said it could be done theoretically, that it would be a huge amount of work and, unless there’s a clear significant Australian content,...
- 5/26/2010
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
When you have an $11.4m comedy in your hands, a sequel is a no-brainer, even if it takes 10 years to make it happen. Miguel Gonzalez met with the creators of The Kings of Mykonos and discussed why ‘ethnic’ content is the secret to domestic and international success.
Five years ago actor/writer/producer Nick Giannopoulos started developing a story about a couple of Australians with a Mediterranean background going back to their ancestral homeland for the first time, only to discover that it is no longer the same place their parents left, and that they are, in fact, more Australian than they ever thought they were.
“It’s an Australian fish-out-of-the-water comedy, shot in Greece yet uniquely Australian. That’s why Crocodile Dundee worked; these are western suburbs Melbourne boys plonked into the middle of one of the most cosmopolitan islands in the world, with their thongs and broad Australian accents,...
Five years ago actor/writer/producer Nick Giannopoulos started developing a story about a couple of Australians with a Mediterranean background going back to their ancestral homeland for the first time, only to discover that it is no longer the same place their parents left, and that they are, in fact, more Australian than they ever thought they were.
“It’s an Australian fish-out-of-the-water comedy, shot in Greece yet uniquely Australian. That’s why Crocodile Dundee worked; these are western suburbs Melbourne boys plonked into the middle of one of the most cosmopolitan islands in the world, with their thongs and broad Australian accents,...
- 5/18/2010
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
Romantic comedies make money. Lots of it. So why isn’t Australia making more? Miguel Gonzalez spoke with the creators of I Love You Too, a comedy that will help fill that gap in the film market.
I Love You Too is comedian Peter Helliar’s big screen debut, produced by Princess Pictures’ Laura Waters (We Can Be Heroes, Summer Heights High) and Yael Bergman (Love and Other Catastrophes).
Helliar had worked with Waters in the pilot episode for Rove in 1999 and kept in touch with the producer.
Knowing he had a number of ideas for features, in 2002 Waters asked Helliar to choose one and start working on it. Due to other commitments, it took a while before that idea became a treatment and, finally, a film script.
According to Waters, the message that drove Helliar to write the story and guided every draft was “tell people that you love them”, and from that premise,...
I Love You Too is comedian Peter Helliar’s big screen debut, produced by Princess Pictures’ Laura Waters (We Can Be Heroes, Summer Heights High) and Yael Bergman (Love and Other Catastrophes).
Helliar had worked with Waters in the pilot episode for Rove in 1999 and kept in touch with the producer.
Knowing he had a number of ideas for features, in 2002 Waters asked Helliar to choose one and start working on it. Due to other commitments, it took a while before that idea became a treatment and, finally, a film script.
According to Waters, the message that drove Helliar to write the story and guided every draft was “tell people that you love them”, and from that premise,...
- 5/4/2010
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
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