Encore Magazine articles from December 2003

Encore Magazine archives from December 2003

Editor's note.(This Month in the News)(Editorial)
December 1, 2003... As many Australians recover from the Rugby World Cup whirlwind, it's sectors of the industry such as the outside broadcasting companies who have been able to mix work with pleasure, with most providers commissioned to help produce coverage of...

Entertainment key to 2004 programming.(This Month in the News)
December 1, 2003... Australian audiences will shift away from lifestyle programming and seek more entertaining offerings, according to new research by Audience Development Australia (ADA). ADA managing director David Castran announced findings from his...

April Films launches film financing deal.(This Month in the News)(April Films)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Sydney-based April Films has partnered with investment bank Babcock & Brown to finance a slate of films for the next five-to-seven years with budgets ranging from $10 million to $30 million per feature. April Films executive director Garry...

FFC to launch massive film fund.(This Month in the News)(Film Finance Corporation)
December 1, 2003... Film Finance Corporation Australia (FFC) CEO Brian Rosen unveiled plans at November's Screen Producers Association of Australia (SPAA) conference that heralds the creation of a new film fund valued at up to $120 million and supported by private...

Joint venture formed.(Breaking News)(Mushroom Pictures )(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Mushroom Pictures and Rialto Entertainment have formed a joint venture to develop, finance, produce, distribute and sell Australian and New Zealand features.

Seven's new news centre.(Breaking News)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... The Seven Network will create a news centre in Sydney's CBD precinct Martin Place, with live digital television production of Sunrise, Sunday Sunrise, Seven News and other programming from a new high definition digital television studio, to...

Ocean Pictures split.(Breaking News)(Ocean Pictures )(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Sydney-based production and distribution company Ocean Pictures has ceased to exist following the parting of the ways of its principal producers Emile Sherman and Jonathan Shteinman. Projects that were in development on Ocean's state will...

'Farscape' returns.(Production)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Cancelled science fiction series Farscape will be resurrected with a production of a mini-series to be filmed at Sydney Waterfront Studios in 2004. It will be produced by Martin Baker and Andrew Prowse and directed by Brian Henson, from a...

ABC keeps it Aussie.(Production)(Australian Broadcasting Corporation )(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... The ABC will screen more than 50 new and returning Australian programs in its 2004 schedule. Headlining the new drama offerings is FireFlies, produced in association with Southern Star John Edwards, and Silver Sun, a 40 X 30-minute futuristic...

Going 'Troppo' in Old.(Production)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Beyond Simpson Le Mesurier will film the telemovie Troppo in far north Queensland for the Nine Network in 2004. It has been written and will be co-produced by Roger Simpson, with Roger Le Mesurier and Andy Walker serving as co-producers. Steve...

Levy leaves FFC.(People)(Geoff Levy leaves and is replaced by Graham Bradley)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Film Finance Corporation Australia chair Geoff Levy will step down at the end of the year after spending six-and-a-half years in the role. Graham Bradley will be the new chair in January 2004.

Greiner heads ASTRA.(People)(Nick Greiner)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Former NSW Premier Nick Greiner has become the new chair of subscription television industry body the Australian Subscription Television and Radio Association.

Kelly re-fuels.(People)(Dave Kelly )(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... mesh22 general manager Dave Kelly left the visual effects company in November to take up a new role at rival Sydney-based visual effects house Fuel International.

Australian film/TV production takes a dive.(This Month in the News)(Television)
December 1, 2003... Figures showing a 23 per cent drop in feature film and TV drama production in Australia in 2002/03 are much worse than they appear, according to AusFILM CEO Trisha Rothkrans. Rothkrans told Encore that the film industry's situation has...

InDigo to boost indies.(This Month in the News)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... The European Dogme movement has inspired filmmakers Geoff Burton and Matthew Flanagan to create a similar concept in Australia, the InDigo Project, which seeks to fund, produce and distribute "edgy and risky" low budget Australian digital...

Screen Producers Association of Australia--monthly update.(This Month in the News)
December 1, 2003... Given the relevance of the proposed Free Trade Agreement, SPAA feels that it is appropriate to print an edited version of SPAA President, Stephen Smith's Opening Address to the SPAA 2003 Conference. The Minister for Communications,...

'Japanese Story' dominates AFI Awards.(This Month in the News)(Australian Film Institute )(Cover Story)
December 1, 2003... It's official. Japanese Story is the best Australian feature of the year, taking out a swag of awards at the 45th Australian Film Institute (AFI) Awards held at Her Majesty's Theatre in Melbourne on November 21. Japanese Story swept the...

Producers benefit from 'enterprising' forum.(This Month in the News)
December 1, 2003... The Enterprise Australia workshop held in Victoria in November, designed to enhance producers' business skills, has been hailed by participants as one of the most beneficial industry programs held in this country. Sixteen producers were...

Mini-series marks high point in Aussie drama.(Rough Cut)(Column)
December 1, 2003... John Doyle and Cherie Nowlan's Marking Time is as good a picture of a year in the life of a country town as Larry McMurtry and Peter Bogdanovich's The Last Picture Show, a sweet and shattering drift around the Space Odyssey year of 2001 when...

LAAFTA gets serious about strengthening US/OZ ties.(LA Insider)(Los Angeles Australian Film and Television Association)
December 1, 2003... Launched on the back of Moulin Rouge in May 2001, the Los Angeles Australian Film and Television Association (LAAFTA) is about to embark on some major changes. Co-Founder Paula Paizes explains, "The organisation was formed out of the...

FTA threat high on the SPAA conference agenda.(Feature - SPAA 03 Review)(Free Trade Agreement)(Screen Production Association of Australia)
December 1, 2003... The threat to local film and television production posed by the imminent Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the US figured large at the 18th annual Screen Producers Association of Australia (SPAA) conference in Melbourne. With the deadline...

SPAA honours outstanding producers.(Feature - SPAA 03 Review)(Jigsaw Entertainment)(Screen Production Association of Australia )(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Jigsaw Entertainment's Nick Murray received the Independent Producer Award for 2003, at the Screen Producers Association of Australia's (SPAA) annual SPAA Conference. Murray is the CEO of Jigsaw, the independent production company he...

SPAA quotes.(Feature - SPAA 03 Review)
December 1, 2003... "The problem is there's a lack of expertise in marketing an Australian film" Mushroom Pictures CEO Martin Fabinyi. "If the film's a dog, how much money are you going to put after it?" Owner/operator of Pacific Cinemas Terry Jackman...

Industry ups ante against FTA talks.(Feature - SPAA 03 Review)(Free Trade Agreement )
December 1, 2003... Film and television industry organisations have responded with outrage with confirmation on November 21, the last day of the SPAA conference, that local content regulation on existing platforms and on new media will be used as a bargaining chip...

SPAA stages annual talk fest: this year SPAA held its annual conference at the Australian centre for the moving image in federation square In Melbourne from November 18/21.(Feature - SPAA 03 Review)
December 1, 2003... Caption: SPAA conference manager Gaylee Hodgson and SPAA executive director Geoff Brown celebrate a successful SPAA Conference. Director of Moneypenny Services Jane Corden and the managing director of Entertainment Personnel Patricia...

Australia Week makes LA stand up; efforts to promote Australian life and culture to the US have resulted in the first dedicated Australia Week to be held in the US from January 15-26. Tracey Prisk reports.(Awards & Events)(Los Angeles)
December 1, 2003... January's Australia Week has been orchestrated to showcase the many and varied aspects of Australian life and showcase Australian food, wine and film. A film festival with screenings and seminars will form an integral part of the event...

Smeaton honoured at APRA-AGSC Awards.(Awards & Events)(Bruce Smeaton)(Australian Performing Rights Association)(Australian Guild of Screen Composers)(Australian Film Institute/APRA Award for Excellence)(International Achievement Award)
December 1, 2003... Australian composer Bruce Smeaton was honoured with the International Achievement Award at the Australian Performing Rights Association (APRA)/Australian Guild of Screen Composers (AGSC) Screen Music Awards held in Sydney on November 3. ...

Local OB vans kick rugby goals; outside broadcasters thrive on major events and the recent Rugby World Cup was no exception. Fiona Williams reports on the coverage supplied by local providers and looks at what's ahead.(Feature - OB)(Outside Broadcast)
December 1, 2003... The recent Rugby World Cup might not have had the fairytale ending local fans were hoping for when the UK narrowly defeated the Wallabies in the November 22 final, but outside broadcast providers certainly weren't complaining. The six-week...

NBN leads HD charge; two providers have geared up to offer high definition (HD) facilities for outside broadcasts--they're just waiting to be asked to use them. Fiona Williams reports.(Feature - OB)(NBN Broadcasting Inc.)
December 1, 2003... Regional broadcaster NBN television will this month complete construction of the country's first High Definition (HD) Outside Broadcast unit, a move the network hopes will play a key role in driving consumer uptake of digital television. ...

OB providers get dose of reality: the demands of round-the-clock reality TV production continue to create opportunities for OB providers. Fiona Wiliams reports.(Feature - OB)(Outside Broadcast)(Television)
December 1, 2003... The reality television trend shows no signs of abating and that's good news for outside broadcast facilities providers, who are drawing work from the large-scale local and off-shore reality programs filmed in Australia. Gearhouse Broadcast...

Global continues its digital roll-out.(Feature - OB)(Global Television Proprietary Ltd.)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2003... Global Television will launch its sixth digital wide-screen-capable OB unit in January. National field manager Charles Cole explained the company opted against the 'expand-o' style chassis typical of new OB vans (and indeed several in the...

Cutting Edge upgrade courts digital work; Cutting Edge has put its upgraded digital OB truck to work on the National Basketball League (NBL) for Fox Sports. Fiona Williams reports.(Feature - OB)(Outside Broadcast)(Cutting Edge Group)
December 1, 2003... Outside Broadcast manager Mark Bonnici said Fox Sports in 2003 had opted for a "turnkey solution" for its NBL coverage, meaningCutting Edge had "virtually complete control", providing facilities and management for the eight-camera broadcast....

Big budget films see locals dress for success; two major studio releases being hyped as box office heavies provided their own creative challenges for local production designers Roger Ford and Owen Paterson. Fiona Williams reports.(Feature - Production Design)
December 1, 2003... Having emerged from almost two years devoted to realising PJ Hogan's vision of the children's fantasy Peter Pan, production designer Roger Ford didn't anticipate walking straight into another classic children's story--The Lion, the Witch and...

Making designs on AFI success: scoring an AFI Award nomination is a key indicator of how successful a production designer has been in creating a style and look for a feature. Nick Murphie reports.(Feature - Production Design)(Australian Film Institute )
December 1, 2003... The West Australian outback, the gleaming skyscrapers of Queensland's Gold Coast, colonial Australia and Sydney in the 70s provided the backdrops for the production designers to play with for this year's AFI Best Production Award nominees. ...

Lack of film work leaves designers at loose end.(Feature - Production Design)
December 1, 2003... The industry-wide belt tightening has not escaped production designers and art directors who it seems, are being asked to create Ned Kelly (the big budget Heath Ledger one) -like production values on a Ned (the comparatively no-budget,...

Production report.(a report on television programs production)
December 1, 2003... ENCORE's production report includes all known features and television drama and non-drama television programs which have a network presale (excluding news). Projects in the planning stage appear once only and the listing ends when a project...

Audience.(movie industry rankings and revenues)(Illustration)
December 1, 2003... CINEMA australian box office [week ending: november 5, 2003] This Last week week Film (Distributor) Weeks 1 (7) Intolerable Cruelty (UIP/Universal) 3 2 (2) Kill Bill...

Calendar December 03 - February 04.(Calendar)
December 1, 2003... AEAF 7-10 Dec, Darling Harbour, Sydney. The Australian Effects and Animation Festival. Info: www.dmw.com.au WORLD ELECTRONIC MEDIA FORUM 9-11 Dec, Geneva, Switzerland. The event will highlight the new enhanced role of radio,...

RMIT jumps in: RMIT launched its screenwriters' directory The Pool: 2004 at Melbourne's trades hall on November 14.(People)
December 1, 2003... 1. The head of TV drama and narrative comedy at the ABC Robyn Kershaw (l), writer Kris Mrksa and former-student/filmmaker Robert Sutherland (r). 2. Actor Daniela Farinacci caught up with lecturer Paul Harris, student Gail Tomlinson and...

Smeaton honoured at APRA/AGSC Awards: composers gathered at fox studios in Sydney in November for the annual APRA/AGSC screen Music Awards.(People)(Bruce Smeaton)
December 1, 2003... 1. Celebrating success at the APRA/AGSC Screen Music Awards were: (l-r) composer David Hirschfelder with International Achievment Award winner Bruce Smeaton and Nigel Westlake, who won Best Feature Film Score for The Nugget. 2. Also...

'Lonely' opening for Film Australia in Darwin; Lonely Boy Richard, screened as part of Film Australia's national interest program.(People)
December 1, 2003... At the launch of the Film Australia documentary Lonely Boy Richard were (l-r) producer and editor Denise Haslem, co-producer/co-writer Rose Hesp, Angelita Graham and writer/director Trevor Graham.

TV talk turns merry: well connected industry columnist Harvey Shore keeps his ear close to the ground for the latest gossip doing the rounds at the major broadcasters.(Harvey's Hearsay)(Television)
December 1, 2003... It's the jolly season again, and everywhere film and TV folk are draping little green pines with strings of glittering Logies and blinking AFI Awards, and holding imaginative parties. From BBC Worldwide's 'wild' affair at the Australian Museum,...