Encore Magazine articles from February 2005

Encore Magazine archives from February 2005

Editor's note.(movie production, visual effects)(Brief Article)(Editorial)
February 1, 2005... What an amazing get together G'Day LA turned out to be with a load of Australians based here and in the US supporting the industry at a host of dinners, drinks and film premieres all designed to highlight the vibrancy of our industry to our US...

Young Australian Do plans mid-year 'Legends' shoot.(NEWS)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... FILMMAKER Khoa Do's commitments as the newly minted Young Australian of the Year will fit around the shoot of his next feature, Footy Legends. Do was named Young Australian of the Year on January 25 for his work with the disenfranchised...

'Shrek 2' tops takings in record year.(NEWS)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... AUSTRALIAN Box office takings set a new record in 2004, largely due to the success of Shrek 2, which took over $50 million but local films managed just over $11 million. In figures released by the Motion Picture Distributors Association of...

Ruby develops live laughs with Seven Network.(NEWS)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... MELBOURNE'S Ruby Entertainment is developing Let Loose Live, a sketch comedy series for the Seven Network. Ruby co-founder Stephen Luby told Encore the series was "taking great shape" under a team of Melbourne-based writers and performers...

Caped crusader takes flight at Fox.(NEWS)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... WARNER Bros will commence shooting the new instalment to the Superman franchise in March, Superman Returns, in a booking that will monopolise Fox Studios Australia's sound stages for the majority of 2005. Locations will include a property...

Locals up for Oscars.(FESTIVALS AND EVENTS)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Australian Film. Television and Radio School graduate Sejong Park has been nominated for an Academy Award for his animated short Birthday Boy, joining actor Cate Blanchett as Australia's sole nominees for this year's Oscars. Park and producer...

Aussie films for Berlin.(FESTIVALS AND EVENTS)
February 1, 2005... Three Australian shorts and one feature have been selected to screen at the Berlin International Film Festival and Market taking place from February 10-20. The selected films are Australian Film Commission Indigenous Unit-funded films Green...

Animal honoured in LA.(FESTIVALS AND EVENTS)(Los Angeles)(Animal Logic VFX)(Satellite Award )(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Animal Logic VFX supervisors Andy Brown and Kirsty Millar's work on Zhang Yimou's House of Flying Daggers has earned a Satellite Award for best visual effects at a presentation held by the International Press Academy on January 23 in Los...

'Splintered' slams OS fest.(FESTIVALS AND EVENTS)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Australian Film Television and Radio School graduate Peter Templeman's Splintered has won the jury prize for best narrative short at the Slamdance Film Festival, which was held in Utah from January 21-28. Splintered, produced by Stuart Parkyn,...

Nott up for ASC gong.(FESTIVALS AND EVENTS)(Ben Nott)(American Society of Cinematographers )(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Australian DOP Ben Nott ACS has been nominated for outstanding achievement in cinematography in the American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) Annual Awards, which will be presented in Los Angeles on February 13. Nott was nominated for his work...

SA writer wins Insite.(FESTIVALS AND EVENTS)(South Australian)(Insite National Unproduced Screenplay Competition)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... South Australian based Cath Moore's script for Moving South has won the 2005 Insite National Unproduced Screenplay Competition, selected by the Australian Writers' Guild and Adelaide Film Festival. Moore's story charts the journey of two...

SXSW announces lineup.(FESTIVALS AND EVENTS)(South By Southwest, Inc. )(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Australian films Josh Jarman (director Pip Mushin), Somersault (Cate Shortland) and Thunderstruck (Darren Ashton) will screen as part of the South by Southwest Film Festival (SXSW)'s Discoveries from Down Under program. New Zealander Paul...

Dunstan for O'Rourke.(FESTIVALS AND EVENTS)(Don Dunstan Award)(Dennis O'Rourke )(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Filmmaker Dennis O'Rourke is the 2005 recipient of the Don Dunstan Award, in recognition of his contributions to the Australian film industry. The award was established in 2002 in honour of former South Australian Premier and champion of the...

AIDC 2005 finalised.(FESTIVALS AND EVENTS)(Australian International Documentary Conference)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Organisers of the 2005 Australian International Documentary Conference (AIDC) have finalised the program for the event, to be held in Adelaide from February 21-24. The Conference will feature master classes, forums, pitching sessions, a public...

'Troy' doco set for NY.(FESTIVALS AND EVENTS)(Troy's Story selected to screen at the 2005 New York International Independent Film and Video Festival)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... The documentary Troy's Story, directed and produced by Aaran Creece and Will Mather-Brown, has been selected to screen at the 2005 New York International Independent Film and Video Festival, which will also tour to Los Angeles. The feature...

Nick picks Davison.(FESTIVALS AND EVENTS)(international entry to the Nicktoons Film Festival)(Pierce Davison)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Perth animator Pierce Davison's Medusa: The First Date is among eight projects chosen from hundreds of international entries to the Nicktoons Film Festival aired on Nickelodeon's digital channel. The Festival showcased the diversity of...

Armstrong to helm Broadhurst doco.(NEWS)(Film Australia)(Becker Entertainment)(SBS Independent)
February 1, 2005... FILM Australia, Becker Entertainment and SBS Independent have teamed to produce A Colourful Life, a documentary based on the life of flamboyant design pioneer Florence Broadhurst that will be directed by Gillian Armstrong. Film Australia...

'Jasper' screens at ACMI.(NEWS)
February 1, 2005... 3D Films' director Anthony Lucas (1) and actor Helmut Bakaitis, pictured at a cast and crew screening of The Mysterious Geographic Explorations of Jasper Morello at Melbourne's Federation Square ACMI cinema. The film recently won best animation...

Johnston calls it a 'Night' with epic doco feature.(NEWS)(Lawrence Johnston, documentary)
February 1, 2005... AFTER a reluctant break writer/director Lawrence Johnston is set to return to filmmaking with Night, an atmospheric $2 million documentary feature that explores the universal nature of night and how we, as individuals, experience it and are...

Australian Broadcasting Summit draws big names.(NEWS)
February 1, 2005... THE Australian Broadcasting Summit 2005 is set to take place on February 23 and 24 at Sydney's Convention and Exhibition Centre, Darling Harbour. Comprising a two-day conference on television, and a one-day conference on radio, the event will...

It's all about the hit ... and miss.(ROUGH CUT)
February 1, 2005... Rereading over Christmas Melvin Bragg's book on Richard Burton I mourned anew that smouldering Lucifer's absence not only from Under the Volcano and The Quiet American in which he'd actually been already cast but also the Coriolanus, Iago, Hal...

Screen producers association of Australia--monthly update.
February 1, 2005... Robert Redford's speech at this year's Sundance Film Festival, where David Lightfoot's Wolfe Creek seems to have struck a chord with audiences and Miramax, stressed the role of independent film in neoconservative times. He asserts that in many...

Australians shine at Golden Globes.(LA INSIDER)
February 1, 2005... By the time this article appears, the 2005 Golden Globe winners will have been announced but the Australians who have been nominated and some who were not are more than worthy of mention regardless of the final outcome on the night. The...

Karp unveils four-point plan to revamp film Australia.(Documentary)
February 1, 2005... IN an effort to ensure that Film Australia continues to have what CEO Daryl Karp calls "an absolute commitment to outstanding documentary" she has devised a four-point strategy which she hopes will propel the organisation forward and which will...

Collaboration time for VFX community: a more collaborative approach has coincided with an upsurge in feature work for local VFX houses. David Hull reports.(FEATURE DIGITAL EFFECTS)
February 1, 2005... While the production downturn has made life tough for post houses in recent years optimism abounds that 2005 will herald an increase to production levels; likewise there is renewed hope the local industry can compete more strongly on the...

Fuel effects local fare: fuel adds VFX shots to two upcoming local features.(FEATURE DIGITAL EFFECTS)
February 1, 2005... Sydney-based Fuel International has doubled in capacity over the last six months largely to facilitate the production of VFX material for five feature film projects including local features The Illustrated Family Doctor, directed by Kriv...

Edge heats up Iron Man spot: Nutrigrain cinema spot features set extensions of a furnace.(FEATURE DIGITAL EFFECTS)(Cutting Edge Post)
February 1, 2005... A tight turnaround and a Sydney-based client and agency (JWT) prompted Cutting Edge Post to utilise both its Brisbane and Sydney facilities to produce a VFX-heavy cinema commercial for Kellogg's. The 60-second Nutrigrain spot was developed in...

LaB takes to the clouds for Ford Focus.(FEATURE DIGITAL EFFECTS)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... The LaB in Sydney made use of increased rendering power to deliver the post and VFX for the JWT agency's Ford Focus spot for the Chinese market. The 50-second ad was directed by UFO Film's Rob Dupear and features a vehicle driving through first...

Post Lounge indulges in spot of fishy effects: CG fish headed up the VFX requirements for a Greenseas TVC campaign.(FEATURE DIGITAL EFFECTS)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Queensland-based The Post Lounge (formerly BEEPS) handled the post and VFX for an international Greenseas campaign which went to air in mid January featuring a combination of in-camera, CG, matte painted and bluescreen material. The...

Internal effects for Aussie feature: Look Both ways mixes live action with animation and VFX work by Iloura. David Hull reports.(FEATURE DIGITAL EFFECTS)(Movie Review)
February 1, 2005... Director Sarah Watt's debut feature Look Both Ways not surprisingly draws on her animation background to incorporate elements beyond live action. Watt, whose previous work includes animated shorts such as Small Treasures (1995) and Living...

Production report.
February 1, 2005... ENCORE's production report includes all known features and television drama and non-drama television programs which have a network presale. Projects in the planning stage appear once only and the listing ends when a project goes into post...

Aussies say 'G'Day' in LA.(PEOPLE)
February 1, 2005... AUSFILM HOSTED THE SECOND ANNUAL AUSTRALIA WEEK IN LOS ANGELES FROM JANUARY 15-23. 1. Guests at the 'G'Day LA' Black Tie Ball included (l-to-r) the PFTC's Kirsten Byrne, Warner Brothers' Steve Papazian, outgoing AusFILM CEO Trisha...

Cinema.(AUDIENCE)(box office collections )
February 1, 2005... National box office australian box office* [week ending: january 12, 2005] This Last % week week Film (Distributor) Weeks Total $ Change 1* (1)...

DVD rentals.(AUDIENCE)
February 1, 2005... DVD rentals [week ending: january 23, 2005] This Last Week Week Film (Distributor) 1 (-) Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (20th Century Fox) 2 (-) Man on Fire (20th Century Fox) 3 (1) Village, The (Buena Vista...

Video rentals.(AUDIENCE)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Video rentals [week ending: january 23, 2005] This Last Film (Distributor) Week Week 1 (-) Dodgeball (Fox) 2 (-) Man on Fire (Fox) 3 (-) Wimbledon (Universal) 4 (3) Catwoman (Roadshow) 5 (1)...

Calendar February 05.(Calendar)
February 1, 2005... SYDNEY FILM FESTIVAL (entry deadline) February 8 Info: www.sydneyfilmfestival.org SHORTS FILM FESTIVAL February 9-16, Adelaide, SA Info: www.shortsfilmfestival.com BERLINALE February 10-20, Berlin, Germany...

Flickerfest 2005 long on shorts.(PEOPLE)
February 1, 2005... THE FLICKERFEST INTERNATIONAL SHORT FILM FESTIVAL ENDED WITH ITS ANNUAL AWARODS ON JANUARY 16 AT SYDNEY'S BONDI BEACH. PAUL MCDERMOTT'S THE SCREE AND DANIEL ASKILL'S WE HAVE DECIDED NOT TO DIE WERE THE NIGHT'S BIG WINNERS. 1: (L-r) Film...

All together now for networks: 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)
February 1, 2005... Alfred Hitchcock said, "Drama is life with the dull bits cut out", Drama producers should apply that more often. TV news and current affairs producers do so all the time, in their ceaseless battle for viewers. So do documentary producers,...