Encore Magazine articles from July 2008

Encore Magazine archives from July 2008

Here's to new beginnings: all eyes are looking to Canberra for the latest news on screen Australia and its foundation efforts to turn around the fortunes of Australia's content producers.(Editorial)(Screen Australia Board)
July 1, 2008... As We Go To PRESS, SEVERAL QUESTIONS remain about the makeup of the new uber-funding agency, relating to the two vacant spots left on the Screen Australia Board, and most importantly, who'll take on the task of leading the agency as chief...

Film Vic commits $2m across platforms; A diverse mix of Victorian production is on the way.(FUNDING)(Film Victoria )(Brief article)
July 1, 2008... FILM VICTORIA COMMITTED $2MILLION Committed $2 million funding towards a raft of projects that cut right across media platforms at its final board meeting for the 2007/2008 financial year. The 13 projects that will draw from this money...

Screen Oz gets tick.(PEOPLE)(Screen Australia board)(Brief article)
July 1, 2008... INDUSTRY HAS RESPONDED FAVOURABLY TO the appointments to the Screen Australia board, which will be helmed by computer industry executive Glen Boreham and deputy chair, entertainment lawyer lan Robertson. The board itself is comprised of...

NFSA celebrates new era with 'Canoes'.(SCREEN CULTURE)(National Film and Sound Archive)(Brief article)
July 1, 2008... THE NATIONAL FILM AND SOUND ARCHIVE CELEBRATED ITS BIRTH AS A STATUTORY AUTHORITY WITH a July 1 screening of Rolf De Heer and Molly Reynolds' 12 Canoes. 12 Canoes is a web-based multimedia project of multiple short subjects, which provides a...

Digital take-up rises to 42 percent.(TECHNOLOGY)
July 1, 2008... RESEARCH BY THE AUSTRALIAN communications and Media Authority has revealed the underlying data behind the 42 percent of Australians who have made the switch to digital television, and predictably, the research indicates that the early...

Scholarship launched to honour Ledger.(PEOPLE)
July 1, 2008... LOS ANGELES-BASED AUSTRALIAN EXPAT organisation, Australians in Film (AiF), has launched a scholarship program in honour of the late Heath Ledger. The Heath Ledger Scholarship Fund will be presented annually to a young Australia-based...

AFI Awards to overhaul TV drama categories; Organisers of the 2008 AFI Awards have revised the awards categories to reflect the new realities of television drama production.(AWARDS)
July 1, 2008... INDUSTRY LOBBYING HAS FINALLY resulted in the Australian Film Institute (AFI) Board deciding to revise the definition of 'television drama' in the categories of the 2008 AFI Awards. The increasing number of six-part drama series in...

Genre doc for MIFF; Australian director mark Hartley's not.(FESTIVALS)(Melbourne International Film Festival )(Brief article)
July 1, 2008... Quite Hollywood has been selected to open the 57th Melbourne International Film Festival on July 25. This will be the world premiere for Hartley's film, a feature documentary that explores the 'Aussie' exploitation pictures of the...

Of rabbits and red carpet: received the VIP treatment as a filmmaker in competition at Cannes. In his own words and pictures, he recounts the surreal experience-and his determination to avoid going home empty-handed.(CANNES)
July 1, 2008... DOES EVERYBODY WANT A RED CARPET MOMENT? My recent foray back into the redcarpetland of the Cannes film festival certainly makes me think so. As we all know, Cannes is a frenzy of world premieres with red carpet events night and day...

'Salute' reveals the untold story behind a famous image of protest; filmmaker Matt Norman has devoted five years to profiling his uncle's role in one of the most controversial events of the modern Olympics: the 1968 'Black Power salute.'.(SALUTE)
July 1, 2008... FILMMAKER MATT NORMAN CONTENDS THAT HIS UNCLE, champion runner, Peter Norman remains something of a forgotten figure in Australian sport, a quirk of history that the younger Norman aims to put right through his new film, the feature documentary...

Revisiting familiar favourites; Some familiar friends make a welcome return to the cinema this month, as Bob Ellis reviews sex and the city and the latest addition to the iconic Indiana.(REVIEW)
July 1, 2008... FOUR OLD FRIENDS, CARRIE BRADSHAW, INDIANA Jones, the Holocaust and the British Empire this month recall to us what all good fiction is there for: a heightened reminder of humanist things we already know, that love dies, the past returns...

Making hay while the sun shines; Australia's content attraction industry has suffered its fair share of setbacks but Ausfilm's Tracey Vieira discusses new initiatives aimed at gaining the world's attention.(LOCATIONS)
July 1, 2008... THE US SCREEN INDUSTRY HAS FACED ENORMOUS Challenge over the last 12 months. Initially, the industry wrestled with the issue of new media, as audiences decided how they wanted their entertainment delivered. Then came cutbacks in scripted...

Cannes lions hails new era film lives!! European correspondent Julian Newby reports back from the Cannes ad festival that 20th century artistry still has a place in the new age of cross platform commericals.(Euro Insider)
July 1, 2008... THERE HAS BEEN MUCH TALK OVER THE PAST COUPLE of years about cross-platform content, branded content, viral content--and all things digital--and how they are set to radically change the viewing habits of millions the world over. And with it...

Time to get cracking; The foundation board of screen Australia features a good mix of industry and business, but there are some significant ommissions, says SPAA's executive director.(SCREEN AUSTRALIA)(Screen Producers Association of Australia)
July 1, 2008... WE HAVE A SCREEN AUSTRALIA, WITH A CHAIR and Board, an interim CEO, a budget for 2008/09 ($110 million) but with no sense in which direction it is heading. The chair, Glen Boreham, has good credentials being CEO of IBM Australasia. His two feet...

Local soundtracks 'Square' up the score; The subtleties of a film's soundtrack can make all the difference to the audience's engagement with the characters. Sarah Tonkin speaks to the composers of some upcoming local films.(COMPOSING)
July 1, 2008... AUSTRALIAN FILMS TYPICALLY USE MUSIC AS A CHARACTER, adding another layer to the emotion of what is already happening on screen. A number of recent Australian feature films have used music in this way, allowing the sound to enhance rather then...

Audio in a mixed state; A strong dollar and cheaper technology takes its toll on the already highly competitive audio post production sector. Tracey Prisk investigates the stakes with some of the sector's top players.(FACILITIES)
July 1, 2008... ACCORDING TO SOUNDFIRM'S MANAGING DIRECTOR ROGER Savage, audio post remains the "poor cousin" to other aspects of production. "Sound can be neglected in budgets," says Savage. "The sound post industry is definitely suffering because of...

Building a bridge; Are educational institutions keeping pace with industry changes, to produce job-ready graduates? Fiona Williams provides a snapshot'.(Education)
July 1, 2008... IN THE BROADCAST AND TECHNOLOGY SECTORS, EFFORTS ARE Underway to bridge the gap between education and industry, to enable graduates a viable path to employment, and to head off a looming skills shortage. The Television Technical Operators'...

Hopscotch launches production division; Local film distributor Hopscotch films has joined forces with producer Andrew Mason and writer John Collee to foster films in-house.(HOPSCOTCH FILMS)
July 1, 2008... TROY LUM EXPLAINS THAT THE DECISION TO LAUNCH a production outfit as part of the Hopscotch brand came about from "looking at the different ways we can get involved in content". The chance to snare the 40 percent producer offset gave the...

'Balloon', 'hook', 'Cactus', vie for Awgies.(IN BRIEF)
July 1, 2008... The writers of The Black Balloon The Tender Hook, Cactus and Acolytes will all compete for top honours in the best original feature film category at the Australian Writers' Guild's Awgie Awards, which will take in Melbourne on August 16....

Rasmussen remembered with scholarship.(IN BRIEF)(Brief article)
July 1, 2008... Deceased filmmaker Peter Rasmussen has been honoured by the New South Wales Film and Television Office and the Sydney Film Festival with a $5000 scholarship to be awarded in his name. The open prize will recognise innovation by a filmmaker,...

ABC'S 'The Cut' shoots in Sydney.(IN BRIEF)
July 1, 2008... Production has commenced in Sydney of The Cut, a new six-part ABC TV drama exploring the sometimes murky world of sports management. John Wood stars as a rogue sports agent, Bill Telford, whose life takes a turn when he is injured in a...

ACS honours cinematographers.(IN BRIEF)(Australian Cinematography Society)(awards)(Brief article)
July 1, 2008... Directors of Photography Leilani Hannah (The King), Geoffrey Simpson (Romulus, My Father), Ben Nott (The Company) and Roger Deakins (The Assasination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford) were amongst the prize winners at the Australian...

Co-pro 'Triangle' shoots in QLD.(IN BRIEF)
July 1, 2008... Triangle, a UK/Australian co-production starring Melissa George, has commenced principal photography at Queensland's Warner Roadshow Studios and at various locations on the Gold Coast and Brisbane. Melissa George heads the cast, which also...

IMAX doco captures crab crawl in 3D living colour; Red crabs 3D director mark Simpfendorfer explains the technology behind his landmark documentary on the dwindling red crab population.(RED CRABS 3D)
July 1, 2008... FOR THE PRINCIPAL AND NAMESAKE OF MARK Simpfendorfer Productions, it wasn't so much the stunning red crabs but the rugged structure of Christmas Island that prompted him to make his latest 40-minute documentary, Red Crabs 3D. "3D needs...

Avid launches Deko for graphics.(IN BRIEF)(Avid Technology Inc.)(Brief article)
July 1, 2008... Avid Technology has launched the Deko 5.0, PostDeko 8.0.1 and DekoCast 4.1.2, graphics system, which is designed to increase productivity and enhance creative output for broadcast graphics operations. The software offers 3D Motion features for...

Digital Rapids to be repped by Aadimex.(IN BRIEF)(Brief article)
July 1, 2008... Digital Rapids has announced the appointment of Sydney-based specialist distributor Adimex as the distributor for its hardware and software range. This extends Adimex's existing representation of Digital Rapids' products to the complete range...

Wittering joins projectiondesign.(IN BRIEF)
July 1, 2008... Norwegian projector manufacturer, projectiondesign has appointed Neil Wittering as International Strategic Business Manager. California-based Wittering was previously director of product management at Christie Digital Systems. Prior to this, he...

'Libriarians' team takes on 'Small Business' venture; Comedy veteran Craig Mccaffrie joins Robyn Butler and Wayne Hope in a new series that satirically explores the world of shonky small-timers.(VERY SMALL BUSINESS)
July 1, 2008... PRODUCER ROBYN BUTLER CONSIDERS VERY SMALL Business to be longform satire, "In many ways it looks like this snow is answering the anger and frustration people have in the community about some timely issues because of certain plot elements...

BBC worldwide takes over UKTV in OZ.(IN BRIEF)
July 1, 2008... BBC Worldwide has assumed full control of UKTV, as part of a landmark strategic deal that will result in an additional three BBC Worldwide channels being added to the Foxtel subscription television platform over the next 12 months. BBC...

Award winners in BIFF 2008 lineup.(IN BRIEF)
July 1, 2008... Organisers of the Brisbane International Film Festival (BIFF) have announced early details of its 2008 program, which be announced in full on July 18. Highlights of the 2008 program include British/Belgian collaboration, In Bruges, starring...

Popcorn Taxi organisers get set to go global; The innovative meet the filmmaker event company is reinventing itself amidst a crowded field of imitators with a new management structure.(POPCORN TAXI)
July 1, 2008... AFTER NEARLY A DECADE AS THE MAINSTAY behind the Popcorn Taxi brand, owner Gary Doust is, in his own words, "stepping back" from the day-to-day operations of the Sydney-based 'meet the filmmaker' enterprise he began in 1999 with filmmaker Matt...

Drama.(KEY)
July 1, 2008... FEATURES IN PLANNING Blessed Prod co: Wildheart Zizani Exec prod: Marian Macgowan Dir: Ana Kokkinos Prod: AI Clark Writer: Andrew Bovell, Patricia Cornelius, Melissa Reeves, Christos Tsiolkas Fin: FFC Dist: Icon, Bankside Description:...

Factual.(Production Report)
July 1, 2008... NEWS/TALK BUSINESS CURRENT AFFAIRS IN PRODUCTION 60 Minutes Network: Nine Network Prod off: Sydney Prod co: Nine Network Exec Prod: Hamish Thomson Prod: Sandra Cleary, Damien Comerford, Glenda Gaitz, Nick Greenaway, Jonathan Harley,...

Web guide.(Website list)
July 1, 2008... ANIMATION AND VISUAL EFFECTS SAFETY IN NUMBERS http://www.sin.tv/ BUY BACK FILM STOCK STEADI SYSTEMS BUY BACK FILM STOCK www.steadisystems.com CABLE & CONNECTORS BVT - BELDEN CDT CABLES ...

Fresh content is child's play; There's some exciting activity taking place in the area of children's content, says Harvey Shore. Producers are forging ahead with the help of fresh and innovative thinking.(Hearsay)(Conference notes)
July 1, 2008... THRE'S NO STOPPING LITTLE BINDI IRWIN, WHO LAST month won an Emmy award to add to her Logie from the month before. Producer John Stainton's continuing success with the Irwin family's zoological predilections, mainly on pay-TV's Animal Planet,...