Category Archives: Television

Opinion: In Australia, we have already gone from ‘mini-rooms’ to ‘micro-rooms’ 

Blake Ayshford·

IF Magazine May 17, 2023

Blake Ayshford.

With the writers strike in the US now entering its third week, writer and script producer Blake Ayshford reflects on the parallel and different issues facing writers working in Australia, arguing our system means small rooms, short weeks for plotting and narrow career paths for newer writers are already the norm.

What the writers strike in the US really boils down to is an attempt to bring the ‘gig’ economy to one of the few areas of writing that still had something of a career structure built into it. Australian TV is already the gig economy let rip, and you really wouldn’t wish that on anyone else. 

A newer writer I know, who is going back to uni to retrain, recently told me that a generation of Australian writers are walking away from the industry as they see no path for them here. How depressing. It was always a tricky, uncertain path, and no one guaranteed you a career, but to feel like you have no future…

Before the early 2010s, TV in Australia was mainly produced ‘in house’ by a staff of writers. As far as I know – I only started in around 2006 – we never had the big staff of US shows and relied on a patchwork of ‘staff writers’ (an in-house script producer and four-six script editors) who were augmented by freelancers that came in every week to write the episodes. The staff writers were a core of (generally younger) writers who worked exclusively on the show, understood it, and went through the creation of an episode from story meeting, to scene breakdown, to first and second drafts, then read throughs and directors meeting. These in-house script editors were also ‘on set’ for their episodes, to watch some of the filming and respond to crew and director questions. This is still the model on Home and Away, for instance. 

I was one of those script editors on Home and Away and later, All Saints. We were never in the edit, or grade, or sound (as they are in US) but we participated in most of the other aspects of making a drama. After I’d been in almost 50 story conferences I had the confidence that I understood how a ‘room’ worked and how to make the most useful contribution to it as a freelancer, and had the skills I needed when I had to run a story conference myself.

Once the length of series dropped from 44, 22 or even 13, to eight and six, there was no need to employ a staff. There weren’t enough episodes to justify the cost of keeping a staff. Instead, freelance episode writers joined together for short weeks, plotted together, and then went away and wrote episodes. Sort of resembling what the ‘mini-room’ situation that is happening now in the US is like, and is part of what the strike is about. 

There was still a script producer, who generally maintained story continuity and tone, and was a backstop in case an episode didn’t meet expectations for whatever reason. The first ‘room’ I was in was for Foxtel’s Love My Way, and it was a thrilling, if still unusual way of doing things back then. Now it is the standard here and is becoming the case in UK.

So what have we ‘lost’ that the US still has? Surely shorter episode run shows means more shows, which means more chances for new writers?

Well, not exactly. One of the unexpected situations that arose from changing from the staff model to the ‘band of freelancers’ model, was previously a writer on All Saints, for instance – generally a more experienced one – would have their time ‘bought’ by a show. There was enough work promised to them over the course of a year that they didn’t have to go out and do a lot of other work. It wasn’t forbidden, but the regularity of paycheck and deadlines meant the All Saints writers weren’t around as much in the wider writing world.

But now, with small episode runs, experienced writers must pitch to be involved in as many projects as they can handle to make ends meet. These experienced writers are directly competing with mid-tier and beginning writers in a way they weren’t so much before. Producers naturally want to secure the best talent they can and so welcome more experienced writers. It’s a bigger risk taking on someone new; as much as most of the producers I know want to welcome new and diverse talent, with more shows in development than actually go into production, it’s natural you would try to minimise risk if you can. This is not only for production companies but networks and broadcasters. 

So newer writers have a very narrow path in the current system. But worse than that, because the ’staff writer’ role doesn’t exist, when newer writers are given one of the rare opportunities, they often don’t have the craft skills of the more experienced, which come from having years of experience. And while many succeed out of talent, hard work and luck, many don’t, and find their careers stalled. Or ending as soon as they have begun.

A lot of recent commentary on the US writers strike focusses on this ‘threat to training’ aspect, something I’d argue has already taken place in Australia. With smaller rooms, and shorter weeks plotting, and involvement only in the early ‘writing’ part of the process, newer writers don’t get the training to become the kind of informed showrunners that series need to compete in a super competitive market. Or they are paired with experienced writers in collaborations that are mostly great, but sometimes aren’t – and not what a newer writer needs at that stage of her career.

I feel this is why many younger writers speak about it being a ‘broken system’. Michael Schur recently commented that if staff jobs go, we’ll soon see a ‘very high and very low’ tier of screenwriting career, exacerbating what can already feel like ‘have and have nots’ industry.

What’s the answer? As producer John Edwards said, the previous system is not coming back. Broadcasters say audiences have no appetite for long-running shows.

Perhaps some kind of more formalised ‘mentorship’ between more experienced and less could be one answer – not a forced marriage, but something with clear expectations from both parties. For instance, a script producer being given a right to employ one new writer, without a veto from production company or network to ensure there is always a middle-tier writer at every script conference. A cultural shift that boosted the profile of writing as a key part of drama creation, so more resources are available to this part of the process. Or, just to contradict myself, a shift away from auteur creation – the cult of the genius showrunner – and back to all writers on a series feeling like they have credits on a show, not just on ‘their episode’. The idea that the show was bigger than any individual writer created a sense of collegiality between writers, and ability to make mistakes. But maybe I’m being nostalgic. None of these solutions, even if they worked, feel like enough. 

And it’s not as if the model was perfect. The long-running series of the past were often conservative in genre, unreflective of diversity and the kind of writing they required demanded a writer submerge her writing personality within a ‘house style’, which certainly didn’t suit everyone.

But with the enormous revenues of some companies involved in the US writers strike, an investment in industry ‘R and D’ by giving staffing opportunities to the next generation, and ensuring there are new writers around to create the next generation of shows, will hopefully be seen as beneficial for all parties. 

As for size of rooms. That’s changed in the last 15 years too. Writers rooms of 6-8 were not uncommon eight years ago. Now the norm is three or four. We have gone from ‘mini-rooms’ to ‘micro-rooms’!

I’ve gone on too long, but, it’s a real issue and the writers strike has provided us the chance to think more deeply about it.

Four of the six writers nominated at the recent AACTAs for best screenplay in TV had a background as a staff writer. I really don’t think this is an accident. 

THE CREATORS PARTICIPANTS ANNOUNCED

Image

(Top L to R): Jane Allen, Judi McCrossin, Kodie Bedford
(Bottom L to R): Sam Meikle, Suzie Miller, Tommy Murphy

Screen Australia and the Australian Writers’ Guild have today announced the six participants selected for The Creators, a dynamic career acceleration program for high-calibre Australian screenwriters to hone their skills and further develop a slate of premium Australian television.

Established to support the creative and professional growth of Australian writers in an increasingly global screen market, The Creators will see the group travel to Los Angeles in May 2023 to attend Content LA and to participate in tailored project and pitching development and networking opportunities to sell their stories in domestic and international markets.

The six participants in The Creators program are:

The cohort of experienced writers and creators will receive high-level training from international industry leader Jeff Melvoin (Killing Eve, Northern ExposureRemington Steele), founder and Chair of the highly-competitive Writers Guild of America’s Showrunner Training Program, and pitching training from writer, director and executive producer Jeff Greenstein (Will and Grace, Friends, Desperate Housewives).

Screen Australia’s Head of Content Grainne Brunsdon said, “These writers are at the top of their game and we’re pleased to support them in the creation of their own projects with the opportunity to hone their craft, learn from the US industry and bring their skills back to Australia. We know Australian stories travel well and this program will make sure these creatives are best placed to take their distinct homegrown projects to audiences here and around the world.”

AWG President Shane Brennan said, “The Australian Writers’ Guild is delighted to support these six outstanding writers in the next stage of their careers – developing their industry expertise and networks to create a slate of premium Australian stories for local and global audiences. We see this as a game-changer in the Australian industry, and with local content quotas on streamers coming soon, this program will ensure Australia has talented creators and showrunners ready to meet demand.”

Sam Meikle, co-showrunner on Wakefield and co-creator of MaveriX, said, “The Creators is next-level training for the next frontier in Australian television storytelling – showrunning. We’re just beginning to truly embrace the model here and I’m thrilled to have the chance to learn, expand my skills, and bring that knowledge home to share with other writers and creators. This program is opening the door to a massive leap forward for all of us.”

Suzie Miller, whose Olivier-nominated play Prima Facie opens on Broadway next month, said, “The AWG and Screen Australia have thoughtfully put together a thoroughly exciting program that allows writers to truly ‘go global’ and to have the opportunity to work alongside professionals who invented and refined showrunning as a writer model. The hope is that we can all bring in more of the incredible writing, directing and acting talent of the film and TV community in Australia to work on such projects.”

Kodie Bedford, award winning-playwright of Cursed! and series including Mystery Road, Firebite and All My Friends Are Racist, said, “I remember when I was 15 and told my mum that I was going to be a showrunner after being inspired by Buffy, so to be selected for this specialised program where I get to learn showrunning and pitching skills from Hollywood’s best is absolutely a dream come true. But also, to bring back and share the skills I learn to the Australian industry, where more writers are wanting to take ownership of their own ideas, is something I’m quite excited about.”

Judi McCrossin, co-creator of The Time of Our Lives, creator for television of The Wrong Girl and writer on The Secret Life of Us, said, “Showrunners aren’t just storytellers. They have both financial and creative authority over all departments. They keep the show running. Empowering Australian writers with showrunning skills gives them the ability to tell their stories the way they want them to be told. And Australian TV will be better for it.”

Tommy Murphy, creator of Significant Others and Holding the Man, said “I am humbled to be among the six chosen TV Creators who will learn from international industry leaders and from each other. We will be challenged to create ideas for television that are bold and new. For me, that means seeking out stories about queer characters in a rapidly changing world. I am fascinated to connect with collaborators and mentors who are answering that task abroad.”

Jane Allen, lead writer on Janet King and writer on Troppo and Cleverman, said, “It’s a unique opportunity to learn from such experienced American practitioners alongside this ridiculously talented group of fellow writers. I look forward to returning with pencils and skills sharpened, ready to put into practice all I’ve learned. What a word nerd fest this will be.”

The Creators is supported by industry partners Australians in Film and Scripted Ink.

John Collee talks ‘Boy Swallows Universe’ and mentoring emerging writers

by Jackie Keast IF Magazine February 14, 2023

John Collee.

If you can tell a story in the pub, you can write a film script: You just need to know the techniques.

So says Master and CommanderHappy FeetTanna and Hotel Mumbai scribe John Collee, who is emphatic that there is no “dark magic” to screenwriting. It’s a craft that can be learned like cinematography or directing. He even compares it to furniture making or architecture.

“I don’t think there’s any such thing as a born storyteller. Everyone tells stories. It’s in our DNA,” he tells IF.

Collee argues that for too long, Australia has undervalued culturally the role of the writer, particularly compared to the US and UK industries.

“It’s become a real gap in the Australian film and TV making picture,” Collee says, arguing screenwriting is not taught properly in this country.

“Traditionally Australian writing has just been, ‘Write a short film, then write a long film and see how you go by trial and error’. Even Peter Weir, the first director who I started working with, said he had no education in film writing. He went back to study film of his own volition after he’d made his first couple of movies, just to work out how it was done.

“I don’t think it’s been examined much in Australia, and obviously needs to be when you have a pipeline like Netflix and you want to start making a lot of local content. In the Writers’ Guild we’re lobbying Netflix quite hard to have an Australian content mandate in Australia, for Australian stories. But then you need to define what an Australian story is, and then you also need to teach people how to write.”

The Scottish-born screenwriter, novelist, journalist and former doctor tutored emerging writers via Netflix’s Grow Creative program late last year. Working with younger writers is something he is passionate about; he gives a lecture on writing for Hollywood at AFTRS annually and 20-minute version of much of his advice is up on Screen Australia’s YouTube channel.

Collee finds it inspiring to hear feedback from emerging writers, as it helps to examine the practice of writing and remind him why he does what he does.

“If you do a job all the time, then you, despite yourself, start to take shortcuts. You need to actually keep going back and reminding yourself why this is ‘this’.”

He also continues to work with directors at all stages of their careers. He recently penned short film The Story of Lee Ping, directed by Jasmin Tarasin, intended as a proof-of-concept for a larger feature. Following on from Hotel Mumbai, he wrote with Dev Patel and Tilda Cobham-Hervey short Roborovski, which the pair directed.

Of younger directors, Collee said: “I love their enthusiasm. They’re out there making stuff. The barriers to entry are very small now.

“You can actually now, with your iPhone, go off to some exotic place and shoot something that interests you. I love the freedom of that. In fact, a lot of big shot directors I know love it as well; they long to break free from all the hardware and money stuff. You actually don’t need that anymore. I’m longing for there to be a punk revolution where everyone gets that; people learn how to do filmic storytelling and just go off and do it.”

The Grow Creative workshops are an extension of Collee’s relationship with Netflix, having written upcoming Australian drama, Boy Swallows Universe, based on Trent Dalton’s semi-autobiographical bestseller.

Collee penned the review of the book for the Sydney Morning Herald back in 2018, calling it “without exaggeration, the best Australian novel I have read in more than a decade.”

He readily admits his review was his pitch to Dalton to adapt the book into a screenplay.

It seems to have worked: Collee has written all eight episodes of the series. His partners from the Hopscotch Features days, producers Troy Lum and Andrew Mason of Brouhaha Entertainment, produce.

The Boy Swallows Universe cast carries a hefty list of names: Travis Fimmel, Simon Baker, Phoebe Tonkin, Bryan Brown and Anthony LaPaglia, with Felix Cameron in the lead as Eli Bell.

Travis Fimmel (second from right) on the ‘Boy Swallows Universe’ set.

At the heart of its story, Collee says, is “parents fucking up”.

“You don’t definitely have to write about what you know. You have to write about what you feel.

“If you’ve raised kids, as I have – my wife and I, our children are all grown up, they’re in their 20s, but you always feel, ‘Oh my God, I’m not equipped for this. I’m doing it really badly, I’m making all these mistakes’. And there’s something so touching about all of the adults in Trent’s book; he writes with such affection about his parents who are complete dropkicks as human beings. The first father is a heroin addict, the second father is an alcoholic, and the mother, there’s all kinds of anxiety issues. They’re all over the place. And somehow they create this loving family just by virtue of the fact they adore their children. That’s really what sucked me into it.

“But also I’d become so tired of Aussie crime drama, which a) glorifies crime and b) sees a virtue in grunginess. When I was working in development at Hopscotch, I kept saying to Troy and Andrew, ‘Anything but grungy Aussie crime drama’. It seems to me that Australians equate being nasty to each other with drama. That’s the simplest way to create drama, dramatic scenes, to have to have people being horrible. Actually, being nice to each other is really dramatic as well. It’s actually dramatic in a better way.

“So a book that actually took that trope of grungy Aussie crime drama about alcoholics and drug addicts and people living on the edge, and then turned it around so that it was magical and heartwarming and inspiring – I thought was just a really new kind of Australian literature, I really did.”

Like most screenwriters, Collee has a back catalogue of films that haven’t quite gotten across the line. However, in proof that not all that goes in the bottom drawer is lost, a film Collee wrote 25 years ago, The Return, has just gotten up with Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche to star. Directed by Uberto Pasolini and co-written with Edward Bond, it is a retelling of Odysseus’ return home from war.

Collee has several other projects on the go, including the tentatively titled The Light Fantastic, based on Mani Bhaumik’s autobiography, Code Name God. Bhuamik, an Indian billionaire, grew up in poverty and went on to become a quantum physicist in America; his book deals with the link between science and spirituality.

Working with Collee on that project is director Jon Amiel, whom he previously worked on 2009’s Creation, and producer Jomon Thomas, whom he worked with on Hotel Mumbai.

After Hotel Mumbai, Collee was also hired by Middle East and North African media conglomerate MBC Group to write a project about a riot in Mecca, which he is currently researching, and still boiling away in the background is Phillip Noyce’s Rats of Tobruk, inspired by the director’s father and the Allied forces that held the Libyan port of Tobruk against the Afrika Corps in 1941.

What excites Collee at this stage of his career?

“The kind of thing that brings you into a world you didn’t know about,” he says.

“I see every film as a philosophical enquiry. The theme of it has to be personal to you, but what I’ve discovered is that in any story, you can insert a theme that is personal into it, and then that’s what gets you going.”

Melissa Black is writing a new direction

Vicscreen 23 November 2022

Melissa Black with clapper board on the set of The Smell of Bones.

Melissa Black was working as a librarian in Shepparton when she decided to take a giant leap of faith and enrol in a screenwriting degree at RMIT in Melbourne. “All my life I’ve wanted to work in film and TV, but it was only in the last five years that I realised I could,” she explains. 

Melissa researched viable pathways into this rapidly evolving industry and took the plunge. “That was the best decision I made, just starting.” 

Living in regional Victoria, over two hours from Melbourne’s CBD in a town called Tatura, doesn’t come without its challenges for an aspiring filmmaker. Just the other week Melissa found herself flooded into her hometown, with all major roads leading to the city inundated with water. “I did miss one day of a VFX shoot because of the floods,” she explains—a job she was invited back to after her recent Professional Attachment on season two of NBCs hit show, La Brea. 

The La Brea script supervisor attachment, facilitated through VicScreen, required Melissa to relocate to the big smoke for a six-week stint, with filming of the hit-US series taking place at Docklands Studios Melbourne and on location across Victoria.

“CHARACTERS ARE EVERYTHING TO ME. SO, WATCHING THEM DEVELOP OVER SEASON ONE, AND KNOWING THAT THE SHOW WAS MADE IN AUSTRALIA GOT ME SO EXCITED. THEN BEING ATTACHED TO THE PRODUCTION IN SEASON TWO…I WAS JUST THRILLED.”

Primarily, Melissa is a writer, she clarifies. She recently completed shooting a proof-of-concept shoot for her short film, The Smell of Bones, which was selected as a top-five AACTA Pitch: Focus finalist. The opportunity to shadow a script supervisor on the second season of a major international TV drama, however, was exactly the kind of experience she was looking for to hone her craft as a screenwriter.

“I fell into script supervising by working on shorts with uni friends,” she says. It’s a job that ties the pre-production, production, and post-production together, providing an excellent insight into the entirety of a screen project. 

“The script supervisor is there to represent the editor on set,” she explains. “It’s up to the script supervisor to be thinking about the cut. If a shot’s still owing for whatever reason, the script supervisor will take note of that. They will always have a copy of the most up-to-date script to support the production team, and the cast with lines and actions and other script information. In pre-production, script supervisors will time scripts and craft scene breakdowns to prepare for shooting.”
 

Melissa Black in the script supervisor chair on the set of La Brea S2. 

 “THE CREW FELT ENORMOUS…THERE WAS A LOT FOR ME TO TAKE IN AND LEARN. BUT EVERYBODY WAS SO GENEROUS AND SUPPORTIVE AND SHARED A LOT OF INFORMATION.”

Noting down shot sizes, camera lens changes, lighting variations, performance changes, as well as wardrobe, hair and make-up variables all fall into the script supervisor’s remit to guarantee continuity across each scene.

“Departments are really on top of what they do but taking photos and keeping an eye on these changes helps a lot, especially if you’re filming one part of a scene one day, and the other part two weeks later. For example, if a character turns to their left, and uses their left hand to open the door, taking note of that so it looks like the same shot.” 

There are a lot of moving parts on set, and they all contribute to the overall quality of a production. Ensuring continuity through script supervision is an important piece of the puzzle. “Even if [script supervising] isn’t a path I follow forever, knowing what’s expected; how directors work, what the editors are looking for, is so valuable…it makes me a better writer.”

Melissa is a big fan of historical and supernatural story elements, so La Brea’s first season was right up her alley. “Characters are everything to me. So, watching them develop over season one, and knowing that the show was made in Victoria got me very excited. Then being attached to the production in season two…I was just thrilled.”

Ahead of La Brea’s return to Melbourne, Melissa contacted the skills team at VicScreen and submitted her application to join the skills register in order to be in the running for a professional attachment.

“I received great support with that application process; I adjusted a few things in my life and I got it. I was very, very shocked, and very excited when I got this placement. I was also very frightened that something would come along to ruin it. And then, two weeks before I was due on set, I caught COVID-19. I was really frightened that my chance would just disappear somehow. But luckily, everyone was very understanding, and it was just postponed a week.” 

Melissa is a single mum to a 12-year-old boy. “So, the challenge is literally the distance and time it takes to get to the city,” she says, “as well as being away from him and having to lean and depend on my great support team.” Despite its challenges, being a single parent has emboldened Melissa to demonstrate what chasing your dreams looks like. “My son wants to work in the same industry, so he understands.” 

Melissa Black on location of La Brea S2. 

Over six weeks, Melissa worked across several episodes of La Brea under the guidance of professional script supervisors Ted Green and Janes Forbes, and a handful of rotating directors, gaining a first-hand insight into how a changing crew can achieve the same result through different methods. “The crew felt enormous…there was a lot for me to take in and learn, but everybody was so supportive and shared a lot of information.”

La Brea’s production is run on more of a US model, Melissa explains. “That was great for me to see and learn, because for this kind of career, I want to know how it’s done everywhere so that I can work everywhere. The majority of the crew were Australian, but there was a really good blend of people, and everybody was so knowledgeable… I can’t even explain how much I learned.”

Having spent 25 years working as a librarian, library manager, retail assistant and office administrator, Melissa isn’t exactly new to the workforce, however walking onto the set of a TV series as a newcomer in the industry could have been intimidating if it weren’t for the generosity of the crew surrounding her.

“The crew that I have come across have all been so encouraging with lifting people up in the industry. I actually got to pull up my sleeves and do the work myself. It wasn’t just observational. This attachment was such a brilliant way to fully immerse myself in a production.”

La Brea felt like a career-changing move, Melissa reiterates. “To create connection and network within in the industry, to learn, and to be part of the whole experience was phenomenal…It’s extremely hard work. Long hours, big days, but on top of that, it was so much fun.” 

La Brea is produced by Universal Television and Matchbox Pictures, both divisions of Universal Studio Group, in association with Keshet Studios.

If you are an early-career screen practitioner looking for your industry break (behind the camera), you can apply to join the VicScreen Professional Attachments Register here

You can also watch Season 2 of La Brea at 9Now here

One of Australia’s biggest TV producers is predicting a talent crisis

Karl Quinn Sydney Morning Herald, October 15, 2022

Australia is rushing towards a shortfall in filmmaking talent within the next five years, says acclaimed producer Tony Ayres, as the demise of Neighbours and other long-running TV series leaves nowhere for upcoming writers, directors and other key creatives to develop their skills.

Ayres – whose hit shows include GlitchStatelessThe SlapBarracuda, Seven Types of Ambiguity and Clickbait – says that while the local industry is enjoying an unprecedented boom in high-end production, much of it with the international market in mind, those shows offer few opportunities for emerging writers, directors and producers to hone their craft.

Tony Ayres: shows like Neighbours “gave younger directors an opportunity to direct, gave newer writers an opportunity to write”.
Tony Ayres: shows like Neighbours “gave younger directors an opportunity to direct, gave newer writers an opportunity to write”. CREDIT: LOUIE DOUVIS

“My concern is that there is a systemic flaw, which is that if we only do the kind of top-end, bigger-budget, more elite work, there is going to be a gap in about five years, when one generation moves on and another generation has to emerge,” says Ayres. “Who are those people going to be if they haven’t had the opportunities to learn?

“There is a real and significant gap in our production output [which was once filled by things] like Neighbours, great shows like Packed To the RaftersOffspringAll Saints – the basic, longer, returning series, which gave younger directors an opportunity to direct, gave newer writers an opportunity to write.”https://omny.fm/shows/good-weekend-talks-1/acclaimed-tv-producer-tony-ayres-on-the-filmmaking/embed?background=f4f5f7&description=1&download=1&foreground=0a1633&highlight=096dd2&image=1&share=1&style=artwork&subscribe=1

The writer-producer-director – whose company Tony Ayres Productions has a development deal with the US giant NBC Universal – explains this issue on the latest episode of Good Weekend Talks, a podcast featuring conversations between the best journalists from across our newsrooms and the people captivating Australia right now, where he likened filmmaking to professional sport.

The cast of Neighbours gather for a farewell shot. The show was renowned for giving on-screen talent an early break, but it was also a crucial training ground for people in off-screen roles.
The cast of Neighbours gather for a farewell shot. The show was renowned for giving on-screen talent an early break, but it was also a crucial training ground for people in off-screen roles. CREDIT:SAM TABONE/GETTY

“The skill set we’re in requires practice, it actually requires you just doing the work and putting the hours in and learning and getting better,” Ayres says. “It’s like an elite athlete or any kind of highly skilled area of expertise. So unless you give people those opportunities I don’t know how they grow and develop.”

One solution, Ayres suggests, is children’s television, an area that the commercial free-to-air networks have tried desperately to wriggle out of for years (they are no longer required by legislation to produce it) and into which few streamers other than Netflix have so far ventured. The ABC is by far the largest commissioner of children’s and young-adult content in Australia.

RELATED ARTICLE

Jenny Buckland, CEO of the Australian Children’s Television Foundation.
Streaming

Beyond Bluey: Does Australian children’s TV have a future?

“I’m a big advocate for children’s TV,” says Ayres, whose teen drama Nowhere Boys enjoyed four seasons and a movie between 2013 and 2019. “I think it’s really important that we keep making it, not only for practitioners but for audience growth, for getting children inspired by seeing Australian stories.

“Children’s TV is crucial, it’s an area where you can give people an opportunity, and audiences tend to like it – they like watching Australian stories on our screens.”

Ayres’ comments come as federal Arts Minister Tony Burke this week signalled that Australian content quotas for the streamers remained under consideration by the government, and just days after Amazon Prime Video’s local content boss Tyler Bern argued such measures were unnecessary.

Ayres – whose eight-part series Clickbait was a global success for Netflix late last year – believes strong support for the local sector is critical for its survival.

Other than America and India, he says, “there are very few market-based screen industries in the world that I’m aware of. We have to find some way of regulating the market so that we can actually exist as an industry. I absolutely believe that.”

Casting Guild unveils 2022 Rising Stars

by Sean Slatter IF magazine, November 14, 2022

L-R (Top): Christopher Bunton, Hattie Hook, James Majoos, Mabel Li, and Maggie (Max) McKenna. Bottom are Michelle Lim Davidson, Sana’a Shaik, Shaka Cook, Steph Tisdell, and Tuuli Narkle.

The Casting Guild of Australia (CGA) has announced its Rising Stars for 2022, highlighting ten actors with the potential to break out on the world stage.

The list for the 8th year of the initiative comprises Christopher Bunton, Hattie Hook, James Majoos, Mabel Li, Maggie (Max) McKenna, Michelle Lim Davidson, Sana’a Shaik, Shaka Cook, Steph Tisdell, and Tuuli Narkle.

They follow in the footsteps of previous recipients Milly Alcock, Eliza Scanlan, Katherine Langford, Thomas Weatherall, Zoe Terakes, Olivia De-Jonge, and Alexander England.

From November 18, the 2022 Rising Stars will be featured as part of an interview series on CGA’s Instagram, with a new performer posted each day ahead of the official in-person presentation at the CGA Awards ceremony on Friday, December 2 in Melbourne.

CGA president Thea McLeod said the organisation was “so proud” to have watched the progression of this year’s cohort from the casting room to screens and stages.

“Since the guild’s inception, the CGA has seen an abundance of successful rising stars launch their careers in Australia and beyond,” she said.

“The annual Rising Star awards highlight the fantastic calibre of talent we have here in Australia. We send our deepest congratulations to the Rising Stars of 2022 – a very talented bunch.”

The program is supported by Casting Networks and Showcast, with both providing 24-month premium memberships for each of the actors.

The 2022 CGA Rising Stars are as follows:

Christopher Bunton: An actor, gymnast, and dancer who made his feature film debut in Down Under and has since gone on to star in Nude TuesdayRelicLone Wolf and Kairos. In television, Bunton has appeared in Doctor, DoctorThe Other Guy and is set to grace the screen alongside Josh Gad and Isla Fisher in the second season of Stan’s Wolf Like Me. This year, he appeared in the AACTA-nominated digital series, It’s Fine, I’m Fine, which he also co-wrote. He is currently studying film at AFTRS with Bus Stop Films.

Hattie Hook: Hook has a role in Stan’s upcoming Ten Pound Poms and appeared in ABC’s Savage River alongside Rising Star alum Katherine Langford. In 2022, she debuted in her first feature, Goran Stolevski’s Of An Age, which opened the 2022 Melbourne International Film Festival. Her onstage credits include GypsyMary Poppins and Annie.

James Majoos: Majoos earned an AACTA nomination for Best Lead Actor in a Drama for their role as ‘Darren’ Netflix’s Heartbreak High. On stage, they have appeared in Sydney Theatre Company’s production of Grand Horizons and Belvoir’s Fangirls, the latter of which was awarded the Best Production of a Mainstage Musical by the Sydney Theatre Awards in 2019. 

Mabel Li: Since graduating from NIDA in 2019, Li has appeared in SBS series, The Tailings, and SBS drama, New Gold Mountain, for which she was nominated for a Silver Logie for Most Outstanding Supporting Actress and won an Asian Academy award for Best Supporting Actress. Onstage, she has been seen in Never Closer (Downstairs Belvoir), Miss Peony (Belvoir), Delilah by the Hour, and D.N.A (Seymour Theatre). Next year she will star in Kindling Pictures’ Safe Home for SBS.

Maggie (Max) McKenna: Since making their professional theatre debut in 2017 as Muriel Heslop in Sydney Theatre Company’s Muriel’s Wedding: The Musical, McKenna has appeared on television in the Foxtel comedy series Open Slather, for which they wrote and performed music parodies, and the ABC drama series The Doctor Blake Mysteries. In 2018, McKenna joined the American touring production of Tony Award-winning musical Dear Evan Hansen in the role of Zoe Murphy as it toured fifty U.S cities. More recently, they’ve been seen in Sydney Theatre Company’s Melbourne and Sydney seasons of the Alanis Morrissette-inspired musical, Jagged Little Pill, in which they starred as Jo.

Michelle Lim Davidson: A graduate of the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts with experience in theatre, TV and film, Davidson has had roles in Nine Network’s After the Verdict and ABC’s The Newsreader, for which she received an AACTA nomination for Best Supporting Actress in a Television Drama. She is also a regular presenter on Play School and ABC KIDS Listen’s Story Salad

Sana’a Shaik: Born in South Africa, Shaik moved to Perth a when she was 16. She cultivated her passion and ambition for the arts while at Curtin University, where she majored in Economics with a minor in Performing Arts. After studying the Meissner technique and working closely with various Sydney-based acting coaches, she has gone on to star in Stan’s Jack Irish, US mini-series Reckoning, and as Xanthe in the sci-fi climate change feature 2067. Shaik also has roles on feature film It Only Takes a Night, Amazon Prime’s original Australian series Class of ’07 and ABC anthology series, Summer Love.

Shaka Cook: A proud Innawonga and Yindjibarndi man from the Pilbara region of Western Australia, Cook has performed across Australia in theatrical productions for numerous main stage theatre companies, including a tour of The Secret River to the Edinburgh Festival and the National Theatre in London with the Sydney Theatre Company. On television, he has appeared in Cleverman, The LeftoversBlack Comedy, and Operation Buffalo, while his film work includes Top End Wedding and The Flood. Cook also starred as James Madison/Hercules Mulligan in the Australian production of international theatrical sensation Hamilton. He will next appear in feature film Kid Snow, due for release in 2023.

Steph Tisdell: It was in 2014 that Tisdell won the Deadly Funny National Grand Final, going on to sell out award-winning shows around the country. Seven years later, she made her acting debut in ABC’s Total Control and will soon appear in the Amazon Prime series Class of ‘07.

Tuuli Narkle: Born and raised in rural Western Australia, Narkle’s first major acting role came as ‘Ruby’ in the Jane Harrison play Stolen, which was directed and produced by Leah Purcell. Graduating from NIDA in 2018, Narkle has since appeared in multiple productions for stage and screen, including returning to the Sydney Theatre Company for their production of The Tenant of Wildfell Hall this year and making her Melbourne Theatre Company debut playing the role of Roxanne in a modern adaption of Cyrano. She starred in the comedy series All My Friends Are Racist for ABC iView and in the Corrie Chen-directed drama series Bad Behaviour for Matchbox Pictures. This year, she joined the cast of season 3 of ABC’s Mystery Road and received an AACTA Award nomination for Best Lead Actress in Drama.

2022 AWGIE AWARDS

See the full list of nominees for the 55th annual AWGIE Awards below. Winners in bold

FEATURE FILM – ORIGINAL
Blaze – Del Kathryn Barton and Huna Amweero
How To Please A Woman – Renée Webster
Sissy – Hannah Barlow and Kane Senes
Sweet As – Jub Clerc and Steve Rodgers

FEATURE FILM – ADAPTED
Mrs Harris Goes to Paris – Keith Thompson with Carroll Cartwright & Anthony Fabian, and Olivia Hetreed
The Drover’s Wife The Legend of Molly Johnson – Leah Purcell
The Stranger – Thomas M. Wright

SHORT FILM
Pasifika Drift – Natasha Henry
Snapshot – Becki Bouchier
The Moths Will Eat Them Up – Tanya Modini
When The Sky Was Blue – Rae Choi

DOCUMENTARY – PUBLIC BROADCAST (INCLUDING VOD) OR EXHIBITION
Beyond The Reef – Georgia Harrison
Big Deal – Craig Reucassel and Christiaan Van Vuuren
Girl Like You – Frances Elliott with Samantha Marlowe
Ithaka – Ben Lawrence
Peace Pilgrims – John Hughes

TELEVISION – SERIAL
Home and Away: Episode 7742 – Louise Bowes
Neighbours: Episode 8654 – Jessica Paine
Neighbours: Episode 8801 – Emma J Steele

TELEVISION – SERIES
Bump: Season 2, ‘AITA (Am I the Arsehole)’ – Jessica Tuckwell
Firebite: Season 1, ‘I Wanna Go Home’ – Kodie Bedford
Heartbreak High: Season 1, Episode 1 – Hannah Carroll Chapman
The Newsreader: Season 1, ‘A Step Closer to the Madness’ – Niki Aken
The Newsreader: Season 1, ‘No More Lies’ – Kim Ho and Michael Lucas
Total Control: Season 2, Episode 2 – Pip Karmel

TELEVISION – LIMITED SERIES
Fires – Tony Ayres, Belinda Chayko, Anya Beyersdorf, Steven McGregor and Jacquelin Perske with Mirrah Foulkes
Lie With Me – Jason Herbison and Margaret Wilson with Anthony Ellis

ANIMATION
Metropius: Season 1, Case #001 – Ally Burnham

CHILDREN’S TELEVISION – ‘P’ CLASSIFICATION (PRESCHOOL – UNDER 5 YEARS), ORIGINAL OR ADAPTED, ANIMATED OR PERFORMED
Beep and Mort: Season 1, ‘Beep’s Home’ – Charlotte Rose Hamlyn
Little J & Big Cuz: Season 3, ‘Levi Learns’ – Samuel Nuggin-Paynter
Little J & Big Cuz: Season 3, ‘Serpent’s Eye’ – Dot West
Little J & Big Cuz: Season 3, ‘Shelter’ – Adam Thompson

CHILDREN’S TELEVISION – ‘C’ CLASSIFICATION (CHILDREN’S – 5–14 YEARS), ORIGINAL OR ADAPTED, ANIMATED OR PERFORMED
Rock Island Mysteries: Season 1, ‘A Young Mystery’ – Marisa Nathar
The PM’s Daughter: Season 1, Episode 4 – Angela McDonald
The PM’s Daughter: Season 1, Episode 8 – Lou Sanz
The Strange Chores: Season 2, ‘Walk Wolfman’ – Luke Tierney

COMEDY – SITUATION OR NARRATIVE
How to Stay Married: Season 3, ‘Keyboard Warriors’ – Nick Musgrove
Metro Sexual: Season 2, ‘Martha Bradbury’ – Henry Boffin with Nicholas Kraak
Spreadsheet: Season 1, ‘Chlamydia & Nits’ – Kala Ellis

COMEDY – SKETCH OR LIGHT ENTERTAINMENT
Gruen: Season 13, ‘Punts’ – Sophie Braham and James Colley with Cameron James, Bec
Melrose and Mark Sutton
The Feed: ‘Comedy Sketches, 2021’ – Ben Jenkins, Alex Lee, Jenna Owen, Vidya Rajan and Vic Zerbst

AUDIO – FICTION
Sunshadow: Episode 1, Episode, 9 and Episode 10 – Phil Enchelmaier and Bronwen Noakes
The Bazura Project’s Radio Free Cinema: ‘Herzog’s Adventures in Wernerland’ – Lee
Zachariah with Shannon Marinko
The Fitzroy Diaries: Season 3, Episode 1, Episode 3, Episode 7 and Episode 8 – Lorin Clarke
The Great Mantini – Simon Luckhurst
Untrue Romance: ‘Call You Back’ – Tommy Murphy

AUDIO – NON-FICTION
The Phantom Never Dies: Fantomen – Maria Lewis

STAGE – ORIGINAL
Dogged – Andrea James and Catherine Ryan
Horizon – Maxine Mellor

STAGE – ADAPTED
Animal Farm – Van Badham
Playing Beatie Bow – Kate Mulvany
My Father’s Wars – Elaine Acworth

COMMUNITY AND YOUTH THEATRE
Euphoria – Emily Steel
Summer at Suspended Stone Camp – Madelaine Nunn
Very Happy Children With Bright and Wonderful Futures – Joshua Maxwell

THEATRE FOR YOUNG AUDIENCES
Cactus – Madelaine Nunn
House – Dan Giovannoni
We Are The Mutable – Matthew Whittet

INTERACTIVE MEDIA & GAMING
Sun Runners: Radioactive Laser Eyes – Zoe Pepper

WEB SERIES AND OTHER NON-BROADCAST/NON-‘SUBSCRIPTION VIDEO ON DEMAND’ TV SHORT WORKS
A Beginner’s Guide to Grief: Segment 1: Denial, ‘Stung By A Thousand Bees’ – Anna Lindner
All My Friends Are Racist: Season 1, ‘Cancelled’ – Kodie Bedford and Enoch Mailangi
Iggy & Ace: Season 1, Episode 3 and Episode 4 – AB Morrison
It’s Fine, I’m Fine: Season 1, ‘Poo Boy’ – Jeanette Cronin
The Power of the Dream: Season 1, ‘Swimming’ and ‘Weightlifting’ – Alexandra Keddie and Bobbie-Jean Henning

The Newsreader – Creator Michael Lucas talks ambiguity, archives and the 80s

The creator and producer of the ABC’s new drama, The Newsreader, talks about his inspiration for the show and gives advice for emerging writers.

10 Sep 2021 ScreenHub. Rochelle Siemienowicz

Anna Torv and Robert Taylor in The Newsreader, written by Micahel Lucas

TELEVISION

Anna Torv and Robert Taylor in The Newsreader, courtesy ABC.SHARE

In 1986, when screenwriter and producer Michael Lucas was eight years old, his dad got picked up from the local oval by the Ten Eyewitness News helicopter. ‘It was the most exciting thing that had ever happened to me,’ Lucas says, laughing on the phone to Screenhub.

‘My father was an infectious diseases doctor and AIDS specialist,’ he explains, ‘and because of that – much like in this past year when medical professionals and epidemiologists have appeared in the media a lot – he went on news shows. I have these really vivid memories of the helicopter taking him away, and I’ve still got the videotape of him being interviewed by David Johnson and Jo Pearson.’

1986 was also the year NASA’s Space Shuttle ‘Challenger’ exploded just moments after launch. Lucas remembers seeing it on TV. ‘My mum was crying, and that made a big impression on me, as it does when you’re little and you see mum crying which doesn’t happen very often.’

READ: Review: The Newsreader on ABC TV is sophisticated and enjoyable

These experiences helped inspire the creation and writing of The Newsreader, the ABC drama set in the high-stakes world of an 80s nightly newsroom. Created and produced by Lucas and Joanna Werner, with all six episodes directed by Emma Freeman, the series has lots of big hair and some giant shoulder pads (costume designer Marion Boyce has a ball). It’s fun period drama, in all the ways that period dramas are fun (‘look at the racism! Look at the sexism! Those cars…), while speaking to contemporary Australian cultural debates, and presenting a complex but very recognisable species of romantically charged work friendship.

Anna Torv stars as the ambitious female newsreader, battling sexism (particularly that of her boss, a magnificently monstrous William McInnes) and her own internal panic attacks. Sam Reid plays her junior co-worker, a sensitive but diligent young journalist who’s still unsure of his voice. As they work together covering the events of an intense three-month period, including the AIDS crisis and Lindy Chamberlin’s release, they form a unique bond.https://www.youtube.com/embed/k_0kxdPnEWg?feature=oembed

Writing relationship dramas and rom-coms is Lucas’s specialty. Nominated four times for the AWGIE for Best TV Screenplay, his credits include being a core writer and script editor on the hit series Offspring (2010 – 2014), WentworthRosehaven, producing on Party Tricks and creating contemporary relationship drama Five Bedrooms, which sold to the UK and is now in production on its third season. (Season 2 begins on new streamer Paramount+ on August 11.) Lucas was also the writer of the 2012 unconventional romantic comedy feature film Not Suitable for Children, directed by Peter Templeman and starring Sarah Snook and Ryan Kwanten.

Lucas says that, when he started work on it in 2015, the kernel of the idea for The Newsreader actually had nothing to do with the politics of the newsroom, and everything to do with a particular kind of relationship dynamic.

‘I was writing a relationship drama between the characters of Dale and Helen, and it was set in the 80s. I wanted to look at a male character that was sort of struggling to be the masculine ideal that the world wanted him to be. And conversely, I wanted a female character who had those sort of alpha traits and she was punished for it. About a year and a half later I set it in the newsroom.’

As difficult as COVID was, there was this massive silver lining to all these remarkable people being home in Australia and there was not much other production happening. So, in normal circumstances, Anna Torv would have been in LA and Sam Reid would have been in London and we still would have offered it to them, but God knows what we might have been competing with. But they were back in their family homes.

Michael Lucas

‘I thought, well, if he wants to be this masculine ideal, what does he want to be? A politician? A sportsman? And then once I thought of a newsreader, it lit up for me.’

It should be noted too, that Lucas is a self-confessed news junkie. He finds looking through news archives ‘exhilarating’, and also loves any kind of film or TV show set in a newsroom. ‘From Broadcast News, to Press Gang, Frontline, Tootsie and Network, I love them all,’ he says. ‘But particularly Broadcast News, and there are some very specific moments of homage to that movie in our series.’

Robert Taylor, Marg Downey and Michael Lucas
L-R Robert Taylor, Marg Downey and Michael Lucas in episode 2 where Lucas cameos as a DJ. Supplied.

Screenhub: What kind of research did you do to write this script?

Michael Lucas: I spoke to a lot of people. I was so lucky that people were incredibly generous, but also, a lot of the people that were working in news in the 80s are just on retirement age at the moment and It felt like I was hitting them up at a good time. They were ready to unload about what the workplace culture was like back then.

I built up a big Bible and I spoke to people that were on camera, off-camera, producers, people in as many different roles as I could to build up a portrait. I very quickly found that even though I was speaking to people from different networks, some commercial, and some ABC, there were definite hallmarks of those kinds of workplaces no matter who you were speaking to.

The newsroom you present here is quite diverse, with actors like Michelle Lim Davidson, Chai Hansen and Chum Ehelepola given key roles. Was it really like that?

I think undoubtedly newsrooms at that time were very male-dominated and very white. And so that was a real conversation in terms of casting it in 2021. There are so many different approaches you can take. There’s Bridgerton, which is almost set in a in a different version of history, and then there are shows where you’re colourblind or colour conscious. We spoke about it endlessly.

And I would say that with a mix of particular characters, they were conceived to really tell a story of what it would be like to be sort of a first-generation immigrant coming into a workplace. That was really something that was happening in Australian culture in the 80s.

In other cases, there would be a spectacular performer that really was perfect for that character and so we cast them. Our newsroom is a little bit more diverse than it would have been, but that’s where we landed.

In the first two episodes I’ve watched, there’s a lovely ambiguity and subtlety between the two leads. Nothing is over-explained.

I have to give a huge amount of credit for that to both the director Emma Freeman and the actors, Anna Torv and Sam Reid, who, if they could act it with subtlety, didn’t want to state it [in words]. They had such beautiful instincts. And I feel like I should say that, because they may have protected me from myself a few times! They’ve really made me look good.

The show also really captures some of that ambiguity around homosexuality that we had in the 80s, where there was a lot of very camp pop culture, but to be gay in real life was still very difficult and secret.

It was such contradiction, wasn’t it? You turn on TV, and you’ll get Culture Club. But then in the wider world, there’s this intense homophobia and repression. It was really strange even now to go back to that and try and get your head around what was the real attitude?

Sam Reid and Chai Hansen in The Newsreader, written by Michael Lucas
Sam Reid and Chai Hansen in The Newsreader, courtesy ABC.

Was it difficult to get the rights to all the archival footage you’ve used?

It was maddeningly complex! There’s a very good reason the ABC was the perfect place to make this story, because they have those expansive news archives and the ABC News owns so much footage, which was fantastic. But it was more complex than I could have imagined, depending on which show the footage came from.

Like, if it was on an ABC news bulletin, then they could give us the right to that and we could use it. But if it was on Four Corners, that’s a different rights situation. We had to be a little bit crafty, for example, in the opening episode, the footage of the Challenger explosion had to be purchased from the US.

Literally every frame has a different rights situation. I don’t know if we’ll get a season two, but if we do I want to change the process and start with all the material we have access to first.

When did you go into production and how did COVID affect you?

We started shooting in Melbourne in November 2020. We were lucky to sort of land in a relatively calm time although we still had massive curveballs, things like sending the cast home for Christmas and then the Northern Beaches outbreak happens and then we have to say to some of them, ‘I’m sorry. You’re not going to have a family Christmas. You’re packing up your car. You coming to Victoria right now.’ Those sort of things happened.

We also had plans to shoot in different parts of the country at various points, but it all had to be Victorian-based.

As difficult as COVID was, there was this massive silver lining to all these remarkable people being home in Australia and there was not much other production happening. So, in normal circumstances, Anna Torv would have been in LA and Sam Reid would have been in London and we still would have offered it to them, but God knows what we might have been competing with. But they were back in their family homes.

Not just the actors, but amazing heads of department like production designer Melinda Doring, who doesn’t usually do recurring series, she usually does feature films. We were one of the first productions to go back into shooting and I feel like we got some amazing coups in casting crew that that were probably the product of 2020 being such a weird year.

What can you tell us about the excellent cringe 80s costuming?

Costume Designer Marion Boyce [The Dressmaker, Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries] is amazing, and that was another thing that came out of Melbourne’s lockdown. She was online the whole time going to deceased estates that were auctioning off 80s clothes, and a lot of the things that Anna Torv in particular wears are real vintage outfits from the 80s. On a normal production, there’s no way the designer would have months and months to sit there online going to auctions because of a pandemic.

When did Emma Freeman come on as director and did you always envisage her doing all six episodes?

Basically, as soon as I got together with Jo [Werner], we discussed Emma. We had to wait until the date firmed up before it could become a formal offer, But I’ve worked with her for so long and so has Jo, and we kept dropping it into conversation to get her interest. I thought we were in with a real shot because I knew she would love to do something in the 80s, knowing what she loves. She’s done the 70s and Puberty Blues but she hadn’t ever really gone into the 80s. She’s so respected and has so many offers from overseas, we were lucky to get her

In terms of Emma directing at all, that was partially because we had to shoot it all as one sort of block. We didn’t shoot in discrete episodes, we shot all six episodes all at once. So there were practical elements, but also we had a really particular tone we were trying to hit. And I just knew that Emma intuitively understood it.

 When she directs my stuff, I always feel like she is in contact with both the comedy and also the sort of darker underlying or more dramatic elements. She manages to bring both of them out so skillfully. I wanted her to be able to be a core storyteller and really put her stamp on it.

Do you have advice for emerging screenwriters?

I know a lot of people always say this, but write. Write an awful lot. I just wrote and wrote and wrote. I’d been writing for 10 years before anything of mine was professionally produced. I wrote a lot of things that are tucked in a bottom drawer for a very good reason. And I think you have to go through that. I certainly come in contact with a lot of aspiring screenwriters, who really want to get into it, but haven’t really spent that time.

The other thing is if you can try and balance that with real experience of film or TV productions. I was an assistant for Bazmark, [Baz Luhrmann’s company], and I was a script assistant for John Edwards, and Imogen Banks and, and that was really essential to witness the process of scripts being made, how production works and how to how to interpret notes and all those sorts of things.

Try to write as much as you can and seek out opportunities, whether it be doing placements, or whether even just starting as a runner. I was a runner in my very early days.  It’s all really valuable.

The Newsreader premieres on Sunday 15 August at 8.30pm on ABC TV and ABC iview.

Production Credit: The Newsreader is a Werner Films Production for the ABC.  Major production investment from Screen Australia and the ABC and financed with support from Film Victoria. Worldwide distribution is managed by Entertainment One (eOne). Created by Michael Lucas.  Directed by Emma Freeman.  Produced by Lucas and Joanna Werner.  Executive Producers Werner and Stuart Menzies.  ABC Executive Producers Brett Sleigh and Sally Riley.

From playwright to screenwriter, Suzie Miller reflects on her journey

Suzie Miller knows the turning points in her life, but carries her parents within her through a fine career.

Screen Hub 18 Dec 2020 David Tiley

Playwright Suzie Miller received the Major Award at the AWGIES for her play Prima Facie, part of a career build between Sydney and London which spans 20 plays in 20 years, spread over 70 productions around the world. She has received a lot of support, and was mentored by Edward Albee for three years. 

Now Miller is also working in television and film, after a short burst with the small screen over 15 years ago. She has been involved with Hoodlum, Heiress Films, Bunya Productions and Matchbox Pictures.

These are many of the companies known to support writers effectively and understand her achievements. Miller told Screenhub in an interview that, ‘I have  a fantastic manager [at HLA], who introduced me to the people she thinks are critical. So it is almost like there’s a mediator between me and who I end up working with. I do have fabulous producers, each one of them sort of hand picked, and we see eye to eye on issues and storytelling. And that’s just been a blessing really.’

A legal impediment

Miller has been a practicing lawyer, enjoying the combat of the courts, and loves ideas. She also has a practice-based PhD in theatre/science for which she wrote a play about a mathematician. There is a particular legal switch between theatre and screen which gives playwrights the irrits.

‘When I was mentored by Edward Albee, he really emphasised how significant it is that playwrights keep the copyright on their product’ she said. ‘No matter who pays for the commission, you can never be sacked as the writer. That idea of being sacked from your own project is terrifying to a playwright because it never happens,’ she said. 

‘You can be passed over because someone decides it goes in a direction they can’t program, but you are still paid the commission and you own it outright and you can take it somewhere else.

‘I feel that I’ve been really lucky. Possibly I’ve been blindly going in as a playwright, where you project ownership of the story in some way, because you don’t know any other way,’ said Miller.

At the moment her screen collaborations are her own creations so she is not sharing them with other writers.

Relating to audiences

From a screenmaker’s perspective it seems that playwrights have a different relationship with audiences during the process of creation. They can work with a company, evolve in the collective moment, and show it to audiences very quickly. In screen the process is much more segmented and shared with viewers long after the show is built. 

Not so, Miller replied. ‘What people don’t realise about playwrights is the years of writing before you actually get the actors in a room rehearsing. When you are fine tuning and getting notes from producers or directors or dramaturgs.’

‘When I was mentored by Edward Albee, he really emphasised how significant it is that playwrights keep the copyright on their product’ 

Prima Facie is a one woman show described as ‘an unsparing study of the Australian legal system’s treatment of sexual assault cases’. The play, which opened to standing ovation, concludes with a simple but compelling statement – spoken by the character Tessa, played by Sheridan Harbridge – “something has to change”.’

Miller pointed out she could have written that work any time in the last ten years, but she effectively had to wait until it had a political context. Theatres had to sense the movement and audiences had to grasp the moment too. That is ten years of patient evolution. 

Screen producers understand that gap; Miller argues that writers are better off on this side because the development process can be financed earlier in the evolution of a project. 

Starting with ideas

In general it seems that playwrights bring an intense sense of dialogue and the ability to explore complex material in very simple ways to the table. 

‘Yes, that is what it really does,’ Miller said. ‘And that’s based on the fact that there’s no money. Theatre people often start with broad strokes and themes and metaphoric devices, to think about the whole picture and then bring it down to two people having a conversation.’

‘What people don’t realise about playwrights is the years of writing before you actually get the actors in a room rehearsing.’

When she goes into a film and TV spaces, she finds the opposite. ‘It seems they start with the dialogue and then try to infuse it with the thematic and the bigger picture stuff. [Playwrights] actually have to have all these ideas really flowing around on a metaphoric basis before we can create the characters that actually bring the audience to that place,’ she explained.

‘The development of an idea is about shaping or sculpting as opposed to the writing, as it does require you to think in sort of a few dimensions, rather than just in text. And then you have to, somehow, briefly bring it into text by creating characters that can carry the audience. And that’s why you have quite deep characters. So it’s not because you do that character work that everyone seems to do by lot of background writing, it’s more that you just think about a person, that’s someone who is flawed because of an idea that you want to get.

‘The world building is so exciting, but then the character building is something that I just get so excited about, because you never know how you’re going to trip your character up until you do it. Or how you how your character is going to go into a deeper kind of freefall. About life or a deeper kind of way, where the stakes just keep increasing, until you’re actually at the moment where you’re about to run it, and then it sort of writes itself, and you’re terribly excited about it.’

Miller made an excursion into serial television early in her career. She hated it, and has been cautious about coming back. But it seems that theatre and screen are becoming more and more similar.

‘It feels with film and TV there is a hunger for production and a desire for great content. And I am sure theatre would say that as well. But theatre is more of a hierarchy, and film is more collaborative in a really special way. It’s not just the writer on their own forever. There’s people involved if you want them to be involved – which is an interesting irony because you imagine that would happen in theatre. And it does, to a point, but they just don’t have any money to subsidise writers.’

You weep for them

It seems to me that the screen side has replaced the traditional live performance notion that drama is conflict.

‘Ultimately, I steer us away from the idea of just conflict,’ Miller said. ‘Because young writers see conflict as a fight, but it’s not always an argument – sometimes it’s just conflict with inner tension, it’s like a tension has to be there. And conflict can be like an emotional conflict. You just feel it in your bones, because the characters got such a depth to them. But also I am saying that conflict is actually a sophisticated way of thinking, it’s just about the stakes for someone. But once you’ve had good characters, you cry for them inwardly, you weep for them.’

The streets of St Kilda

Suzie Miller grew up in St Kilda, and was the first generation of her family to go to university. ‘My father wasn’t an emotionally expressive person,’ she explained. ‘But he really loved maps, and he had an elegance with mathematics. And so he sort of brought me into that world really early. So I never had that fear of science and math which lots of girls had. it was always something that was magnificent. It was almost religious for me in a way, like it had a kind of beauty to it.’

She studied immunology at university where she realised the jobs were mostly in areas like pharmacology or research.

‘Really what happened in my final year was is that Chernobyl exploded. I thought, “Oh, this is a huge, I want to have a conversation, I want to turn on the television, I want…” – I realised I am very much a person that loves to be in dialogue.’

To the surprise of her family, she went to law school. ‘But there was a certain point when I was on a program working in King’s Cross with street kids and young drug addicts. And I was going home every night thinking, “Oh my God, this is so overwhelming,” and I turned it into a play about 24 hours in the community. And it went on at the Opera House and in King’s Cross. And I remember people coming up to me saying I had no idea that these people could be my sister or my cousin or they were always just the junkies down the crowd.

‘I realised I am very much a person that loves to be in dialogue.’

‘When you’re actually sitting in the theatre, and you’re forced to relate to the characters, I felt that there was there was a chance for me to express their humanity in a three dimensional way. And so that kind of changed me forever, actually. Because I thought, “Right, I think that’s what I have to do.” It sounds so naïve. That is actually true. I mean, I was in law because I wanted to change the world. And actually, before that, I was hoping to find a cure for cancer when I was a scientist.’

She described the kind of childhood that belongs in a novel. Long before St Kilda gentrified she was a bit hyper-active, eager to learn, hanging out in the streets, working in the chemist and a printers and the hot bread shop (opposite the cake shops in Acland Street) and delivering papers and generally being ‘a bit naughty’. Going home to play chess with her father.

But she talked about her mother in a special way. ‘To be honest, my mum was amazing. She was the most charismatic, beloved person, by all her friends in the community. She was also really badly visually impaired, but she sort of cut through everything and was sort of magnificent. 

‘She ended up becoming the Mayor of St Kilda because she was so community minded. Because of that I have never questioned that I would have my own journey.’

David Tiley

David Tiley was the Editor of Screenhub from 2005 until he became Content Lead for Film in 2021 with a special interest in policy. He is a writer in screen media with a long career in educational programs, documentary, and government funding, with a side order in script editing. He values curiosity, humour and objectivity in support of Australian visions and the art of storytelling.

Screen Australia announces $12 million of production funding for nine projects

31 August 2022

Jon Bell’s ‘The Moogai’ will receive production funding from Screen Australia.

New seasons of Total Control and children’s titles Rock Island Mysteries and Strange Chores, as well as feature films from Northern Pictures, Made Up Stories and Causeway Films are among the nine projects that will share in $12 million of production funding from Screen Australia.

Four feature films, three television dramas, and two children’s titles will be supported through the agency, the likes of which also include a feature version of Jon Bell’s award-winning short The Moogai, and television dramas While the Men are Away and North Shore.

Screen Australia head of content Grainne Brunsdon said there had been a “solid pipeline of impressive applications” so far this financial year, making for an “incredibly competitive” selection process.

“We know there is an appetite for fun, joyful drama content in the international market right now and we’re pleased to announce a number of distinct Australian dramedies and romantic comedies that will engage global audiences as part of this mix,” she said.

“We are also proud to support Australian creatives expanding their skillset, including Northern Pictures producing their first feature film Little Bird and Arcadia bringing to life their first episodic drama with While the Men Are Away for SBS.”

Head of First Nations Angela Bates said the titles supported through her department explored “important themes of intergenerational trauma, colonisation, and power”.

“We are proud to announce two premium dramas today including a new season of Total Control, which continues to not only captivate viewers but also provide important opportunities for emerging filmmakers above and below the line,” she said.

“Jon Bell’s short film The Moogai won the Midnight Shorts Jury Prize at SXSW 2021 and now we’re thrilled that he is expanding it as a feature film.”

Deborah Mailman and Rachel Griffiths in ‘Total Control’.

The successful projects are as follows:

First Nations

The Moogai: A psychological horror from writer/director Jon Bell, who teams up with producers Mitchell Stanley, and Causeway Films’ Kristina Ceyton and Samantha Jennings. The film follows Sarah and Fergus, a hopeful young couple who give birth to their second baby. What should be a joyous time of their lives becomes sinister when Sarah starts seeing a malevolent spirit she is convinced is trying to take her children. Fergus desperately wants to believe her but grows increasingly worried as she becomes more unbalanced. The Moogai is financed with support from Screen NSW. Australian distribution is by Maslow Umbrella 387 Entertainment with Bankside managing international sales.

Total Control (season three): A six-part third series of the ground-breaking drama for ABC starring Deborah Mailman and Rachel Griffiths. In the corridors of power, adversaries Alex Irving and Rachel Anderson battle to control their political destinies. Season two writers Stuart Page and Pip Karmel again team up with producers Darren Dale, Erin Bretherton, and Rachel Griffiths. They are joined by writers Julia Moriarty, Meyne Wyatt, and Debra Oswald. Total Control season three is financed with support from the ABC, with All3Media managing international sales.

Feature Films

Addition: The debut feature film from writer Becca Johnstone and director Marcelle Lunam, who are working with producers Bruna Papandrea, Steve Hutensky, and Jodi Matterson of Made Up Stories, and Cristina Pozzan of Buon Giorno Productions. This romantic comedy follows 30-something-year-old Grace who has a thing for numbers and the inventor Nikola Tesla. But when an average guy, Seamus, comes along, Grace falls for Seamus and her meticulously ordered life begins to unravel around her. To let this love in, she must let go of the things she’s been holding onto. Addition will be distributed in Australia by Roadshow Films, with WME managing international sales.

Went up the Hill: A psychological three-handed thriller played out between only two actors. The story follows Jack as he travels to a remote region in New Zealand to attend the funeral of Elizabeth, the mother who abandoned him as a child. There he meets Jill, Elizabeth’s widow. Both are searching for answers; Jack about why she deserted him and Jill about why she killed herself. But Elizabeth’s spirit lingers and soon finds a way to possess both Jack and Jill’s bodies at night. Caught in a life-threatening nocturnal dance, Jack and Jill must find a way to let go of Elizabeth’s toxic hold, before she pushes them to the edge. This film is a New Zealand/Australian co-production from writer/director Samuel Van Grinsven and writer Jory Anast, who previously collaborated on their debut feature Sequin in a Blue Room. Causeway Films’ Samantha Jennings and Kristina Ceyton are producing alongside Vicky Pope. Went up the Hill has been offered production investment from the New Zealand Film Commission and is financed with support from Spectrum Films, Stage 23, RB Sound, and Screen Canterbury. Vendetta Films is handling local distribution while Bankside Films is on board for international distribution.

Little Bird: A romantic comedy from Northern Pictures about a poor but spirited young woman, who teams up with a burnt-out legend to become one of Australia’s most extraordinary flying teams. Set in the glamorous world of 1930s aviation and based on pilot Nancy Bird Walton, Little Bird is about defying expectations and letting your spirit soar as high as the sky. The creative team features director Darren Ashton, writers Harry Cripps and Hannah Reilly, and producers Joe Weatherstone and Catherine Nebauer. It is financed with support from Screen NSW, with local distribution by Maslow Umbrella 387 Entertainment and Parkland Pictures managing international sales.

Television Drama

While the Men are Away: A queer, revisionist historical dramedy for SBS set in 1940s rural Australia. While the men are off fighting in WWII, the people who have been excluded from power suddenly find themselves running the show. Two Women’s Land Army recruits from Sydney arrive in the country and undergo a heady course in race relations, rural politics, spirituality, sex, and personal growth- oh, and farming. While the Men are Away is created by Alexandra Burke, Kim Wilson, and Monica Zanetti, and written by Wilson, Zanetti, Jada Alberts, Magda Wozniak, Enoch Mailangi, and Sam Icklow. It is produced by Lisa Shaunessy of Arcadia. The series is financed with support from Screen NSW with Red Arrow Studios International managing international sales. The title is the first 8 x 30 drama from SBS Scripted Originals.

North Shore: A six-part crime thriller for Paramount ANZ created by Mike Bullen and directed by Gregor Jordan with writing from Marcia Gardner. Set on and around Sydney Harbour, this series follows the clash of cultures when British and Australian detectives team up to solve a complex murder mystery, and uncover a conspiracy with international political consequences. Produced by Beach Road Pictures, North Shore is financed with support from Screen NSW. It is also produced in association with ITV Studios, which will handle international distribution.

Children’s Projects

Rock Island Mysteries (season two): A 20-episode second series for Network 10, detailing the adventures of Aussie teen Taylor Young and her gang of friends. The group continue their adventurous search for Taylor’s missing Uncle Charlie now that they know he is still alive somewhere within the increasingly mysterious Rock Island. Season two sees the return of directors Jovita O’Shaughnessy and Evan Clarry, and writers Alix Beane, Marisa Nathar, Jessica Brookman, and Trent Roberts. They are joined by writers Matthew Bon, Chloe Wong, Rachel Laverty, and Dave Cartel. Rock Island Mysteries is produced by Timothy Powell and Jonah Klein of Fremantle Australia. The series is financed with support from Screen Queensland, with international sales by ViacomCBS.

The Strange Chores (season three) : A 26-part third season for ABC of Ludo Studio and Media World Pictures’ series about two teenage wannabe monster warrior heroes, Charlie and Pierce, and a spirited ghost girl Que, who master their skills from the ageing monster hunter Helsing by doing his strange supernatural chores. Director Scott Vanden Bosch returns with writers John McGeachin and Luke Tierney, and executive producers Daley Pearson, Charlie Aspinwall and Colin South. They are joined by writers Alix Beane and Magda Wozniak, and producer Carmel McAloon. The series is financed in association with VicScreen and with support from Screen Queensland. It is distributed globally by Boat Rocker.