19 10 2021 - Media release Screen Australia announces development funding for 21 projects
Yael Stone in High Maintenance (Photo credit: David M. Russell/HBO)
Screen Australia has announced 14 feature films, six television dramas and an online project that will share in over $600,000 of Story Development funding. The projects include Beth, a spin-off of television series High Maintenance starring Yael Stone, and comedic crime series The Pastor's Wife from the producers of hit ABC series Wakefield.
This slate includes 11 projects supported through the Generate Fund and 10 through the Premium Fund.
Screen Australia's Head of Development Nerida Moore said, This is an exciting mix of projects and it's great to support creatives expand on their careers and take on new challenges, including producer Alex White working on her first TV series, and writer Arka Das and writer/director Hannah Hilliard on their debut feature films.
Last week it was announced that Moore will depart the agency in December after nine years. The new Head of Development Louise Gough will start in the role on 15 November 2021.
The shared vision we are working towards is an inclusive industry where the best Australian talent can tell their stories to all Australians and global audiences. To this end, I'm grateful for the support of the industry while we made some seismic but necessary changes to open up eligibility and support storytelling on all platforms. It's a privilege to have supported so many fabulous creative projects and people along the way, said Moore.
The funded projects include:
Beth (working title): A spin-off from the HBO series High Maintenance. Beth will follow the feisty, freewheeling thirty-something dog walker (played by Yael Stone), who has just returned to Sydney after 10 wild years in New York. This comedy is created by Alex White (Babyteeth), Eden Falk, Charlie Garber (Sando), Lexi Freiman (author of novel Inappropriation) and actor Yael Stone (Orange is the New Black). It will be directed by Falk, written by Garber and Freiman, produced by White and executive produced by the original creators of High Maintenance, Katja Blichfeld, Ben Sinclair and Russell Gregory.
Khana: The debut feature film written by Arka Das, one of the writers of anthology feature film Here Out West, which is set to open Sydney Film Festival 2021. Khana follows young migrant worker Ronny who clocks long hours as a dish-pig at an Indian restaurant in Sydney's Western suburbs. When the opportunity arises to achieve his dream of becoming a chef, he feels his life is about to change. However, Ronny quickly finds his dream has become a prison and he is drawn into the dark underworld of indentured labour where freedom comes at a hefty price. Blake Ayshford will work with Das as a script consultant during development and the film will be produced by Co-Curious (Here Out West).
Mimesis: A science-fiction feature film about gifted computer scientist Beth Francis, who resurrects her dead sister in the form of an Artificial Consciousness. Once brought to life, Beth's virtual sister struggles with her new identity and draws Beth and her mother into an exploration of the days leading up to her unexplained death, changing their relationship forever. Mimesis is the debut feature film from writer/director Hannah Hilliard, whose 2010 short film Franswa Sharl won the prestigious Crystal Bear for Best Short Film at Berlin Film Festival. Hilliard is joined by writer Ian Shadwell (Under the Volcano) and producer Kristian Moliere (The Babadook).
The Pastor's Wife: An eight-part television series from Jungle Entertainment, the producers of Wakefield and Mr Inbetween, and international boutique distributor and producer APC Studios. This comedic crime series follows a usually meek and mild-mannered pastor's wife and a rat-bag teen who together go down a rabbit-hole of some seriously ungodly behaviour, in order to get away with murder. The creative team features creator/writer Romina Accurso (Spreadsheet), producer Bridget Callow-Wright (Over and Out) and executive producers Romina Accurso, Shay Spencer and Laurent Boissel.
The Sweet Above: A feature film about the true story of an aeroplane race from Melbourne to London in 1932, and how locals from the New South Wales town of Albury defied the odds to become aviation heroes. This adventure drama is created by the team behind A Sunburnt Christmas, with writers Elliot Vella, Gretel Vella and Timothy Walker and executive producers Fiona Eagger, Deb Cox, Mike Jones, Drew Grove and Michael Smith.
For the complete list of development funding approvals refer to television, online and feature film breakdowns.
ABOUT STORY DEVELOPMENT FUNDING Teams with projects for any platform including TV, film and online, can apply for development funding from two program strands the Generate Fund and the Premium Fund.
The Generate Fund is for lower budget projects with an emphasis on new and emerging talent, or experienced talent wanting to take creative risks. The Premium Fund is for higher budget projects of ambition and scale from successful screen content makers.
Related MaterialsDownload PDF
Media enquiries Lidia Williams | Acting Senior Publicist
61 2 8113 1091 | 61 468 784 170 | [email protected]
Catherine Swan | Publicist
61 2 8113 5886 | 61 447 984 755 | [email protected]
All other general/non-media enquiries Sydney 61 2 8113 5800 | Melbourne 61 3 8682 1900 | [email protected]
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
09/10/2026
September 10 2026, 06:00 (PDT) Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform with New Capabilities at IBC 2026
New Sports Intelligence helps providers better unders...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
30/09/2026
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({...
30/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/09/2026
The An Evening with Emerson, Lake and Palmer tour brings one of rock's most iconic bands back to the stage. These performances seamlessly blend live foota...
30/09/2026
Schibsted Media, one of Norways largest and most influential digital media publishers and content producers, has invested in mixers and digital signal processor...
30/09/2026
Big Blue Marble announces the addition of live multiview channels to Cloud Video Kit, its broadcast-grade video processing platform. The feature is powered by A...
30/09/2026
Leading video software provider Synamedia today announced that Telekom Slovenije, Slovenia's largest provider of telecommunications and TV services, is open...
30/09/2026
PODCAST EXPO 2026 Recorded Using Blackmagic Design Workflow
Brie Clayton September 29, 2026
0 Comments
Conference featuring 24 sessions over two days ...
30/09/2026
IBC2026 Show Report
David Kirk September 29, 2026
0 Comments
The International Broadcasting Convention has long been Europe's equivalent of the US...
30/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/09/2026
Mavis has launched Mavis Camera 8.2, the latest release of its professional camera app for the iPhone and iPad. This update brings support for iPhone 18 Pro and...
30/09/2026
New Solution Expands Harmonic's Network Intelligence Portfolio and Brings Comcast-Developed Fiber Monitoring Technology to Broadband Operators, Providing Re...
30/09/2026
Thank you to Film-TV Video for the original article - you can view it here
It was early 1983. I had just turned 21 when I joined Hitachi Denshi's European...
30/09/2026
How to Shop Well Now starts Monday at 9.35pm
on RT One and RT Player
On the...
30/09/2026
Building on nearly a decade of co-engineering, CoreWeave has built NVIDIA compute, networking and software into a cloud purpose-built for AI that's still re...
29/09/2026
Oak View Group (OVG) has announced Cisco as an Official Technology Partner, with plans to standardize infrastructure across its venue network on Cisco solutions...
29/09/2026
SportsNet Pittsburgh (SNP) won three honors at the 2026 Mid-Atlantic Emmy Awards.
Program awards went to Bucs BP in the Sports Program Live category (produced ...
29/09/2026
The Professional Women's Hockey League has announced home openers for all 12 teams for the 2026-27 season, along with a broadcast partnership with CBC under...
29/09/2026
Manifold technologies has been recognized as a contributor to the Media eXchange...
29/09/2026
FuboTV has announced My Local Sports, allowing subscribers in select markets to add their local regional sports network (RSN) as an add-on to a Fubo Sports subs...
29/09/2026
Asian News International (ANI), a wire agency and video news provider based in India, has deployed Grass Valley's AMPP Media Operating System and Framelight...
29/09/2026
South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) has deployed Ikegami UHK-X600 cameras as part of an upgrade to IP-based production infrastructure. The deployment ...
29/09/2026
REMI, REMCO models will drive the bulk of the broadcaster's NHL productions ...
29/09/2026
Three years in, the facility is supporting more centralized race production, com...
29/09/2026
NBC, Peacock, and NBSN are carrying all four Wild Card series with a production ...
29/09/2026
19 Nonfiction Projects Across All Stages of Production to Receive More Than $1 million in Support as Documentary Film Program Approaches 25th Anniversary
LOS ...
29/09/2026
Two new plug-ins launch alongside updated bundles
Zynaptiq have just announced the launch of two new plug-ins, alongside new and improved versions of two of...
29/09/2026
All-in-one bus processor revealed
Wes Audio's ng product range has come a long way since it was first introduced, and now includes a tasty selection of ...
29/09/2026
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Ikegami announces that the South African Broadcasting Corporation, SABC, has chosen Ikegami UHK-X600 camera systems as part of an advance to IP-based operation ...
29/09/2026
Blendkit Offers 20% Discount to Celebrate Crossing 150K Asset Milestone
Brie Clayton September 29, 2026
0 Comments
Blendkit, the largest 3D asset libr...
29/09/2026
Interactive streaming specialist Ease Live supported more than 76.5 million fan sessions across three major European media operators during this summers FIFA Wo...
29/09/2026
Ease Live has added support for VAST (Video Ad Serving Template) to its graphical overlay technology, opening up new ways for broadcasters, streamers and rights...
29/09/2026
Rise AV has announced the launch of the inaugural Rise AV Awards, a new global awards programme celebrating the women, advocates and organisations across the AV...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19 10 2021 - Media release Screen Australia announces development funding for 21 projects 
