
10 04 2024 - Media release Screen Australia announces over $2.3 million for nine documentaries
Guardians of the River
Screen Australia has announced nine documentaries that will share in over $2.3 million of production funding.
Among the projects is Our Medicine, an NITV series that follows First Nations professionals working on the medical front-line as they try to achieve better health outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients and communities; The Kimberley explores the extraordinary animals who inhabit the region and the passionate individuals working to protect its unique biodiversity; Second to None documents the journey of elite female cycling team, Lidl-Trek, as they compete in the illustrious Tour de France Femmes 2023; and The Colleano Heart about the Colleanos, an Indigenous family and self-made entertainers of circus, who escaped oppression and racism to rise to the upper echelons of the world's vaudeville and circus.
Angela Bates, Head of First Nations at Screen Australia said, Our Medicine shines a light on First Nations medical practitioners, and frontline health workers who play a critical role in caring for, and healing Indigenous patients through Western medicine balanced with individual social, emotional and wellbeing needs. This program also explores a new model that incorporates ancient traditional practices to help address the low life expectancy in our communities, and the many barriers our mob face in the health system. It's an important and timely series and one we are proud to support.
Screen Australia's Head of Documentary Richard Huddleston said, This slate reflects our determination to support Australian filmmakers who want to tell stories from not just within our nation but further afield; whether it be exploring the brilliant mind of John Clarke, escaping to the majestic Kimberley, interrogating the inner workings of our jury system, following an epic tradition in Mongolia or fighting for the Papua New Guinean environment. They all push boundaries, play with form and reflect the rich, wide range of storytelling approaches we have in the Australian documentary community.
The project funded through the First Nations Department is:
Our Medicine: A 6 x 30-minute documentary series for NITV following First Nations professionals working on the medical front-line as they try to achieve better health outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients and communities. The series examines how these professionals navigate the medical system with their culture and identity at the forefront and look at the strategies necessary to close the unacceptable gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous health outcomes. Attached is series director Kimberley Benjamin (Family Rules), co-director Karla Hart (Yokayi Footy, Family Rules) and post director Jeremy Thomson, with Karla Hart and Sam Bodhi Field of Our Law producing. It has received major production investment from NITV with support from Screenwest, Lotterywest and the WA Regional Screen Fund.
The project funded through the Commissioned Program is:
The Jury Project: From Northern Pictures, The Jury Project is a four-part series for SBS that puts the jury system on trial and explores the challenges and intricacies of the justice system. The Jury Project is directed by Tosca Looby and executive produced by Karina Holden, whose credits include Asking For It and See What You Made Me Do. It has received major production investment from SBS.
The projects funded through the Producer Program are:
When the Front Fell Off: This feature-length documentary is an intimate tribute to the life and work of one of the world's greatest satirists, John Clarke, told through the eyes of his daughter, Lorin. When the Front Fell Off is a unique look at a very funny man and lifts the lid on a treasure trove of archival material, and personal stories revealing the creative, often hilarious and sometimes not quite as funny struggles and successes of John Clarke. Directing is Lorin Clarke and producing is Richard Keddie (Ride Like a Girl, Oddball, Hawke). It is financed in association with the Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) Premiere Fund, VicScreen, Soundfirm and Rialto Distribution, who are also distributing locally.
Guardians of the River: A 90-minute documentary that charts the journey of Papua New Guinean activist Manu Peni and his people as they launch an urgent mission to protect the Sepik River from an enormous, nearby mine. In Guardians of the River, audiences will witness Project Sepik's work on the ground as they build a powerful indigenous grassroots movement to resist the mine on their own terms, using traditional decision-making structures. The film is written and directed by Lachlan McLeod (Clean) and Matasila Freshwater (Vai). It is produced by Kerry Warkia (The Legend of Baron To a), David Elliot-Jones (Clean), Maria Tanner (The Feijoa Club) and Emmanuel Peni, with Chris Kamen (Franklin) executive producing. Guardians of the River is financed in association with the Pacific Islanders in Communications, The Post Lounge and VicScreen, with support from the Shark Island Foundation and the Three Springs Foundation.
Sand Roads: This 90-minute film documents the journey of three Sydney boys in their twenties, Valerio, Jamie and Ted, as they set off in 2010 on a great adventure crossing Europe, Africa and Australia on quad-bikes, as an initiation to their adulthood, self-filming their epic journey. But tragically, while in Malawi, a car overwhelms one of the quads and Valerio dies. Weaving archive footage with contemporary interviews, Sand Roads is a story of resilience and remembrance showing how healthily accepting grief and paying heed to loss can heal. Sand Roads is from writer/director Gabriele Gianni (Notes on Stone), writer/director Lorenzo Conte (Th
Most recent headlines
11/12/2025
Dalet, a leading provider of cloud-native, end-to-end media workflow solutions, ...
09/12/2025
LOS ANGELES James Shears has joined ThinkAnalytics as senior vice president, advertising, tasked with leading global strategy and commercial expansion of the co...
09/12/2025
VIENNA, Va. The Media Institute, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization specializing in communications policy and the First Amendment, has named Kathleen Kirby o...
09/12/2025
Throughout its century-plus existence, the motion picture industry has had to fight battles on multiple fronts to protect its content from piracy. From protecti...
09/12/2025
NEW YORK Fueled by football season, ad supported TV viewing in Q3 peaked in September, representing 74.7% of overall TV viewership in that month, per Nielsen...
09/12/2025
LYNDONVILLE, N.Y. Digital Alert Systems has introduced the DAS3-DC-PS, a new DC power supply option for its DASDEC-III emergency alert system. Designed to meet ...
09/12/2025
Advanced Systems Group, LLC (ASG), a technology and services provider for media creatives and content owners, announced the appointment of Macky Beheshti as Dir...
09/12/2025
Triveni Digital and Device Solutions Inc today announced that the United States Patent and Trademark Office granted them a new patent for their novel ATSC 3.0 r...
09/12/2025
ThinkAnalytics, the global leader in AI-powered data analytics for TV and streaming, today announced the appointment of James Shears as Senior Vice President of...
09/12/2025
European data management specialists appointed as SingleStore champion partner, bringing unified real-time transaction, vector and analytics capabilities to org...
09/12/2025
Broadcast Solutions, the leading systems integration group, has launched a new business, aimed at providing consultancy and design services across the media ind...
09/12/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission's Media Bureau has once again delayed implementation of sponsorship identification requirements for foreign...
09/12/2025
WASHINGTON #GALSNGEAR has announced two major leadership retreats in early 2026 that the group said are designed to equip women in media, entertainment, and tec...
09/12/2025
WASHINGTON With a Dec. 15 deadline looming for a new retransmission consent and carriage deal between Cox and Verizon, the two parties have started trading barb...
09/12/2025
SAN FRANCISCO Samba TV has announced that it has secured new financing from Horizon Technology Finance Corporation, an affiliate of Monroe Capital, with an init...
09/12/2025
Many cord-cutters looking to reduce their monthly cable or satellite bills are also cutting back on streaming costs, according to new research from All About Co...
09/12/2025
LAS VEGAS and NASHVILLE, Tenn. Shure technology played a critical role during the broadcast productions of the 59th Annual CMA Awards at the Bridgestone Arena i...
09/12/2025
Unveiling of new CV1, web-browser workflows and Milan roadmap for mission-critical AV environments
Nixer Pro Audio will return to Integrated Systems Europe (IS...
09/12/2025
Current Rose of Tralee Katelyn Cummins has been revealed as the third contestant...
09/12/2025
An easier approach to recreate the powerful nerve-blocking molecule found in shellfish A Scripps Research-led study resolves the challenge of synthesizing saxit...
08/12/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Technology Exhibits Preview, Part 1By SVG Staff
Monday, December 8, 2025 - 6:56 am
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
The 2025...
08/12/2025
2025 Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame: Bill Rasmussen, the Entrepreneur Who Drea...
08/12/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Preview: Live Production Innovation Workshop Goes Deep on ST 211...
08/12/2025
#GALSNGEAR Announces East, West Leadership Retreats for 2026By Ken Kerschbaumer
Monday, December 8, 2025 - 9:10 am
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story High...
08/12/2025
MediaKind Acquiring Harmonic's Video Business to Create New Streaming-Video ...
08/12/2025
Platinum White Paper: Sony HDR/SDR Camera Shading Techniques for Live Production...
08/12/2025
SVG Sit-Down: NESN's Kenny Elcock and Harmonic's Jean Macher Talk Next-G...
08/12/2025
Monsters Funday Football,' ESPN's Latest Live Animation Effort, Advances...
08/12/2025
SVG Sit-Down: ESPN Director Jeff Nelson on Calling the (Animated) Action on Mon...
08/12/2025
Monsters Funday Football': Louisiana Philharmonic Delivers Again With Orches...
08/12/2025
Always Was, Always Will Be Strength, Survival and Pride this January 26 on NITV,...
08/12/2025
Nielsen's robust data offering enables marketers to connect with their target audience more effectively and drive better results throughout Amazon's adv...
08/12/2025
LOS ANGELES and NEW YORK Paramount has launched a hostile takeover bid for Warner Bros. Discovery with an all-cash tender offer to acquire all of the outstandin...
08/12/2025
EMERYVILLE, Calif. Media and entertainment technology and services provider Advanced Systems Group has named Macky Beheshti as director, enterprise storage and ...
08/12/2025
DENVER MediaKind, a global provider of cloud-based video streaming technology announced today that it is acquiring the video business of Harmonic Inc. for appro...
08/12/2025
NEW YORK Nielsen has announced that its Audience Segments from Nielsen Marketing Cloud (NMC) are now available across the Amazon Ads marketplace, including the ...
08/12/2025
Marshall Electronics showcases the CV355-27X-ND3 Optical Zoom NDI (NDI HX2, NDI HX3) Camera at ISE 2026 (Booth 4N900). Designed for users seeking high-quality ...
08/12/2025
Cinnafilm today announced the immediate availability of IPx LIVE and Tachyon LIVE, delivering broadcast-grade, real-time IP video transcoding and motion-compens...
08/12/2025
Following a successful 45th anniversary year in 2024, Hiltron reports increasing demand for its wide range of satellite communication equipment manufacturing, p...
08/12/2025
Over 1.7 million people watched across the weekend
Another record-breaking year...
08/12/2025
When was the last time you updated your default playlist(s)? A default playlist keeps your station(s) on the air should your team ever miss a step in sending mu...
08/12/2025
08 Dec 2025
VEON's Beeline Kazakhstan Breaks Ground for Hyper Cloud Data Ce...
08/12/2025
Back to All News
Netflix ISP Speed Index for November 2025
Product
08 December 2025
Global
Link copied to clipboard
This month marks 15 years of the Netfl...
08/12/2025
Back to All News
Another Exciting Chapter in Our Book-to-Screen Journey and What's to Come
Entertainment
08 December 2025
Global
Link copied to clipboa...
08/12/2025
Strategic and transformative transaction would sharpen Harmonic's focus on its core Broadband business and advance its growth initiatives
Ensures continued...
08/12/2025
Copenhagen's The Epicurus is a one-of-a-kind Jazz Gastropub that presents exclusive performances curated by Jazz Pianist and Producer Sir Niels Lan Doky. Fe...
08/12/2025
Arvato Systems Receives gematik-approval for TI-Messenger tim
Approval secured for TI Messenger tim - paving the way for secure and interoperable communicat...
08/12/2025
Eurovision winner Niamh Kavanagh is the first celebrity to be revealed for the s...
08/12/2025
Changing children's lives for good: A staggering 4.6 million raised in the 2025 appeal
The people of Ireland and people all over the world have once again...
08/12/2025
It's murder on the dancefloor as The Traitors Ireland legend Paudie Moloney ...