Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

Aussie drama production reaches record-breaking $1.9 billion expenditure

07/12/2021

08 12 2021 - Media release Aussie drama production reaches record-breaking $1.9 billion expenditure

Claudia Karvan, The Hon Paul Fletcher MP, Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts, Deborah Mailman AM, Dr George Miller AO at Screen Australia s Drama Report briefing (Photo credit: John McRae)

Screen Australia's 31st annual Drama Report released today shows a record-breaking level of expenditure on drama production in Australia in 2020/21 of $1.9 billion, made up of $874 million on Australian projects and $1.04 billion on foreign projects produced or post-produced in Australia.

The unprecedented result - nearly double last year's spend, and more than 50% above the five year average was driven by a range of factors, including: projects postponed into the year by COVID shutdowns; low levels of COVID-19, the attractiveness of Australia as a production destination, the strength of local production teams and infrastructure; foreign titles encouraged into Australia by key Australian creatives; and a strong slate of new Australian projects.

Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts, the Hon Paul Fletcher MP, said people working in the screen sector should be proud that despite the challenges of the pandemic, the sector enjoyed a record year in 2020/21.

It is pleasing that the production of local Australian content has had its biggest year, in addition to Australia's notable success attracting foreign productions, which have provided valuable jobs and training opportunities to the industry, Minister Fletcher said.

This achievement reflects the hard work and skills of our screen professionals and the talent of our storytellers, along with the success of the targeted incentives with which the Morrison Government supports this key industry.

Screen Australia's CEO, Graeme Mason said, It's important to look at both of the production years that were hit by the pandemic. We were on track to break records in 2019/20, and what we are seeing now is the hard work of the Australian industry, who adapted and continued to work through COVID, paying off.

It's simply unprecedented to have 10 big foreign productions shooting here in Australia, and especially notable that so many had key Australian creative involvement. From Chris Hemsworth starring in Thor: Love and Thunder and Escape from Spiderhead, to Bruna Papandrea, Nicole Kidman and others bringing the adaptation of Liane Moriarty's Nine Perfect Strangers to Australia. A mix of local and global talent and finance drove this extraordinary result. Australia cemented its reputation as a leading destination for international productions in 2020/21, thanks not only to our world-class cast, crew, facilities and stunning physical locations and Australia's lower rates of COVID-19 but also due to the incentive and investment framework supported by the Federal, state and territory governments.

For the first time in this report we can see the specific role of SVOD investment, where spend on Australian titles reached $116 million in 2020/21. Over the past five years we have seen average production budgets for Australian SVOD drama expand from $800,000 in 2016/17 to $13.5 million in 2020/21. Spend and cost are just one of several measures of drama production, but it is worth noting that spend on Australian SVOD drama has grown and that the combined spend on drama by FTA and SVOD platforms is at similar levels as that traditionally spent by the FTA sector alone.

The 95 Australian titles that began production in 2020/21 generated $874 million of spend in Australia, up 57% on 2019/20's result and setting a new record for spend by Australian titles. This included a record $125 million on local online drama titles, up 20% on last year. Australian local titles accounted for 46% of the total expenditure in Australia.

63 foreign backed projects (including PDV-only titles) generated $1.04 billion spend, more than double that of 2019/20 and a new record for spend in Australia by foreign titles. This included a record spend of $793 million on three features, two TV dramas and five online dramas that commenced shooting in Australia. Spend on foreign PDV-only titles (titles that only had post, digital and visual effects activity in Australia) also reached a record $246 million, up 48% on 2019/20's result.

--

Of the $1.9 billion total spend in Australia, New South Wales and Queensland achieved record spends in 2020/21, with 48% ($912 million) and 29% ($553 million) of the national share respectively. Spend in Victoria dropped slightly to $307 million, while South Australian spend reached $96 million - a reduction on last year's record year, which was driven by production of Mortal Kombat. Spend in Western Australia dropped to $29 million, while the combined spend in the Australian Capital Territory, Tasmania and the Northern Territory tripled to $18 million.

The Drama Report uses data from industry to provide an overview of the production of local and foreign feature, television and online drama titles, as well as post, digital and visual effects (PDV) activity. All production expenditure is allocated to the year in which principal photography began. PDV employs a secondary method of analysis, which is outlined in the PDV section below, and in the report. Drama' refers to scripted narratives of any genre.

FEATURES Spend on Australian feature productions reached $500 million, more than double last year's spend, and 57% above the five-year average. 42 titles commenced production with 38 domestic features including Baz Luhrmann s Untitled Elvis Project, Gold, Seriously Red, and Three Thousand Years of Longing, as well as four Official Co-productions Carmen, We Are Still Here, Mia and Me: The Hero of Centopia and Nude Tuesday.

Feature productions
LINK: https://www.screenaustralia.gov.au/sa/media-centre/news/2021/12-08-aus...
See more stories from screenaustralia

More from Screen Aus

18/03/2024

Screen Australia and VicScreen launch new Screen Careers initiative

18 03 2024 - Media release Screen Australia and VicScreen launch new Screen Careers initiative LTR Denise Eriksen, Esther Coleman Hawkins, Caroline Pitcher, K...

15/03/2024

The Creators 2024 Participants Announced

15 03 2024 - Media release The Creators 2024 Participants Announced The Creators program recipients. L-R Thomas Duncan-Watt, Vanessa Gazy, Sarah Lambert, Lea...

13/03/2024

Screen Australia announces dramas Critical Incident and Sunny Nights for Stan

13 03 2024 - Media release Screen Australia announces dramas Critical Incident and Sunny Nights for Stan Critical Incident: Akshay Khanna and Zoe Boe. Photo c...

28/02/2024

Screen Australia announces over $810,000 in development funding for 29 projects

28 02 2024 - Media release Screen Australia announces over $810,000 in development funding for 29 projects Willy Screen Australia has announced 23 feature fi...

27/02/2024

Michael Ebeid AM appointed as new Screen Australia Chair

27 02 2024 - Media release Michael Ebeid AM appointed as new Screen Australia Chair Michael Ebeid AM and Megan Brownlow The Hon. Minister for the Arts, Tony...

21/02/2024

Screen Australia and Australians in Film Announce Applications Open for UNTAPPED 2024

21 02 2024 - Media release Screen Australia and Australians in Film Announce App...

15/02/2024

Screen Australia announces over $560,000 for crew and gamemaker skills programs

15 02 2024 - Media release Screen Australia announces over $560,000 for crew and gamemaker skills programs Liz Keogh Palmer (Australian Production Design Guil...

13/02/2024

Six Australian projects bound for South by Southwest Festival in the US

22 01 2024 - Media release Six Australian projects bound for South by Southwest Festival in the US Audrey, Birdeater, The Moogai Six Australian screen projec...

12/02/2024

Screen Australia and YouTube Australia Launch Skip Ahead 9

12 02 2024 - Media release Screen Australia and YouTube Australia Launch Skip Ahead 9 Uncovering Street Dance: Australia from Skip Ahead 8. Photographed by Ry...

08/02/2024

Screen Australia and ABC announce Bay of Fires is back for season two

08 02 2024 - Media release Screen Australia and ABC announce Bay of Fires is back for season two Marta Dusseldorp as Stella in Bay of Fires ABC, Screen Austr...

22/01/2024

Five Australian projects bound for South by Southwest Festival in the US

22 01 2024 - Media release Five Australian projects bound for South by Southwest Festival in the US Audrey, Birdeater, The Moogai Five Australian screen proj...

17/01/2024

Brendan Cowell and Asher Keddie star in Screen Australia and ABC's new drama series Plum

17 01 2024 - Media release Brendan Cowell and Asher Keddie star in Screen Austra...

14/12/2023

Screen Australia announces over $6.9 million of production funding for 11 projects

14 12 2023 - Media release Screen Australia announces over $6.9 million of produ...

12/12/2023

Applications open for The Creators program

12 12 2023 - Media release Applications open for The Creators program The Creators program Screen Australia and the Australian Writers Guild (AWG) have annou...

11/12/2023

Screen Australia announces Talent USA: New York recipients 2023

11 12 2023 - Media release Screen Australia announces Talent USA: New York recipients 2023 Enoch Mailangi, Noora Niasari, Hannah Carroll Chapman Screen Austr...

30/11/2023

Screen Australia announces 14 placements through BTL: Next Step Stage 2

30 11 2023 - Media release Screen Australia announces 14 placements through BTL: Next Step Stage 2 Image courtesy: Screen Warriors Screen Australia has annou...

29/11/2023

Screen Australia announces over $1.7 million for seven documentaries

29 11 2023 - Media release Screen Australia announces over $1.7 million for seven documentaries Deeper Screen Australia has announced three documentaries fun...

23/11/2023

Screen Australia announces over $900,000 in development funding for 31 projects

23 11 2023 - Media release Screen Australia announces over $900,000 in development funding for 31 projects Wishes Screen Australia has announced 18 feature f...

10/11/2023

Cameras roll in Canberra on new ABC comedy Austin

09 11 2023 - Media release Cameras roll in Canberra on new ABC comedy Austin Austin - Ben Miller, Michael Theo, Sally Phillips Screen Australia, ABC, ITV Stu...

10/11/2023

Screen Australia, SBS and NITV announce Digital Originals shortlist for 2023

10 11 2023 - Media release Screen Australia, SBS and NITV announce Digital Originals shortlist for 2023 Screen Australia Digital Originals Workshop. Image by ...

09/11/2023

Kangaroo Beach to return for a third series

09 11 2023 - Media release Kangaroo Beach to return for a third series Kangaroo Beach Series 3 Screen Australia and ABC are thrilled to announce that a third...

09/11/2023

Screen Australia and ABC announce TV adaptation of Shaun Tan's Tales From Outer Suburbia

09 11 2023 - Media release Screen Australia and ABC announce TV adaptation of Sh...

08/11/2023

Applications Open for Screen Australia's Enterprise 2024 Program

08 11 2023 - Media release Applications Open for Screen Australia's Enterprise 2024 Program Behind the scenes of Total Control 3 - Wayne Blair, Jub Clerc ...

02/11/2023

Drama Report 2022/23: $2.34 billion spent in Australia from 213 productions

02 11 2023 - Media release Drama Report 2022/23: $2.34 billion spent in Australia from 213 productions NCIS: Sydney, The New Boy, Ginger and the Vegesaurs. S...

01/11/2023

Daisy Ridley set to star in Zak Hilditch's new film We Bury the Dead in Western Australia

01 11 2023 - Media release Daisy Ridley set to star in Zak Hilditch's new fi...

31/10/2023

Deirdre Brennan appointed as new Screen Australia CEO

31 10 2023 - Media release Deirdre Brennan appointed as new Screen Australia CEO Screen Australia is pleased to announce the appointment of Deirdre Brennan a...

31/10/2023

Screen Australia announces participants in Access Coordinator Training Program

31 10 2023 - Media release Screen Australia announces participants in Access Coordinator Training Program Access Coordinator Training Program workshop in Sydn...

31/10/2023

Screen Australia and NITV announce Journey Home - David Gulpilil

31 10 2023 - Media release Screen Australia and NITV announce Journey Home - David Gulpilil Writer/director/producers Maggie Miles and Trisha Morton-Thomas, a...

30/10/2023

South Australian-Made feature film With or Without You announced

30 10 2023 - Media release South Australian-Made feature film With or Without You announced With or Without You stars Melina Vidler, Marta Dusseldorp and Albe...

30/10/2023

Screen Australia and SBS announce new intoxicating romance Four Years

31 10 2023 - Media release Screen Australia and SBS announce new intoxicating romance Four Years L-R: Mithila Gupta (creator/writer), Nicole Reddy (writer), S...

17/10/2023

Applications open for Fresh Cuts Documentary Pitch Initiative

17 10 2023 - Media release Applications open for Fresh Cuts Documentary Pitch Initiative Screen Australia and the Australian International Documentary Confere...

09/10/2023

Screen Australia and Instagram Announce Recipients of 2023 First Nations Creator Program

09 10 2023 - Media release Screen Australia and Instagram Announce Recipients of...

06/10/2023

Australians in Film and Screen Australia bring Hollywood luminaries to SXSW Sydney

06 10 2023 - Media release Australians in Film and Screen Australia bring Hollyw...

05/10/2023

Talent Gateway and Global Producers Exchange applications open

05 10 2023 - Media release Talent Gateway and Global Producers Exchange applications open Screen Australia and Australians in Film (AiF) are delighted to anno...

03/10/2023

Screen Australia launches new games funding for 2023 and beyond

03 10 2023 - Media release Screen Australia launches new games funding for 2023 and beyond Neyyah: Defy Reality Entertainment Screen Australia is pleased to ...

25/09/2023

Screen Australia announces over $10 million of production funding for nine projects

25 09 2023 - Media release Screen Australia announces over $10 million of produc...

14/09/2023

Cameras Roll on Asher Keddie and David Wenham in Drama Series Fake

14 09 2023 - Media release Cameras Roll on Asher Keddie and David Wenham in Drama Series Fake Fake stars Asher Keddie and David Wenham Screen Australia and P...

13/09/2023

Untapped 2023 Development Lab Participants Announced

13 09 2023 - Media release Untapped 2023 Development Lab Participants Announced 2023 Untapped Participants Screen Australia and Australians in Film today an...

07/09/2023

Screen Australia announces applications are open for two below-the-line programs

07 09 2023 - Media release Screen Australia announces applications are open for two below-the-line programs Screen Australia is pleased to announce two progra...

30/08/2023

Screen Australia and Stan announce three new drama series

29 08 2023 - Media release Screen Australia and Stan announce three new drama series L-R: Dylan River (Thou Shalt Not Steal), Bonnie Moir (Exposure), Nicholas...

28/08/2023

New Original Drama Mix Tape Announced

28 08 2023 - Media release New Original Drama Mix Tape Announced Mix Tape director Lucy Gaffy and writer Jo Spain BINGE, Screen Australia and Screen Ireland ...

28/08/2023

Screen Australia and ABC announce Maggie Beer's Big Mission

28 08 2023 - Media release Screen Australia and ABC announce Maggie Beer's Big Mission Maggie Beer s Big Mission Screen Australia, ABC and Screenwest hav...

24/08/2023

Screen Australia announces over $4.6 million in Enterprise funding

24 08 2023 - Media release Screen Australia announces over $4.6 million in Enterprise funding Enterprise Business funding recipients Kauthar Abdulalim (Blac...

24/08/2023

Cameras roll on new Screen Australia and ABC comedy, White Fever

24 08 2023 - Media release Cameras roll on new Screen Australia and ABC comedy, White Fever White Fever creator and actor Ra Chapman and actor Chris Pang. Ima...

18/08/2023

Five Australian projects selected for Toronto International Film Festival 2023

18 08 2023 - Media release Five Australian projects selected for Toronto International Film Festival 2023 Shayda Five Australian projects have been selected ...

16/08/2023

Screen Australia announces over $1.2 million of story development funding for 47 projects

16 08 2023 - Media release Screen Australia announces over $1.2 million of story...

09/08/2023

Screen Australia and ABC announce Fresh Blood 3 teams

09 08 2023 - Media release Screen Australia and ABC announce Fresh Blood 3 teams Fresh Blood 3 teams in Sydney for the workshop on 8 August 2023 The ABC and ...

02/08/2023

Screen Australia announces over $2.2 million for five documentaries

02 08 2023 - Media release Screen Australia announces over $2.2 million for five documentaries Mozart's Sister Screen Australia has announced three docum...

01/08/2023

Marc Fennell continues his global treasure hunt during Stuff The British Stole Season 2

01 08 2023 - Media release Marc Fennell continues his global treasure hunt durin...

27/07/2023

Screen Australia announces over $1.7 million for Industry Development

27 07 2023 - Media release Screen Australia announces over $1.7 million for Industry Development Courtesy Veterans Film Festival Screen Australia has announ...