The first round of Screen Australia's Documentary Producer program will give eight documentaries $1.8 million in funding support. These projects will generate production expenditure close to $9.3 million and showcase some unique, true Australian stories.
Whiteley, a definitive, landmark documentary, will give audiences a close look into the incredible life and legacy of an iconic Australian artist. Northern Pictures will make the one-off documentary with experienced producer Sue Clothier, writer/director James Bogle and writer Victor Gentile.
Land Artists (working title) follows one of Australia's most outstanding (and controversial) architecture firms Denton Corker Marshall as they work against the clock and across cultures, to create the Australian Pavilion for the Venice Biennale. Renegade Films will make the documentary with producers Lucy Maclaren, Joe Connor and Ken Connor.
Short documentary web series, Black As follows a group of energetic young Indigenous men through Arnhem Land providing access and insight into Aboriginal culture and community in a remote part of Australia. The life-affirming adventure has created goodwill from both the community and through a successful crowd funding campaign. Rebel Films will make the film with writer/director/producer David Batty.
Emerging filmmakers James Cogswell (producer) and David Mason (director) will deal with a difficult subject matter in a moving and insightful way in Cast from the Storm. The film follows a group of teenage refugees brought together through a theatre program run by a Sydney high school. Under the guidance of three passionate teachers, they will share their Storm Stories' the stories that made them refugees in front of Australian audiences.
Liz Stevens, Senior Manager, Documentary, said, It's been reassuring to see the strength of projects coming through the first round of the Producer program. The program has accomplished what it set out to achieve offering trigger funding across a range of content, styles and platforms to both experienced and emerging filmmakers. We're incredibly buoyed up by the quality of the content, the enthusiasm of producers to try something different and the ambitions of the projects in general.
The purpose of the Producer program is to provide filmmakers with a solid foundation to attract and finalise additional finance for bold and unique projects. The new system gives filmmakers up to four months to secure the remaining finance and the stability to progress their projects.
The program provides filmmakers with creative and commercial flexibility on their projects, as well as the autonomy to broaden the pathways to audience. Projects in this round will reach local and international audiences through theatrical, broadcast, digital and festival release.
Screen Australia is pleased to announce the Documentary Producer program will accept online applications for the next round through the new Application Portal, with a deadline of 19 June 2015.
Below is a complete list of projects funded through Screen Australia's Documentary Producer program.
DOCUMENTARY PRODUCTION PRODUCER PROGRAM
BLACK AS
20 x 4 mins
Rebel Films Pty Ltd
Writer/Director/Producer David Batty
Executive Producer David Noakes
Synopsis Going bush with the Black As crew, a celebration of bush culture, ingenuity and what it is to be a young fella in the bush today.
CAST FROM THE STORM
70 mins
Missing Archive Productions
Producer James Cogswell
Executive Producer Susan MacKinnon
Director David Mason
Synopsis After desperately fleeing war and persecution, an extraordinary bunch of teenagers are brought together through a life-changing theatre program. At a Sydney high school, under the guidance of three passionate teachers, they share their Storm Stories' the stories that made them refugees in front of Australian audiences.
THE EULOGY
98 mins
iKandy Films
Producer Katey Grusovin
Director Janine Hosking
Synopsis The Eulogy tells the powerful story of little known concert virtuoso, Geoffrey Tozer, and poses the question did Australia fail its greatest ever pianist?
LAND ARTISTS
57 mins
Renegade Films Pty Ltd
Producers Lucy Maclaren, Joe Connor, Ken Connor
Director Paul Goldman
Synopsis The story of the art and philosophy behind one of Australia's most outstanding (and controversial) architecture firms, Denton Corker Marshall, and their rise to international recognition.
THE LIVING UNIVERSE
90 mins
Essential Media and Entertainment Pty Ltd
Producers Alan Erson, Christine Le Goff
Executive Producers Chris Hilton, Marcus Gillezeau
Director Richard Smith
Synopsis The next great voyage of human exploration has already begun: the search for life on planets orbiting distant stars. With extraordinary CGI, the world's most inspiring scientists, via extreme environments on Earth and around the solar system, the film takes viewers aboard the next generation of space ships, across the cosmos and beneath the clouds of the exo-planets to discover The Living Universe.
ON RICHARD'S SIDE
85 mins
Pericles Film Productions Pty Ltd
Producer/Director Andrew Wiseman
Synopsis Filmed over three decades, this documentary charts the life story of Richard, a young man with severe intellectual disability since birth, and his parents' quest to carve out a quality life for their son and a fulfilling life for themselves.
SECRETS OF THE STONE AGE
2 x 52 mins
Electric Pictures Pty Ltd
Producer Andrew Ogilvie
Director Steve Westh
Synopsis Spectacular reconstructions of life in the Stone Age draw audiences into the exciting story of how surprising fossil discoveries across Asia are now challenging our understanding of human evolution.
WHITELEY
90 mins
Northern Pictures
Producer Sue Clothier
Director James Bogle
Writers Victor Gentile, James Bogle
Synop
Most recent headlines
11/12/2025
Dalet, a leading provider of cloud-native, end-to-end media workflow solutions, ...
28/11/2025
Nadia Fall attends the 2025 Sundance Film Festival premiere of Brides at the Egyptian Theatre on January 24, 2025, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Donyale West/...
28/11/2025
It's easy to ignore those little red update available badges. But when it ...
28/11/2025
WASHINGTON Federal Communications Commission has released a tentative agenda for the December Open Commission Meeting scheduled for Thursday, December 18, 2025 ...
28/11/2025
The Professional Fighters League is looking to super-serve fans of mixed martial...
28/11/2025
Fubo has released in beta on select Roku devices a new feature that lets users display up to four simultaneous streams at once....
28/11/2025
The WNBA playoffs and Week 4 of the NFL regular season highlight the list of live sports events airing on television this weekend....
28/11/2025
The 32nd class of honorees to the B+C Hall of Fame took to the stage at New York's Ziegfeld Ballroom on September 26 for a gala induction event. Click below...
28/11/2025
We hold in our hands the very last Next Text for Next TV, the weekly back-and-fo...
28/11/2025
DirecTV said it made a deal with EchoStar to buy EchoStar's video businesses, including satellite-TV provider Dish TV and virtual MVPD Sling TV, for $1 plus...
28/11/2025
The Broadcasting+Cable Hall of Fame, the premier industry event paying tribute to the influencers, innovators and shining lights of broadcast, cable and streami...
28/11/2025
Friday 28 November 2025
Sky Sports x Slawn drop limited-edition football jersey...
28/11/2025
Rohde & Schwarz shows resilience in a challenging environment, revenue exceeds t...
28/11/2025
Unwrapped: The Toy Show Appeal - airing this Sunday on RT One and RT Player- s...
27/11/2025
LONDON Vizrt has added several AI-driven advanced features offering improved speed, intelligence and accuracy in the newest version of its media asset managemen...
27/11/2025
Prime Video has launched AI-powered video season recaps in a beta version for select English-language Prime Original series in the U.S., a move Amazon is callin...
27/11/2025
Back to All News
Netflix's Raat Akeli Hai: The Bansal Murders Marks a Grand...
27/11/2025
27 Nov 2025
GSMA brings M360 Eurasia 2026 to Samarkand in partnership with VEON...
27/11/2025
Tahar Rahim and Izuka Hoyle star in the gripping six-part Sky Original from Acad...
27/11/2025
Thursday 27 November 2025
Sky Arts Reveals the Nation's Greatest Basslines - and Queen Reign Supreme
The UK's most iconic basslines have been revealed...
27/11/2025
Back to All News
Stranger Things 5': Prepare for One Last Adventure With O...
27/11/2025
The media industry has a paradox at its core. It's an industry built on light, color and imagination, yet behind the scenes, it's powered by one of the ...
27/11/2025
Rating reflects rating progress across areas including policies, diversity & inclusion, health & safety and Net Zero leadership
Winchester, UK, 27 November 202...
27/11/2025
What are the industry standards for Retail Media? Kathryn explains that certification is based on the IAB Europe Retail Media Measurement Standards and the IAB ...
27/11/2025
World champion boxer and Irish sporting icon Katie Taylor will be in studio this...
27/11/2025
Roblox, one of the world's most popular online gaming platforms for primary ...
27/11/2025
Black Friday is leveling up. Get ready to score one of the biggest deals of the season - 50% off the first three months of a new GeForce NOW Ultimate membership...
26/11/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Prime Video EP Mike Muriano Previews Massive Black Friday Slate Fe...
26/11/2025
A cinematic snow sculpture at the 1995 Sundance Film Festival. Photo by Randall Michelson...
26/11/2025
Book podcasts are booming. On Spotify, you'll find everything from celebrity book clubs to deep dives with bestselling authors. And in markets where audiobo...
26/11/2025
Mumbai, November 24, 2025: In a first-of-its-kind initiative, JioStar, in collab...
26/11/2025
LONDON Factual content producer ITN Productions has launched a new low-latency IP gallery for news bulletins....
26/11/2025
MIAMI TelevisaUnivision said it struck a new multiyear distribution agreement with YouTube TV that includes distribution of TelevisaUnivision's U.S. network...
26/11/2025
OpenDrives, Inc., a leader in software-defined data storage and data services, today announced the launch of the Atlas Corporate Creative Solution. This new Atl...
26/11/2025
Disguise, the industry-leading company powering the world's biggest live performances, is partnering with pioneering LED wall manufacturer DVS to give atten...
26/11/2025
HighField AI, the pioneer in agentic and multimodal automation for broadcast and media production, today announced the expansion of its global channel partner n...
26/11/2025
As high-stakes Premier League fixtures approach and additional premium content launches, with MONO positioning themselves to dominate Thailand's sports stre...
26/11/2025
Hosting a wide variety of events from high-intensity NHL games to complex live music concerts and major entertainment productions, Montreal's 21,000 capacit...
26/11/2025
Vizrt, the leader in live production technology revolutionizing viewer engagement and experience, releases AI-driven advances focusing on speed, intelligence, a...
26/11/2025
ITN Productions, an award-winning factual content producer, today launched a new low-latency IP gallery for news bulletins. Responsible for delivering a leading...
26/11/2025
Ikegami reports ongoing advances throughout 2025 in developing and delivering coordinated television production solutions that maximize quality, versatility and...
26/11/2025
Following the Nov. 21 blackout of NBCUniversal channels on Fubo, the two sides have traded barbs about their inability to reach a new carriage deal....
26/11/2025
LONDON As TV sports rights become increasingly important for both broadcasters and streamers, Ampere Analysis predicts global investment in the genre will surpa...
26/11/2025
LOS ANGELES Vubiquity said it has achieved the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Media & Entertainment Competency as part of the AWS Partner Network (APN). This designa...
26/11/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission's Enforcement Bureau said it has entered into a consent decree with Comcast calling for the cable company t...
26/11/2025
Berklee Named to the Hollywood Reporters Top Music Schools List The publication highlights the college's screen scoring program, industry partnerships, and ...
26/11/2025
Back to All News
Animated Series Love Through a Prism' Casts New Light on ...
26/11/2025
Back to All News
NALIP Unveils Fifth Cohort of Director Incubator
Social Impact
26 November 2025
United States
Link copied to clipboard
The National Assoc...
26/11/2025
YouView Achieves Greenly Gold Certification for SustainabilityNov 26, 2025
YouView is proud to announce a Gold Certification award from Greenly for our perform...
The first round of Screen Australia's Documentary Producer program will give eight documentaries $1.8 million in funding support. These projects will generate production expenditure close to $9.3 million and showcase some unique, true Australian stories.
