
07 08 2019 - Media release Screen Australia announces development funding for 17 projects
Sam Humphrey and Nick Boshier in Jeremy The Dud
Screen Australia has announced five television series, six online projects and six feature films which will share in over $675,000 of Story Development funding. The slate is the final funding awarded in the 2018/19 financial year and marks 12 months since the Premium and Generate Funds were introduced. The agency has also announced the return of its Developing the Developer program.
The funded projects include Musquito, an adventure film about an Aboriginal warrior from director Dylan River; Jeremy The Dud, a TV comedy exploring the moments of challenge and levity when living with a disability; and Afro Sistahs, an online series about a group of twenty-somethings who connect at an Afro hair salon.
Nerida Moore, Head of Development at Screen Australia said, We are pleased to see that our revised Story Development programs are supporting a new wave of Australian storytellers while also supporting mid-career and experienced creators. In 2018/19, 59% of successful applicants* for the Generate Fund had never received Screen Australia Story Development funding before. This is an extraordinary outcome and way beyond our expectations.
We're also pleased to see a much more even spread of our development funding across film, television and online, better reflecting the screen market.
The Premium Fund is also proving fit for purpose, with experienced creators taking creative risks and dreaming big in terms of story, audience and potential production values.
In 2018/19 Screen Australia received 378 Story Development applications across the Premium and Generate Funds, up nearly 76% from 215 applications in 2017/18. In the last 12 months, Screen Australia has provided Story Development funds to a total of 80 projects out of a pool of 296 projects that were creatively assessed during the financial year. This included 48 through the Generate Fund and 32 through the Premium Fund.
*An applicant is the person who submits an application for funding and can be a producer, writer or director.
The latest projects funded for development include
Afro Sistahs: An eight-part online series from the Afro Sistahs Collective centred on an eclectic group of four sistahs whose lives intersect at an Afro hair salon in Western Sydney. The dramedy follows Kabusha, Ayo, Akilah and Trisha as they weave around nosey Aunties and woke baes, and they realise that some knots will take more than coconut oil to untangle. This project is helmed by an all-female team including producers Safia Amadou and Mumbi Hinga (Survive or Die), director Hawanatu Bangura (Inner Demons) and executive producer Rosie Lourde (Skin Deep). Writers Moreblessing Maturure and Rebekah Robertson, performer Ebube Uba and script editor Louise Gough are also attached. This project is co-produced by I.C.E.
Jeremy The Dud: An eight-part television series based on the 2017 short film of the same name, which follows two brothers who live in a world where everyone has a disability, and those who don t are treated with the same prejudice and condescending attitudes people with disabilities face in our own society. This comedy will be directed by Ryan Chamley (Rostered On) and produced by Mike Cowap of Princess Pictures. It will be written by Chamley, in close collaboration with Nick Boshier (Beached Az) who will reprise the lead role of Jeremy. Daniel Monks whose feature Pulse won the Busan Bank Award at the Busan International Film Festival in 2017 and Sam Humphrey (The Greatest Showman) join as creative consultants.
Musquito: The first feature film from director Dylan River, whose credits include critically-acclaimed teen television drama Robbie Hood. Inspired by true events, Musquito tells the story of an Aboriginal warrior fighting against colonialism during the Tasmanian Black War. The project will be written by Nathan Maynard (Little J & Big Cuz), Jonathon auf der Heide (Hell's Gates) and Raimondo Cortese, and produced by Tanith Glynn-Maloney (She Who Must Be Loved) and Chris Brown (The Railway Man).
Over and Out: A 10-part television series about two parents, Lewis and Freya, who are struggling to survive the trials and tribulations of raising toddlers while being smack bang in the middle of the post-apocalypse. This project sees writers Christian Van Vuuren and Adele Vuko and producer Bridget Callow-Wright building on their online series of the same name which won Best Short Form at Cannes Series 2019, and was funded through Screen Australia and Google's Skip Ahead initiative. It will be co-produced by Abi Tabone and Gemma Knight.
The Power Of The Dog: A feature film adaptation of the 1967 novel of the same name by Thomas Savage. This project is presented by an Academy Award-winning team including writer, director and producer Jane Campion (Top of the Lake, The Piano), and producers Emile Sherman and Iain Canning (The King's Speech, Lion). Tanya Seghatchian (Cold War) and Roger Frappier (Indian Horse) are also on board as producers. This drama centres on two brothers, Phil and George, who co-own the biggest ranch in Montana valley. When George secretly marries Rose, a local widow, Phil is overcome with anger and wages a war to destroy her.
For the complete list of development funding approvals, refer to television, online and feature film breakdowns.
Also confirmed today, applications are now open for third iteration of Screen Australia's Developing the Developer to be run in November 2019. The intensive workshop was first run in 2017 and has proved successful in enabling story developers from diverse backgrounds to produce the work of other creators. To view the guidelines and apply click here
Mary Amevor and Moreblessing Maturure in Afro Sistahs
FUNDING SUMMARY In July 2018 S
Asia, Australia & Oceanic Stories
30/06/2025
SBS On Demand boosts global news offering with launch of France 24 FAST Channel
30 June, 2025
Media releases
SBS is expanding its international news offeri...
27/06/2025
27 06 2025 - Media release Game, set, action! Screen Australia and ABC announce new mini-series Goolagong
Marton Csokas and Lila McGuire of Goolagong. Image c...
26/06/2025
Buckle up for Great Australian Road Trips launching 31 July on SBS and SBS On De...
20/06/2025
Hit, run, oh sh#t: NITV and SBS get RECKLESS with filming underway in Western Au...
13/06/2025
Pure Drama and Fierce Rivalries set to dominate the world's most iconic spor...
12/06/2025
50 Years Strong: SBS and NITV Supercharge NAIDOC Week 2025 in a joint 50th celeb...
06/06/2025
06 06 2025 - Media release Award-Winning TV Creators Richard Gadd, Sally Wainwri...
03/06/2025
Stories of love, loyalty and self-discovery among six shortlisted Digital Origin...
28/05/2025
SBS celebrates 50 years of reflecting a diverse and contemporary Australia
28 May, 2025
Media releases
Marking 50 years of broadcasting on 9 June 2025, SBS...
28/05/2025
ABS and Verticloud announce a Strategic Partnership to accelerate Digital Transf...
22/05/2025
SBS and Screen Australia showcase the next wave of Australian storytellers with ...
22/05/2025
Rune Pedersen unpacks How Humans Talk in new SBS Audio podcast
22 May, 2025
Media releases
Ever caught yourself using baby talk with your pet and wondered ...
19/05/2025
Eurovision delivers strong Total TV audiences for SBS, dazzling more than 2.21 m...
16/05/2025
Proper Loved Up Stage One Recipients Announced
16 May, 2025
Media releases
Screen Australia's First Nations Department, the Australian Broadcasting Cor...
15/05/2025
Australia's boldest network SBS launches new brand campaign: We Go There...
15/05/2025
We Go There SBS On Demand's new Hub is entirely bold and unmistakably SBS
15 May, 2025
Media releases
The We Go There Hub brings together over 300 ti...
14/05/2025
ABS and SpaceBridge to Join Forces to Strengthen Managed Services Across Europe,...
13/05/2025
Alone Australia Season 3: The Reunion
13 May, 2025
Media releases
As the latest season nears its end, SBS's hit series brings full cast together for re...
13/05/2025
Teletimes interviews ABS CEO, Mark Rigolle...
12/05/2025
And They're Off! The Pure Drama of the Cycling Grand Tours Continues on SBS,...
12/05/2025
10 05 2025 - Media release Australian Filmmaker Lucy Mckendrick Set For Directin...
07/05/2025
SBS and NITV mark National Reconciliation Week with compelling premieres recogni...
07/05/2025
SBS commences search for a new Western Sydney production hub location
7 May, 2025
Media releases
SBS has today launched a Request for Expressions of Intere...
02/05/2025
SBS On Demand achieves stellar month on the back of Alone Australia and The Hand...
01/05/2025
01 05 2025 - Media release Screen Australia empowers 100 distinctive Australian narratives
All The Boys Are Here writer/director Goran Stolevski and It s All...
30/04/2025
Slam poet Huda the Goddess wins 2025 Les Murray Award
30 April, 2025
Media releases
Australia for UNHCR and SBS are proud to announce that Huda Fadlelmawla...
30/04/2025
SBS, NITV and NIDA partner to empower the next generation of screen creatives
30 April, 2025
Media releases
SBS, National Indigenous Television (NITV) and ...
23/04/2025
We heard that you could use a little pick-me-up, so get ready to sh-sh-shake it ...
22/04/2025
McAvaney takes the lead for SBS' Coverage of the World Athletics Championshi...
16/04/2025
Finalists announced! Five stand-out brands shortlisted for SBS Media's Susta...
15/04/2025
Claudia Karvan, Tom Gleeson, and Mark Coles Smith join in the adventure of a lif...
15/04/2025
SBS and Volleyball World sign landmark deal for Beach Volleyball World Champions...
14/04/2025
SBS becomes first Australian broadcaster to have near-and long-term carbon reduc...
11/04/2025
Isn't that Insightful? Kumi Taguchi dives deeper into Insight's taboo to...
09/04/2025
SBS On Demand partners with Euronews to extend network news offering
9 April, 2025
Media releases
SBS is expanding its international news offering with the...
09/04/2025
SBS announces TV's hottest new couple, Tony Armstrong and Courtney Act, as E...
09/04/2025
09 04 2025 - Media release Screen Australia and ACTF Kids IP Incubator Initiative enters next phase
Kids IP Incubator recipients in Melbourne for the workshop...
07/04/2025
Olympic Gold medallist and World Time Trial Champion Grace Brown joins SBS comme...
07/04/2025
Female focus: New season of Living Black highlights women in Federal Election ye...
07/04/2025
SBS News' Cost of Living Secrets podcast returns to tackle one of the key is...
04/04/2025
SBS announces initiatives to provide all Australians with trusted news and infor...
01/04/2025
01 04 2025 - Media release Bus Stop Films' first feature Boss Cat to begin production in June
Boss Cat cast (L-R): Olivia Hargroder, Penny Downie and Juli...
31/03/2025
Ready, set, Party Time!' SBS News empowers young voters with a new politica...
28/03/2025
Marion Grasby's Flavours of Heart & Home is a celebration of culture and fam...
28/03/2025
SBS delivers Federal Election news to Australians in over 60 languages
28 March, 2025
Media releases
As Australia heads to the polls on 3 May, Australia...
26/03/2025
The Secret DNA of Us premieres 17 April
20 March, 2025
Media releases
Family secrets, royal relationships and hidden histories revealed What would you disc...
24/03/2025
ABS further Strengthens Leadership Team with Appointment of Matthieu Boutrolle a...
19/03/2025
NITV and Cricket Australia elevate First Nations sport with National Indigenous ...
19/03/2025
Yumi Stynes wants older women to be SEEN' as SBS podcast returns
19 March, 2025
Media releases
Feminist icon Yumi Stynes shines a spotlight on trailbl...