Development and Production (cont.)
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Written and directed by Maciek Wszelaki and produced by Peter George and Bronwyne Smith, Original Schtick received AFC post-production investment. It screened at various festivals, winning Best Documentary and the Rouben Mamoulian Award at the 1999 Dendy Awards and the 1999 AFI Awards for Best Direction in a Documentary and for Best Editing in a Non-Feature Film (shared). |
During the year, the AFC's development programs delivered a number of outstanding results.
The Million Dollar Movie Mallboy was accepted into Directors Fortnight at the Cannes Film Festival, the only Australian feature film to gain selection for the main competition at Cannes this year. City Loop, which will be released theatrically early in the 2000/01 financial year, was very well received at its world premiere at the Asian Film Festival in Tokyo in December 1999.
Two Hands, written and directed by Gregor Jordan and produced by Marian MacGowan, had its first Australian theatrical screening on 29 July 1999. With takings of $5.4m by January 2000, it recorded the highest domestic box office for an Australian film in 1999. Two Hands was also rewarded with five AFI awards, including Best Film, Best Achievement in Direction and Best Original Screenplay. Two Hands was developed with finance from the AFC and Gregor's career was assisted by AFC finance for his short films Swinger and Stitched.
Soft Fruit, produced by Helen Bowden and written and directed by Christina Andreef, was released during the year. Soft Fruit had a special screening as part of Critics' Week at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival. It was voted Most Popular Australian Film at the Sydney Film Festival and won AFI awards for Best Actor and Best Actress in a Supporting Role and shared the Film Critics Circle award for Best Original Screenplay. Before financing the development of Soft Fruit the AFC had also supported Christina's development as a director by financing her two short films, Excursion To The Bridge Of Friendship and The Gap.
Other AFC-supported feature films released during the year included Siam Sunset (d: John Polson; p: Al Clark; w: Max Dann, Andrew Knight) and In A Savage Land (d: Bill Bennett; p: Bill Bennett, Jennifer Bennett, Brenda Pam; w: Bill Bennett, Jennifer Cluff). Sally Marshall Is Not An Alien (d: Mario Andreacchio; p: Terry Charatsis, Micheline Charest; w: Amanda McKay, Robert Geoffrion) performed strongly at the box office and was provided with production finance through the AFC's Commercial Television Production Fund. Strange Planet (d: Emma-Kate Croghan; p: Stavros Kazantzidis, Anastasia Sideris; w: Emma-Kate Croghan, Stavros Kazantzidis) was assisted with bridging loan finance.
The short film Feeling Sexy, written and directed by painter Davida Allen and produced by Glenys Rowe, was released in December 1999. The theatrical release of a film only a little more than 50 minutes in length was unusual but the film received wide critical acclaim and performed strongly at the box office. Feeling Sexy was financed by a number of investors, including the AFC, with the intention of supporting a strikingly original voice. The film's success vindicated the AFC's practice of putting originality and talent ahead of market certainty at appropriate points in a filmmaker's development, and demonstrated the value of 50-minute projects in professional development.
AFC-financed documentaries screened on broadcast television during the year included Original Schtick (d/w: Maciej Wszelaki; p: Peter George, Bronwyne Smith), about an American who walks a fine line between being an artist and a con artist, Surfing The Healing Wave (d: Tim Burns; p: Hugh Benjamin; w: Tim Burns, Hugh Benjamin, Kyle Slabb), about an Indigenous surfing competition in northern New South Wales, and Sheer Will (d: Dick Marks; p: Angela Faria, Colin Oddy; w: Angela Faria), about climber Michael Groom surviving a disastrous expedition to Mount Everest in 1996 that cost eight lives.
Facing The Demons (d/w: Aviva Ziegler; p: Dee Cameron), about the family and friends of a murder victim facing the imprisoned murderers, generated wide public discussion when screened on ABC-TV, was nominated for an AFI award and won a Logie award.
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Page last updated 26 September 2000