New musicals find their first stage

Sam Ludeman says he understands the ups and downs of a life in showbiz. Source: Herald Sun

Sally Bennett, The Herald Sun, reports

MUSICAL theatre hunk Sam Ludeman will be back on the boards this week when three new shows are given their first run at Arts Centre Melbourne.

Ludeman, 26, who performed the male lead in Xanadu the Musical, is in the cast of one of the chosen works, DreamSong, a tongue-in-cheek musical about religion.

The Ballarat Academy of Performing Arts graduate has managed to stay on his feet since Xanadu was abruptly shut down and the national tour cancelled just weeks after opening in Melbourne last year.

He immediately landed a role in the Doris Day show, starring Melinda Schneider, and is in the running to be on Channel Nine's new reality TV show The Voice.

"I've got a positive outlook on life and as long as I stay there I'm fine," he says. "I just say that phrase in my head, 'That's showbiz'. I expect anything to be possible and that's the beauty of it but also what lets it down."

DreamSong, along with The New Black and Cautionary Tales for Children, make up this year's New Music Theatre Series, also known as Carnegie 18.

The series aims to unearth "bold, innovative and compelling new Australian work" from independent artists and ensembles.

Ludeman says a spot in the final three is hotly contested ensuring the highest quality work makes the cut.

He describes DreamSong as a musical comedy - "it's kind of a piss-take of Hillsong" - in which he plays Fake Jesus.

Pastor Richard Sunday and his "Evangelical Megachurch" are in financial strife following the Global Financial Crisis, so he invents the second coming of Christ to raise cash and keep saving souls.

"Religion is such an interesting debate so I think this show appeals to all ages," Ludeman says. "But if you're Christian or a Catholic you might not like the message it's sending."

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NEW MUSIC THEATRE SERIES
Fairfax Studio, Arts Centre Melbourne, February 1-7
Tickets: artscentremelbourne.com.au or 1300 182 183

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The New Black
By Stephen Helper in collaboration with Leeroy Bilney and the Aboriginal Centre for Performing Arts
"A musical journey of justice, identity and winking ambition."

Cautionary Tales for Children
By Claudia O'Doherty, based on the poems of Hilaire Belloc, and performed by the Arena Theatre Company
"A lyrical satirical cabaret at which you may lose your head entirely."

DreamSong
By Hugo Chiarella in collaboration with Robert Tripolino
"An irreverent musical satire of faith, fortune and the Mega-church.''

Kelpie fetches the top prize at new film and TV awards

Olivia Newton John. Photo: Ben Rushton

Garry Maddox, The Sydney Morning Herald, reports

IT WAS one more triumphant yelp for Red Dog. The warm-hearted hit film won the top prize at the first Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards at the Opera House last night.

The comic drama by the director Kriv Stenders about a kelpie who unites a mining town in the Pilbara, loosely based on a true story from the 1970s, added best film to the previously announced member's choice award.

But with Red Dog's directing, acting and craft nominees all overlooked, the intense drama Snowtown surprisingly won four of the stylish trophies modelled on the Southern Cross at the replacement for the Australian Film Institute Awards.

Presenters at the black-tie ceremony included the Australian of the Year and academy president Geoffrey Rush, Cate Blanchett, Mia Wasikowska, Anthony LaPaglia and Jacki Weaver, with performances by Olivia Newton-John and Megan Washington.

Justin Kurzel's dark Snowtown, which dramatised South Australia's infamous bodies-in-the-barrels murders using mostly non-actors from the Adelaide suburbs where the early crimes took place, won best direction, best actor for little-known Daniel Henshall, best adapted screenplay for Shaun Grant and, in the night's biggest upset, best supporting actress for first-timer Louise Harris.

Henshall took the role of serial killer John Bunting to break away from being cast as an ''affable loser'' in TV shows and commercials. He beat three big names - Geoffrey Rush for The Eye of the Storm, Willem Dafoe for The Hunter and David Wenham for Oranges and Sunshine.

Kurzel cast Harris, a non-actor, as the mother of teenage killer Jamie Vlassakis after seeing her arguing in the street about a dog off the chain.

She was considered a long-shot against Helen Morse and Alexandra Schepisi (both for The Eye of the Storm) and young Morgana Davies (The Hunter).

At the earlier craft awards, Snowtown also won won best editing and sound.

The six-time AFI winner Judy Davis won best actress for playing a fragile expat who returns to see her dying mother in The Eye of the Storm, Fred Schepisi's adaptation of a Patrick White novel.

Hugo Weaving, a three-time AFI winner, won best supporting actor for playing a former ''lost child'' shipped to Australia in the drama Oranges and Sunshine.

The Tasmanian wilderness drama The Hunter led the nominations with 14 but won just two - best cinematography and music score - at the craft awards.

In the TV categories, the drama The Slap won five prizes and the Tim Winton adaptation Cloudstreet had eight nominations but won only best young actor for Lara Robinson.

Asher Keddie, who memorably played Ita Buttrose in the mini-series Paper Giants: The Birth of Cleo, collected the audience choice award for best performance in a TV drama.

Packed To The Rafters collected the audience choice award for best TV program.

Man on a Ledge actor Sam Worthington says girlfriend Crystal Humphries is unemployed and does not need a job

Jobless and does not need work ... Sam Worthington on his girlfriend Crystal Humphries. Picture: AP Source: The Daily Telegraph

Bang Showbiz reports

AUSTRALIAN actor Sam Worthington says he is delighted his latest girlfriend is jobless.

Worthington, who will next be seen in movie Man on a Ledge and who starred in Avatar and Terminator Salvation, split from stylist Natalie Mark last year.

He is now in a romance with Crystal Humphries, who he said is unemployed which means he has a constant companion as he travels the world for work.

"She hangs out with me, she doesn’t need a job. I think I’m still a very difficult person to live with, because my motor’s always running but as you get older you try to slow down and live life at a calmer pace," he told Seven magazine.

“My lifestyle is extremely weird so if you can be with a girl and have a level of normalcy, then constantly being on the move doing this kind of thing seems like a holiday adventure."

Worthington, 35, is from Perth, Australia, and has recently bought a home in Hawaii because his dog needed somewhere to live.

"I got a place. I got a dog - a King Charles spaniel called Bacon that I got in England - so the dog needed a home. I love Hawaii, it’s sunny and beautiful and beachy. I like the lifestyle, the people and the culture. There I’m known as ‘the dude who lives up the road who has good coconut trees and a funny dog’.

A Few Best Men takes $1.8m on opening weekend

Colin Delaney, Encore Magazine, reports

Australian film A Few Best Men has had a strong opening weekend, according to the Motion Picture Distributors Association of Australia.

The film, directed by Stephan Elliott (The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert) took over $1.83m across 242 screens, with a screen average of $7,580.

The film placed third overall behind Underworld: Awakening, which took $2.68m across 214 screens for an average of $12,554, also in its first week, and The Descendants, which took $2.37 across 224 screens for a screen average of $10,614.

The film’s first week box office takings beat that of Red Dog, which took $1.78m.

Producer Lawrence Malkin told Encore: “People are hungry for a laugh, It has no pre-tensions, it’s not setting out to make a grand statement. Its objective is to make you laugh and have a fun time.”

The film stars Xavier Samuel, Rebel Wilson, Olivia Newton-John and Brits Kris Marshall and Kevin Bishop.

Malkin produced both the British and American Death at a Funerals. He said the success of that film in Australia was a big part of making a film here. “We couldn’t be happier with the support from Icon, Screen Australia and Screen NSW.”

Malkin said the film is designed to appeal to more than just young males. “We did a lot of testing here and in the states. A bromance does suggest your audience is 18-35 males and we feel we’ve made a film to appeal to them. But it appeals to over 35 women, 18 year old women – so that’s super exciting. I’d be happy to call it a bromance but I wouldn’t want to limit it, It’s had a surprisingly broad appeal.”

AACTAs shine in LA

Meryl Streep as radiant as ever. Picture: Getty

The Herald Sun reports

MERYL Streep and Jean Dujardin have picked up the top acting honours in the international component of the new Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts awards.

Formerly known as the Australian Film Institute awards, the award ceremony was attended by a who's who of Hollywood celebrities and Australian A-listers including Nicole Kidman, Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce and academy president Geoffrey Rush.

Streep won the award for her role as former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher in The Iron Lady.

Silent film The Artist - expected to dominate at next month's Oscars - was impressive at the Australian awards picking up best film prize, while its male lead, French actor Dujardin won the best actor award.

The rest of the awards will be handed out at the Sydney Opera House.

Hugh Sheridan close to packing it in

 Hugh Sheridan is looking for opportunities in Los Angeles. Source: Herald Sun

 

Luke Dennehy, The Herald Sun, reports

POPULAR actor Hugh Sheridan is taking a break from Packed to the Rafters, fuelling talk he will leave the show for good.

The Logie-winning star of the top rating Channel 7 show will film his last scenes for series five in February before heading to Los Angeles.

Seven is saying that while he is taking a break for now, the network is still in discussion with Sheridan to return for series six next year.

Sheridan has been with the show since it began in 2008 and is one of its most popular cast members.

During a break in filming last year, Sheridan headed to Los Angeles to sound out opportunities in the entertainment capital of the world. He has always made it clear that he wants to try his luck there.

With Sheridan and his on-screen sister Jessica Marais out of the show for now, only Angus McLaren, in the role of Nathan Rafter, will be left in the Rafter family.

Packed to the Rafters is back on air next month.

Channel 9 will also launch its own family drama with the Shane Bourne-led Tricky Business.

Leonardo DiCaprio flies back to Sydney to reshoot scenes for Baz Luhrmann's The Great Gatsby

The Daily Telegraph reports

THE Great Gatsby's Leo DiCaprio is back in Sydney reshooting scenes in Baz Luhrmann's latest epic and was expected to miss yesterday's SAG Awards where he was nominated for Best Actor in J. Edgar.

Given he was unlikely to win, it was an easy choice.

DiCaprio, who has been lobbying hard in the lead-up to the film awards season, was ignored by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which determines Oscar nominees.

J. Edgar too failed to garner a nod. But the actor's rep has told the New York Post this had nothing to do with him skipping out on the awards. DiCaprio had long been scheduled to return to Sydney for Gatsby reshoots.

Meanwhile rumours swirl that the 37-year-old actor will make an appearance at tomorrow night's AACTAs at the Sydney Opera House.

Reel worries for small cinemas as the digital age takes the best seat

''The film distributors are more interested in DVDs these days'' ... Ron and Diane Bayley outside their cinema, Mount Vic Flicks, which they have owned for 25 years. Photo: Adam Hollingworth

Alexandra Smith, The Sydney Morning Herald, reports

FOR 25 years, Ron Bayley has screened films in his much-loved small cinema in the Blue Mountains.

But retirement is nearing and Mr Bayley fears it may be time to sell up before the digital revolution pushes him out.

Mr Bayley's Mount Vic Flicks, in Mount Victoria, is one of hundreds of independent cinemas across the country that will need to phase out the old 35 millimetre film projectors to make way for digital technology in the next few years.

''This is going to be tough for country cinemas because most won't be able to afford to go digital,'' Mr Bayley, 67, said.

''I think this is going to wipe out in one fell swoop the entire lot of country cinemas.''

The vice-president of the Independent Cinemas Association of Australia, Benjamin Zeccola, is far more optimistic.

Mr Zeccola said the association was very close to striking a deal with the major studios in the US by which they would pay independent cinemas a subsidy, known as a virtual print fee, to help cover the costs of the transition to digital.

The fee would be paid to cinemas from the savings the studios make from lower freight costs and greatly reduced production costs, Mr Zeccola said. The major cinema chains have already negotiated a similar fee.

''We don't want to see a single screen close,'' Mr Zeccola, who is also the executive director of Palace Cinemas, said.

He had no doubt that without such a fee, independent cinemas would struggle to survive.

''But we are pretty confident that it [the fee] will be up and running by April,'' Mr Zeccola said.

The transition to digital would benefit the studios because it would cut their costs dramatically but it would also be better cinematically.

''Digital is definitely higher quality and looks exactly as the filmmaker intended,'' he said.

But for Mr Bayley and his wife, Diane, using their retirement savings for new technology is not a risk worth taking.

''The film distributors are more interested in DVDs these days … Look at what they did with Red Dog. They released that on DVD just before Christmas,'' Mr Bayley said.

''They are killing the goose that laid the golden egg … If we find someone to buy it [the cinema] we will probably sell.''

Mel B's selling up in LA with eye to moving to Sydney

Mel B and Stephen Belafonte may be moving to Sydney. Picture: Getty

 
The Daily Telegraph reports

FIREBRAND celeb Mel B has listed her LA abode for sale as she eyes settling permanently in Sydney.

The loudmouth former Spice Girl -- who was looking to buy in the Harbour City before her X-Factor judging duties finished up last year -- is trying to offload her house in the San Fernando valley (pictured right, with Mel B and husband Stephen Belafonte) for $3.45 million.

She paid $3.2 million for the French country-style five-bedder in 2009.

Sitting on more than 2000sq m, the chateau features eight bathrooms, a gym, movie theatre, pool and recording studio.

It's a far cry from what you would be up for for a place carrying the same price tag in this town.

The curvy singer, her music producer husband and their three kids were renting a sprawling penthouse apartment in Rose Bay, said to be worth more than $8 million, for much of last year.

The New South Head Rd loft had incredible views of the Opera House and Bridge.

Brown's local manager, Sean Anderson, said she was yet to decide where to set down roots.

Yes, they have their LA property on the market," he told Confidential yesterday.

"They are looking at houses in Los Angeles, but are also considering Australia. Mel and her family all fell in love with Australia and the Aussie way of life."

There are rumours she will compete on this year's Dancing With The Stars.

Step in the height direction

Sam Worthington plays an ex-con on a Manhattan rooftop in Man on a Ledge.

Jim Schembri, The Age, reports

Sam Worthington faces a tall order in his new thriller, writes Jim Schembri.

AS AN actor who craves challenges, Sam Worthington put himself through the ringer on two counts for his new thriller, Man on a Ledge. In the film, Worthington plays Nick Cassidy, a disgraced ex-cop who creates a media circus by climbing out on to the ledge of a New York apartment building as part of an elaborate scheme to clear his name. Although safety measures were taken with wires, much of the shoot involved Worthington standing on a ledge more than 80 metres above street level.

Worthington doesn't like heights. ''[It's] more a fear of falling and landing!'' he says. ''That was the biggest fear. When I read the script I forgot I had to do it, so on the first day, you're standing there going 'What?' My mate said, 'The movie's called Man on a Ledge, idiot. What do you think you had to do?'''

He certainly looks scared enough. ''That's because half the time I was, to be honest!'' he says. ''You can't get complacent; it's always in the back of your mind how high you are.''

A set was built but was used chiefly for close-ups. ''Nobody knew how much we'd be able to do on the actual ledge itself because they thought I might burst into tears or something, then the more confident I got the more confident the camera crew got and before we knew it we'd filmed like 80 per cent of [those scenes] out there. The truth is that the first time I step on the ledge in the movie is the first time I stepped on that ledge! And there was no safety net because when you're up that high terminal velocity kicks in, so a net wouldn't hold you.''

Yet there was a bigger fear Worthington faced. While much is going on around him involving the police and his accomplices, Cassidy essentially remains immobile as he delivers reams of exposition. And if there's one thing Worthington hates more than heights, it's exposition.

''Exposition's terrible. It's motion pictures, not motion words. Show it, don't speak it!'' he says, laughing. ''It's almost an action movie where the action guy is rooted to the spot … There's many tongue-twisting backstories and I'm the man who has to deliver them. Normally I give [that task] away!''

Since starring in James Cameron's Avatar, one of the biggest films in history, Worthington's stock has risen considerably. Man on a Ledge was directed by first-time feature director Asger Leth from a script by television movie writer Pablo F. Fenjves. It was only when Worthington showed interest in the project that the film was fast-tracked.

The clout to green-light a film is a measure of Worthington's post-Avatar power. ''You're aware of it in certain aspects,'' he says. ''[Studios] start trusting you and the more movies you do … the more they understand that not only do you have a commodity that can help them get movies made but you have an awareness of yourself. I have an awareness I like making movies for a certain audience, so you work in tandem with them to get movies made.

"It's always nice to go to a guy, 'look, this is your first ever motion picture, it's a massive budget for you' and see if he is going to step up and deliver. Lorenzo likes taking risks as well, so you put Asger (whose documentary Ghosts of Cité Soleil Worthington loved) with a good cast and see how he flies. We were looking for something that was just entertaining, sheer, unadulterated popcorn, and if we put a good director who could keep the pace on it, it could deliver that. Asger and the boys did a good job because it is a tough one.''

Worthington holds a unique distinction in the world of 21st century cinema. As well as being the star of Avatar, one of the best 3D films ever made, he was also star of Clash of the Titans, an epic that came in for a lot of criticism because of the poor quality of its "back conversion" to 3D. He stands up for the film, and says the new film, Wrath of the Titans will be better.

"Clash was the first movie after Avatar to actually try a conversion. Over the course of the years they've refined the process a bit more and they know what they're doing," he says. "Especially with Wrath, we had a stereographer the whole time. The studio was aware of the criticism that we hit with the first one so it's really about tweaking it and and keeping it in the forefront."

At 35 Worthington is concentrating on his work. He once sported an aggressive attitude to the media and had a combative on-set reputation, but while he is still very sensitive to misreporting - especially online - he says he has dialled down his alleged aggro.

"If you look at it personally, you read stuff about yourself or stuff about other people you know ... I know what you're getting at. You know me, mate, I stand up for myself no matter what. If you're painted in a wrong light or accused of something you've definitely got to stand up and say something.

"I think I've got a lot calmer as I've grown up a bit; my priorities obviously change a lot and when it comes down to celebrity I've always been one to shy away from parties. The older you get the more you try to keep that delicate balance between your job, the crazy part of the industry and the normalcy of your life.''

Man On a Ledge opens next week.

Aussie producer Grant Hill nominated for Oscar

The Herald Sun reports

AFTER a nervous few days waiting, Australian producer Grant Hill has officially been named an Oscar nominee.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences held its official nomination ceremony in Beverly Hills on Tuesday, but declined to announce the names of the three producers eligible for Oscars if best picture nominee The Tree of Life won.

The Academy producers branch executive committee called a meeting and it was announced on Friday The Tree of Life represented a "rare and extraordinary circumstance" and four producers, not three, would be allowed to represent the film.

Hill, Sarah Green, Bill Pohlad and Dede Gardner will collect Oscars if the Terrence Malick-directed drama starring Brad Pitt and Sean Penn upsets best picture favourites The Artist, The Descendants or Hugo.

"The committee determined that Green, Pohlad, Gardner and Hill functioned as genuine producers of the film and would be cited in the nomination," the Academy said in a statement.

The Academy tightened its rules allowing a maximum of three producers per best picture nominee after it emerged some producers nominated in past years had limited roles in creating the movie.

The Artist has one producer, Thomas Langmann, as a nominee for best picture while War Horse has two: Steven Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy.

Australian editor Kirk Baxter will also represent Australia for his work on The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo at the February 26 Academy Awards ceremony in Hollywood.

Watts gang to have summer in Sydney

Aussie actress Naomi Watts and her beau Liev Schreiber arrive in Sydney with their sons for the summer. Picture: Oceanic Source: Supplied

The Daily Telegraph reports

HAVING endured a white Christmas and New Year at their New York townhouse, Naomi Watts and her family returned to Oz this week for what will be an extended stay in Sydney.

The 43-year-old actress, her partner of almost seven years Live Schreiber and their two sons Sasha, 4, and Sammy, 3, were all smiles as their long-haul flight landed at Kingsford-Smith, although we are yet to give them the summer they hoped for.

They enjoyed an Australia Day lunch at the Point Piper apartment of Big Apple friends Kristy Hinze and her husband Jim Clark (plus their newborn daughter Dylan) and Confidential understands Watts et al are searching for an eastern suburbs rental to settle in to for the next few months.

J. Edgar star Watts, who recently signed as the new ambassador for Jacobs Creek wines, is due to begin filming The Grandmothers in Sydney with Forrest Gump's Robin Wright next month.

Watts spoke out in an interview last week about how she and Schreiber plan everything around their children.

"No matter what, mothers will always punish themselves if they work," she said. "Liev and I try to take turns (to make films) and it's worked so far."We've probably only overlapped by a couple of weeks once or twice which is very fortunate because our family is the most important thing," she said.

"Our children go everywhere with us. But then my sister-in-law, who works at least 10 hours a day, only gets to see her daughter for two hours in the morning and then she's asleep at night when she comes home. So we probably spend more time with our kids than the average person."

Australia doesn’t need better films, just better distribution

Ben Eltham, Crikey, reports Screen Australia released the latest figures for the 2011 Australian cinema box office this week. Unsurprisingly, it was dominated by major Hollywood studio films. The top box-office performer was none other than the final instalment from golden wizard, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, which took $52.6 million, followed by Transformers: Dark of the Moon with $37.5 million and The Hangover Part II with $32.7 million. Forty-four Australian titles were released. They accounted for $42.9 million of the $1.09 billion in total box-office takings. The top Australian film was Red Dog, which came in 11th with $21.3 million. “Last year we had some great achievements with Red Dog leading the way. But the other notable performance that deserves praise is Bob Connolly’s and Sophie Raymond’s feature documentary Mrs Carey’s Concert, which took over $1 million at the box office to become the fourth highest grossing documentary of all time,” Fiona Cameron, Screen Australia’s acting chief executive, wrote in the presser. Cameron also pointed to the critical acclaim achieved by Julia Leigh’s Sleeping Beauty, which screened in competition at Cannes. Overall, though, the general picture for the box-office popularity of Australian features remains one of niche interest. Across the past decade, Australian features have rarely captured by than a one-20th of the general motion picture audience in this country, despite the significant subsidies spent on production by Australian taxpayers. Some in the media will no doubt jump to conclusions. You’ve heard it all before: Aussie films are boring, or depressing, or too arthouse, or whatever. Actually, as Screen Australia has argued, with some statistical support, Australian features punch above their weight given their typically small production and marketing budgets, and the fact that few if any Australian films can genuinely compete in the blockbuster market populated by the likes of Transformers and Harry Potter. In fact, the most interesting current trend for Australian features is at the other end of the market, with more and more small arthouse features being made for niche audiences. There was a welcome ray of sunshine this week in just this segment, with the announcement that four of the major Australian film festivals will collaborate to market local features seeking to find niche releases. With dedicated subscriber bases and an email list approaching 100,000, the Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney film festivals together represent perhaps the best available audience development resource for local releases. According to the Adelaide Film Festival’s Katrina Sedgwick: “Arthouse Australian films can really struggle to get audiences, and yet in the context of our festivals, Australian titles that we world premiere are almost always the first to sell out.” Sedgwick explains to Crikey that “there are quite a number of very good films that can’t survive” in the current distribution and exhibition model, in which, as Greg Jericho recently pointed out, the vast majority of box-office takings flow to cinemas and distributors, and not to producers and filmmakers. “We’ve all worked very, very hard to develop strong and loyal audience bases, and they’re also people who are active participants in film culture, they come and see a lot of work each festival,” she said. “Our average audience member comes and sees eight films, so we’re talking about committed people to film culture. So the plan is to leverage the cultural subsidy that we get to get those audiences mobilised, into the cinemas, and engaging with Australian film culture year round.” The new initiative will begin by supporting two films: Jim Sharman’s Warhol biopic Andy-X and Closer Production’s acclaimed documentary about choreographer Tanja Liedtke, Life in Movement. “We aren’t distributing, we are working with the distributors,” Sedgwick clarified. “What we’re bringing is communication to a cinema-friendly audience at no cost. It’s something we’ve been dabbling in for a while, we worked with Madman for the South Australian release of Exit Through the Gift Shop and it worked extremely well.” Sedgwick argues that by working this way, the effect is to encourage a national simultaneous release for a film, particularly in the arthouse cinemas in the four capital cities, which has been a difficult deal for many releases to seal. “I suppose because all of us are pretty closely aligned with the films that we all love in our festivals, we can tell the kinds of titles that will benefit from our support, so we can approach them on a case-by-case basis, and then I think that what will happen is that distributors will start to approach us,” she added. Sedgwick believes the business model for cinema is undergoing radical transition, driven by video-on-demand. “Inevitably these models are going to shift and change as video-on-demand kicks in. We really need to get cranking here for arthouse titles of day-and-date release. It’s working very well with IFC in the US, they buy in American and international arthouse titles and they have five cinemas across America, two in New York, one in LA, and some in other capitals. They release theatrically and video-on-demand on the same day, and it changes how the pieces of the pie get cut up.” Sedgwick tells Crikey that Animal Kingdom producer Liz Watts has just come back from a Churchill Fellowship exploring the IFC model of day-and-date release. “She’s got some solid factual evidence that it’s very beneficial for the exhibitor to do day-and-date releases.” Sedgwick says “there’s still a huge amount of concern here from exhibitors about that model, there’s a belief that it’s going to take away from the theatrical audience”, but these fears are largely groundless. “It’s been shown again and again internationally that that’s not the case. But we’re still stuck in the old mould here, and we need to get cranking into the future fast.” She argues once the NBN comes online later in the decade, “things will really shift”. Sedgwick points out that Mrs Carey’s Concert was distributed by the filmmakers themselves. “So that’s a really different model,” she argued. “The ecology of the industry is going to shift, and that’s going to be a really healthy thing. In the long term I hope it will benefit producers, investors and funders a little bit more, because in parallel, budgets are going to come down — a lot. At the same time, we will have to rethink models of distribution and really accept that we do no have a natural, hungry, large cinephile audience in this country, and the audience needs to be led to the work in a lateral way, and that is going to require subsidy.” It’s a bracing vision of the future of the industry. Sedgwick is stepping down in her role as the Adelaide Film Festival’s director, where she has been a long-term and successful leader of the local scene. “I’ve got two more weeks here. I’m doing a handover with Amanda Duthie who I’m really excited about coming in,” she said, not being drawn on where she’s headed next: “It’s still in flux.” “It will be a year of significant change and I’m really ready for it, I need to be thrown into the deep end somewhere else.”

Q&A: Tropfest’s John Polson

Picture: John Polson / The Age

Encore Magazine reports

When Tropfest creator John Polson isn’t busy taking the festival to the world, he’s flat out with a host of film and television projects. We ask him about Sydney’s 20th Tropfest, his thoughts on sponsorship and Sydney I Love You.

Did you ever expect Tropfest to become as big as it has?

No, I had no idea. I didn’t know it would last to the second year. It started as a short film screening and I ran with the ball. I never expected it to have the scope that it does in Australia or any of the other places.

What’s next for the world’s largest short film festival?

We’re pushing Tropfest Sydney to three days for the 20th birthday with a party on Friday 17 February, an all day seminar on Saturday, musical events and the main event Sunday. The conference will have six to eight successful film professionals including short film and feature directors, financiers and cinematographers. It is an opportunity for filmmakers serious about their career and taking their position to the next level to hear from others that have done well.

Tropfest is no stranger to corporate dollars. What’s your sponsorship strategy?

Every sponsor offers an initiative. We don’t do generic packages. Part of what we sell them is an exclusive opportunity that adds value to both the stakeholders and Tropfest. We have Telstra doing the mobile marketing and if you make your film on a mobile phone, you get included in a whole other competition with a prize of a trip to Sundance and $5000.

The Sydney Morning Herald supports with marketing and they deliver a free DVD with the newspaper.

We say to filmmakers we can offer a platform that makes sure everyone your mum knows will see your film and we ask for content in return for subscription television channel, Movie Extra, our naming sponsor, who broadcasts the finalists.

You’ve just held the first Tropfest Arabia. What were the entries like?

With everything going on around the Arab Spring, there are a lot of films about transition and change. Overall they feel a bit more serious. I have no issue with Tropfest having a different tone in a different region. One other thing I’ve noticed is music plays a big role. I don’t know if that’s a local filmmaking trait but as all the films have been in Arabic, with English subtitles, possibly they realised with the language barrier comes music.

Away from Tropfest, you’re producing a city-based collaborative film, similar to Paris Je T’Aime and New York I Love You. How is it going?

We’ve locked in 12 directors for Sydney I Love You and I must say it’s an impressive who’s who of the Australian industry. The timeline is to have a full draft by the end of the year with the working title ‘Sydney’. We’re putting together financing and our plan is too shoot in 2012.

What would you change about the Australian film and television production industry?

I think the development process could do with work. Right now, there’s pressure to get a film into production quicker than it should, as people don’t get paid until it’s in production.

I don’t think anyone does it with the wrong intention but if I was running the Australian film industry, I would be investing in the people rather than the projects.

Whether it’s state or national government, someone has to put their focus on individual talent and not get so caught up in, ‘what movie are you doing now?’

Tropfest launches 2012 trailer

Encore Magazine reports

Short film festival Tropfest has launched its 2012 trailer.

Production was by company Captiv8 and features this year’s Tropfest Signature Item (TSI) a lightbulb.

The 20th anniversary of Tropfest will run from Friday 17 – Sunday 19 February.

Festival Director John Polson said: “We’re really impressed with this year’s trailer. It captures the whole ethos of Tropfest, that it’s about the idea and and the power of creative storytelling.

“Captiv8 have been involved with Tropfest for 3 years now and they continue to create amazing work for us. They have a great understanding of our brand and audience.”

Kylie coming home for Mardi Gras after 14-year hiatus

Organisers are expecting the biggest Mardi Gras yet with Kylie Minogue returning to the event. Picture: Warner / Source: Supplied

Elise Scott, The Herald Sun, reports

KYLIE Minogue, the petite diva of pop, will ride the biggest float in Mardi Gras history when she returns to Oxford Street in this year's parade.

After 14 years the pop singer has announced she's coming home for the Sydney Mardi Gras on March 3, and organisers are pulling out all the stops.

"I think people will be packing their bags from around the country and the world," CEO of Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, Michael Rolik, told AAP.

"It's the biggest float we've ever produced."

Minogue, who is celebrating her 25th anniversary in the music industry this year, has had a long-standing relationship with the colourful parade, but hasn't appeared at the event since 1998.

"I am coming home for Mardi Gras this year!" Minogue said in a statement today.

"I simply cannot wait, and it's going to be a beautiful way to celebrate 25 years of this relationship."

Minogue's float will have a "K25" theme to celebrate Minogue's 25-year landmark, but any other details are being kept a secret.

"It's still very much under wraps. We're going to keep very tight-lipped," Rolik said.

"It's a surprise for Kylie."

Minogue began her career as a teenage actress on Australian television soap Neighbours, before moving into the music industry and releasing her debut single Locomotion in 1987.

She has often publicly commented on the loyalty of her gay fans.

"Your support over the years has just been phenomenal and I can't wait to come home and share that with you. So see you in March," she said.

Rolik said Minogue appeals to the gay and lesbian community for many reasons, one being her "fun and uplifting" music.

"She's uniquely Australian and so are we (Mardi Gras)," he said.

But it's not just her upbeat music, Rolik says, that makes her a perfect addition to the Mardi Gras Parade - she also shares the festival's ideology.

"Kylie's spoken out about marriage equality and equal love," he said.

"We absolutely love her and we're really thrilled she's coming back."

Minogue took to Twitter to comment on the announcement.

"Fourteen years since my last Mardi Gras! Can't wait to see you there in March," she greeted with the hash tag #bringonthelove.

The Sydney Mardi Gras aims to raise visibility of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex community.

NSW Minister for Tourism, Major Events and the Arts George Souris welcomed Minogue's involvement in the event, saying she holds a special place in the hearts of Australians.

"The presence of Kylie Minogue is sure to make this the biggest and best Sydney Mardi Gras ever," he said in a statement.

Happy Australia Day

HAPPY OSTRAYA DAY, ‘VERYONE!



2012 Academy Award nominations - Aussie Kirk Baxter waves the flag for Australia

Picture: The Movie Banter

The Australian reports

THE full list of Oscar nominations for the 2012 Academy Awards.

BEST PICTURE
War Horse
The Artist
Moneyball
The Descendants
The Tree of Life
Midnight in Paris
The Help
Hugo
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close

LEAD ACTOR
Demián Bichir, A Better Life
George Clooney, The Descendants
Jean Dujardin, The Artist
Gary Oldman, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Brad Pitt, Moneyball

LEAD ACTRESS
Glenn Close, Albert Nobbs
Viola Davis, The Help
Rooney Mara, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady
Michelle Williams, My Week With Marilyn

BEST DIRECTOR
Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist

Alexander Payne, The Descendants
Martin Scorsese, Hugo
Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris
Terrence Malick, The Tree of Life

SUPPORTING ACTOR
Kenneth Branagh, My Week with Marilyn
Jonah Hill, Moneyball
Nick Nolte, Warrior
Christopher Plummer, Beginners
Max von Sydow, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close

SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Bérénice Bejo, The Artist
Jessica Chastain, The Help
Melissa McCarthy, Bridesmaids
Janet McTeer, Albert Nobbs
Octavia Spencer, The Help

WRITING (ADAPTED SCREENPLAY)
The Descendants (Screenplay by Alexander Payne and Nat Faxon & Jim Rash)
Hugo (Screenplay by John Logan)
The Ides of March (Screenplay by George Clooney & Grant Heslov and Beau Willimon)
Moneyball (Screenplay by Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin. Story by Stan Chervin)
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (Screenplay by Bridget O'Connor & Peter Straughan)

WRITING (ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY)
The Artist (Written by Michel Hazanavicius)
Bridesmaids (Written by Annie Mumolo & Kristen Wiig)
Margin Call (Written by J.C. Chandor)
Midnight in Paris (Written by Woody Allen)
A Separation (Written by Asghar Farhadi)

ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
A Cat in Paris (Alain Gagnol and Jean-Loup Felicioli)
Chico & Rita (Fernando Trueba and Javier Mariscal)
Kung Fu Panda 2 (Jennifer Yuh Nelson)
Puss in Boots (Chris Miller)
Rango (Gore Verbinski)

FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Bullhead (Belgium)
Footnote (Israel)
In Darkness (Poland)
Monsieur Lazhar (Canada)
A Separation (Iran)

DOCUMENTARY (FEATURE)
Hell and Back Again (Danfung Dennis and Mike Lerner)
If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front (Marshall Curry and Sam Cullman)
Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory (Charles Ferguson and Audrey Marrs)
Pina (Wim Wenders and Gian-Piero Ringel)
Undefeated (TJ Martin, Dan Lindsay and Richard Middlemas)

DOCUMENTARY (SHORT SUBJECT)
The Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement (Robin Fryday and Gail Dolgin)
God Is the Bigger Elvis (Rebecca Cammisa and Julie Anderson)
Incident in New Baghdad (James Spione)
Saving Face (Daniel Junge and Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy)
The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom (Lucy Walker and Kira Carstensen)

SHORT FILM (ANIMATED)
Dimanche/Sunday (Patrick Doyon)
The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore (William Joyce and Brandon Oldenburg)
La Luna (Enrico Casarosa)
A Morning Stroll (Grant Orchard and Sue Goffe)
Wild Life (Amanda Forbis and Wendy Tilby)

SHORT FILM (LIVE ACTION)
Pentecost (Peter McDonald and Eimear O'Kane)
Raju (Max Zähle and Stefan Gieren)
The Shore (Terry George and Oorlagh George)
Time Freak (Andrew Bowler and Gigi Causey)
Tuba Atlantic (Hallvar Witzo)

ART DIRECTION
The Artist (Production Design: Laurence Bennett; Set Decoration: Robert Gould)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 (Production Design: Stuart Craig; Set Decoration: Stephenie McMillan)
Hugo (Production Design: Dante Ferretti; Set Decoration: Francesca Lo Schiavo)
Midnight in Paris (Production Design: Anne Seibel; Set Decoration: Hélène Dubreuil)
War Horse (Production Design: Rick Carter; Set Decoration: Lee Sandales)

CINEMATOGRAPHY
Guillaume Schiffman, The Artist
Jeff Cronenweth, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Robert Richardson, Hugo
Emmanuel Lubezki, The Tree of Life
Janusz Kaminski, War Horse

COSTUME DESIGN
Lisy Christl, Anonymous
Mark Bridges, The Artist
Sandy Powell, Hugo
Michael O'Connor, Jane Eyre
Arianne Phillips, W.E

FILM EDITING
The Artist (Anne-Sophie Bion and Michel Hazanavicius)
The Descendants (Kevin Tent)
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall)
Hugo (Thelma Schoonmaker)
Moneyball (Christopher Tellefsen)

MAKEUP
Albert Nobbs (Martial Corneville, Lynn Johnston and Matthew W. Mungle)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 (Edouard F. Henriques, Gregory Funk and Yolanda Toussieng)
The Iron Lady (Mark Coulier and J. Roy Helland)

MUSIC (ORIGINAL SCORE)
The Adventures of Tintin (John Williams)
The Artist (Ludovic Bource)
Hugo (Howard Shore)
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (Alberto Iglesias)
War Horse (John Williams)

MUSIC (ORIGINAL SONG)
Man or Muppet from The Muppets (Music and Lyric by Bret McKenzie)
Real in Rio from Rio (Music by Sergio Mendes and Carlinhos Brown: Lyric by Siedah Garrett)

SOUND EDITING
Drive (Lon Bender and Victor Ray Ennis)
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Ren Klyce)
Hugo (Philip Stockton and Eugene Gearty)
Transformers: Dark of the Moon (Ethan Van der Ryn and Erik Aadahl)
War Horse (Richard Hymns and Gary Rydstrom)

SOUND MIXING
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (David Parker, Michael Semanick, Ren Klyce and Bo Persson)
Hugo (Tom Fleischman and John Midgley)
Moneyball (Deb Adair, Ron Bochar, Dave Giammarco and Ed Novick)
Transformers: Dark of the Moon (Greg P. Russell, Gary Summers, Jeffrey J. Haboush and Peter J. Devlin)
War Horse (Gary Rydstrom, Andy Nelson, Tom Johnson and Stuart Wilson)

VISUAL EFFECTS
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 (Tim Burke, David Vickery, Greg Butler and John Richardson)
Hugo (Rob Legato, Joss Williams, Ben Grossman and Alex Henning)
Real Steel (Erik Nash, John Rosengrant, Dan Taylor and Swen Gillberg)
Rise of the Planet of the Apes (Joe Letteri, Dan Lemmon, R. Christopher White and Daniel Barrett)
Transformers: Dark of the Moon (Scott Farrar, Scott Benza, Matthew Butler and John Frazier)