First Oprah. Now Ellen

Big surprise ... Nicole Kidman and Ellen DeGeneres talk Australia.

Shelly Horton, The Sydney Morning Herald, reports

American talk show host Ellen DeGeneres is coming to Australia and so are 400 of her excited audience members.

On a show, taped in the US today, DeGeneres announced the audience would be going on a holiday to Australia. But it won't be like the Oprah trip, when the star and the audience travelled here together and became part of the show.

The Ellen DeGeneres Show will not be recorded in Australia. Instead, she will film segments in Sydney and Melbourne to be played on her program at a later date. The audience each received an airline ticket to travel to Sydney or Melbourne on any date in the next 12 months with six nights' accommodation at a four-star hotel.

When the announcement was made, Nicole Kidman was a surprise guest on the show, with the audience believing she was there to talk about her Golden Globe and Screen Actors' Guild nominations.

Instead she spoke to DeGeneres about her children and Australia, including a rendition of a kookaburra call.

DeGeneres' wife, Australian actress, Portia de Rossi is from Victoria but DeGeneres has never visited the country.

Kidman suggested she visit Kununurra in outback Australia. "When I was filming the movie Australia I was swimming in the water there and that's when I got pregnant, which was a miracle. I think those watering holes are magical."

DeGeneres laughed, "Well if I go swimming there and get pregnant it would be a miracle!"

Jennifer Mertus, 39, from Hunting Beach was seeing The Ellen DeGeneres Show as a present. "This is my 40th birthday present from my best friend so now you can say she gave me a trip to Australia for my 40th. I've never been to Australia but I've been dying to go. My husband is an avid surfer so we'll go and surf. And I want to see a koala bear."

After the show DeGeneres said, ‘‘So, I am actually for the first time in my life going to Australia … I’m going in March and I’m going to shoot a bunch of stuff in Melbourne and Sydney. We’re going to do tape pieces and meet the fans and hang out."

The Ellen DeGeneres Show's visit to Australia is part of a promotional deal with Swisse and Qantas. Shelly Horton was a guest of the two companies in Los Angeles.

Picture of the Month - November

Strickland House – Mao’s Last Dancer, Australia, The Road from Coorain,

The Sugar Factory, Thank God He Met Lizzie

Strickland House to get expanded heritage curtilage

Strickland House in Sydney’s suburb of Vaucluse has been the setting for several movies.

The house and its beautiful gardens became a backdrop for Thank God He Met Lizzie (1997) starring Richard Roxburgh, Cate Blanchett and Frances O’Connor, The Sugar Factory (1998) with Matt Day, Rhondda Findleton and Anthony Hayes, and The Road from Coorain (2002) starring Juliet Stevenson, Richard Roxburgh and Katherine Slattery. 

The property portrayed the White House in the Dennis Hopper, Melanie Griffith and Portia de Rossi movie The Night We Called It a Day (2003), but the scenes never made it into the final cut. 

More recently Strickland House played a starring role in the Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman movie Australia (2008) and Mao’s Last Dancer (2009) with Chi Cao, Bruce Greenwood and Kyle MacLachlan. 

Nowadays, the estate is back in the spotlight as the Heritage Council of NSW moves to preserve the area surrounding the property.

Jonathan Chancellor reports on the Property Observer website 

The Strickland House estate, also known as Carrara, set on the Vaucluse harbourfront in Sydney’s east, seems set for an expanded heritage-listed curtilage.

The Heritage Council of NSW has proposed extending the property’s listing by including a large area adjacent to the Vaucluse Road boundary and Nielsen Park, which has entrance gates, garden, and tiled 1930s Neo-Georgian former dormitories.

Woollahra mayor Isabelle Shapiro has welcomed the move, which comes 21 years after Strickland House’s initial heritage listing.

“I applaud the Heritage Council of NSW for making a commitment to preserve this magnificent site for future generations,” Shapiro says.

“Retaining an appropriate area of land around a heritage item is an important step in protecting the properties heritage value and significance.”

Strickland House is a 1850s marine villa with a largely unaltered landscape setting.

The five-hectare land parcel closely reflects the original subdivision from the land grant made to pioneer settler William Wentworth in the 1830s.

It contains buildings landscaping and other structures relating to the history of the site from Aboriginal ownership through its colonial history as a grand maritime estate to its 20^th-century use as a convalescent home and later aged-care facility.

The original Victorian Italianate mansion, Carrara, remains essentially intact, with the two-storey residence constructed of dressed sandstone walls and an attic storey made of timber.

John Hosking substantially developed the grounds of Carrara. Subsequent occupants including Henry Moore and members of the Allen family, leading political figures in the 19th century.

The original villa, Carrara was built in the 1850s in a large landscaped setting, including a strong relationship between the house and the water. The two-storey segmental bay projection is striking and represents a relatively early use of such a feature. The remnants of the sandstone wharf adjacent to Milk Beach contribute to the strength of this association.

The proposal is supported by Woollahra Council, the Woollahra History and Heritage Society, with a final decision not expected for a number of months.

Aussiewood: our guide to Australia’s film studios

A Few Best Men starring Olivia Newton-John was shot at Fox Studios in early 2011

Excerpt of a report by Georgina Pearson on the Encore Magazine website

Sydney

As Australia’s largest production facility, Sydney’s Fox Studios is spread over a 32-acre site with 155,000m2 of sound stages (eight) supported by 35,000m2 of offices and133,000m2 of workshops, construction space and art departments.

Nancy Romano, chief executive of Fox Studios told Encore that for Fox, it’s all about bringing in the big productions.

“We have three of the largest sound stages in the southern hemisphere and hence, we really lend ourselves to features that have large sets. For instance currently we are shooting The Great Gatsby and in the past have shot features such as The Matrix Trilogy, Mission Impossible II, Moulin Rouge, Australia and Wolverine.”

However, where the studio really shines is in its wider cinematic scope – Housing over 50 television and film related businesses, the studio is also neighbouring (AFTRS), the Australian Film, Television and Radio School and the Brent Street Dance School – which Romano sees as a point of difference – positioning Fox as a truly creative campus.

Romano also told Encore that its lighting department is one of a kind.

“We are the only studio that offers our industry a “one stop shop” – particularly since we recently launched “Fox Lighting” which, in itself, gives us a competitive advantage as we are now Australia’s largest studio and leading supplier of lighting equipment.”

Alongside the big budget films, Fox has been home to massive domestic TV productions such as Australian Idol and the X Factor, and is presently filming
Good News World, Celebrity Apprentice and Kitchen Whiz.

When touting for new productions Romano said it is important to use incentives that will benefit the local industry.

“We use everything at our disposal as we understand the benefits to NSW and the local industry – this includes both federal incentives and state incentives.”

With such a huge complex to fill, it would seem that Fox must sit empty for half the year in between big shoots. Romano explains that while recent dollar strength has found international productions slightly lacking, the complex is almost always buzzing.

“There are many factors which determine when and if productions come to Australia. Currently the lack of international productions is predominantly due to our rising dollar coupled with a Location Offset that is not competitive enough with other countries and certain US states, which makes life a real challenge to keep the studio busy all of the time. And Fox Studios Australia is never really completely empty. Whether it’s a feature, a television production, commercials, music videos, a fashion show or a launch, there is always something happening.”

Janet Jackson quits Australia tour but plans a return to fulfil concert dates

Ian Shedden of The Australian reports

POP diva Janet Jackson has left her Australian tour to be with her family in the US, as the trial of her brother Michael Jackson's doctor on involuntary manslaughter charges nears a conclusion. 

Jackson has rescheduled her three Melbourne shows this week as a one-off performance at the city's Rod Laver Arena on November 3. Her remaining shows in Sydney and on the Gold Coast are unaffected.

"I want to thank my fans in Australia for their love, support and understanding," Jackson said in a press statement.

"When I planned these shows, the schedule in California was completely different.

"After talking with my family last night, I decided we must be together right now. .... this saddens me in so many ways."

Dr Conrad Murray is on trial in Los Angeles on charges that he was negligent in his treatment of the pop superstar at the time of his death in 2009.

Members of the Jackson family have been present throughout the trial.

Janet Jackson's Australian promoter Paul Dainty said it was important that the singer return home for the judgment.

"While Janet and our company apologise for any inconvenience for the reschedule of the Melbourne shows, we thank Janet for the great and successful concerts in Perth and Adelaide and eagerly await her return," Dainty said.

From the catwalk to Catherine for Gemma Ward

Glamazon Gemma Ward  will return to the silver screen in Baz Luhrmann’s production of The Great Gatsby. She received critical praise for her performance in The Black Balloon in 2008.

Jenna Clarke of The Age reports

Gemma Ward will be transformed into a "slender, worldly girl of about 30" for her role in the upcoming film The Great Gatsby.

According to film database IMDb, the Perth-born model-turned actress has officially been cast to play Catherine in the latest film version of F. Scott Fitzgerald's 1925 novel which is being shot on location at Fox Studios in Sydney.

There has been much speculation about what role the former supermodel and budding actress would play in Baz Luhrman's biggest film project since Australia in 2008.

"Ooo (sic) lots of congratulations for me... role has to stay disclosed for now though sorry guys, will keep you posted!" Ward tweeted in early September.

Although the character of Catherine only appears eight times in the novel, this latest role for Ward is another impressive cameo for the 24-year-old retired catwalk star and Vogue covergirl.

Catherine is introduced in the second chapter of the novel and shows an uncanny likeness to Ward thanks to her alabaster complexion.

It is not known if the natural-honey blonde will be required to cut and dye her hair to resemble Catherine's "solid, sticky bob of red hair," to match her "complexion powdered milky white," as Fitzgerald penned in the early 1920s.

Ward's on screen alter ego is the sister of Myrtle Wilson who is being played by fellow Australian born actress Isla Fisher.

Fellow home grown talents including Joel Edgerton, Elizabeth Debicki and Jason Clarke have also been cast in supporting roles alongside Leonardo DiCaprio's Jay Gatsby and Daisy Buchanan played by Carey Mulligan for the $120 million 3D film.

Former Australia's Next Top Model winner Alice Burdeu has also been cast as an extra in the period drama set in the era of flapper fashion.

Ward disappeared from the international catwalks and social scene in 2008 following the death of her rumoured boyfriend, fellow Perth actor Heath Ledger.

She received critical praise for her role in the 2008 Australian drama The Black Balloon.

Ward made her stage debut earlier this year in her hometown for the Perth Theatre Company's production of The Ugly One.

She also landed a small role in this year's Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, the fourth instalment of the successful film franchise.

MTV have since earmarked her as one of the Breakout Stars to Watch for 2011.

While Ward learns her lines, Luhrmann and his costume designer wife Catherine Martin have announced a special partnership with jeweller Tiffany & Co for the film.

The jeweller, where Fitzgerald was a regular customer at the flagship 5^th Avenue boutique in the '20s, will produce a pair of platinum-set earrings and pearls to be worn by Mulligan on screen.

Tiffany & Co china, accessories and sterling silver table will also feature in scenes with DiCaprio.

The Great Gatsby is slated for a Christmas Day release.

This Red Dog has his day

Red Dog is the eighth highest-grossing Australian film of all time.

Karl Quinn of the Sydney Morning Herald reports

RED Dog has passed the $20 million mark at the box office, making it the most successful Australian film domestically since Baz Luhrmann's Australia in 2008 and the eighth highest-grossing Australian movie (in raw dollar terms) of all time.

The only films to have performed better are Crocodile Dundee (1986, $47.7m), Australia (2008, $37.5m), Babe (1995, $36.7m), Happy Feet (2006, $31.7m), Moulin Rouge (2001, $27.7m), Crocodile Dundee 2 (1988, $24.9m) and Strictly Ballroom (1992, $21.7m).

In adjusted dollar terms, Red Dog sits at No. 20, but after 10 weeks in release this tale is still wagging strongly.

The family film - based on a novella by Louis de Bernieres, which was in turn based on the true story of a kelpie that roamed the outback in the 1970s in search of his missing master - is still showing on 210 screens nationally and took more than $800,000 last week.

The $8 million feature, filmed by Brisbane-born director Kriv Stenders, is due for release in Singapore next week and the UK in January.

''Australia has fallen in love with Red Dog,'' producer Nelson Woss said from the US, where he is presenting the film to festival audiences. ''Now it's time to share our story with the world.''