Screen Australia today announced almost $360,000 in funding to support 15 filmmaking teams to develop their feature film projects and three new internships. Eight new projects have been added to Screen Australia’s development slate, while seven teams will receive continued support to further develop their projects.

New projects to receive support include I Am Jack, a drama about school bullying that takes the main character, Jack, and everyone around him to the edge. The script will be based on Susanne Gervay’s novel, which she will adapt for the screen, with director Nadia Tass, producer Stephan Wellink and executive producer David Whealy.

Confessions of a Super Man is a horror drama, to be developed by writer/director Angela How and producer Marian Macgowan, about a teenage sociopath who records his violent life via a superhero comic strip.

Writers Jack Brislee, James Nicholas, Karel Segers and Paul Sullivan will be supported to develop their script Long Tan, based on a battle in the Vietnam War in which 108 inexperienced Australian and New Zealand soldiers attempted to hold off an enemy force of 2,500 Viet Cong and North Vietnamese soldiers. Kriv Stenders (Red Dog) is attached to direct with producers Charles Hannah and Martin Walsh and executive producers Meyer Shwarzstein and Peter Wetherell.

Writer Jan Sardi will be supported to develop a new action adventure script, Mulan, with producer Emile Sherman. Writers Josh Reed and Rob Gibson will also be supported to develop their action script Common Foe, with Josh Reed set to direct, and Stephen Chamberlin will be supported to develop his musical feature script Soundtrack with executive producer Michael Birnbaum.

Screen Australia is also pleased to announce three new internships through its Talent Escalator Program. Writer/director Alex Murawski will spend three months in Los Angeles working with director Bruce Beresford on his new production of Bonnie and Clyde. Natalie Lindwall will spend six months as a development producer working across film and television with the award-winning London based company Ecosse Films. Producer Raquelle David will spend six months in Toronto working directly with producer Niv Fichman across the development and production slate at Rhombus Media.

Also through the Talent Escalator Program, Screen Australia will support three directors, Cris Jones, Vicki Sugars and Julietta Boscolo, to travel to the Netherlands to develop their feature projects at the Binger Director Lab.

See below for the full list of announced feature projects in development.

SINGLE-PROJECT DEVELOPMENT: FEATURE DEVELOPMENT

BAD ANGEL
Genre Comedy
Producers Antonia Barnard, Nicholas Cole
Director Kriv Stenders
Writer Shaun Grant
Synopsis The transformation of Angelo d’Angelo, a New York hit man who is unwittingly embraced into the bosom of a simple, rural Australian community. For the first time, Angelo learns that love and family are just as effective as any weapon he’s ever known.

COMMON FOE
Genre Action
Producer/Writer Rob Gibson
Writer/Director Josh Reed

CONFESSIONS OF A SUPER MAN
Genre Horror Drama
Producer Marian Macgowan
Writer/Director Angela How
Synopsis Brian, an indulged Australian Chinese teenage sociopath, records his violent life via a superhero comic strip of his own creation. When Brian’s desire for his father’s mistress ends in their death, his mother acts to finally stop her son.

DOWNRIVER (AKA SCRATCH THE SURFACE) 
Genre Thriller Drama
Producer Jannine Barnes
Writer/Director Grant Scicluna
Synopsis Seventeen-year-old James is released from juvenile detention and travels back to the scene of his crime to find the body of the young boy he killed when he was 10.

HALFWAY MOTEL
Genre Psychological Drama
Producer Lyn Norfor
Writer/Director Miranda Nation

I AM JACK
Genre Drama
Producer Stephan Wellink
Executive Producer David Whealy
Writer Susanne Gervay
Director Nadia Tass
Synopsis Jack’s a great guy, but school bullying is insidious, taking Jack and everyone around him to the edge.

LONG TAN
Genre Drama
Producers Charles Hannah, Martin Walsh
Executive Producers Meyer Shwarzstein, Peter Wetherell
Writers Jack Brislee, James Nicholas, Karel Segers, Paul Sullivan
Director Kriv Stenders
Synopsis Major Harry Smith and his company of 108 young and mostly inexperienced Australian and New Zealand soldiers hold off an overwhelming enemy force of 2,500 battle-hardened Viet Cong and North Vietnamese soldiers in the Battle of Long Tan.

LOS ALAMOS
Genre Thriller
Producers Iain Canning, Emile Sherman
Writer Luke Davies
Synopsis Michael Connolly, a disgraced intelligence operative, enters a labyrinth of secrets and espionage when he arrives at the high-security military base of Los Alamos in Spring, 1945. Sent to investigate a seemingly open-and-shut murder case, Connolly is thrown into the heart of the Manhattan Project and must navigate a path through military protocol, political intrigue and personal agendas in order to uncover the truth in the most secretive place in the world.

MICHAEL
Genre Biopic
Producers Richard Lowenstein, Sue Murray
Executive Producer Domenico Procacci
Writer/Director Richard Lowenstein
Synopsis At the height of his internationally renowned career, a sudden blow to the head robs the famously sensual rock star of two of his most cherished senses. A series of personal battles follows, ending tragically with his death at the age of 37, the night before embarking on a world tour.

MULAN
Genre Action Adventure
Producer Emile Sherman
Writer Jan Sardi

ONE CROWDED HOUR
Genre Biopic
Producer Todd Fellman
Writer Andy Cox
Director Lance Kelleher
Synopsis Legendary combat cameraman Neil Davis spent over 20 years from the early 60s risking his life on the frontlines of Indo-China to capture some of the most powerful and influential images of war in an effort to save the people and culture he had grown to love.

SOUNDTRACK
Genre Musical
Executive Producer Michael Birnbaum
Writer Stephen Chamberlin

TALENT ESCALATOR PROGRAMS: INTERNATIONAL WORKSHOPS

JULIETTA BOSCOLO – CATCHING SIGHT – BINGER DIRECTOR LAB
Genre Drama/Comedy
Producer Linda Micsko
Writer/Director Julietta Boscolo
Synopsis A 30-year-old blind woman regains her sight; but will she be able to accept the flaws she sees in her past and find love?

CRIS JONES – BYZANTIUM – BINGER DIRECTOR LAB
Genre Drama
Producers Melanie Coombs, Mish Armstrong, Alicia Brown 
Writer/Director Cris Jones
Synopsis After a road accident on the highway, a young man finds himself trapped in a strange, remote town, where nothing – and no one – is as it seems.

VICKI SUGARS – U-TURN – BINGER DIRECTOR LAB
Genre Drama
Producers Julie Byrne, Vicki Sugars
Director Vicki Sugars
Synopsis Fifteen-year-old Babe learns how to turn her family’s grief around when her sister is killed in a car accident.

TALENT ESCALATOR PROGRAMS: INDUSTRY INTERNSHIPS

RAQUELLE DAVID INTERNSHIP 
Producer Raquelle David will spend six months in Toronto, Canada, working directly with producer Niv Fichman across the development and production slate at Rhombus Media (Blindness, The Red Violin, Antiviral).

NATALIE LINDWALL INTERNSHIP 
Natalie Lindwall will spend six months as a Development Producer across film and television with the award-winning London-based company, Ecosse Films (Diana, Wuthering Heights).

ALEX MURAWSKI INTERNSHIP 
Writer/director Alex Murawski will spend three months in Los Angeles working with director Bruce Beresford (Driving Miss Daisy, Black Robe, Mao’s Last Dancer) on his new production of Bonnie & Clyde.

- See more at: http://www.screenaustralia.gov.au/news_and_events/2013/mr_130517_development.aspx#sthash.SrWUpIDe.dpuf

Liam Hemsworth has signed on to play a surfer who is recruited to be a military fighter pilot in the Christian Gudegast penned action flick “Aurora Rising”. 

According to Deadline, “Hemsworth will play a Southern California surfer turned military fighter pilot who, after acing a complicated and messy first combat mission, gets recruited to be part of an elite team to test the next generation of aircraft. This happens just as an international conflict begins to escalate.”

The film will be distributed by Relativity Media, who are also releasing Hemsworth’s upcoming drama thriller “Paranoia” on August 16, 2013. There is no word on who the director will be yet. 

Paranoia will see Hemsworth share the screen with cinema greats Harrison Ford and Gary Oldman in a story of a young entry-level employee at a powerful corporation, who is made to spy on his boss’ former mentor, with the promise of riches and a promotion. 

“The Hunger Games” fans also don’t have long to wait for their next fix, as Liam is set to return as Gale in “Catchung Fire” on 21 November in Oz, and 22nd Nov in the USA. 

Hemsworth is Australians in Film’s 2012 Breakthrough recipient. He and fellow Australian, Yvonne Strahovski, were honored at an exclusive ceremony in June 27, 2012. 

Congrars, Liam!

According to the Hollywood Reporter, Harvey Weinstein just presented some of the films on his company’s slate to a crowd of press and buyers gathered at the Majestic Hotel.

With Nicole Kidman at his side, Weinstein unveiled a clip from “Grace of Monaco,” telling the crowd that this is his seventh movie with the Australian star.

Kidman said, “I got to know Grace very, very well, researched her and fell in love with her.” 

In the film, Kidman plays actress turned royalty, Grace Kelly, who marries Prince Monaco Rainier II (played by Tim Roth).

At 2012’s Cannes festival, Weinstein touted Django Unchained and Silver Linings Playbook, which earned Christoph Waltz and Quentin Tarantino their second Oscars, and gave Jennifer Lawrence her first. With fanfare surrounding his company’s current slate, there is Oscar buzz circling the Weinstein camp once more.

“Grace of Monaco” will hit Australian theatres 26 December, and a limited number of theatres in the US on the 27th December.

Congrats, Nicole. Can’t wait!

Nicole Kidman as Grace of Monaco. 

SBS continues its commitment to quality Australian factual programming with the commission of four new documentaries with funding from Screen Australia - Living with the Enemy, The Great Australian Race Riot, Z Force (working title) and The Catch (working title). 

SBS Director of TV and Online Content Tony Iffland said: “SBS is proud to tell Australia’s stories through thought-provoking and innovative documentaries. These latest commissions demonstrate SBS’s role in challenging and entertaining viewers with locally produced content.”  

Living with the Enemy is a bold and provocative six-part documentary series which goes to the heart of SBS’s multicultural charter – exploring the fault lines of social cohesion in Australia. Through a series of social experiments, people on opposing sides of a key social issue or cultural divide will be immersed in each other’s lives and see if they discover a greater understanding of each other and have their deeply held views and beliefs challenged and changed. Living with the Enemy is produced by Shine Australia for SBS.

A new three-part series, The Great Australian Race Riot, will reveal Australia’s history of race riots and examine how they have influenced the country’s character and development. Revealing history from 1800s to the present day, Australia’s reaction to racial disharmony both at the moment and after has been brave, brutal, clever and transforming. This series will reframe race riots as a vital part of Australia’s history. The Great Australian Race Riot is produced by Essential Media for SBS.

Z Force (working title) uncovers a dramatic forgotten episode of Australia’s Second World War involvement. Combining penetrating big-picture history of the Pacific war with gripping personal narrative, it charts the journey of Z Special, an elite jungle warfare unit and forerunner of the SAS. Over three episodes, the series interweaves the story of Z Special’s historic missions with a contemporary narrative, bringing to life the Z men’s tactics and fighting skills by putting the Z men’s grandchildren through their gruelling jungle training regime. The series culminates in an emotional expedition to Borneo, scene of Z Special’s most celebrated and arduous mission. Z Force is produced by Joined Up for SBS.

Matthew Evans, presenter of SBS’s Gourmet Farmer, embarks on a campaigning voyage of discovery to reveal the complex, often shocking truths behind the seafood Australians produce and consume in the new three- part series The Catch (working title). From salmon farming to shark finning, from vast super trawlers to the humble prawn, Mathew Evans will shock, confront and offer the viewer a chance to make a difference. This provocative, campaigning series aims not just to ignite debate but to change the way Australian buy, sell and eat their seafood, habits that are having a devastating impact on our oceans. The Catch is produced by Essential Media for SBS.

Cate Blanchett is set to play the lead role in “Blackbird,” the David Mamet penned and directed modern-day take on the 1963 assasination of President John F. Kennedy.

Blanchett will play Janet, a woman who discovers that her deceased grandfather was a man with many secrets, and that he was somehow involved in the assassination of the 35th President of the United States. Learning these secrets puts her life in danger, and she is forced to uncover more secrets in order to survive. 

Filming is expected to take place in Sydney, thanks for the recent tax breaks offered to filmmakers. 

Though Blanchett has been actively working in Australian theatre, both on stage and off (in her role as the artistic director of the Sydney Theatre Company), “Blackbird” will be the first film she has shot in Australia since “Little Fish” in 2005.

This is also the first feature length film Mamet is helming since he wrote and directed “Redbelt” in 2008. 

Blanchett can next be seen in “Blue Jasmine,” a drama written and directed by Woody Allen, starring Alec Baldwin and Peter Sarsgaard. No Australian theatre release dates are confirmed as yet, but it will be in U.S. theatres July 26, 2013. 

Blanchett is an Ambassador of Australians in Film. 

Congrats, Cate!

MORE GOOD NEWS FOR JOEL EDGERTON:

According to Deadline, the Gatsby star has just signed on to star with Johnny Depp in “Black Mass”.

This news comes hot on the heel’s of our announcement this morning that Joel will star alongside Michelle Williams in Joshua Marston’s remake of the Italian film “The Double Hour”.

Black Mass, a true crime thriller to be directed by Barry Levinson, will see Edgerton play FBI agent John Connolly. The film tells the true story of Boston’s violent criminal Whitey Bulger who became an FBI informant. 

Congrats, Joel!

Joel Edgerton has been cast in Joshua Marston’s remake of the Italian film “The Double Hour”. Marston will both write and direct the film.

The film will be a remake of Italian director Giuseppe Capotondi’s 2009 psychological thriller of the same name. 

Michelle Williams (Brokeback Mountain) has been cast to play Edgerton’s lover. According to Deadline, Edgerton and Williams will play a couple “who find themselves victims in the midst of a dangerous and well planned robbery.” 

Edgerton can currently be seen playing Tom Buchanan in Baz Luhrmann’s Great Gatsby. The film is set to open Cannes film festival tonight. 

Edgerton is Australians in Film’s 2011 Breakthrough Award recipient. 

Congrats, Joel!

The short film “JOEY” from our friends at Aquarius Film is scheduled to screen at the St Kilda Film Festival on Friday May 31, and the Los Angeles Greek Film Festival on Sunday June 9.

The film was written/ directed by John Evagora & was produced by Aquarius’s co-founder Polly Staniford. 

Check out these websites for details: 

www.stkildafilmfestival.com.au/2013-s2/details/77

http://lagff.org/festival/filmlineup