Screen Australia announces $8.1m of production funding for 15 projects

Screen Australia has announced over $8.1 million in production funding for 15 projects spanning feature film, television and online content.

Among the funded projects are Zac Power, a new animated family feature from Flying Bark Productions and Cheeky Little Media, based on the popular book series of the same name; Leviticus, the latest feature from Causeway Films, the production company behind the global breakout success Talk to Me; romantic comedy Love Adjacent; Stan’s psychological thriller series Watching You; and online series Hoops, from the creative team behind the popular TikTok documentary Transathletica.

According to Screen Australia CEO Deirdre Brennan, Screen Australia invested over $85 million across all 57 funding programs, including over $5.5 million through the First Nations Department, and issued 205 final certificates through the Producer Offset with a total value of $413 million for the 2023/24 financial year.

The projects funded for production include:

Chasing Millions: A crime drama set in Belfast 2004, Chasing Millions tells the story of the biggest bank heist in Irish, British (and Australian) history making reluctant partners of ambitious Australian police officer, Diana, with gruff, veteran Northern Irish detective, Crawford, as they investigate and seek to solve the crime while navigating their way through the minefield of a fragile peace. An official Irish-Australian co-production with Irish director Stephen Burke (Maze) at the helm, based on a script by Stephen Burke and Katherine Thomson (Schapelle, House of Hancock). Producers are Jane Doolan (Maze, Wolf) of Mammoth Films, Ireland and Michael Wrenn of Invisible Republic, Australia. It has received major production investment from Screen Ireland, with local distribution by Bonsai Films and international sales by Level K.

Displaced: A six-part comedy sci-fi series for YouTube that follows a dysfunctional physicist who is accidentally sent back in time and in the process, tries to fix her future by mentoring her younger self. It is from writer/director Molly Daniels (The InBESTigators, Wispy), writer/producer Jem Splitter (Galacticare) and producer Rachael Morrow. Displaced is produced and developed in association with VicScreen and financed with support from the Community Broadcasting Foundation.

Hoops: From the team behind Transathletica on TikTok, Hoops documents the journey of Transgender Basketballer Lexi Rodgers and her fight to be ruled eligible to play with a NBL1 South team.  Hoops is from writer/director Hannah McElhinney, writer Rudy Jean Rigg and executive producer Jamie Searle of Transathletica, with Eliza Bone producing.

Leviticus: Leviticus is the story of two teenage boys living in a conservative Christian community in regional Victoria, Naim and Ryan, whose attraction to each other is identified by the local pastor and are subjected to a conversion ritual which unknowingly releases an entity that terrorises the town. Leviticus is from writer/director Adrian Chiarella, and producers Hannah Ngo and Samantha Jennings and Kristina Ceyton of Causeway Films. It is financed in association with Salmira Productions, and developed and produced in association with VicScreen, who is also supporting post, digital and visual effects (PDV). PDV is also supported by Kojo Studio, with local distribution by Maslow Entertainment and international sales by Studio 301 Films.

Love Adjacent: When food critic Maggie writes a review that causes top chef Ryan’s restaurant to go under, he is forced to retreat back home and start again from scratch. Coincidentally in the same town for her sister’s wedding, Maggie is determined to continue taking down what Ryan is serving up, that is until catastrophe strikes and Maggie desperately needs Ryan's help to make her sister’s wedding happen. Love Adjacent is a romantic comedy feature film directed by Louise Alston and written by Sarah Mayberry and Christopher Gist, with Kate Whitbread and Spencer McLaren producing. It is produced in association with VicScreen, with Umbrella Entertainment distributing locally and Film Seekers managing international sales.

Posthumous: In this drama, horror feature film, Zoe returns to her family home and estranged father to find some semblance of comfort after her life falls apart, but the discovery of a mysterious videotape threatens to undo everything she knew about her deceased mother’s final days and her own birth. Posthumous is from writer/director/producer Josh Tanner and writer/producer Jade van der Lei, with Joel Anderson executive producing. It is funded in association with Screen Queensland. Financed with support from the Gold Coast Screen Incentive, with local distribution by Kismet Movies.

Saccharine: In this psychological horror feature from Carver Films (Run Rabbit Run), a lovelorn medical student becomes terrorised by a hungry ghost after taking part in an obscure weight-loss craze: eating human ashes. Saccharine is from writer/director/producer Natalie Erika James and producers Anna McLeish and Sarah Shaw. It is produced in association with VicScreen, with local distribution by Maslow Entertainment and international sales by XYZ Films.

Watching You: A six-part gripping psychological thriller for Stan based on J.P Pomare’s novel The Last Guests. Watching You is created for television by Alexei Mizin and Ryan van Dijk and produced by Jason Stephens and Bree-Anne Sykes. Helen Bowden, Cailah Scobie and Alicia Brown are executive producing. It has received major production investment from Stan and is financed with support from Screen NSW through the Made in NSW Fund. Post, digital and visual effects supported by Screen NSW. Financed in association with and distributed by ITV Studios.

Zac Power: Based on the popular book series of the same name, Zac Power is an animated family feature from Flying Bark Productions and Cheeky Little Media. The film is directed by Alexs Stadermann and David Webster and written by Fin Edquist, John Armstrong, Lawrence Leung and Erica Harrison. It is financed in association with the Australian Children’s Television Foundation.

Also announced today are 27 television dramas, 23 feature films and six online projects that will share in over $1.7 million of development funding. Of these, 24 projects have been supported through the Generate Fund, 26 through the Premium Fund and six through the Online Development Fund.

The projects include online action-adventure series Amy the Pirate; family music drama feature Piano Mums, following a promising teenage pianist and exploring the power of music and love of family; Skip Ahead project Life of Kea that has been developed into a television drama series; and a second season of the TikTok docuseries Sextistics, which continues to explore the statistics to create a snapshot of gender, sexuality and identity within Australia.

• Washington Filmworks Funding initiative reveals recipients