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Screen Oz funds factual flurry

Government-backed Screen Australia has invested more than A$3.4m (US$3.2m) in nine new documentary projects for the country’s main broadcasters.

Four projects will be supported under the National Documentary Programme, including Let There Be Rock: The Story of Alberts Sound, a two-part doc from Beyond Screen Productions for ABC.

The doc explores the influence of one of Australia’s most established music production houses, Alberts, which, like Motown, developed their own distinctive sound.

Funding has also been pumped into one-off doc Ka-Ching! The Rise and Rise of the Pokies, which explores Australia’s passion for gambling. The project, also for ABC, was written by Neil Lawrence, Andrea Lang and Jane Manning and is produced by Mitzi Goldman and directed by Jane Manning.

Financing has also gone into four-part series Australia: Spaces Between Buildings, produced by FremantleMedia Australia for ABC, and The Expendables (working title), a three-part series produced by Jacqueline Willinge, Daniel Brown and Anthony Willinge, and directed by Mike Bluett for pubcaster SBS.

Meanwhile, two projects will be supported through the General Documentary Programme: Heiress Films’ three-part series Making Families Happy for the ABC and The Angry Mile, from Cordell Jigsaw Productions for SBS.

Three projects will also be supported through the International Documentary Programme. In Firing the Magic Bullet, two Australian scientists are faced with the challenge of taking their major discovery to market, which has the potential to revolutionise the treatment of cancer. The one-off doc is a sequel from Rymer Childs Films written and directed by Judy Rymer, and produced by Judy Rymer and Lois Harris for SBS.

The other docs to receive funding are: Razzle Dazzle: The Hidden Story of Camouflage, a one-off feature by Jonnie & Kate Films for the ABC, and Outback ED, an eight-part series from Screentime, for the ABC.

The funding agency says the investment will help create content with a production value of more than A$11m.

Recent cuts by the Australian government will see the Screen Australia budget slashed by A$25.1m over the next four years, prompting what CEO Graeme Mason described as a “comprehensive review of all programmes and how they are delivered.”

Earlier this week C21 revealed that the agency is being restructured, with all funding up to A$500,000 (US$472,000) now being given in the form of grants.

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