Australia’s Screen NSW supports new wave of TV and feature projects with latest development fund
Jodi Matterson, left, and Abe Forsythe on the set of Wolf Like Me
Nine new television series and six feature documentaries have been funded by Australian state agency Screen NSW’s development programme.
The projects are part of the A$650,000 (US$404,00) development funding pool, where project recipients are awarded up to A$50,000 per project. The latest round included 15 feature films, six feature documentaries, five fiction television series, two children’s series, two factual series and one VR/AR project.
Producer Tommy Murphy’s new crime drama series, Brazen, following a hardened criminal biker and a cop in a forbidden underworld relationship, secured funding. The series been developed in collaboration with Abe Forsythe and Jodi Matterson’s new production joint venture Wolf House Productions. Forsythe will direct the series with Tommy Murphy writing all episodes.
Matterson, the former MD of Made Up Stories left the production house last year and has recently established the new production banner Silent Firework, which includes joint ventures with Abe Forsythe, Glendyn Ivin and Libbie Doherty.
In children’s content, Flying Bark Productions secured the rights to novel Funny Ethnics by Shirley Le to be developed into children’s series Yagoona as part of the After Bark Slate and Little Creatures, a live-action/animation hybrid series inspired by Sam Cotton’s TikTok animations. It will be produced by Matchbox Pictures.
The ABC has commissioned and co-developed factual series When the War Is Over from Mint Pictures for its 2025 slate which is hosted by actress and EP Rachel Griffiths. It explores the ways Australian artists, filmmakers, writers and musicians have portrayed Australians at war.
A comedy drama from 25 FPS, Grey Nomads, is being developed by writer/director, Felix Williamson and producers, Kerri Mainwaring and Hamish Roxburgh. It follows the journey of six retirees with nothing in common traversing Australia.
WildBear Productions, Dreamchaser Productions, Daniel Bennett and Scribbly and Doodle also shared in television series development funding for their projects.
In feature documentaries, Crash House Productions are developing The Man Who Ate A Succulent Chinese Meal, which follows the true life story of Australia’s most infamous and immortalised criminal turned internet sensation Jack Karlsen.
Stitch Films and Regen Studios are behind hybrid documentary, Crossing the Tideline, written and created by Damon Gameau, Andrew Kaineder (directing) and produced by Anna Kaplan. The project captures a surfer involved in a shark attack on drone footage and explores his connection to the ocean and to himself.
