IT SEEMS LIKE an odd title for an Australian feature film – Flammable Children – but in that respect it perhaps follows so many other quirky and cleverly scripted internationally successful feature length comedies, including Crocodile Dundee and The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.

Flammable Children – collaboratively backed by Screen Australia, Screen NSW and Screen Queensland – happens to have the star of Priscilla, one of one of the most successful comedic features in Australia’s history, Guy Pearce, again teamed with that film’s writer and director, Stephan Elliott. With the recent announcements of popular actors Kylie Minogue and Radha Mitchell joining the cast, big things are anticipated for the film. 

“Comedies are more than just a successful genre in Australia’s box office history; they form part of our national identity,” Becker Film Group managing director Richard Becker said. “Films like Priscilla and The Castle are embedded in our culture and serve to remind us of the self-deprecating humour that is the essence of our basic character.

“We are absolutely delighted to be bringing Flammable Children to audiences nationally and are thrilled that iconic Australian, Kylie Minogue, is now attached alongside Guy Pearce and Radha Mitchell to this colourful satire.”

The film is written and directed by Stephan Elliott (The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert) and produced by Al Clark (Priscilla, Chopper, Red Hill) and Jamie Hilton (Breath, The Waiting City, Backtrack). 

The storyline has that peculiar Australian quirkiness embedded.

It is 1975: the sexual revolution is in full swing; Saigon will fall; the first sounds of 2JJ are hitting the airwaves; Australia is in constitutional crisis; and in a sleepy beachside suburb, an extraordinary event will set in motion a crucial, comical and revelatory week for a teenage boy and girl. Something is about to go spectacularly wrong, and their lives will change forever.

Flammable Children marks the first time Ms Minogue and Mr Pearce have appeared on screen together since starring in Neighbours, early in their careers. As well as acting as an onscreen reunion for the two stars, Flammable Children will reunite some of the award-winning cast and crew from Priscilla.

The team joining Mr Elliott and Mr Clark includes production designer Colin Gibson, who recently won an Oscar and BAFTA for his work on Mad Max: Fury Road; and costume designer Lizzy Gardiner (Mission: Impossible II), who won an Oscar and BAFTA for her work on Priscilla. Other Priscilla ‘graduates’ include the score composer Guy Gross, who was BAFTA-nominated for Priscilla and Emmy Award-nominated film editor SueBlainey (Lost, Mozart in the Jungle).

“We are so excited to be able to support Flammable Children,” Screen Australia CEO Graeme Mason said.

“In Kylie, Guy and Radha, the team has been able to secure some of Australia’s most established and iconic talents. The powerhouse in front of the camera is matched by the award-winning team behind it, who will bring our memories of 1970s Australia to life. Flammable Children is going to be smart and funny, with a distinctly nostalgic flavour that I think people will really connect with. Screen Australia is very proud to work with Screen NSW and Screen Queensland to support this film.”

Cameras will roll on the south-east coast of Queensland from early October.

Screen Queensland CEO Tracey Viera said, “This production will benefit from Queensland’s depth of talented cast and crew and showcase our fantastic locations. It’s a great opportunity for the local industry and keeps the back-to-back production happening in Queensland. It is a winning outcome for our business in creating simultaneous stories and economic growth for the screen.”

Screen NSW CEO Courtney Gibson said: “We’re proud to support Flammable Children, a glorious romp through Australia’s beachside history, being brought to life by an absolute dream team – on the screen, behind the camera and in post.”

Cutting Edge will provide post-production facilities in both Queensland and New South Wales and are also investors in the film. The Becker Film Groupwill look after Australia and New Zealand distribution, with international sales by WestEnd Films.

www.screenaustralia,gov.au

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THE National Film and Sound Archive (NFSA), based in Canberra, has launched its first crowdfunding campaign to restore the renowned 1991 feature film Proof.

The NSFA Restores program was launched last year to repair and preserve prints of renowned Australian films, making digital files so they may be screened in modern cinemas. 

NSFA Restore has enlisted movie critic Margaret Pomeranz as its ambassador and the current drive is to raise $25,000 to preserve Proof.

Proof won many international awards on its release and launched the careers of director Jocelyn Moorhouse – today known best for The Dressmaker – and actors Russell Crowe and Hugo Weaving.

The program is a registered charity, offering tax deductibility for donations over $2. It has already restored several classic Australian movies, including the 1976 stand-out Storm Boy.

“I am making the first donation because I thought it was a bit rich to ask you guys to put money into this campaign and me just sitting back and saying. ‘Hey, why don’t you do it?’” Ms Pomeranz said at the launch of the program. “No. I am going to be part of this and I want to gather like-minded people around me. I hope you’re one of them.” 

www.nsfa.gov.au

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FIVE BUSINESS leaders have been recognised with Creative Partnerships Awards to mark their philanthropic contributions to developing the arts in Australia.

The Creative Partnerships Awards, presented in March at Sydney’s Museum of Contemporary Art, recognised those who have fostered enduring partnerships between the cultural and private sectors and encouraged the spirit of giving to the arts. 

Four Awards were presented on the night, with the 2016 Creative Partnerships Awards ceremony being held in conjunction with the Culture Business Sydney Conference, of which Creative Partnerships Australia is a principal partner.

Sydney’s Peter Wilson received the Emerging Philanthropy Leadership Award, Julieanne Alroe and Richard Goyder shared the Business Arts Leadership Award, Mary Jo Capps received the Arts Leadership Award and Naomi Milgrom received the Philanthropy Leadership Award.

Creative Partnerships Australia chief executive Fiona Menzies said the awards embraced the legacy of the former Australia Business Arts Foundation Awards, which celebrated excellence in partnerships and private sector support for the arts for more than a decade.

Private support for the arts has almost doubled in the past 10 years, she said, increasing by 98 percent to $221 million. Private support now accounts for 10 percent of all arts funding in Australia, with cultural and creative activity contributing $86 billion or 6.9 percent to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) every year.

Arts Minister Mitch Fifield said, “They are inspirational leaders whose achievements exemplify the benefits of strong, mutual partnerships between the artistic and private sectors. I thank each of the winners for their exceptional contributions to Australia’s cultural life.”

Ms  Menzies said this year’s award winners had demonstrated commitment to the arts, and displayed leadership in their advocacy for supporting the arts to create a strong, sustainable future for Australia’s cultural sector.

“Each of these leaders is committed to championing giving to the arts and promoting the value of supporting the arts to the broader community. I congratulate all our Award winners and know that they will continue to inspire others to engage with and support artists and arts organisations,” she said.

Previous Leadership Award winners were invited to nominate individuals for this year’s Awards, with winners determined by the Creative Partnerships Australia Board.

www.creativepartnershipsaustralia.org.au

AWARDS IN DETAIL

Peter Wilson – Emerging Philanthropy Leadership Award: Sydney’s Peter Wilson is the managing director of Greenhill Australia and chair of Playwriting Australia, the peak national body supporting new writing for theatre. A director of Belvoir St Theatre and a member of the finance council of the Sisters of the Good Samaritan of the Order of St Benedict, Mr Wilson has held board positions with numerous other community organisations. In 2010, he and his family supported Jane Bodie’s This Year’s Ashes in a co-commission with Griffin Theatre. Playwriting Australia’s donor co-commissioning program has three further projects under development through with Belvoir St, Griffin Theatre and Sydney Theatre Company.

Julieanne Alroe, Richard Goyder (joint winners) – Business Arts Leadership Award: Julieanne Alroe is CEO and managing director of Brisbane Airport Corporation. Under her direction the company has developed partnerships with several arts organisations including Queensland Ballet, Brisbane Writer’s Festival, La Boite Theatre and Camerata of St John’s. She recently initiated the Artist in Residence program at Brisbane Airport appointing artist Robert Brownhall. The airport boasts one of the country’s largest collections of public art with more than 100 pieces valued at more than $10 million commissioned or acquired by the airport to date and displayed throughout the precinct. Since Ms Alroe’s appointment in 2009, Brisbane Airport has also won numerous awards, including the 2014 Skytrax World Airport Awards third place ranking for airports servicing 20-30 million passengers. Ms Alroe was named Business Person of the Year at the 2014 Lord Mayor’s Business Awards. She is currently overseeing the $1.3 billion parallel runway project, one of the biggest infrastructure projects in Australia.

Perth’s Richard Goyder, AO, is managing director of Wesfarmers. He holds several board positions and is a director of the Business Council of Australia. He was made an Officer of the Order of Australia in 2013 for distinguished service to business through executive roles and corporate sponsorship of the arts and Indigenous programs. As Wesfarmers CEO Mr Goyder has forged numerous high profile and long-time arts partnerships, including a $1.2 million fellowship scheme with the National Gallery of Australia to boost Indigenous arts leadership. Wesfarmers supports bodies including the Art Gallery of Western Australia, the West Australian Ballet, Bell Shakespeare Company and the Perth International Arts Festival.

Mary Jo Capps – Arts Leadership Award: Sydney’s Mary Jo Capps has worked in the Australian cultural industry for more than 30 years. She is CEO of Australia’s oldest independent professional performing arts organisation, Musica Viva, and is particularly concerned with arts education, both live and digital, and providing professional development for emerging musicians, composers, classroom music teachers and arts administrators. She holds several board positions including chair of the advisory board of the faculty of the VCA and Melbourne Conservatorium of Music, University of Melbourne. For the past decade Ms Capps has worked towards broadening access to and understanding of fine music in Australia.

Naomi Milgrom AO –  Philanthropy Leadership Award: Naomi Milgrom is the Melbourne-based owner, executive chair and CEO of the Sussan Group comprising fashion brands Sussan, Suzanne Grae and Sportsgirl. She has been recognised as one of Australia’s top 25 business leaders and played a pivotal role in promoting Australian retail and fashion industries to the world. She is a passionate supporter of the arts and has shaped landmark alliances between local and global partners. She recently established the Naomi Milgrom Foundation to initiate bold public art, design and architecture projects including Melbourne’s MPavilion. She was recently appointed as commissioner for the Australian representation at the 57th International Art Exhibition, Venice Biennale 2017.

The 2016 Creative Partnerships Awards ceremony was held in conjunction with the Culture Business Sydney Conference of which Creative Partnerships Australia is a principal partner.

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BRISBANE-based electronic gaming group Alt.vfx is creating worldwide interest with its latest development on a hybrid action-adventure that combines gaming and television.

The Alt.vfx visual effects team, which has worked its post-production magic on the hybrid action-adventure game Quantum Break, is in the process of opening studios in Sydney and Los Angeles. 

Quantum Break blurs the line between gaming and television, with players able to unlock television episodes, starring Game of Thrones, Lord of the Rings and X-Men actors at the completion of the gaming achievement levels.

The expertise that Alt.vfx team has delivered enables the digital landscape to collapse, shatter and reassemble throughout the entertainment experience.

Alt.vfx burst onto the post-production scene in 2011 with the celebrated, award-winning ‘Tooheys Extra Dry Nocturnal Migration’ commercial featuring night-clubbing deer, and then the follow-up ‘Tongue’s Quest’ ad starring a runaway, beer-loving tongue.

“That put us on the map globally and the rest is history,” said Alt co-founder Takeshi Takada.

“We were six friends working in Brisbane – all passionate artists. I don’t think there’s another visual effects company like us in Australia. At Alt.vfx we tend to be collaborative, forward-thinking and risk-taking.

“We believe creativity can change behaviour. We launched our company in Brisbane, but we were able to lure clients from Sydney, Melbourne and now overseas.

“We’ve won National and State Exporter of the Year awards and just returned from Adfest 2016 in Thailand with silver and bronze awards, making us undefeated over the last four years in the highly-coveted visual effects category.”

Mr Takeda described Quantum Break as a “very effects-heavy” project.

“It was shot in Prague with all the scale of a feature film. Our VFX supervisor and co-founder, Colin Renshaw took a team to Prague to supervise the shoot,” Mr Takeda said.

“Col engaged with the director and production company at an early stage to ensure that we captured all of the plates, elements and measurements required to create the visual effects and achieve director, Michael Spiccia’s vision.”

Like fellow Brisbane start-up success story Tanda – a group of QUT students whose cloud-based payroll system is taking off world-wide – Alt.vfx credits Brisbane with helping it to success.

Mr Takada said, “If we had set up this business in Tokyo or China, we might not have been as successful.

“Our home base allowed us to be a standout in the market. It allowed us to be who we are without being smothered – and we’re in the hub of Asia, in a perfect time zone.”

He said Brisbane’s proximity to the Asia Pacific and world-renowned beaches on the Gold and Sunshine coasts made it easier for Alt.vfx to lure talent from Europe, the UK, Asia and elsewhere around the world.

“It’s a constant challenge to find great talent wherever you are based,” Mr Takada said. “We’ve got some of the best creative artists from all over the world at Alt, in part because Brisbane is such an attractive city to live and work in.”

With 55 full-time staff and a number of other big visual effects projects in production to be released this year, Alt.vfx has expanded its Brisbane head office and is in negotiations to secure space in Los Angeles.

www.altvfx.com

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