click for contents V AUSTRALIA | ANOUNCEMENT AiF | CELEBRATING 10YRS RICHARD GRAY | summer coda Pics | matching jack Pics | sucker punch
THEBOOMERANG AUSTRALIANS IN FILM
April 2011
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The Boomerang
THEMONTH
Editors Susie Dobson Catherine Pollard Beverly Irwin (copy editor) editor@australiansinfilm.org Designer Sam Kramer sam@kramerproductiondesign.com
AiF Volunteers | We would like thank the following people:
Sam Kramer, designer of the Boomerang and invitations Alin Pilkington for IT support Michael Kelleher for website design and IT support Courtney Prince Melissa Bickerton John & Vanessa Freemen Suzanne & Gary Iselt Jenifer Sorenson Greg Cook Peter Richie Ingrid Bloom Beverly Irwin
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Board of Directors Paula Paizes Susie Dobson Rob Marsala Andrew Warne Tracey Vieira Michelle Day Ian Sutherland Cover | V Australia News Submissions Please email the Editor with any Australian or member film-related news or announcements.
CONTENTS From the President
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Reel Alerts
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V Australia Announcement
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Celebrating 10 Years
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Member Profile | Richard Gray
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Australians in Film | 2800 28th St, Suite 320, Santa Monica CA 90405
Pics | Matching Jack
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Tel: 310 452-5939 | Fax: 323 446-8724
Pics | Sucker Punch
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www.australiansinfilm.org | administrator@australiansinďŹ lm.org
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THEPRESIDENT
Dear Members and Friends, Without strong partnership and sponsorship relationships most organizations cannot survive, whether for profit or not! AiF is no different. AiF has two forms of revenue – membership dues and sponsorship dollars. At an extremely reasonable $125 for individual members and $625 for corporations, these dues are just not enough to enable AiF to bring you over 25 screenings, receptions and events per year. AiF currently has support from some incredible corporations and entities, who are collectively known as “AiF sponsors ” but are really much more. AiF’s office is housed within Gold Sponsor, Protea Group’s suite of offices in Santa Monica. Protea Group, a full service international business management firm, has been a sponsor of AiF for almost 6 years and in 2009, Paloma Filesberto, principal and owner, generously offered to provide us with a friendly home from which to operate. Ausfilm has supported AiF, almost since its inception. Their support started indirectly when David
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Pratt, one of AiF’s Co - founders was its Executive Director, and over the years the relationship developed naturally into one of sponsorship. Today Tracey Viera, current Executive Director of Ausfilm sits on AiF’s Board. Stacey Testro of Stacey Testro International has been a gold sponsor of AiF since 2007. Whilst the extremely busy talent manager and producer is often jetting between her Los Angeles, NYC and Melbourne offices, she still manages to find time to support AiF, both financially and creatively by assisting with programming e.g. helping to set up the Insidious and Matching Jack screenings. YouDon’tKnowOz.com, comprising the fabulous wines from Lindemans, Penfolds, Wolf Blass, Rosemount Estates and Greg Norman Estates is a fairly new sponsor, but an essential one. They provide financial support and also all the delicious wines served at all our screening and events. Yum! And how would AiF garner its worldwide publicity and profile without the photographs from Getty Images? Then there is Loeb and Loeb, the Century City legal giant that has been with us
since we started. Luckily we have not needed to use them that much but to just know that they are there for us, if we need them, is enough. And finally CST Tax Advisors and V Australia. Most of you have met the colorful John Macarian of CST and should take advantage of the tax service they provide to Aussies in LA and Vito Anzelmni from V Australia continues to dazzle us with his company’s generosity - at Sucker Punch he handed Abbie Cornish and Emily Browning each a round trip airfare to Australia. Our sponsors are our partners and also our good friends. Thank you so much to all of them! Wishing you all a Happy April and Easter. Warmest Wishes, Paula Paizes President Australians in Film
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REELALERTS Teresa Palmer
AUSTRALIANS IN THEATRES APRIL| APRIL 1 INSIDIOUS, Directed & edited by James Wan, and written by Leigh Whannell.
Stuart Beattie has come aboard the Lakeshore Entertainment project I, Frankenstein as writer and director. The filmmakers are looking to a fall shoot. A Darkstorm Studios graphic novel created by Kevin Grevioux, I, Frankenstein pictures a modern-day world where the classic literary monster stands between humans and a host of other supernatural creatures looking to rise up and take over.
Staring Leigh Whannell & Rose Byrne. APRIL 8 HANNA, Cate Blanchett & Eric Bana. Teresa Palmer is in talks to star opposite Nicholas Hoult in Summit’s zombie love story Warm Bodies. Jonathan Levine is directing the project, which, in a tone described as Twilight meets Shaun of the Dead, follows an existentially tormented zombie named R that begins an unlikely friendship with the human girlfriend (Palmer) of one of his victims. The blossoming relationship starts a chain reaction that will transform him, his fellow zombies and maybe the whole lifeless world.
Stuart Beattie
Australian actress, also AiF Volunteer, Melissa Bickerton recently appeared on CBS’s hit Medium. Melissa is now scheduled to guest on NBC’s television series The Event airing April 18, and CBS’s Criminal Minds airing on May 4th.
Melissa Bickerton
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REELALERTS
NEWMEMBERS Daniel Barcenas Camille Mansell Celine Wallace Tania Nolan Drew Bailey Amanda Maple-Brown Andre & Mariah Hycenko Marc Rosenberg Emma Leslie Faye Kingslee Stef Dawson
Australian actor Chris Hemsworth has been named CinemaCon’s Male Star of Tomorrow. The Thor star will receive the distinction at the convention’s closing gala in Las Vegas on March 31. Robin McLeavy has been set to play
the role of Abraham Lincoln’s mother, Nancy Hanks Lincoln, in Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter for 20th Century Fox. The role is brief but sets the tone for the action. It’s her death at the hands of a bloodsucker that hardens young Chris Hemsworth Abe Lincoln (Benjamin Walker) into going to war against the growing scourge of vampires in the 1800s. The Australian actress, who just signed with UTA, is also repped by Wishlab and Shanahans in Australia.
Robin McLeavy
Tim Burton has set young Aussie actor Gulliver McGrath to play the role of David Collins in Dark Shadows. Gulliver McGrath
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V AUSTRALIA
Australians in Film announces V Australia as presenting Sponsor Paula Paizes, president of Australians in Film (AiF), the pre-eminent Los Angeles-based organization for expatriate Australians in the entertainment industry, announced that V Australia, Richard Branson’s newest international airline, has signed an exclusive three-year deal to become AiF’s Presenting Partner and official airline partner. This is the first time in their 10-year history that the AiF has brought on a Presenting Partner, the highest level of sponsorship for the non-profit Los Angeles based organization.
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As Presenting Partner, V AUSTRALIA will support AiF’s important work in celebrating and promoting Australian film culture in Hollywood via their regular star-studded events and screenings and the prestigious Heath Ledger Scholarship, which, each year provides financial support to an Australian young actor to travel to the US to further their training and international acting opportunities. In announcing this special and important partnership, Paizes said; “V AUSTRALIA’S financial support comes at a very important time for AiF. The
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V AUSTRALIA organization consistently strives to promote a creatively vibrant, exciting and relevant Australian film culture to the Hollywood and international communities, with a wide variety of quality and diverse programs. With V AUSTRALIA now added to the AiF family, we are confident that we can continue to achieve these goals.” V Australia Regional Sales Director Vito Anzelmi said as Presenting Partner of Australians in Film, the airline was delighted to sponsor this dynamic group of Australian artists.
“As part of the Virgin Group of Airlines, V Australia operates daily flights from Los Angeles to Australia and we are all about providing an outstanding experience to our Guests - making all of our passengers feel like movie stars. Australians in Film was a natural partner fit for us as AiF aims to celebrate and promote the work of Australian film and television makers. As an Australian airline, we share in these sentiments of supporting our fellow Aussies,” he said.
Abbie Cornish, Vito Anzelmi & Emily Browning at Sucker Punch screening.
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CELEBRATING10YEARS
This year Australians in Film is celebrating it’s 10th anniversary! Over the past decade we have been working hard to support Australian filmmakers, celebrate Aussie screen culture and nurture our extensive talent. We have become an oasis of Oz in Los Angeles.
By the end of the year, we plan to bring the Australians in Film family closer and make a toast to celebrating the 1st decade. While we personally thank everybody for their continued support of AiF, lets together leap forward into an exciting future generation where Aussies on the big-screen continue to take over Hollywood!!
Since we opened our doors in 2001, we have hosted over 150 events, from film screenings with Q&As to Oscar celebrations. We established the Breakthrough Awards for emerging talent in Film and Television, created the Heath Ledger Scholarship Fund to give young Aussie actors the chance to pursue their dreams in the US, and strengthened AiF membership well beyond 500 members. We have welcomed seven new sponsors. Details of our Celebrations will be revealed shortly. For now, we encourage everyone to stay tuned for updates posted via AiF’s Facebook page and on our soon to be unveiled, freshly upgraded, Official New Website.
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memberprofile RICHARDGRAY Please tell us about yourself, where were you born and raised? I’m a Melbourne boy, Box Hill to be more specific. Far eastern suburbs baby! Then film school at the VCA school of Film & TV (2001-03)
Man, it was kinda surreal to be screening in LA, but predominately to Aussies. Great crowd and really cool Q & A, I’ve made some great connections and I really had a ball on the night. The ample beer helped too. I’d just moved to LA, so it was a lovely introduction. I felt welcomed and I met a lot of local crew too, which I’m actually now shooting with this weekend - so networking-wise it was fabulous.
How did your dreams of filmmaking and becoming a director start? Tell us about your background. I wanted to be an actor when I was very young, but I was fortunate enough to grow up with some great actors (Cassandra Magrath for one) and I soon learnt I was much better behind the camera than in front. It was making short films at High School that really got me excited though, I was about 14. My mum and sis went on a holiday to Asia and I had the chance to go, or I had the chance to stay and they’d buy me a video camera. I took the camera. AIF screened your film Summer Coda recently, how valuable was this screening in comparison to others?
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Tell us the story of Summer Coda. I had this strong image back at film school of a girl hitchhiking home. She was a strong female protagonist, but she was dealing with a lot of emotions that she’d internalized for far too long. I knew I wanted to set it in Orange
farming country, ‘cause of my family history and I feel in love with Mildura and the Murray River. We were so fortunate to cast Rachael Taylor, because she just got it, and there are so few kick ass roles for women her age, I think she kinda
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memberprofile loved the opportunity to convey so many different sides of herself. The screenplay for Summer Coda was runner-up in Project Greenlight Australia, but that was about six years ago now, so getting the film up and running was a lot to do with the phenomenal cast that was attached, regardless of how little we could pay them. Rachael, Alex Dimitriades, Susie Porter, Angus Sampson, Nathan Phillips, Cassandra Magrath and the amazing Jacki Weaver, really made this film happen. We were 90% privately funded, which is so rare in Oz, but it was a really exciting way to make a film. We put it all on the screen. What has inspired you to move to Los Angeles? Well, I like the idea of sitting in a bar and hearing people talk about movies and not AFL and League for change. I like my footy, but it’s refreshing to be in a town that lives and breathes the thing you adore. In the end Summer Coda took seven years, so we had a fair few other screenplays up our sleeves, all at various stages of development. The timing was perfect. We’ve come here to progress those projects. Several of the actors that are attached
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to these new films are based in LA, so it made sense to be here. We’re currently shooting extracts and trailers as a method of helping fund our new features. What upcoming projects do you see in the future? Did I mention we have some kick ass features? Done Deal, a crime / drama that my wife Michele has written. Really excited about it. Rachael Taylor
and Josh Lawson are attached and we’re shooting some scenes next week. We have a period drama / thriller Andorra and a atmospheric thriller too, Cedar Lodge. So we’re busy bees at the moment, but loving every minute. Privately funding Summer Coda was a great experience and it’s one that’s really helped us advance the new projects.
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Attention: all staff Tourism Queensland, the team behind the Best Job in the World campaign, now brings you the Million Dollar Memo - the chance for workplaces and companies worldwide to win one million dollars worth of incentive travel to Queensland, home of the Great Barrier Reef.
company and ensure their employees experience the Ultimate Reward.
Great companies are built by the great people within them, so Tourism Queensland would like to reward that hard work by giving one lucky company the the Ultimate Queensland Reward.
Early Bird Bonus’ entries close April 17” & “Official Competition end date for all entries closes May 1st
To be in the running, entrants need to create an entertaining 60 second video that shows what makes their company great and why they think Queensland is the ultimate reward destination.
milliondollarmemo.com
Companies and workplaces are invited to showcase their organization to a global audience by telling us why they are the best company in the world and why their employees deserve the AUD $1,000,000 worth of unique travel experiences to Queensland. Whether it’s adventure, relaxation on tropical islands and beaches, up close encounters with unique wildlife, or simple enjoyment of the laid back Queensland lifestyle, we’ll tailor the travel experiences for the winning
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pics | MATCHINGJACK Kodi Smit-Mcphee, Nadia Tass & Jacinda Barrett
Friends of AiF enjoying themselves at Matching Jack
Sigrid Thornton and Susie Dobson
Jonah Klein (Magnolia Management), Scott Grasso, Sigrid Thornton, Ben Lewin, Judy Lewin Krista Vendy & Wendy Wilkins
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pics | MATCHINGJACK Kathleen Dolan, Amy Janes, Stacey Testro, David Hannay & Amerjit Deu
Gerald Wright, Susie Dobson & Bob Bonney
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Jacinda Barrett
Vivien Flitton, Karen Borger, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Elissa Down, Dawn Matthias
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pics | SUCKERPUNCH Melissa Bickerton & Kym Jackson
Abbie Cornish & Emily Browning
Abbie Cornish, Michelle Day, Susie Dobson, Emily Browning & Paula Paizes
Emily Browning & Kerri Grisham
Kirsty Lee Allen & Emily Rickard
Teria Birlon & Edwina Cheer
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Paula Paizes & Catherine Pollard
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pics | SUCKERPUNCH Sophie Scarf with friends of AiF enjoying themselves at Sucker Punch
Michael Teh, Brett Hick-Maitland & friend
Friends of AiF enjoying themselves at Sucker Punch
Friends of AiF enjoying themselves at Sucker Punch Friends of AiF enjoying themselves at Sucker Punch
Syovia Forest
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backpAGE AiF Ambassadors
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You or your organization can become a sponsor of Australians in Film. We’d be happy to talk to you to see how we can tailor AiF to best benefit your company. Contact Catherine Pollard for more information. email | catherine@australiansinfilm.org
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phone | 310 452 5939
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