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First Nations talent forging new TV careers
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This week four talented South Australian First Nations screen creatives began forging new careers in television production under a new mentoring program from the SAFC and Channel 44.
Kiara Milera, Keith Gilbey-Warrior, Rick Hutcheson and Anil Samy officially started work at Channel 44 in Collinswood this week as part of the SAFC Channel 44 First Nations Mentorship Program, part of a wider partnership between the two organisations to provide opportunities to South Australian First Nations screen practitioners.
Working alongside Channel 44 staff, the group will gain valuable hands-on experience in television production, learning new skills and creating original content for broadcast. They will also assist in the production of documentary The Art of Reconciliation – Telling Our Stories, being produced by Channel 44 with an all First Nations crew, and support from the Port Adelaide Enfield and Charles Sturt Councils.
SAFC CEO Kate Croser said: "We are delighted to be partnering with Channel 44 on this new mentoring program which will enhance the visibility of South Australian First Nations practitioners and their work, and help to establish and formalise even more career pathways for First Nations screen talent. I congratulate all the successful applicants and look forward to watching their screen careers develop."
Channel 44 General Manager Lauren Hillman said: "Channel 44 is thrilled to have appointed four First Nations interns who will all commence roles on new local productions in their first week, starting with documentary series First Nations Fringe, exploring the stories behind this year’s recipients of the First Nations Fringe collaboration grants. This partnership highlights the importance of the opportunities and pathways that community TV continues to provide and we are very excited to see what the new First Nations team achieves over the next 12 months."
Read more
Image: Kiara Milera and Anil Samy at Channel 44.
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Out now: our second annual industry survey
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Calling all South Australian screen sector members: the SAFC's annual Stakeholder Survey is out now for your input!
The 2021 SAFC Stakeholder Survey is the second in a yearly series of surveys designed to source feedback from South Australia’s screen sector on the SAFC, our activities, facilities and operations, and build a fuller picture of our stakeholders and clients.
The annual survey helps the SAFC to track our agency performance, identify changes and trends within the local industry, and gain a more comprehensive understanding of our stakeholders' needs across the sector, to ensure we continue to deliver support in the most effective way.
All members of the South Australian screen sector are invited to take part in the 10 minute survey, which will provide valuable feedback as we continue to grow and support the sector.
The 2021 SAFC Stakeholder Survey is open until 11.59pm ACDT on Sunday 21 February, 2021. All responses are anonymous and confidential.
Take the survey
Image: Behind the scenes of First Day (2020).
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First Nations fellowship returns for second year
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The call is out again for First Nations documentary makers in South Australia and the Northern Territory with the launch of the second DAF Centralised Indigenous Fellowship, now open for applications.
Launched in 2019 under the Centralised banner, the Documentary Australia Foundation (DAF) Centralised Indigenous Fellowship is a partnership with the SAFC, Screen Territory, NITV and AFTRS Indigenous.
Running across three years with one Fellow selected annually, the Fellowship is a funding and support program to empower storytelling and kickstart new projects from Indigenous documentary filmmakers from the Northern Territory and South Australia.
The successful Fellow will receive a grant of up to $30,000 towards professional and documentary project development, as well as up to $10,000 of in-kind support to attend training opportunities at AFTRS.
Inaugural Fellow, Northern Territory filmmaker Tamara Whyte, is currently undertaking professional development to further her documentary project Base 8, which explores the use of mathematics in Indigenous Culture.
"The DAF Centralised Indigenous Fellowship has been a total game changer for my career. As a carer, parent and Aboriginal woman working in film and media, having the opportunity and the support to craft my own unique pathway for professional development and mentoring has been absolutely invaluable, and has allowed me to take my documentary project to the next level," Ms Whyte said.
Applications are open until Friday 12 March, 2021 for early to mid-career SA and NT Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander filmmakers. For application guidelines, and to apply online go to safilm.com.au/centralised
Image: DAF Centralised Indigenous Fellowship inaugural recipient Tamara Whyte.
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Aftertaste proves a tasty televisual treat
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It's official: Australia loves Aftertaste!
The South Australian filmed and produced ABC comedy series from Adelaide Studios based Closer Productions has attracted rave reviews from critics and viewers alike after its premiere last week.
The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age declared the show "deliciously funny" and gave it four stars, as did Screenhub and The Guardian, which called it "smart, dynamic and laugh-out-loud funny".
Weekend Australian TV critic Graeme Blundell called Aftertaste "an exciting new comedy" with "clever writing" and "sharp witted acting", while Broadsheet declared it "one of the best and funniest Aussie shows of the year".
The show was also a ratings winner for the ABC, winning its Wednesday 9pm timeslot.
The series is also set for the international spotlight, having been selected to participate in the Berlinale Series Market Selects at next month's Berlin Film Festival. Aftertaste is the only Australian project on the newly-created program, which highlights projects with strong commercial potential.
Starring Erik Thomson, Rachel Griffiths and Natalie Abbott, Aftertaste follows disgraced celebrity chef Easton West as he returns to his hometown in the Adelaide Hills to repair relationships and reinvent himself with a little help from his wunderkind niece.
Catch Aftertaste on ABC TV Wednesdays at 9pm, or on iview.
Find out more
Image: Erik Thomson (centre) in Aftertaste, courtesy ABC.
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New wave of success for SA game studios
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South Australia's game sector continues to make waves - literally - with new SA made game War on the Sea out now.
Produced by Adelaide Studios based game developers and digital content studio Monkeystack in partnership with SA indie developers Killerfish Games, War on the Sea is a dynamic tactical game that puts you in the hot seat of a historic naval battle.
Inspired by classic computer titles Great Naval Battles and Task Force 1942, War on the Sea lets you take command of warship task forces, supply convoys and submarines and undertake tactical use of aircraft to secure the South Pacific during World War II.
Monkeystack produced all of the 3D models and textures for a full fleet of destroyers, aircraft carriers, cruisers and battleships in the game, as well as planes, submarines, torpedoes and depth charges, all authentically recreated from hundreds of drawings, plans and reference images.
Check out War on the Sea on the Steam Store now.
Find out more about Monkeystack at monkeystack.com.au
Find out more about Killerfish Games at killerfishgames.com
Find out more about how the SAFC supports the South Australian games sector at safilm.com.au/games
Image: War on the Sea, image courtesy Monkeystack.
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Applause: accolades, awards & appointments
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● SA made and SAFC supported children's series First Day keeps racking up the international accolades, this week winning the Kidscreen Award for Best Live Action Series (Kids Programming). The series has also been nominated for Most Outstanding Kids & Family Programming in the 2021 GLAAD Media Awards honouring media for fair, accurate, and inclusive representations of LGBTQIA+ people and issues. Produced by SA producers Kirsty Stark and Kate Croser, and directed by Julie Kalceff, the series was produced by SA's Epic Films in association with KOJO.
● SA made and SAFC supported film The Loop (Tallstoreez Productions, Change Media) has been nominated for Best Short Form Documentary in the 2021 AIDC Awards. Directed and written by Lorcan Hopper and Johanis Lyons-Reid, and produced by Jennifer Lyons-Reid and Carl Kuddell, the film was developed and produced as part of the SAFC's Full Tilt initiative with SBS to support SA content makers with disability. SA filmed documentary Maralinga Tjarutja (Blackfella Films) is also nominated in the Best Factual/Documentary Single category. Winners will be announced on 5 March. Read more
● Short film Roborovski from SA actor, writer, director and producer Tilda Cobham-Hervey was crowned Best Australian Short Animation at the recent Flickerfest Awards in Sydney. Cobham-Hervey co-wrote, produced and directed the short with Dev Patel, Jomon Tomas and John Collee. Read more
● SA screenwriter Nelya Valamanesh is one of five Australian screen creatives awarded a $5,000 development grant under the Closer Productions and Adelaide Film Festival Micro Grants for Diverse Voices program. Read more
Image: Evie Macdonald and Elena Liu in First Day, photo by Ian Routledge, courtesy of Epic Films
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