Easier to raise funds privately: Daddo
Actor/producer Cameron Daddo believes it’s easier to raise up to $1m privately than going through Australia’s funding bodies.
“They will make us jump through hoops,” Daddo told Encore.
Talking about Passengers, the film he produced and funded privately through the relationships he has cultivated while working in the US and Australia, Daddo said he preferred to bypass the traditional route of Australian filmmakers applying for government funding.
“It’s just a matter of how much work I want to put in as a producer to secure that funding. I felt it might be easier to raise the funds privately, when it’s a small amount such as $1m,” he said.
That been said, Daddo said he would have no hesitation in approaching the bodies to fund more expensive films, but added that he didn’t feel entitled to funding: “If I can get it, then that’s terrific,” he said.
His years of working as an actor in independent films in the US paid off, through meeting the “money people” on set and “keeping his eyes and ears open”. He finds this experience and nurturing these relationships has helped him enormously when it comes to pitching and looking for that elusive cash injection.
The film had its debut at the Dungog Film Festival in May, and is signed to PackScreen to explore limited release options nationally. Daddo. It follows the story of an ex-pat couple in the US trying to achieve their Hollywood dreams in Los Angeles, a scenario Daddo is only too familiar with.
After years of acting in Australian television and theatre, Daddo moved to the US in 1992 to pursue acting opportunities. Passengers marks his third outing as a producer. His go-to attitude was evident from day one, “I found a great script and I knew that I had enough relationships with the business. I could call on different folks and I could get the movie made.”
Daddo and business partner Michael Bond are currently working on a number of other projects, including a film to be set in Fremantle, and a TV series they’re hoping will be picked up in the US.
Daddo is also keeping still acting, featuring in Laurent Boulanger’s Six Lovers, currently in post-production in Victoria.
“Right now, I’m on a bit of a wave home to Australia, and it feels good. It’s not that I haven’t been looking for work in Australia or been excited to work here; it’s just that sometimes the timing hasn’t been right.
“I met writer/director Laurent Boulanger a few years ago and we stayed in touch over the internet. He sent me the Six Lovers script earlier this year and I really responded to the material. I play the interviewer who sits in front of these six different people who are in love. He’s doing a research document and he’s videotaping them. Basically, I’m the tie that binds [the stories].”
By Hansika Bhagani
