Mumbrella hangout with Screen Australia CEO Graeme Mason
The head of Screen Australia Graeme Mason joined Mumbrella for a live video hangout where he answered questions about the challenges facing the industry.
Mason, who assumed the role of CEO in November replacing Ruth Harley, had previously been head of the New Zealand Film Commission. He has also held roles as president of worldwide acquisitions for Universal Studios and head of media projects at Channel 4 in the UK.
Screen Australia is the government funding body for the nation’ film and TV industry.
Mason spoke to Mumbrella’s content director Tim Burrowes about a range of issues, including how he is changing the way it operates, how funding is distributed and why it is important the government supports the sector.
Thank God someone else is in place. Screen Australia is like a tired old woman hashing out funds to the same people producing cringe. Not to mention lots of us receive the same ‘template’ rejection for completely different concepts submitted.
Hopefully this guy will change everything. Really looking forward to it.
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How can they fairly allocate funding? How is it fair that one filmmaker is funded and ten more are not? Who makes these decisions about ‘quality’ or ‘artistic or cultural merit’? Should these decisions not be made be the market – individuals? Wouldn’t it be better if instead of people paying for films through their taxes, people paid filmmakers directly, at the box office? Otherwise how can we know if the creative choices of the bureaucracy are the right ones? How is it fair that I, who am not funded, must compete against those who are funded, when I am paying taxes like everybody else? Why am I forced to fund my own competitors, and why is Australia’s share of the film market shrinking every year? Will, in time, Australian films disappear from our screens? On the current 20+ year trajectory, I can’t see how this won’t occur. How is the Australian film industry not doomed due to the governments “control” masquerading as “support”?
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Unfortunately he has inherited a train wreck and a public service structure where nobody will ever want to leave. Screen Australia’s spin doctors went silent last year as the box office was dismal. I hope he can effect some change and some confidence but it is an almost impossible task when the Hollywood studios completely dominate distribution. American independents films have the same problem but at least can break out in a market of 300 million plus North American audience. Non American films in funny accents such as ours very rarely succeed in the main stream.
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Australia seems to only produce three types of genre for film- dry dramas, low brow comedies and gross out horror. Why don’t we ever produce something else- fantasy, sci-fi, action, adventure, superhero, children’s films.
Oh, and if this question does get asked, please make sure the response isn’t just refuting the claims by naming a single film that goes against the three genre types in Australia.
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Hi Graeme. In your opinion, do you think the Producer Offset has been as effective at stimulating private investment in feature film production as the 10BA? If not, would you consider reinstating 10BA?
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If we had a project that for arguments sake was green lighted for investment by screen Australia, when would funds be available to allocate to that project. 1 year, 2 year??
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Australia has produced some of the best films I’ve ever seen (showing my tastes, here) – Bad Boy Bubby, Wake in Fright, Animal Kingdom, etc. But films like these are hard to market. Does Graeme feel that marketing is partly the reason why such films don’t reach a bigger audience?
Well done Mumbrella. That was very constructive.
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Funding is predicated on a distribution deal. Good luck with that people!
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I know where Tony Abbott can make some easy and effective cuts!
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An informative and encouraging interview. Thanks, Mumbrella. The Australian film and TV industry appears to be in good hands.
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#Jake mate you’ve got to be kidding.
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The fact remains, in every funding agency you have basically 2-3 gatekeepers with enormous influence and if these people don’t like your film ( ie it doesn’t suit their tastes) or they have a film that long before funding was allocated they had an eye to fund, competing projects are going to lose out. 80-90% of the time you aren’t going to get funding…but…here’s the kicker…some people…who have made nothing but crap…continue to get funded…why? Because they have a direct line to the Gatekeepers. Think I’m paranoid? I had a discussion with an ex funding body rep the other day who gave me a breakdown on how this all works…its completely corrupted. Funding bodies should be investing in ideas and careers…not their mates..and until this changes…we are going to fail continuously. Identifying talent with real ideas is not that hard…giving them a break is.
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And…Gatekeepers, the 2-3 in every agency should have a minimal influence on what gets funding. That should be in the hands of commercial distributors or advisors who have a finger on the pulse. Gatekeepers are ill equipped to understand what will be of commercial relevance to distributors and an audience. Funding bodies should be helping filmmakers build sustainable careers. So many opportunities are arriving for talented filmmakers to tap into Global VOD markets via making nice driven content that could help the average filmmaker with a bit of acumen and cunning build a sustainable career..we hand out chicken feed in this area..so much funding is poorly allocated that makes not a dent in building a sustainable career…
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Graeme how can people in this industry make a successive amount of crap and keep accessing funding…don’t ask me to name names….wouldn’t be hard for me to do. Just read a script that had been given state and federal funding, couldn’t get past page five the script is a joke the producer’s last film bombed why have they been given more money? This film will bomb…as in leave a crater. You say SA can’t support everybody? Why are those who make successive crap still being funded?
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TV in Australia is actually great. But film here is just not up to scratch. Can someone answer why this is the case? Why is Oz TV great and going places and Oz film just dragging along slowly behind, not really spiking anyone’s interest particularly?
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Great to have Mason talking, and making sense, but why can’t Mumbrella set the sound up so that it’s not coming from a deep dark hollow cave.
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