Reverence of film over TV is weird: Waters
One week from wrapping up the shoot for Chris Lilley’s new show Angry Boys, Princess Pictures director Laura Waters says she doesn’t understand the priority that the entertainment industry places on film over TV
“Maybe [Lilley] will make a film one day, but it’s kind of a mystery to me why there’s always this pressure about making a film,” Waters told Encore.
Princess Pictures will release its first feature next month, the romantic comedy I Love You Too (directed by Daina Reid and written by Peter Helliard), and although Lilley’s success might also translate successfully to the big screen, the transition is not a priority for the team.
According to Waters, reaching an audience is more important that the medium that is being used to tell a story.
“There’s this very weird reverence for film over TV. I don’t think that one is more supreme than the other. They’re both brilliant in their own way and,” added Waters.
Angry Boys will wrap up production next week in Melbourne. Shot in a mockumentary style, like Lilley’s previous efforts We Can Be Heroes and Summer Heights High, the series explores what it means to be a 21st century boy “by putting the male of the species under the microscope”.
“I wouldn’t even compare Chris’s shows to each other. We’re still executing, so maybe I could add more once we’ve edited, but at this stage all I can say is that we’re pushing ourselves – including, and especially, Chris – way beyond where we pushed ourselves before,” explained Waters.
Angry Boys will be the first ABC/BBC/HBO program, and the complexities of a three-way co-production involving such major international partners have been greater than expected.
“Difficult is a massive understatement. I spent more time with my lawyer than with my husband last year.
“The main advantage is that they’re all brilliant broadcasters, and they all feel invested in the series and will therefore promote it on their networks and help us reach an audience when we put it to air,” explained Waters.
The producer added that both international partners have given Princess Pictures and Lilley an “overwhelming creative respect”.
The series is expected to air in 2011, almost four years after Summer Heights High, but Waters said they don’t worry about how long it’s taking, or if the absence will make the audience hungry for another Lilley program.
“We just work on making the absolutely best series that we possibly can, and we try hard not to worry about how long it’s taking,” she said.
Barometer of the depth our local screen industry’s plummeted when somebody can make a provocative (& truthful) comment such as these?
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1. She’s right. The reverence is weird.
2. The Australian film crowd (let’s face it – it’s never been an industry) is a cheat and a disappointment. The millions and millions of our taxes have bought us only a smug sub-culture greedy for more.
The film crowd and their supporters have grown fat – feeding themselves bigger and bigger doses of taxpayers’ funds and self-congratulation while they’ve dished up to Australian audiences a steady diet of dross and disappointment.
3. The part that works is television.
4. It’s time for serious policy change. Take away the teats from every “I’m a filmmaker.” if they can’t be weaned by now, better we should be rid of them.
5. If there’s money to be spent – spend it on television and cut out the bureaucracy.
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