Up to eight Indigenous creative teams will be supported to bring romantic comedy short film concepts to life as part of a new initiative by Screen Australia, ABC and NITV.
Distributed in partnership with Screenwest, Screen Territory, Screen Queensland, Screen Tasmania, VicScreen, South Australian Film Corporation, Screen NSW and Screen Canberra, ‘Proper Loved Up’ brings Indigenous stories to screen and supports producers. The focus is on building business skills. We develop projects for both local and global markets.
Selected projects will receive up to $5,000 in development funding and participate in a training program consisting of three in-person workshops and four online masterclasses. From there, teams will be invited to submit a third draft of their script and apply for up to $80,000 in production funding to produce and distribute their short film. The film will undergo a 12-month festival hold period before being broadcast on commissioning platforms. The producers of the First Nations series, supported by NITV and ABC, will work with the producers throughout development and production.
After completing the third workshop, creators can apply for up to $15,000 in seed funding (from Screen Australia and relevant state agencies) to develop a series of projects. This includes opportunities to take Indigenous travel grants to local or international markets such as the Cannes Film Festival and Screen Forever.
To be eligible, stories must be conceived by Indigenous creators, with Indigenous Australians in key roles as writers, directors and producers. No screenwriting experience is required, but applicants must demonstrate an interest in pursuing a career in this field. Stories that include the use of indigenous languages are encouraged.
Screen Australia First Nations director Angela Bates said the initiative was “bold and ambitious”.
“We have a proud history of supporting Indigenous creators to tell powerful, authentic stories, inspire and travel around the world,” she said.
“This program expands on the work and work of my predecessors who created the Indigenous Producer Program, which provides individualized seed funding to scale up project plans for local and international markets. In addition to providing, we aim to empower Indigenous producers by providing them with practical and comprehensive experience in short film production.”
Bates will host a webinar on Dec. 18 at 11 a.m. to provide an overview of the initiative and the application process, as well as Blackfella Films head of scriptwriting Penny Smallacombe and writer/director Dylan. Includes insights from Mr. River. Click here to register for the webinar and click here for details on eligibility and how to apply.
