Funding Approvals
2024-2025 Documentary PRODUCTION
SOLD! WHO BROKE THE AUSTRALIAN DREAM?
1 x 60 mins
Wedge-Tail Pictures
Director Bill Code
Writers Bill Code, Mark Humphries, Craig Reucassel, Evan Williams
Producers Bill Code, Justine Moyle
Executive Producers Adam Farrington-Williams, Craig Reucassel
Broadcaster BINGE, FOXTEL
Synopsis Mark Humphries is sick of standing in lines for rentals. But if a C grade celebrity can’t afford to buy a house, then how do normal people do it. Mark dives headfirst into Australia’s complex housing debate, looking at the current house prices, soaring rent, and the "Australian Dream" that feels more out of reach than ever.
ROBODEBT (WORKING TITLE)
3 x 60 mins
CJZ Pty Ltd
Director Ben Lawrence
Writer Jane Allen
Executive Producers Paula Bycroft, Michael Cordell
Broadcaster SBS
Synopsis A series that combines documentary storytelling with drama to uncover the human story of the notorious “Robodebt" scandal that struck at the heart of inequality and social cohesion in Australia. A brave bunch of Australians took a stand against Centrelink debts that were unfair, inaccurate and illegal. This is the story of their heroic fight against impossible odds.
END GAME
3 x 48 mins
Smashing Films
Executive Producers Daniel Brown, Steve Bibb, Dean Gibson
Broadcaster ABC
International Sales ABC Commercial
Synopsis Fed up with excuses, Tony Armstrong is on a global mission to find solutions to combat the rising tide of racism in Australian sports to create real change for future generations.
INTO THE NIGHT
4 x 60 mins
iKandy Films
Directors Janine Hosking, Katrina McGowan
Producers Janine Hosking, Katrina McGowan
Broadcaster Stan
Synopsis Into the night is an epic investigation into one of Australia’s most baffling crimes. This four-part series poses the question—how far would you go to solve a loved one’s murder?
WHEN THE WAR IS OVER
5 x 30 mins
Mint Pictures
Series Director Sophie Meyrick
Writers Dan Goldberg, Ilona Baré, Sophie Meyrick, Rachel Griffiths
Series Producer Ilona Baré
Executive Producers Rachel Griffiths, Craig Graham, Dan Goldberg
Broadcaster ABC
International Sales ABC Commercial
Synopsis Actor and art-lover Rachel Griffiths puts our major wars to the ultimate test – one artwork and one war at a time.
RISE
1 x 90 mins
Only Human and Dreamchaser
Writer/Director Patrick (Pat) Abboud
Executive Producers Monique Keller, Billy Russell
Synopsis With exclusive access into Western Sydney’s underground LGBTQIA+ ballroom scene, the documentary RISE follows participants as they prepare to compete at the iconic West Ball. In a world seeking to erase them, which of these queer rebels will finally have their moment on the cutthroat stage?
CROWDED HOUSE
1 x 110 mins
Ghost Pictures Pty Ltd and Fumes NZ Limited
Directors Lynn-Maree Milburn, Richard Lowenstein
Writer Lynn-Maree Milburn
Producers Carthew Neal, Sue Murray, Richard Lowenstein, Andrew de Groot, Lynn-Maree Milburn
Executive Producers Paul Wiegard, Lawrence S. Mestel, Natalia Nastaskin
Broadcaster ABC
Distributor Madman Entertainment
Synopsis A cinematically immersive journey into the heart of the iconic band, Crowded House, and the unique song-writing genius of Neil Finn, unravelling the psychological complexities and challenges the band faced in the wake of their success, and spotlighting the evolution of the current line-up that includes Neil’s two sons, Liam and Elroy Finn.
DEATH OF A SHAMAN
1 x 90 mins
DOAS Prodctions Pty Ltd
Writer/Director Dan Jackson
Producer Dan Jackson
Executive Producers Robert Fernandez, Dan Levinson
Synopsis A Shuar shaman selects his grandson as his apprentice in the hope that he will preserve their people's ancestral wisdom for another generation. Meanwhile, the shaman’s son leads an Indigenous uprising that seeks to overthrow the Ecuadorian president. What transpires next will foreshadow either the preservation or destruction of a people.
SILENCED
1 x 90 mins
Stranger Than Fiction
Writer/Director Selina Miles
Producer Blayke Hoffman
Executive Producer Jennifer Peedom
Synopsis #MeToo broke the cultural silence on sexual assault but the backlash has given rise to a new kind of silencing. Now internationally renowned human rights lawyer Jennifer Robinson is fighting for a woman’s right to speak.
TROUBLEMAKER
1 x 90 mins
Media Stockade Two Pty Ltd
Directors Jared Nicholson, Ben Lawrence
Writer Jared Nicholson
Producers Rebecca Barry, Madeleine Hetherton-Miau, Chris Kamen
Synopsis A massacre survivor and a filmmaker form an unlikely bond as they slip down the rabbit hole of paranoia, in a desperate search for solace and truth.
DIGBY & CAMILLE
1 x 90 mins
Yarra Bank Films Pty Ltd
Directors Trevor Graham, Digby E. Webster
Writer Rose Hesp
Producers Trevor Graham, Lisa Wang
Executive Producers Mitzi Goldman, Roger Savage, Jenny Lalor
Synopsis After eight years of dating, Digby and Camille want to marry, but can love conquer all when you are living with a disability?
ZYZZ & CHESTBRAH - THE POSTER BOYS
1 x 90 mins
Sweetshop & Green and Olympia Pictures
Director Selina Miles
Writers Tom Blackwell, Selina Miles, Harry Wynn
Producers Gal Greenspan, Tom Blackwell
Development Producer Anu Hasbold
Broadcaster Stan
Synopsis Following the meteoric rise of legendary bodybuilders and viral internet sensations Zyzz and Chestbrah, brothers Aziz and Said struggle to find their place in a hostile world. They discover a sense of belonging on bodybuilding forums, where they create their online alter egos—Zyzz and Chestbrah—building a dedicated global following. But Zyzz’s relentless pursuit of perfection threatens everything. When tragedy strikes, Chestbrah is left to piece together the complex legacy they created.
AGES OF ICE
3 x 54 mins
Northern Pictures Productions Pty Ltd
Director Karina Holden
Producers Nicola Sullivan, Karina Holden
Broadcaster ABC, PBS
Synopsis Exploring the future of ice, in the planet’s coldest corners.
THE GOLDEN SPURTLE
1 x 75 mins
Hytra Films and Hopscotch Films
Director Constantine Costi
Producers Rebecca Lamond, John Archer
Synopsis Once a year, contenders from around the globe descend on a picturesque village in the Scottish Highlands to compete for the title of World Porridge Champion. A mid intense rivalries, steaming bowls of porridge, and the lives of charmingly eccentric locals we see a living legacy unfold.
DEATH CAP
3 x 60 mins
Dreamchaser Entertainment Pty Ltd and Den of Martians
Director Gil Marsden
Producer Gil Marsden
Executive Producers Monique Keller, Carl Fennessy, Hugh Marks
Co-Executive Producer Billy Russell
Broadcaster Stan
Synopsis A seemingly ordinary family lunch becomes a global media story when four guests fall critically ill, with three later dying. With exclusive access into one of the highest profile criminal cases in modern memory, the documentary series Death Cap explores how one tragic lunch may shatter the myth of small-town security in Australia, while examining the fairness of a trial amidst a global media frenzy.
IT STARTS WITH US
1 x 30 mins
Big hART Inc
Director Amelia Tovey
Producers Sophia Marinos, Larissa Behrendt
Executive Producers Genevieve Dugard, Deanne Weir
Broadcaster ABC
Synopsis A group of teenagers living on the frontlines of Australia’s family violence epidemic come together in a prevention program aimed at stopping violence before it starts.
A YEAR AT YUMBURRA
1 x 85 mins
Themeda Productions
Writer/Director Grace Mckenzie
Producer Tom Zubrycki, Grace Mckenzie
Synopsis A feature documentary based on Bruce Pascoe’s new book: Black Duck: A Year at Yumburra.
MAD MAX AND THE GENIUS OF GEORGE MILLER
1 x 90 mins
Serendipity Productions Pty Ltd
Director Chris Eley
Producer Margaret Bryant
Executive Producer Aline Jacques
Broadcaster ABC
Synopsis The improbable story of how one 1970s Australian film grew into the country’s biggest ever cultural export, and the intertwined story of its creator, George Miller, his singular cinematic vision and how it set him on an unlikely journey from outback Queensland to the pinnacle of Hollywood success.
AXIS OF IMPERSONATORS
1 x 90 mins
Princess Pictures Holdings Pty Ltd
Directors Nicholas Coles, Alexis Spraic
Producers Laura Waters, Nicholas Coles, Alexis Spraic
Executive Producer Emma Fitzsimons
Synopsis The true story of how a Kim Jong-Un impersonator teams up with a Putin impersonator to rescue a Zelensky impersonator from Kyiv after the invasion of Ukraine… and save him from the Russians.
REPLICA
1 x 90 mins
Axel Rise Films Pty Ltd
Director Chouwa Liang, Shannon Owen
Writer Chouwa Liang
Producer Andy Huang, Chouwa Liang, Christilla Huillard-Kann
Executive Producer Stephen Luby
Synopsis Young Chinese women turn to AI companions in search of the love they feel is missing from their lives.
BUKAL BUKAL
1 x 80 mins
EarthStar Films
Director Rhoda Roberts AO
Writers Rhoda Roberts AO, Julie Nihill
Producers Yale McGilveray, Julie Nihill
Executive Producers Mitch Stanley, Henrietta Marrie, Susie Montague, Shaun Miller, John Anastasiou
Synopsis A David vs. Goliath documentary on Yidinji activist Henrietta Marrie AM, who reformed the Australian Government and UN to benefit billions of Indigenous people. Now, she takes on the British Museum, fighting to reclaim her family’s stolen artefacts and seeking justice for Indigenous cultural heritage.
THE NORTHERN RUN
1 x 80 mins
GoodThing Productions Pty Ltd
Directors Rhian Skirving, Bill Bleakley
Producers Charlotte Wheaton, Nick Batzias
Broadcaster ABC
Synopsis The Northern Run follows six young Australian bull-riders as they travel to North West Queensland to compete for a spot in the Mount Isa Mines Rodeo; the largest and richest rodeo in the southern hemisphere.
WORKING CLASS MAN
1 x 107 mins
CJZ
Director Andrew Farrell
Producers Andrew Farrell, Anthony Griffis
Executive Producer Matt Campbell
Synopsis A working class boy from Glasgow redefines what it means to be an Australian Working Class Man.
LIYAN: GUIDED BY HORSES (WORKING TITLE)
1 x 76 mins
Story About Feeling Pty Ltd
Director Sean O'Reilly
Producers Professor Juli Coffin, Sean O'Reilly, Sophy Crane
Executive Producers Hunter Page-Lochard, Huna Amweero, Daniel Gordon, Mark Coles Smith, Stephen Page
Synopsis Set against the stunning beauty of the Kimberley, Liyan: Guided by Horses is a timely and heartwarming story of hope, healing, and reconnection. As a group of young people navigate their path to adulthood, they form powerful, life changing bonds with horses. At the centre of this journey is a one-of-a-kind sanctuary, and its creator, Aboriginal researcher Professor Juli Coffin, whose own life was forever changed when horses saved her. In an age of disconnection, Liyan: Guided by Horses is a stunningly cinematic and moving reminder of where we can turn for our inner spirit to be ignited.
KEN DONE
1 x 90 mins
In Films Pty Ltd
Director Ivan O'Mahoney
Writer Gabriella Coslovich
Producer Ivan O'Mahoney
Synopsis As Ken Done, one of our greatest artists, turns 85 this is the story of how he sees Australia and Australia sees him.