Funding approvals
in the archive
2014-2015 Production funding

General TV Drama Production  |  Children's TV Drama Production

General TV Drama production

BARRACUDA
Matchbox Productions Pty Ltd
Producer Amanda Higgs, Tony Ayres
Writers Belinda Chayko, Blake Ayshford
Broadcaster ABC TV
International Sales Universal Media Studios International Limited
Synopsis Based on the book of the same name by Christos Tsiolkas, Barracuda follows young Olympic hopeful, Danny Kelly, as he deals with the pressure of obsession.

BROCK (formerly PETER BROCK)
Shine (Aust) Pty Ltd
Producer Kerrie Mainwaring
Executive Producer Rory Callaghan
Director Geoff Bennett
Writers Justin Monjo, Adam Todd
Broadcaster Network Ten
International Sales Endemol Shine International
Synopsis This is the true story of a man who was a hero to a generation of Australians. Loved and admired by many, but few knew the real Peter Brock – what made him tick?

CLEVERMAN (formerly PROJECT CM)
Goalpost Pictures Australia Pty Ltd and Pukeko Pictures
Producers Rosemary Blight, Ryan Griffen, Angela Littlejohn, Lauren Edwards
Executive Producers Sally Riley, Kylie du Fresne, Ben Grant, Martin Baynton, Adam Fratto
Writers Jon Bell, Jonathan Gavin, Michael Miller
Broadcaster ABC TV
International Sales Red Arrow International GmbH
Synopsis As a community struggles to co-exist with non-human creatures living amongst them, two estranged brothers find themselves at a crossroads.

THE CODE SERIES 2
Playmaker Media Pty Ltd
Producers Shelley Birse, Di Haddon, David Maher, David Taylor
Director Shawn Seet
Writers Shelley Birse, Sean Cook
Broadcaster ABC TV
International Sales DCD Rights
Synopsis Did Ned, Jesse and Hani really think they would be able to just stroll away from the shit-storm they unleashed at the end of series 1, a little bruised, but essentially scott-free? As series 2 opens, serious charges are being filed in an American court and Ned and Jesse Banks come face to face with the very real possibility of being extradited to the US. Fortunately for the Banks brothers, the folks in National Security are sitting on a nut they just can’t crack and Jesse Banks might be the man to do it…

DEEP WATER
Blackfella Films
Producers Miranda Dear, Darren Dale
Writers Kris Wyld, Kym Goldsworthy
Broadcaster SBS
International Sales DCD Rights
Synopsis A gripping crime drama that explores a world in which the threat of violence or death is only one encounter away.

THE FAMILY LAW
Matchbox Pictures Pty Ltd
Producers Julie Eckersley, Sophie Miller
Executive Producers Tony Ayres, Debbie Lee
Writers Benjamin Law, Marieke Hardy
Broadcaster SBS
International Sales NBCUniversal
Synopsis Welcome to The Family Law. The story of a sprawling Chinese-Australian family who are unlike any you’ve ever met, and yet also disturbingly familiar. Based on the hit memoir, The Family Law is a black comedy series set on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast over one hot summer. Fourteen-year-old Benjamin Law strives for television soap mega-stardom whilst trying to stop his parents from splitting up, usually with disastrous results.

JACK IRISH SERIES
Essential Media and Entertainment Pty Ltd
Producers Ian Collie, Andrew Knight
Directors Jeffrey Walker, Daniel Nettheim, Jonathan Teplitzky
Writers Matt Cameron, Andrew Knight, Andrew Anastasios
Broadcaster ABC
International Sales DCD Rights
Synopsis Things are on the move for Jack Irish in this gripping new series. He’s offered a scam that could cost him dearly, secrets surround an unexpected romance and his new mysterious client goes missing before he meets her. As well as a major crime story arc, the familiar endearing characters of Jack’s world remain committed to complicating Jack’s life at every turn.

THE KETTERING INCIDENT
Porchlight Films & Sweet Potato Films
Executive Producer Penny Win
Producer Vincent Sheehan
Writer Victoria Madden
Broadcaster Foxtel
International Sales BBC Worldwide
Synopsis When two girls mysteriously disappear in identical circumstances in the wilds of Tasmania 15 years apart, Doctor Anna Macy finds herself inexplicably linked to both cases. To clear her name, Anna must delve into her troubled past and face some truths about herself and the otherworldly nature of this gothic land.

LOVE CHILD SERIES 2
Playmaker Media Pty Ltd
Producers Tom Hoffie, Tim Pye
Executive Producers David Taylor, David Maher, Sue Seeary
Directors Shawn Seet, Geoff Bennett, Lynn-Maree Danzey
Writers Jane Allen, Tim Pye, Cathy Strickland, Tamara Asmar, Chris McCourt
Broadcaster Nine Network
International Sales All 3 Media
Synopsis It’s 1970 and Joan Millar, now a qualified obstetrician, and the young mothers we have come to love are back in the heart of Kings Cross fighting for their rights, for self-empowerment and for each other in a fast-changing world.

MARY: MAKING OF A PRINCESS
FremantleMedia Australia Pty Ltd
Producer Antonia Barnard
Executive Producers Jo Porter, Anthony Ellis
Director Jennifer Leacey
Writer Samantha Strauss
Broadcaster Network Ten
International Sales FremantleMedia International Ltd
Synopsis Twenty-eight-year-old Mary Donaldson has all but given up on love when one night she goes to the pub and meets a prince. But falling in love is the easy part, compared to what it takes for an Australian girl to become the future Crown Princess of Denmark.

PETER ALLEN: NOT THE BOY NEXT DOOR
Shine Australia Pty Limited
Producer Kerrie Mainwaring
Executive Producer Rory Callaghan
Director Shawn Seet
Writers Justin Monjo, Michael Miller
Broadcaster Seven Network
International Sales Endemol Worldwide Distribution
Synopsis There are few Australian stories as remarkable as Peter Allen’s. The boy from the bush whose talent, determination and drive made him Hollywood royalty and an international household name. The only Australian to win an Oscar®, a Grammy and a Golden Globe®, Allen wrote some of our most iconic songs. He died in 1992 at 48, but his songs and spirit live on – whether on the stage as part of The Boy from Oz or as part of Coldplay’s no. 1 worldwide hit ‘Every Teardrop is a Waterfall’.

THE SECRET RIVER
Ruby Entertainment
Producer Stephen Luby
Director Daina Reid
Writers Jan Sardi, Mac Gudgeon
Broadcaster ABC Television
International Sales ABC Commercial
Synopsis In 1810, emancipated English convict William Thornhill stakes a claim on 100 acres of land on the remote Hawkesbury River in New South Wales, only to find that a clan of Aboriginal people also lay claim to the land, as they have done since time immemorial.

TIPS FOR MARRIED LIFE
Endemol Australia Pty Ltd
Producer Mimi Butler
Executive Producers Janeen Faithfull, John Edwards
Writer Justin Monjo
Broadcaster Nine Network
International Sales Endemol Shine International
Synopsis A grieving career wife has to wise up and fight for survival when she finds herself responsible for her dead husband’s criminal debts and wrongdoings.
Production funding for this feature film was revoked in March 2016.

Children's TV Drama Production

MAKO: ISLAND OF SECRETS SERIES 3
Jonathan M Shiff Productions Pty Ltd
Producer Jonathan M Shiff
Executive Producers Jonathan M Shiff, Julia Adams
Writers Mark Shirrefs (Story Producer), Sam Carroll, Anthony Morris, Phil Enchelmaier, Max Dann
Directors Evan Clarry, John Hartley
Broadcasters Network Ten, Disney Channel Australia
International Sales ZDF Enterprises
Synopsis The Mako pod is threatened by a fearsome magical creature. Ondina, Mimmi, Sirena, Evie and Zac, together with the newly arrived Chinese mermaid, Weilan, must find a way to defeat it before the pod is destroyed forever.

NOWHERE BOYS: THE BOOK OF SHADOWS (formerly NOWHERE BOYS: THE RISE OF BEAR)
Matchbox Productions Pty Ltd
Producer Beth Frey
Executive Producers Tony Ayres, Michael McMahon
Writers Tony Ayres, Rhys Graham, Craig Irvin
Broadcaster ABC TV
International Sales Universal Pictures (Australasia), NBCUniversal Television Distribution
Synopsis As a devastating magical being threatens to destroy the multiverse, the Nowhere Boys discover that to save everything and everyone that they love, they must make the ultimate sacrifice… themselves.

READY FOR THIS (formerly MY LIFE IN 50 WORDS OR LESS)
Ambience Entertainment Pty Ltd
Producer Miranda Dear
Executive Producers Joanna Werner, Darren Dale
Director Rachel Perkins
Writers Liz Doran, Jon Bell, Kristen Dunphy, Josh Mapleston, Nakkiah Lui
Broadcaster ABC TV
International Sales ACTF
Synopsis A long way from home, five Indigenous kids come to the city to explore their dreams. For some it's the opportunity of a lifetime, for others it's a last chance. For all of them, family is the last thing they expect to find.

TOMORROW WHEN THE WAR BEGAN
Ambience Entertainment Pty Ltd
Producers Michael Boughen, Tony Winley
Executive Producers Matthew Street, Kim Vecera, Christopher Mapp
Director Brendan Maher
Writers Blake Ayshford, Alice Addison, Justin Monjo, Josh Mapleston
Broadcaster ABC3
International Sales Annapurna Pictures
Synopsis When their country is invaded by a large hostile force, a group of teenagers fight for their family and homeland. Based on the era-defining novels by John Marsden.