Cinema Papers No.106 October 1995 by UOW Library

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PAPERS • OCTOBER 1995

CINEMA

NUMBER 106

Focus DARK VISIONS

Sam Neill and the Cinema of Unease B y B r e n t L ewi s

H S am N e ill ta lk s a b o u t h is strik in g d o c u m e n ta r y on 1 0 0 y ea rs o f N e w Z e a la n d cin em a .

T H E S M A L L MAN

Obsessive Love by

A n r e w L. U rban

A fter the a ccla im ed Ghosts ... of the Civil Dead in 1989, d irector Jo h n H illco a t returns w ith The Small Man, the story o f sex, passion a n d n eo -co lo n ia lism in P apu a N ew G uinea. H illc o a t explain s w h at led him there a n d th e jo y s o f w orkin g w ith R ach el G riffiths a n d F ren ch star T ch eky K aryo.

12 T H E P R I C E OF PASSION

AFC Low-budgertConference £

B y A li ssa T anskaya

T h e recen t A F C C o n feren ce o n L o w -b u d g et F ilm m a k in g f has b ee n h er a ld ed as o n e o f th e m o st excitin g recen t

d ev e lo p m e n ts in th a t area. B ut th o se lo o k in g fo r th e a n sw er to w h a t m a k e s a lo w -b u d g et hit m ay fin d a fe w surprises.

18 MA R K E T - D R I V E N

Under the Gun By M ichael H elms

An on-location loqk at an unusual sid&>ofA st. cinema: Under life Gun, an indepencf^tlymnm nfqrtiaFartPqctioi^r.'W

m £ 1 .J 22 i m__ m ____ 2!___ £ _______ ri ^ f

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I n s i g h t s In b its

N e w M e d ia

Technicalities

H isto ry

Inre vie w

Le gal E ase

F e stivals

In p ro d u ctio n

N ihil o b sta t N in e

Pauline Adamek is a Sydney-based freelance writer on film; Ken Berryman is manager of the Melbourne office of the National Film & Sound Archive; Dominic Case is a motion-picture technical consultant; Mary Colbert is a Sydney scriptwriter and writer on film; Philip Dutchak is the editor and publisher of the monthly newsletter, Convergence (those interested can contact him at pdutchak@geko.com.au); Anna Dzenis is a tutor in Cinema Studies at LaTrobe University;

Taking the Piss Out of Auteurs All Men are Liars is the first feature of Gerard Lee, who co-wrote Sweetie for Jane Campion. Lee and producer John Maynard tell M a r y C o l b e r t why they think auteurs are overrated and why they want to make movies for the punters. PAGE 4

Jan Epstein is the film reviewer for The Melbournian, Michael Helms is editor of Fatal Visions, Fincina Hopgood is an Arts-Law student at Melbourne University and a former editor of Ormond Papers, Brent Lewis is a Wellington-based writer on film; Chris Long is a Melbourne film historian; Andrew L Urban is a filmmaker, novelist and Australian representative for Moving Pictures, Raymond Younis is a lecturer at the University of Sydney; Monica Zetlin is a producer's assistant and a writer on film.

The A U S T R A L IA N FILM C O M M IS S IO N is e n g a g e d in t h e i n t e r n a t i o n a l p r o m o t i o n of A u s t r a l i a n f i l m an d te le v is io n p r o g r a m s , an d is p l e a s e d to a n n o u n c e th e f o l l o w i n g m a r k e t s an d events:

9 - 13 Oct, 1 9 9 5 M IP C O M TV m a r k e t , C a n ne s

2 7 Oct, 1 9 9 5 - 15 Jan, 1 9 9 6 S tric tly Oz, M u s e u m of M o d e r n A r t, N e w York. A 1 0 0 y e a r f e a tu r e f i l m r e t r o s p e c t i v e c u r a t e d by L a u r e n c e K a rd is h

5 - 10 Nov, 1 9 9 5 M IF E D fea tu re f i l m m a r k e t , M ila n

Feb 1 9 9 6 S tric tly Oz, UCLA Too hey’s A u s tralian Film Season, UK

2 9 Feb ■8 Mar, 1 9 9 6 AFM , fe a tu r e f i l m m a r k e t , S a n ta M o n ic a

17 - 2 4 M a r c h 1 9 9 6 S h e ffie ld I n t e r n a t io n a l D o c u m e n t a r y F ilm Festival, f o c u s on A u s t r a l ia n d o c u m e n t a r y

JvystraliaiRf'ilm Commission ~ *V , - ¡¡¡p jjj ^

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cin em a O c to b e r 1995 n u m b e r 106

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AFC & SBS INDEPENDENT ANNOUNCE LOW-BUDGET FILM j ACCORD ive feature films will be made and distributed during the next three years under an agreement between the AFC and SBS Independent. The AFC will provide development and production investment for the five features and SBS will provide a cash-flowed Australian licence fee and equity. Budgets will be capped at $900,000. Script development will take place this financial year with delivery of the last film prior to December 1997. The initiative has been funded through the AFC's Special Production Fund and SBS Independent's Creative Nation funds. The accord allows for the films to have theatrical release prior to television broadcast.

I i \ I

| | I I ' \ i [ i | j !

COMMERCIAL TELEVISION PRODUCTION FUND ! ESTABLISHED i

he Commercial Television Production Fund, announced in last year's Creative Nation statement, is to be formally established under the AFC. The Fund will provide $20 million each year for the next three years for the production of quality Australian drama. Half of the funds will be available for independent produc tions. The Fund will annually make available $3 million for each major network, $2 million for children's drama, the remaining $9 million unallocated. It is expected that the panel will consider the first applications at its December meeting. Programmes supported through the Fund will be additional to Australian content quota and will be assessed against selection guidelines to ensure a focus on quality. A panel has been appointed by the Minister for Communications and the Arts, Michael Lee, to oversee the administration of the Fund. The panel consists of Sue Milliken (Chair), Ian Bradley, Vicki Jones, Alison Nisselle, Ted Thomas, Sigrid Thornton and Steve Vizard. The Chief Executive

C I N E M A P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

NEWS,

ETC.

Officer’s position has been adver tised, and an appointment will be made shortly.

BOB MAZA JOINS AFC ctor and playwright Bob Maza, a m , has been appointed as a part-time Commissioner to the AFC. Maza is best known for his acting roles in numerous Australian films and television productions, and as the author of the play The Keepers. Fie is a part-time lecturer at the Aboriginal Research and Resource Centre at the University of New South Wales, and runs a media con sultancy specializing in increasing opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture within theatre, radio, television and film. Fie was awarded the Order of Australia in 1993.

| | i I ' \ | i I ' \ ! i | \ \ i I ' { | ■

This development comes at a time when Fox is securing a much clos er association with a wide variety of Australian creators in its world wide production and distribution activities. New projects with such filmmakers as Gillian Armstrong, Alex Proyas and Baz Luhrmann point to the admiration, attention and enthusiasm we have for this country, and its remarkable range of talent and ideas. The studio is

\ I! | | ! i I

Armstrong has fought many a hard battle to retain her very precise vision over her projects and her characters, and her intelligence and humanity shine through all her films, even her less successful ones. She has a keen eye, which makes her work visually beautiful, and she is very good with actors. simply a logical product of that development and will provide a firm platform for our continuing association.

FOX STUDIOS AUSTRALIA t was confirmed on 20 July that Fox Studios Australia, a major inte grated facility for film and television production, will be constructed on site at the Sydney Showgrounds. This follows months of speculation and alleged rival bids to base the Fox Stu dios in Melbourne. This site will be shared between its present tenant, the Royal Agricultural Society, and Fox Studios Australia until mid-1997. Progressive site development will occur with a view to establishing six operational sound stages, associated production offices, construction and wardrobe workshops and post-production facili ties for sound, vision and special effects by the third quarter of 1997. In announcing the development, Peter Chermin, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Twentieth Century Fox, stated:

GILLIAN ARMSTRONG HONOURED /G illia n Armstrong has been awarded the Chauvel Award for distinU g u is h e d contribution to Australian feature filmmaking at the 1995 Brisbane International Film Festival. Previous recipients of the Award are Paul Cox and Fred Schepisi. The Award was presented at a ceremony during the Film Festival in August by critic and Festival programming consultant David Stratton. Stratton said:

MULTIMEDIA ASSISTANCE he AFC has published a 16-page document detailing its multimedia programmes of assistance. Through last year's Creative Nation Cultural Policy Statement, the AFC will receive $5.25 million over four years to aug ment its existing programmes to create new opportunities for multime dia developers. Support will focus on content creation, especially prototype development, as well as developing key creative personnel. To ensure that content creators are able to develop a full understand ing of the multimedia industry, funds will also be allocated to market development and analysis, informa tion collection and cultural develop ment. Expenditure will be allocated over these four areas with the major proportion of funds devot ed to project development and production. All the major interac tive formats will be supported: CR-Rom, CD-I, Interactive Laserdisc and any future optical disk formats.

c o v e r

The AFC has also published the International guide for electronic media art distribution to assist those working in these fields to market their work internationally and to pro mote Australian new media work in international events. A guide to the current state of the sector has been prepared and distributed in the AFC publication, Multimedia Developments in Australia.

CORRIGENDUM ustralian film composer Peter Best was incorrectly referred to as Bruce Best in the review of Dad and Dave On Our Selection [Cinema Papers, No. 105, August 1995, p. 45). Best not only scored the film but was a joint initiator of the project. Cinema Papers apologizes to Best for this error. In last issue's "Technicalities", the photograph on p. 27 is of Dr William Schneider, inventor of the Agfacolor system.

Kate (Racliel Griffiths) in John Hillcoat’s The Small Man.

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THOUGH T

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opening a film w ith a w om an who d oesn’t S S g B & ^ k speak playing a piano æ| ||| already a proven success - would be a good way to start an A ustralian movie”, says a tongue-in-cheek John Maynard about the first sequences of Gerard Lee’s début feature, All M en Are L iars, which Maynard produced. Only an incredibly brave or irreverent filmmaker would dare touch the hallowed instrument that, since Jane Cam pion shared the Palme d’Or, has been treated with such reverence. But when that filmmaker is also the co-writer of Campion’s Sw eetie (1989), and writer and co-director of Passionless M om ents: R ecorded in Sydney Australia Sunday O ctober 2nd (short, 1984) h and when All Men's piano is hocked by the woman’s husband, taken away by removalists and accidentallysmashed (literally giving new life to the phrase falling off the back of a truck) in the opening scene, it does n’t take a genius to figure out that there’s some funny business going on here. “It was Jo hn’s idea” is Lee’s immediate response. “W e’re great friends with Jane and there’s nothing personal in it, but I suppose it is taking the piss out of auteur filmmaking”, admits Maynard. So, in this daringly anarchic gesture - a leitmotif for the film - is Lee symbolically severing his last cre ative links with former collaborator Jane Campion? After an association that for years eclipsed his work in film circles is Lee, an established writer in his own right, at last placing his personal stamp on a feature that is not only widely different from his Campion collaborations but thrives on its populist appeal? Lee: Æ SËêÎ Ê Ê g s jfe^

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It doesn’t bother me now and, at first, I thought it was just fun, but after a while the invisibility did start to wear me out. It did go on for a long time and, considering that we worked on a lot of short films together, it did become quite frustrat ing. I wrote all of Passionless M oments and directed half of it, but it came out as a Jane Campion film and, when it won an AFI award, I wasn’t even men tioned. What made it more difficult was that, for his age, Lee already enjoyed a reputation as a thrice-published lit erary wunderkind. With a book of his poetry, a novel (True L ove and H ow To Get It), and a short story col lection (Pieces o f a Glass Piano), which, in hindsight, provides a clue to his later piano-bashing. “Then I teamed up with Jane and I sort of ceased to exist.” At no point does Lee or Maynard suggest the “invisibility” was deliberately created by Campion. Lee: I suppose the media has only enough space for one female major film director and there’s an attach ment to the idea of the single vision that comes from deep within the soul. The renaissance idea still seems to have sway gen erally, though I can’t cop that myself. It didn’t sit comfortably with me, though I think Jane’s pretty attached to the idea of originality and the singleminded vision. I ’m m ore in terested in a collaborative way of looking at things. Films to me are a conversation that one film has with another - an inter-textuality - and I don’t mind admitting my sources, influences and other people’s input in this case, my crew and producer John Maynard. Maynard attributes the pervasive influence of the French auteur theory “that’s riddled Australian cin ema for years” for the emphasis on the d irector’s single vision. “It’s stronger here than in France”, tosses in Lee. Maynard adds: It’s like following a football team - trying to estab lish authorship of something less complicated than

Gerard Lee: “ Films to me are a conversation that one film has with another - an intertextuality” it really is. The authorship of cinema is incredibly complicated, very subtle and its culture is extremely complex, but that’s generally not acknowledged. So we see actors, writers and producers as the poor orphans in the history of Australian cinema and it’s always the director who’ll be acknowledged. Hope fully, there’ll be a revisionist look at it some time in the future.

echoing statements and in-house jokes that comes from a long-standing friendship, respect and collab oration. They met 15 years ago through Campion, a long-time friend of Maynard and partner Bridget Ikin, when Lee “stole” (according to Maynard) her from one of his very good friends. “Frankly, we were at first quite reluctant to accept this newcomer”, says Maynard.

A discussion with Lee and Maynard resembles an

The newcomer had “blown in” from Queensland

im prom ptu duet or doubles game o f tennis (on

- at the time, according to Lee, the site of the most

their side of the court, at least). They’ve developed a

radical university campus in Australia, “raw and out rageous”.

shorthand of completing each other’s sentences or

illusion. The linear narrative was thousands and thousands of years old, and there was a reason for that.

John Maynard: “Gerard always covers stories from a different place, yet so ordinary and everyday...”

On completing the course, Lee worked on script ideas and applied for Australian Film Commission fund ing. The knock-back came at a fragile black, black period in 1 9 8 4 .1 had no money, I’d written a script but interest never translated into firm assistance and frankly the AFC broke my heart. I really lost confidence for years. Added to that was the break-up of the relationship with Campion. Lee tried to pick up the pieces by moving to Perth and embarking on the cathartic jour ney of w riting his second novel, T r o p p o M an , a contemporary young man’s psychological descent into a private hell in Bali. The novel deals with a troubled central character searching for his own pure Paradise, only to find that it doesn’t exist. He tries to shut off from his own culture, but when you do that you divest your self o f personality as w ell, and that leads to a breakdown, a form of personal disintegration. You could have that and re-invent yourself in that other culture, but that isn’t his case. Lee became so steeped in the subject that extensive reading of cultural theorists (his wife is one) only made it harder to write: You lose your spontaneity. If you take an extreme ideological stance, you end up with a boring prod uct and you lose a lot of the delicious truths that reality gives you. It’s more dramatically powerful and more human as well to avoid that. The experience of T roppo M an taught Lee that valu able lesson for All Men Are Liars. I learnt about following instincts. Troppo Man was an intellectual exercise ... sometimes ... but it’s a terrible way to write. After that, I loosened up somewhat. A perfectionist, Lee is still critical of the book: The protagonist is an inherently-tormented char acter - passive and self-indulgent in his sadness. I wanted to re-write the book to make the surfie character more complicated and create a kind of social engineering laboratory to enable us to look deeper into the protagonist’s private hell. I wanted to make it m ore h e a rtfe lt, m ingling hum our, pathos, satire and irony by moving the viewpoint of the dark gloomy character who, through this lonely process, finds out that grass isn’t greener on the other side. Bali was a happier experience for me than for that character, but you can’t write a novel about a happy experience.3 Lee’s next collaboration with Campion on Sw eetie, “sort of based on a true story”, continued his run of dark characters. Campion came to Perth to co-write: “a good experience - we had a great time. W e had a house down the coast, and, acting out the parts, wrote it really fast in two weeks.” What form did the writing take?

After a year’s stint at journalism on the reputa tion of his writing, Lee was accepted into the one-year writing course at the Australian Film Television & Radio School where, in 1 9 8 1 , he met the “gang”: Cam pion, P. J . Hogan, Jocelyn M oorhouse, Sally Bongers, et al. Lee became an integral part of the team: On P eel [Jane Campion, short, 1 9 82], it was my car they used and w recked and I looked after the child - kept him off the street.2 It was fun and, fo r a w hile, I believed th at m aking film s was just that.

Lee wrote and co-directed Passionless M om ents, and claims he acted as a sounding board on a number of decisions on A G irl’s O w n Story (Jane Cam pion, short, 1 9 8 3 ): Should it be a linear narrative, for instance? Lee proclaim s in typically tongue-incheek manner:

Jan e’s got this really good ability - maybe it was just inexperience or feminine intuition - of not fol lowing a linear line which was worrying me at the time, but I just forgot about it. She’d say, ‘Oh, let’s have a scene where Louis comes in and sees Kay doing som ething’ and w e’d just act it out taking different parts and go as far as we could. Then w e’d write down bits that were funny or poignant.

I suggested it should be disconnected, but, when I Maynard produced Sw eetie from a four-to-five line saw it, believed it should have been otherwise. It concept. Maynard: was during that I took up male patriarchal linear You don’t work with ideas, but with people. Jane narrative. happened to be interested in doing this feature with I realized it was a far more powerful form and Gerard as co-w riter and we all em barked on it together. that the disconnected narrative was a joke and an

Maynard was impressed by Campion’s early films, especially A G irl’s Own Story, and Lee’s idiosyncratic humour evident in his published work. It’s not straight humour, it’s never on the nose not silly or obvious. Gerard always covers stories from a different angle, a different place, yet so ordi nary and everyday that, by the time he’s finished with it, it’s not absurd, and it’s what we laugh at. Jane’s directing added darkness to it.

is to make it look simple or flummery, but that takes a lot of work. The four drafts of the script took several years to “layer” ; Lee studied a lot of drama, and carefully watched a lot of films.

According to Lee, who believes An Angel at my Table (1990) is Campion’s best work,

The Americans are really good at character devel opm ent, I reckon, especially in making people incredibly sympathetic. Even in Star Wars [George Lucas, 1 9 7 7 ], th at little fam ily o f ranchers it starts off with - we get a strong emotional tie with them.

S w eetie is more tough, black and absurd. That comes from Jane. I was trying to be more light hearted. $he’s got that in her psyche and you can see it in the directing.

O f the films Lee looked at, two which particularly impressed him were A m a rco rd (Federico Fellini, 1974) - “I liked the idea of the little town” - and Run ning on E m pty (5idney Lumet, 1988),

Lee was disappointed that the story, especially the family relations, didn’t come across in a warmer way:

because it’s the kind of social realism the director doesn’t put a heavy hand on. I was trying to do that - if n ot be invisible as a d irecto r, or at least restrained.

I appreciate the art in it and I think it gets a lot of notoriety from $ally Bongers’ camera work, but the film I saw when we were writing it wouldn’t have gone as far as Sw eetie does in alienating. The dis tance gives it more of a fish-tank quality and you empathize less with the characters.

Lee believes that most of us absorb a great deal from other filmmakers, consciously and unconsciously, as if by osmosis: “Everyone sees hundreds of films; and you take a percent of what appeals and say, ‘I’ll do it like that anyway’ or ‘I can’t afford to do that.’

Part of the jigsaw of A ll Men Are Liars was prompted by sexual politics of working in $ydney’s Glebe. I was being treated like a Je w in G erm any. I thought it was shocking and actually felt a lot of pain at the time - just being a man in the wrong suburb. I never felt I could fit in. I felt like some one ostracized from both genders. That’s where the lead character’s dilemma comes from: not know ing what works. Then I reversed the whole thing and, instead of having a girls’ town like Glebe or Leichhardt early in the mid-’8 Os, I decided to have the girls - in the form of an all-female band - com ing into a boys’ town for juxtaposition. Lee has always w anted to do a p ro je ct in N orth Q ueensland as he saw it, not what was shown in tourist brochures. He’d worked for a year on a news paper in Bundaberg and was there during the sugar harvest and festival. It was pretty good background for the film. Besides, far N orth Queensland is where my extended family originates. The film presented a chance to show an exotic part of the country with an unsentimental

Barry (John Jarratt), Tom (Jamie Petersen) and M ick (David Price); Tom and Mick; Michelle (David Price) and Angela; Barry and Angela; Angela. A ll Men Are Liars.

Was Sweetie the catalyst that pushed him into direct ing his own work?

M e n A r e L i a r s is unashamedly commercial and populist in its appeal. T he concept had its first genesis in the early 1980s with a long evolution for the four drafts o f the screenplay. Lee:

No, that made me not want to direct. It looked like a very gruelling experience, especially the strain it puts on people’s personal lives. The things that interest me m ost are the structure of the story and the moral questions, and once they’ve been solved in a satisfactory way - which they hardly ever are to my satisfaction - it’s all a bit anti-cli Originally it started with mactic. a father and son involved I was talking to an architect the other day and w ith the same girl, but it was very co n fro n ta she said she didn’t want to do interior designing tional and dark. The son was based on a character - just the basic structure; get the light and the form I knew. I made up the father and kept playing right and then let them do whatever they want. around with the same story in which the son ended That’s what directing seemed to me. up getting the girl. When I did that bit of directing on Passionless How important has time been in testing the strength M o m e n ts , I used to get bored w aiting around of the screenplay? because it’s not challenging enough. I realize now Vital. It’s like a game of chess because you’re play w ith A ll M en A re L ia r s th at I ’ve relied on my ing around with the pieces all the time, testing ideas writing ability rather than directing. When things against others. went wrong, I always returned to the fact that the basic idea is strong enough to handle problems. For Lee, the script is the bedrock: If you haven’t got $50 million and all the special effects, you’ve got to have something else. The idea

But to be objectively ruthless? I’d say, I’m very good at that - in fact, sometimes too critical. It becomes too easy to destroy work as I did in T roppo M an.

and prosaic eye. All M en Are Liars joins my innercity self to my Queensland no-bullshit self. The dramatic potential of these two worlds’ coming together was too irresistible to ignore. On his return to Sydney from Perth, Lee completed the screenplay, at the time titled “Goodnight Irene”. What caused the title change? “The original suggested focus on the mother and our screenplay shifted focus in the course of its writing towards the young guy.” Essentially, All M en Are Liars is a combination of “fish out of water”, “strangers in a strange land”, a family break-up and love-in-disguise stories. W hen country rock star Barry O ’Brien hocks his wife Irene’s piano for $120, fed up with the state of the marriage, she packs up and leaves, hiding out in her brother’s pub in town. It’s up to troubled and sensitive 17-year-old M ick (David Price) and his younger brother (Jamie Petersen) to retrieve the piano and reunite the family. The only way he can raise the cash fast is to audition as the guitarist for an all-girl band that has had serious personnel problems. Mick’s peers are already suspicious of his sexual orientation,

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so the last thing he wants to do is to cross-dress and play in front of the whole town. But he impresses the band’s dyke manager enough to get the job. With the disguise comes a series of complications. The film ’s targeted as pure mainstream enter tainment. Maynard: W e definitely missed out on the arthouse audience this time. W e com pletely ignored them - inten tionally. They’ve been given far too much attention in Australian cinem a, and both of us have been accused of giving it to them [Sweetie and The N av igator: A M edieval Odyssey (Vincent Ward, 1988)]. So we decided to ignore the arthouse crowd for the first time and see if we could find a wider audience, preferably in the region where we come from. This is a film made for our families and the people we know best of all. According to Lee, a lot of Australian films have made snide remarks about the working class, something that doesn’t happen in television and soap, but par ticularly in cinema: T h ere’s a lack of compassion, a sneering edge both in stories and filmmakers. We undersell ordi-

After the knock-backs from the Australian Film Commission, I thought the only way was to initi ate a film about a woman character. But that was daunting because I thought I couldn’t do that instincts and sensibilities come into play - so I crossdressed the main character and succeeded in getting it through the funding process. W ith the four drafts spread over a long period, Lee had ample opportunity to layer the script and sharpen its narrative drive. But what made him reverse his decision about directing the project himself? Had he made that decision from the beginning? N o. W e looked around for other directors. We tried heaps. We sent it to the Australian guys in Los Angeles and here. I was interested in getting a woman to direct it. Jane read the script but wasn’t interested; it was probably too commercial for her. For a lot of directors, it was aimed too much at the m ainstream com m on folk, but Jo h n and I didn’t want to compromise on that. There seemed a dearth of films where people can go along and just have fun. A night out so often turns out to be a dark experience. That didn’t seem to be fair to me and I wanted the family to get together. As we couldn’t find another director, John decided to take a huge risk because he knew it’d be

following your feelings/instincts; you get a pretty good score that way. W ith a début director, newcomer David Price in a lead rôle, a television soapie actress (Toni Pearen) in the other romantic lead, a number of other cast mak ing film débuts and several conservative narrative elements (such as the wife returning to her husband), on paper at least it looks like risk-taking. “But that’s what cinema is, isn’t it?”, asks Maynard. Certainly, it’s far rem oved from his previous p ro jects. But then look at the results gut instinct has achieved for him in the past: the first features of Campion and Ward, and distribution in New Zealand of the coun try ’s m ost successful b ox-office film , O n ce W ere Warriors (Lee Tamahori, 1994). Judging by the warm rapport, All Men Are Liars is only the first of many Maynard-Lee collaborations. Lee says, “John taught me a lot about intuition and feeling. This has been like a light dawning - part of the spiritual experience of a major quantum leap.” But while the directorial experience has obviously proved liberating, Lee insists that for him the really hallowed ground is the script.

Lee: “After the knock-backs from the Australian Film Commission, I thought the only way was to initiate a film about a woman character.” nary, typical tow nspeople. Am erican films like Country [Richard Pearce, 1984] or T ender M ercies [Bruce Beresford, 198 3 ] and others set in small rural communities have so much more affection for the characters. I also liked B reakin g A w ay [Peter Yates, 1979]. All those films deal with ordinary peo ple who talk sim ply and you feel this huge emotional theme being carried. There are no losers in A ll M en Are L iars, according to Lee and Maynard. Says Lee: Everybody has a warmth and generosity, especially the John Jarratt character. He’s my answer to what feminism says about Australian men. Women go to the film and think he’s a great guy. There’s a lot of pressure on the family with much of the tension caused by feminism. W om en’s quest for individual fulfilment - and I’m not saying it’s bad - is one of the pressures on the family. When the female band arrives in the town, they lend sup port to the mother, Irene, encouraging her to stay.

hard to get it through the FFC. But he thrives on adversity and wanted a bit of a fight to keep him self alert. He knew he couldn’t pick anyone harder to get through as a director. Maynard claims it was a matter of following his basic instincts: W hen you talk about instinct and intuition you bring a whole lot of other experience to it. Gerard, who had only done a small amount of directing but enough to indicate considerable ability, is a very good w riter and is genuinely very funny. I just felt he would make a very good director and was the best person to direct this film. One can never trust intellect in this business: just look what happens to the people who do. W hen you start making lists and looking for for mulas or conventions which you can apply, like trying to hit a certain market, things can work and pictures are made, but they’re rarely seen because nobody wants to see them. You’re always best off

I think people stories are very old and w hat’s worked before in a heartfelt way will work again. It’s just a matter of making it contemporary. I think you have to humble yourself before the history of narrative: you have to take into account that there’s been a long line of storytellers saying the same thing over again, because most wisdom has been told before. You have to struggle to be original and new, but you have to retain these elements as well. I think originality is over-rated. I’ve seen what happens to someone who gets a profile ... As a director, I really prefer to remain invisible. © 1 The credits state “Director Jane Campion” and “Ex-director Gerard Lee”, with an “and” between the two credits, and “Scriptwriter: Gerard Lee, assisted by Jane Campion”. Lee is also listed as co-sound recordist under the name “Ged Boy Lee”. 2 P eeks credits state: “Morale booster and child amuser: Gerard Lee”. 3 Lee has subsequently published Eating Dog.

or New Zealand, as with Australia, the growth of a national cinema has b een one way to lessen the fo r eign ownership of its consciousness.

You won’t find any debate on that from Sam Neill as proven by C inem a o f Unease. Co-written and co-directed with documentary film m aker Ju d y Rym er, this trajecto ry through N ew Zealand cinema - from the brave pioneering forays by Rndall Hayward and John O ’Shea to the triumphs o f H e a v en ly C reatu res (Peter Jack son , 1 9 9 4 ),T h e Piano (Jane Campion, 1993) and O nce Were Warriors (Lee Tamahori, 1994) - has been conceived with the passionate conviction of a Lindsay Anderson. N o r is this ju st a p o stu re. I reca ll how N eill regarded Vigil (Vincent Ward, 1984) as a cinematic revelation. It was the reaction of someone who’d been waiting all his life for such a film, a film which showed the geographic isolation of New Zealand and what it meant to the people living there. Vigil and W ard’s equally-disquieting T he N av i g ator: A M edieval Odyssey (1988) are two of around 2 0 films highlighted in C in em a o f U nease, part of Channel 4 ’s documentary series made to celebrate a century o f cinema. Neill and Rymer deserve credit for approaching their segment in a cinematic way: its expressiveness contrasts with the disappointing entry from M artin Scorsese, whose pedagogic approach, while confirming that he’s the most cine-literate of filmmakers, is hardly the work of a master auteur. The cultural nationalism underpinning C in em a o f Unease seems a trifle ironic given that Neill’s glo betrotting odyssey in movies has seen him play mostly aristocratic types o f various nationalities (like his pukka sahib colonel in T h e Ju n g le B o o k ) but rarely

a New Zealander. He acknowledges the dilemma. “I am”, he says, “an expatriate. Like all those who are separated from their country, I dream of hom e; I dream of New Zealand.” Despite his 15 years away, Neill felt able to do justice to a documentary on New' Zealand cinema. Apart from many trips back home, he’d kept in touch with old friends and colleagues like G eoff Murphy, Martyn Sanderson and Bruno Lawrence, who kept him au fa it with changes in the industry. O ver several weeks in L ondon, N eill viewed nearly the entire output of the industry as he searched for excerpts suitable for the documentary.5 Neill labelled the finished documentary C inem a o f Unease because the title summed up the dark under currents that he felt permeated New Zealand films. He was fascinated that overseas filmmakers working in the country soon realized that the pictorial splen dour of the land w?as often a camouflage; dig deeper and one often found more disturbing truths. Neill cites B ad B lo o d (Alike Newell, 1981), a film ostensibly about the 1943 trackdown of multiple mur derer Stanley Graham, but really an examination into Graham’s psychological state, as the sort of film that proves “you don’t have to be of the soil to have an

"I am an expatriate. Like those who are separated from their country, I dream of home; i dream of New Zealand."

insight”. (Newell’s best-known film, F ou r Weddings an d a F u n eral, 1 9 9 4 , is worlds removed from B ad B lo o d , causing Neill to speculate that it was some thing about New? Zealand that caused Newell to make such a primordial tragedy.) Neill is also fascinated by the way in which a sense of doing something extraordinary can elevate every one involved in such a project to a n ew dimension. T h at happened on T he P ian o and from wdiat he’s learnt of B ad B lo o d it happened on that too: “Jack Thompson [who played Stanley Graham] thinks it’s the best work he’s ever done.” Neill sees Stanley Graham as representative of many rural New Zealanders “who are quite isolated. In this case, isolation leads to paranoia, insanity and murder.” T he cosm opolitan New- Zealand of today dif fers considerably from the New?' Z ealand o f Sam. Neill’s childhood. He contends that murder and mad-

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by Brent Lewis contentious subjects with real verve is, Neill feels, proof of the greater proficiency in the industry. In the last three or four years, it’s made a quantum leap. Our bad days of tax loopholes and opportunistic films are behind us, but we needed that experience to help define the type of industry we wanted to create. I didn’t include any of the dodgy films made in the early 1980s in Cinem a o f Unease because they don’t deserve any consideration, and that’s the end of that story. Today, films are only made because there’s a genuine belief in the validity of the project. The aphorism that the English and Americans are divided by a com m on language could equally be applied to Australian and New Zealand films. While I like frothy, light send-ups like Muriel’s W ed ding [P.J. Hogan, 1994], it’s difficult to imagine such a film being made in New Zealand. C o n versely, it’s difficult to imagine Once Were Warriors

ness were ways of escape from the tyrannical con formity that encased New Zealand society for most of its history, and regards An Angel at My T able (Jane Campion, 1990) and H eavenly Creatures as superblyrealized films which confront this problem. Yet if today’s New Zealand claims to be freer and more diverse, the ghettos of poverty, so vividly cap tured in O n ce W ere W arriors, make a farce of any claims to social justice and individual choice. The fact that New Zealand filmmakers are able to tackle such

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coming out of Australia, although Geoffrey Wright had a go with R om per Stom per [1992]. One gap in New Zealand films is that, except ing C am e A H ot Friday [Ian Mune, 1985], no one’s really given comedy a go, unless you count Peter Jackson’s films, which are terrifically funny and delightfully subversive, but rath er gruesom e. They’re not the sort to take your children or par ents to. Neill made Cinem a o f Unease as a personal journey, looking back to his childhood of growing up in

Christchurch, by selecting films which mirror his expe rience. But his own career also converges with the industry at two pivotal points. Sleeping D ogs (Roger Donaldson, 1978), Neill’s first feature as an actor, also signalled the emergence of New Zealand cinema, while The Piano is widely regarded as one of those rare films that had transcended claims of ownership to become, as Francois T ru ffau t once put it, som ething that belongs to the imagination and not to any nation. Having witnessed close-up the impetuosity of an infant industry makes Neill even more admiring of its achievements. He believes that any industry which can list T h e N a v ig ator, H eav en ly C reatures, O nce Were Warriors, The Piano and B read an d Roses (Gaylene Preston, 1994) among its credits has to have confidence about its future. “So much created in so short a time”, he muses. As an a cto r, it’s n atu ral N eill should salute the distinctive w ork o f such visible presences in New Zealand films as Ian W atkin, the late Bruno Lawrence, Martyn Sanderson, Grant Tilly and Kerry Fox as helping to carve out the unique nature of New Zealand films. But the experience of making Cinem a o f Unease has also whetted as-yet-unrealized ambi tions to direct his own New Zealand film and realize a hope that New Zealanders abroad can help fertilize what is going on back home. Whether it will happen I can’t say. But when ever I ’m w orking on lo catio n in a place like Warsaw, I often start thinking of New Zealand. Its influence on me is qfWb inescapable. © 1 For a brief history of New Zealand cinema, and a full list of its features to the end of 1993, see the New Zealand supplement in Cinem a Papers, No. 97-8, March 1994.

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Director John Hillcoat

Interviewed by Andrew L. Urban

Neo-colonialsand obsessive love The Small Man is the story of Jack (Tcheky Karyo), an expatriate living in Papua New Guinea. He falls in love with Kate (Rachel Griffiths), a writer of romances who rekindles memories of his dead wife, Rose. When Jack takes Kate to his tropical home, she discovers that he has a past - a past that he can neither forgive nor forget. I n t h e w o r d s o f d i r e c t o r J o h n H i l l c o a t , T he Sm all M an is “a contemporary melodrama looking at the darker side of romantic love. It is a mix of neo colonial characters and obsessive romantics.” It is Hillcoat’s second feature, coming after Ghosts ... o f the Civil D ead in 1989. In the intervening six years, Hillcoat has had a successful career as a direc tor of music videos and been a worldwide traveller. Feature filmmaking, though, is his first love.

Did The Small Man take a while because you were busy doing other things or because it took that long for the project to mature? A combination of both, plus the difficulty of financ ing subject matters like these. In Australia - and worldwide - it was pushed aside as “W ho wants to know about Papua New Guinea, and about drunk and obsessive characters?” But Papua New Guinea is an extraordinary coun try. The diversity and extremes within it are unique, in terms of the different cultures and languages and the landscapes, etc. Within that are the expatriates who, like in many third-world countries, are a bizarre group that by virtue of the isolation enact fantasies of power and control.

What interested you most about the project cinematically? Actually being there. With G hosts ... o f the Civil D ead, it was reading C IN E M A PAPERS • OCT OBER 19 95

very strong material that triggered the images. With New Guinea, it started the other way around. I went there and what lodged in my mind was the heightened reality of the way people live, the light, the contrasts, the heat, the sound, the insects ... all those sensory things.

Are these elements very important to you? Yes, because they are the ingredients that can really work in any attempt at making a kind of powerful cinema. Cinema can be a really powerful medium because it deals with all these senses, whereas other art forms are a singular sound, or just visual images.

Does cinema also need to explore extreme human conditions? No. Some of my favourite films are ones that are

"There is a subconcious layer where people are actually attracted to each other's darker qualities."

minute in detail, like those of Ozu and Bresson. For me, they are the most radical filmmakers in terms of the way they reduce detail to such sim ple essences. Their films are so distinct and contrary to the way we are normally seduced by images. What is interesting about those filmmakers is that they have this objectivity which becomes extremely subjective. The Hollywood tradition, on the other hand, taps in much more to the subjective world and heightened reality. Hollywood is interested in the inside of characters’ minds, like how a char acter actually sees the world. It is two perspectives which really broaden out to documentary versus the more subjective cinema. I get passionate about both kinds of perspectives and I like to utilize them both. In G hosts - given the nature of the material and my belief that the content needs to reflect the style, and the style the content - it was very appropriate to heighten the cold, clinical documentary nature of the drama. In T he Sm all M an , it is the other way around. It is the more internal, subjective qualities that are important. We are conditioned to both perceptions by the media. But they are usually completely separate and they don’t intersect. I find the intersection quite a powerful tool.

How did The Small Man actually come about? From a love of films in the melodramatic tradition, such as H itchcock’s Vertigo [1958] and R eb ecca [1940], and Douglas Sirk’s work. I wanted to exam ine the the darker side of romantic love and the myths associated with it. It also came from meeting expats in Papua New Guinea ten years ago. There is in the nature of iso latio n in the exp at w orld a kind o f new neo-colonialism . I felt there was a conn ection

between that and romantic love, and I wanted to explore that.

W e have two characters - a man and a woman - the classic cliched elem ents. T h e woman is a

together the pieces and rebuild his life after Rose’s death. He does it by denial, by not facing the fact

To generalize, it has to do with the projective nature of love, where one person projects their ideas and ideals onto another person, and that per son, in turn, projects their ideals back. At times, that intense infatuation and obsession can actually go out of synch with the reality of the two people involved. You can project your own ideals onto someone else and yet not actually be in synch with whom that person is.

romantic writer, so she has her own fantasy and visions of what life is all about.

that the relationship was severely wrong. He had this ideal which he tried to project onto Rose. That never worked, but it continues to be manifested in

This is very similar to the relationship of people from the western world with a completely differ ent culture like Papua New Guinea’s. They project their own ideals onto that culture and set up a pro jected system.

So, Kate is a romantic writer and a romantic? And a romantic, yes. That’s a good point, because there is a big difference. There are many Mills & B oon-type w riters who are extrem ely cynical, manipulative and calculating people, whereas Kate and Jack are both romantics.

his new relationship with Kate. Kate sees Jack as this dark, brooding, Heathcliffof-the-jungle type and she senses - they both sense - the darkness that is part of obsessive relationships and which becomes a fatal-attraction type thing.

their relationship didn’t go very well. In fact, it went

There is a subconscious layer where people are actually attracted to each other’s darker qualities. This takes place with Kate, who has been very sheltered and escapist in her ideals and her writing.

very badly. Jack accidentally kills her ... W e pick up the story with Ja ck trying to put

She meets this guy who adheres to this romantic myth she has been longing for.

In a sense, it’s a love triangle between Jack and Kate and Rose. Jack and Rose were a couple, but

C I N E M A P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

The relationship then starts to break down. Jack takes her to Papua New Guinea and they both try to restore their own romantic beliefs, which grad ually snowball. The next cycle goes even further, a kind of spi ralling of the same patterns. The desire of trying to fulfil this ideal, and projecting it onto somebody, gets more and more out of synch.

What rôle did Gene Conkie play in writing the screenplay? It was a pretty major rôle. With G hosts, there were five different writers and Gene ended up pulling the whole thing together. I wanted to work with him again in a more concentrated, focused rela tionship. So, Gene and I started working on T h e Sm all M an five years ago.

I basically fed him a lot of ideas, which he then translated and incorporated into dialogue and action. Once he’d done that, I gave him a hard time about what he’d written. It was a constant ping-pong. I would get him to animate the words and the characters through spe cific and, at times, quite abstract ideas. Gene, of course, brought his own ideas to it as well. It was quite an involved relationship.

How often were you in contact over the five years? It varied. Sometimes w e’d spend a whole year together - not full-time, but regularly on and off. At other times, it was just a few months of the year. Often I was in different countries, because I travel a lot.

This is the sort of filmmaking that I love and live for - but I can’t live off it financially! [Laughs.] I’d like to be able to reach that point where I can actu ally get by, even in a modest fashion. Recently, I have found a happy medium. Since 1991, I’ve been able to enjoy making music videos and that is economically more lucrative. However, I would like to focus more on features, because that is really what I am consumed by.

Where did the title came from? Why is it called The Small Man? It is a direct reference to Papua New Guinea. In their system, if you are a big man, it means that you have respect and kudos in the community. Jack is a small man in that sense, and he is also a small man in that his vision implodes. He is not a big, expan sive person, but a small person. However, the title poses quite a few problems of interpretation. Whether it really fits the film, I’m not convinced.

Why did you cast Tcheky Karyo as Jack? Partly it has to do with the romantic myth. Kate has this thing about the whole romanticism of being French. Her first book is set in France. So, I’m play ing with the cliché of the romantic French. Also, Tcheky was in the right age group, with the particular qualities we wanted. Some actors are very

"W h a t I fin d e x c itin g a b o u t the m e lo d ra m a gen re is th a t it h as h e igh te n e d c o lo u r an d so u n d and m o v e m e n t in quite an e x p re ssio n ist so rt o f w a y ." rugged and very dangerous, while others are sen sitive and attractive. It is very difficult to find all those qualities in the one actor, but Tcheky has them. I also found New Guinea very interesting in its assortm ent of people from all over the w orld: Americans, French, Germans and so on.

What about Rachel Griffiths? Rachel has some of these qualities that Tcheky has. They aren’t afraid of just one particular image. Rather than just being attractive all the time, they have real variation as well as a screen presence. I love the way that both are real characters. For me, what was great about the classical period of Hollywood cinema was that a lot of actors and actresses had real character to them.

Did you see Griffiths in Muriel's Wedding [P. J. Hogan, 1994] first? Is that what gave you the idea? I’d seen her in M uriel’s W edding and I thought she was the best thing in it. She had, along with the mother [Jeanie Drynan], an extra depth that a lot of the other characters didn’t have. By doing further research about the characters that she liked playing, the challenging areas that she liked working in, Rachel sounded quite perfect for the part.

You have said that the film experience is only complete with sound, picture, emotion and so on. To what extent did you pre-conceived these other elements - music, for example? One reason I like w orking with Dean Gawen [sound designer] and with the sound team - and they are basically the same people as who did C I N E M A P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

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W ith a lot of people who do take Scorsese as a role model, what is missing is the passion. I like Tarantino’s films. They are incredibly entertaining and also quite powerful in their own way. But a lot of people are calling R eservoir D ogs [1992] on a par with Scorsese. W hat I find missing is both a conscious cultural world that is not just second hand cinema and the passion - that is, the passion of the film as opposed to the actual raw passion of the characters. That is a danger in post-modernism and completely self-reflective works.

This brings to mind your early years in cinema. Could you expand on those early influences, the things that made you sit up? I guess it was seeing films at quite a young age. I saw Scorsese ‘s T ax i D river [1 9 7 5 ] when it first came out. I was 16. T h ere w ere also film s like T he G o d fath er [Francis Ford Coppola, 1972] and, further back, W izard o f O z [Victor Fleming, 1939] and Bergm an’s work. Seeing those kind of films at such a young age drew me to m ore heavy, psychological, dynamic films. They had a power ful effect.

About the same time you were also travelling a lot, mostly in North America. I hadn’t really thought about that until recently. It was going back to Canada for the first time in a long while that made me realize how this whole other world had been such a huge influence on me. G hosts - is that they were very much on the same

In fact, th at is w hat you get w ith an obsessive romantic relationship. It usually involves some form

Being in America during the 1960s and seeing the

wavelength. I feel the same with [DOP] Andrew [de G ro o t] and [p rod u ction d esigner] C hris Kennedy.

of sex and passion, and the combination is partic ularly potent.

W ith the sound, it was part of the heightened

What effect does the sexuality of the lovers have on the audience?

through the assassinations of all these leaders and the mass public grief, was a traumatic experience for a really young kid.

reality and the nature of seduction: the accelerat ing e x cite m e n t o f in fa tu a tio n and ro m an tic obsession, plus the undercurrents of the environ ment, of insects, and the impression of sound. Part of the sound department is Nick Cave, Blixa Bargeld and M ick Harvey, who are doing the film score. W hat is great about them is that there is the full range. Nick particularly gets caught up in the melodies and the musical layers. Blixa is extremely involved in the use of actual sound as music. M ick Harvey has a very broad view and balances both those elements. So, right from the beginning, the setting has brought up certain things that are very appropri ate for the romantic myth as well as for obsession. You have things like local church bells, choirs, voices, strings, a song ... There is a Bob Dylan song through it all the way, which we are hoping Scott W alker is going to sing.

You have used a number of emotive words in describing this film: passionate, obsessive, romantic. Sexual and sensual you haven't mentioned yet. Oh, that was a big oversight. I always equate sen sual and sexual w ith passionate and rom antic.

It brings the audience into it by deliberately utiliz ing certain cinematic traditions that are extremely effective for empathy and for a highly-charged effect. It is by using colour - like a red dress that is highly charged on many levels, psychological and symbol ical - plus the use of camera with the sound. W ith the music, there is going to be certain tra ditions of composition, movement, sound. Those stylistic devices are not cynically utilized, but actu ally try to get back to the classic idea of cinema in the sense of a language, of a powerful method of communicating. At the same tim e, what I find exciting about the m elodram a genre is that it has heightened c o lo u r and sound and m ovem ent in quite an expressionist sort of way. Getting back to Sirk, and also to Scorsese, it is the tradition of a heightened use of speed, movement and colour.

Would you call Scorsese a role model, or just someone you admire? Someone I admire. I think it would be pretty bizarre trying to model yourself on someone else. But I do find his use o f cinem a in sp irin g , and very passionate.

Kennedys on the news eight times a day, and going

At the time, I was going to a Catholic school and, when Martin Luther King was assassinated, we had to be silent for 45 minutes to an hour in a show of respect. It was the same with Robert Kennedy. So, it was seeing this adult w orld and images on black-and-white television of all this violence that, plus the exhilaration of the music. That music was really a renaissance in the arts.

You then came to filmmaking via the fine arts. Through animation. From a very young age, I was always doing drawings and going to art college out side of norm al school and getting caught up in visual language. It was a big p u blic sch o o l in Canada. It was incredibly well funded. They had photography, bronze casting and all that sort of stuff. In high school, the teacher put me onto m ak ing these drawings into an animation. That led to m ore and m ore interesting live action, which I thought was always beyond me because I was so locked into the world of two dimensions. Even w hen I fin ally started film sch o o l, I was very involved in animation. Since then, I’ve realized that people and faces are really the main interest of cinema. It’s what really brings cinema to life.

In Ghosts, you put part of the human condition under the microscope. You are doing the same with The Small Man. Do you have an editorial view about the human condition? Well, I do. Even though G hosts was so pessimistic, the thing that I think saves the film from being a complete downward dirge is the humanity that is found in the people, even at that level. I couldn’t say I’m purely optimistic or purely pes simist. It’s just that life and death is optimism and pessimism as a constant circle. I sway betw een the two. © C I N E M A PAPERS • OCTOBER 1995

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the industry to attempt some serious introspection? questions raised during the Seminar seemed fairly elementary, and yet no unambigu ous conclusions were reached. What exactly should the budget be for a feature to be called “low budget” and how does making films in var ious countries affect the answer to this question? Why make low-bud get features? What are the various possible processes one embarks on in order to make them? What is the impact of the conditions and regulations set by the var ious funding bureaucracies and the unions on these processes? What are the magic elements that make lowbudget films successful? At what stage of the filmmaking process do we know these films to be suc cessful? How and to whom do you sell these films? What should we be doing or not doing in order to max imize our financial resources in this country and achieve better results? And the answers to these? Well, no one really knew. But they could sure talk about it, share experiences, get inspired, explain their various grievances and hopefully create a better envi ronment in which we can continue to make more successful and better films more often. O M E O F T H E G EN ERA L

The Making o f ............................ [inse rt own title of lo w - b u d g e t fe a tu re l

Although Peter Sainsbury’s keynote speech was enti tled “Why make Low-budget Movies?”, the Seminar mostly focused on the “How” of the matter, which, as even Sainsbury himself implied, was perhaps the more appropriate question to pose on the occasion.

Low-budget features have much in common, but essentially a severely-restricted - and for some, perhaps, restrictive - amount of funds. In their dis cussions about the making of low-budget features, the majority of the speakers were surprisingly can did. And though the speakers often agreed, there were enough differences of opinion to keep all the options open and any clues to the secrets of success firmly out of reach. “Writing a low-budget feature is the same as writing any feature at any level. I t’s just, well, cheaper”, commented scriptwriter Michael Brind ley during his speech. He advised that “a low-budget feature begins with a low-budget idea” and empha sized the importance of keeping the budget in mind from the earliest possible conceptual stages of a pro ject: What inhibits a w riter’s creativity - that is, a writer of any experience - is working out of touch and in the dark, with a constant sense of apprehension, ‘Can what I’m writing actually be done?’ For Rolf De Heer, who was asked to speak about his experience of making Bad Boy Bubby, this has not been a problem: For me, there is a tremendously important balance between the subject matter - precisely how you are going to approach it - the budget and the audience potential that it has. Now, these things have to add up. As the writer-director, and a producer, of his films, De Heer considers the concept, the cost and the execution of a project almost simultaneously. He sees no arbi trary demarcations of roles in the filmmaking process,

“For me, what is most important about being a lowbudget filmmaker is that you are a film m aker rather than a director.” A passionate and intense speaker, De Heer was adamant about what he called “being rigorous” with the budget. This, in accordance with Brindley’s com ment that no good comes from writing a script with more actors, locations, shooting days, etc., than can be afforded, seemed to be a crucial point. That is until the writer Mira Robertson, speaking on behalf of Ana Kokkinos about the making of Only the Brave, revealed that during the writing of the script they never con sidered the budget. And, though Kokkinos began to

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notions. Such key words as “collaboration”, “commu nication”, “clarity” and “control” entered the discussion many times. “Collaboration” is simply making sure that everyone is working on the same film. This can only be achieved by communicating with clarity to every one involved one’s professional and creative needs and intentions. An obvious point, perhaps, and yet DOPs Toby Oliver and Jane Castle and production designer Sarah Stollman found the need to reiterate how necessary this is during and, especially, prior to the production of lowbudget films. Recounting their various experiences, they gave examples of effective and ineffective modes of working with others. However, as Brindley noted, while “low-budget films are made by teams rather than hier archies”, it does not mean that “there is no team leader”. This is where control comes in. Low budgets also mean low margins for error. Brindley:

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have some nightmares about how to actually deal with so many different locations and cast, the writers ulti mately believed that, as long as they had the strong basis of the story right, they would later be able to come up with creative solutions to whatever budgetary or technical problems the script may impose. Considering that Brindley’s script for Shame (co-written with Beverly Blankenship) has been effec tively filmed, and that both Bad Boy Bubby and Only the Brave reached a considerable degree of success, whose approach is best? Robert Connolly, the associate producer of All

C I N E M A P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

first feature, Every night ... Every night, the film could not be done for the intended budget, something he did not know at script stage. There were, however, a few less contradictory

Men Are Liars, partially drawing on his experience at the first-time producers’ conference, CONTACT 95, in LA, seemed to be in agreement with Kokkinos and Robertson: Specific, well-told stories can rise far above the con straints of their budgets and scale [...] So, in seeking an appropriate idea for a low-budget film, questions of ‘How many actors?’ [and] ‘How many locations?’ are really of second importance to the strength and appropriateness of the story itself. But as Alkinos Tsilimidos found out whilst making his

The cheapest essential element in the making of any movie is thinking. On-the-spot inspiration, or impro visation or suggestion, can be included far more easily in the context of clarity about purpose and realization.” If there was one thing all accounts of making films for very little money had in common, it was the meticu lous planning and thinking involved in pre-production. Tight budgets often mean less shooting time and smaller crews, which means things having to be done fast. There is simply no time for anyone to be confused or lost during the process. Producer Fiona Eagger and Mira Robertson took the Seminar through a detailed case study of the ultra-meticulous preparations for Only the Brave. Tsilimidos and De Heer, in their different ways, were also true believers in putting in the hard work before principal photography begins. All this may sound obvious, but it was amazing to hear what sort of things could be forgotten or unplanned for. Perhaps the reason for this is that lowbudget films are, more often than not, made by people who are still insufficiently experienced. The filmmaking process involves a multitude of different aspects, but, often due to limited funds, there are only so many heads, and inexperienced ones at that, to con sider them all. Therefore, it is perhaps not so surprising that some low-budget filmmakers fail to think about and provide for some things that, in retrospect, would seem to have been essential. Even during a session on the making and marketing of short films - a terrific mini-event in its own right chaired by the ever-helpful Shane McConnochie and Hugh Short of the AFC thorough preparation became one of the main points of discussion: “If my mother had been a film producer, she would have told me, ‘Plan long for your short’”, said Niobe Syme, the producer of M ichelle’s Third Novel. The lesson in all of this is: The less you know,

the less money you have, the longer and harder you

of course. No wonder the FFC ’s Trust Fund, the last

work before anyone calls “Action!” Much preparation and thought should also be given

of which had 138 applications but only three of which “compelled”, has been affectionately (or not) nicknamed

to casting. But the question of to rehearse or not is a surprisingly-complex one. The rehearsal time can often be limited by the budget, but it’s also a matter of personal

the “chook raffle”. Nevertheless, Peter Sainsbury, who has often suc cessfully “compelled” “them”, tried to get to the truth

preference. For Only the Brave, Ana Kokkinos rehearsed with her hitherto-amateur actors for more than five weeks. Ken Loach, as reported by his producer, Sally Hibbin, does not rehearse at all, often showing the script to the actors the night before or a moment before they

of the matter: “Unless [low-budget] features habitually contain most of the following features, one must ask why

do a scene, even though he, like Kokkinos on Only the Brave, does not generally work with professional actors. What both Kokkinos and Loach have in common is a meticulous casting process. Brindley noted: Casting can and does supply sixty per cent or more of screen character. It isn’t just a question of being a good actor [...] but of being right for the role [...] With a low-budget feature, with its likely emphasis on char acter rather than action sequences, with its likely greater reliance on dialogue, chances are there will be far more burden on performance than with a bigger budget feature. Ail this practical advice from the speakers was great, but the least elaboration occurred on the subject which was perhaps the most important: How and where do you get your “low” budget when you want it (other than the obvious government funding sources, of course)? The only real answer to this question came from Karen Robson, an Australian entertainment lawyer who has been working in New York for the past ten years. Rob son gave a detailed account of the multitude of possible funding sources in the U.S.; unfortunately, they are mostly unavailable to anyone working in this country. De Heer tried to be helpful: There is a word that I use about a project when I am about to try and get it financed, and that is ‘com pelling’. What you have to do is make what it is that you present to anybody compelling. That means many things, but ultimately what it means is that the temp tation to invest in this has to be great, for whatever reason. Once you’ve made your project “compelling”, De Heer suggested, a quite pleasant set of events would unfold. People with money will listen to you, they will phone you and it will be possible'. Good, but we already know that. What we really need to know is what exactly would “they” find tempting. To confuse the issue even further, several of the speakers strongly advised that the process of trying to deduce what “they” may like or dislike was a useless one,

make them at all?” Sainsbury then offered a list which included an unfamiliar narrative premise; the ability to put the audience [...] in an unfamiliar territory that pro vokes and sustains [...] those truly entertaining expectations that are opened up by sheer surprise; [...] a distinctive exploitation of mise-en-scene; [and] a set of entirely appropriate, engaging and thoroughly-pre pared cast performances. [...] There needs [to] be a lightness of touch [and] clear judgement in the pacing of scenes, the building of dra matic moments, the timing of cuts, the clarity of exposition between the necessary and unnecessary detail [as well as] a trust in one’s audience and respect for its dislike of discursiveness, its indifference to empty cleverness and its hatred of patronizing. Above all, there needs [to] be a mixture of daring and flair, whether it be demonstrated with quiet subtlety or noisy show. And, Sainsbury advised, “everything on [this list] can be got for very little money.” Add to that De Heer’s suggestion that “It’s easier now than it was then, in the sense that the technolog}7is cheaper, easier to get hold of” and you can just about make your first low-budget feature with the budget you require, win several AFI Awards, a Palme d’Or and one of the Oscars, get your film distributed by M ira max, make a huge profit and wait for that phone call from Hollywood or Ciby. As De Heer said to his young audience: There are no excuses left for any of you. It’s up to you, and to get that first substantial work done is within all your capabilities if you work at it hard enough and long enough and think about it and put it together.

The Big Sell In her introduction to the session titled “Reeling them in: Marketing the low-budget feature”, Sue Murray, the AFC’s Director, Marketing, reminded the Seminar that the whole process of making films, be they low-bud get or big-budget, does not finish with the release print. It's actually the start of or, in fact, half-way through the marketing process.

The discussion that followed, coming hot on the heels of all that motivational production advice, had something of a “welcome to the real world, folks” quality about it. Suddenly, we were no longer in the safety of our domes tic territory, competing with a few hundred other people for meagre funds. No, we were now out there, on planet Earth, competing with thousands of other filmmakers and films - both low and high budget - for millions of “bums on seats” and untold sums of money. Sometime earlier on in the Seminar, Michael Brind ley asked: How do you write a movie? Basically you make it in your head and then you run it in a theatre on a big screen in your head and you write down in as few words as possible [...] what you have seen and heard. As well as being the screenwriter, playing all the char acters and feeling what they feel and going where they go, you also play the audience. But Brindley’s words somehow got lost in all that excite ment of rehearsing with actors, collaborating with department heads, storyboarding and the minutise of budgeting. Now we had to think again about “them”, the fickle mysterious creatures called “the audience”. Marketing consultant Sue O’Neill advised: Don’t lose sight of your audience. Often films are com pleted and you think, ‘Well, what sort of audience were you aiming for? Who is this being made for? Why would you think an audience would want to sit through this? If you had $11.50, would you go and see this?’ On the other hand, Tony Safford, Senior VP, Acquisi tions, at Miramax, began his talk by asking the audience to raise their hands if they were “makers of low-budget feature films”. Many hands went up; Safford sighed: See, I think it’s possible to argue that you shouldn’t be here, on the belief that marketing is not your concern. That is the difficulty of the sales agent or the distributor. The job of the filmmaker and of the inde pendent filmmaker is to, first and foremost, get your money and make your movie. And that should be your mantra. I don’t believe you should be anticipating the market place. I don’t believe you should be calibrat ing your thoughts and your script as to how your film will be received in the market place. I think that is enormously difficult and even quite dangerous to do. Confusing? Well, perhaps it helps to know that the dif ference between these two opinions may derive from the difference in perspective. Safford’s job, as the title of his position suggests, entails the buying of films and the mar keting of them to the community at large. O’Neill’s job, as sales agent, entails the selling of films - often to the likes of Safford - of taking a punt on a particular film, going through the tension of seeing whether it will do well and “pop” at a market like Cannes, or whether, after the film’s screening, her office would resemble what she called a “tumble-weed town” with not a buyer in sight. Sales agents, acting on the behalf of producers, make their money from com m issions: no sale means no income. It is understandable, therefore, that O’Neill would encourage filmmakers to think about the marketplace. “There is no magic formula but, obviously, there are Back row, left to right: Ana Kokkinos (writer-director); Robert Connolly (producer); Lizzette Atkins (Newvision); Sarah Stollman (production designer); Toby Oliver (DOP); Hugh Short (AFC marketing co-ordinator); U.S. Speaker Karen Robson; Sue O'Neill (marketing consultant), Shane McConnochie (AFC festivals co-ordinator); Jane Castle (DOP). Front row, left to right: Sue Murray (AFC's Director, Marketing); Michael Brindley (writer); Antonia Barnard (producer); Gregor Jordan (writer-director). Opposite page, top, left to right: Tim Read (AFC's Director, Film Develop ment), Rolf de Heer (writer-director) Opposite page, bottom, left to right: Helen Linthorne (event co-ordinator), Nicki Martin (publicist), Jenine Lipscombe (AFC project assistant), Philippa Bateman (AFC project co-ordinator and conference chair).

C IN EM A PAPERS • OCTOBER 1995

trends going on” and, according to O’Neill, the films that do well are up-beat, brash, energetic [with] a bit of a twist, a nice music track. Obviously, all the craft elements have to be there. The concept has to be good, relevant and fresh [...] Buyers are much more com fortable with films that have a positive message and have a bit of a redemption at the end [...] but, more and more these days, they want a film that they are going to emo tionally connect with. If they don’t come out of the cinema feeling like they have been through some sort of experience, they are just not interested. Downbeat films about dysfunctional characters, where it’s sort of more depressing at the end than at the beginning, are the biggest turn-off these days [...] If there is some kind of glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel, it helps a hell of a lot.

Trailers can be placed in cinemas months before the release. Also, a set of good stills and colour transparencies is vital. It’s really worth getting a good stills photog rapher involved at an early stage. A couple of outstanding images can receive wide placement in the media, and, as they say, an image speaks a thousand words. Film soundtracks are also a great marketing tool. Another trend, increasingly, is to produce an elec tronic press kit. They are particularly useful for getting television coverage. Obvious words yet again? Not at all, particularly when discussing low-budget films. Most low-budget films in Australia end up with poor quality stills, perfunctory

Or, as Safford put it, films should have “playability”, which is how a film plays to an audience once they are in the theatre. Classically, most independent films in the U.S., and I suspect here as well, have very little ‘m ar ketability’ - they are not high-concept, they are not star-driven, they are not based on any great source material - but what they should have, and the basis of their success will be, is ‘playability’. That is, ‘an audience enjoys them’, and by audience I mean not only an arthouse audience, but what will drive an arthouse audience, and that’s critics. Apart from the trends in the films bought, patterns in the buying practice itself emerge. According to O’Neill, it seems that at the moment there is a series of dichotomies going on. On the one hand, the arthouse circuit is expanding all over the world. [...] But, at the same time, the buyer is becoming much more choosy. Five years ago, you could have made a broad range of sales for not much money all over the world. Now you either burn or bust. O ’Neill went on to note that the market is becoming more and more polarized between the Hollywood block busters and the quality arthouse, and the distributors are taking much less risk. Lizzette Atkins, Marketing Manager at Newvision Films, attempted to demystify the buyers’ attitude even further: When we are buying a completed film, the decision to acquire those rights is, first and foremost, an instinc tive thing. Most important is that we have to either like or really love that film [...] As long as there is something to say to audiences and the story [is told] in a compelling manner - sorry to use that word again - the budget is largely irrelevant. For both O ’Neill and Atkins, “relationship” is a key word. “Selling films is actually a big relationships busi ness”, said O’Neill. The building up of good relationships between sales agents and distributors is crucial. It is also important for distributors to have a great relationship with the producer and director of a film in order to define the best strategy for the release. Atkins: Wherever possible, plan these things early. As creators of the film, seize the opportunity to develop a pro ductive and creative relationship with the distributor, and put forward your ideas. At the end of the day, the filmmaker can become the best ambassador for that film. And there is more the filmmakers can do to facilitate the marketing of their films. Atkins: Don’t underestimate the value of a great trailer. Lat est research places its market penetration at about 70 per cent. It is the best possible way to create anticipa tion in an audience and, by the time your film hits the screen, there is that immediate recognition factor. C I N E M A PAPERS • OC T OB ER 1 9 9 5

perate to hone their skills and add a credit to their CV with som e serious feature work. The couple who are expe rienced have decided that your project is a w orthw hile on e, or they sim ply like you as a p erson a n d really want to help out. Your cast, m ost o f w hom have proba bly not had much exposure or not w orked anywhere for years, are grateful as well, and the one or two in the lead roles w ho work regularly are really excited by the parts that you have written fo r them and are happy to work with you. The day before you set o ff to the location for the first day o f principal photography, you get a call from a rep resentative o f M edia and Entertainm ent Arts A lliance (MEAA) telling you that you have to cease what you ’re doing immediately, because what you are doing is con sidered to be m orally incorrect and you are exploiting people (even though those yon are supposedly exploiting are ready and willing to do the work, and, anyway, it’s your m oney and it’s none o f an yon e’s business what a bunch o f p eo p le wish do to with a few w eeks o f their lives). What do you do? This story, though an imaginary one, has its basis in real ity. Something of the sort happened to Alkinos Tsilimidos on his first, and initially self-funded, feature. Tsilimidos:

trailers, or none at all, and, as for an EPK, what’s that? It makes it very difficult for the media to aid the indus try when they have little or no m aterials, and the filmmakers’ reason for this lack, without exception, is that there was simply no money left in the budget. Per haps when finding creative solutions in budgeting, some thought should be given to marketing also. But not necessarily if one listens to Safford: You’re first job is to make an outstanding movie. If you make an outstanding movie - this is why we are in this business - then it will succeed. We all have to have that hope: that an original movie in any genre can find success in the market place. It will be cham pioned by critics and it will be championed by its core audience, and it can break out beyond that core audi ence [...] All you have to do is make an original, bracing, provocative, fresh movie in whatever genre you’re working within. It’s up to us to figure out the ‘mar ketability’ of your film. Sounds easy.

Feral or Fearful: Whither the Rules of the Game Imagine you are a young filmmaker with nothing that can be perceived as “track record” and you cannot get your feature film funded, by anybody. Nevertheless, you have a great script, you ’ve discussed the project in detail with your filmmaking friends and you are ready to do it. O ne day, you buy a “scra tch y ” tic k et a n d win $ 1 0 0 ,0 0 0 . Im m ed iately , you ca ll up your film m aking friends, secure neces sary locations, arrange a great deal with

I was told the day before we went onto location that I was not allowed to do this and was threatened with an injunction or something like that. I ignored it, because I thought it was really silly and I had a cast who were supporting me. So, we [...] went ahead and just made the film. It came back at me, during the AFI pre-selection screenings, when someone thought that Every night... Everynight wasn’t worthy of participation because it [wasn’t] accepted as a professional film, since no one had been paid. [There] was a two-week period where we were unsure whether we’d be disqualified as being a non-Australian film, which, I thought, was ridiculous. Fortunately, for Tsilimidos, it was eventually decided in his favour. He then went to the AFC, which felt “morally compelled” to repay the cast and the crew, at the Com mission’s “loss”. But it was a way to get the film out. The industry’s relationship with the unions, or the “associations”, as the programme notes for the Seminar called them, is not always an easy one. And though the Seminar invited the various parties to openly discuss their concerns, and perhaps to come to some arrangement, nothing new or surprising eventuated; no progress was made. Even more disturbing, the filmmakers and the union representatives seemed to be speaking of different things, in different languages, with different goals in mind. The one crucial difference was between the types of films discussed. There are two basic types of “lowbudget” films and filmmaking practices: • The first is the ultra or no-budget model, where there is just about enough money to

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a lab and cast a bunch o f actors. O f course, you ca n n ot p ay a n y body, yourself included, as every dollar you have must end up “on the screen”. You work out a system o f deferred pay ments and points o f profit, if and when the film becom es successful and m akes a heap o f money. Everybody in your cast an d crew is c o o l w ith that idea, even though none o f them is counting on the film making a great profit. Being m ostly young and inexperi enced, except fo r a couple, you r crew cannot believe their luck. They are des

O n an uncom m only-cold N ovem ber nigbt in M elbourne; tbe producer aims an unsettling-steely gaze towards a handful o f his faithful cast members. T h e re s no doubt about it: he's angry. In one swift movem ent; he sets upon the nearest actor w ho; after suffering w hat alm ost amounts to a manual tracheotom y w ithout anaesthetic, is soon doubled over on the ground o f the garbage-strew n alley. A carload o f fellow perform ers quickly enters the scene. W ith no second thoughts, the producer im m ediately launches a k ick to the face of the first arrival. A slightly-built w om an w ith fair hair em erges from the darkness and also begins to go ballistic. A nother shadowy figure huddled by a cam era firm ly yells "C u t!" This doesn't entirely halt the proceedings: the boys from the car actually appear to be having fun and aren't about to stop.

has designed them selves w hat he describes as a “purely market-driven film ”. W ith more long-term desires coming to the fore, he quickly adds, “I t ’s also just som ething to cut our teeth on.”

O, THIS isn ’t A SCENE from a new Robert A ltm an take on low -bu d g et action movies, nor is it a case of unchecked stress in the workplace. Rather, it’s the

second night of filming on an independently-financed action thriller, U nder th e G u n , and the producer, Richard N orton, also happens to be the star. N orton is a M elbourne resident when he’s not performing in front of the cameras on one of the (usually-foreign) locations on which he has built a 40-plus film ography in less than half as many years. W ith Under the G un, he fulfils a deep-seated ambition to gain more control over what he does. In tandem with fellow novice produ cer, 2 6 -y e a r-o ld M elbou rne drama coach Paul Currie, and M att George, a 2 2 year-old writer-director from Glen Waverley, Norton C I N E M A PAPERS • OCTOBER 1995

After running the gauntlet of all the usual hassles that can beset the average independent product, ranging from the big bottom line of financ ing through to the objections of the M ed ia and E n te rta in m e n t Arts Alliance (the aforementioned fighting female is in fact Kathy Long, five-time world kickboxing champion, citizen of the U.S., and until recently just a girl from Bakersfield), they’ve emerged trium phant and achieved what few Australian action film aspirants have done. Im perial E n tertain m en t has acquired world rights except for Aus tralia and North America, and a deal with a major US company hangs in the balance. This success is no doubt due to the support of financiers and exec utive producers Tom Kuhn and Fred Weintraub. Kuhn, a former executive with W arner B ros., N BC and RCA Video, and the overseer of dozens of projects including tele-movies, mini series and features, was on the phone every night to producer Paul Currie, according to director M att George. Besides a tw o-w eek stopover in the early stages of pre-production, that was the extent of that particular exec utive producer’s on-set involvement. L ong -tim e film pro d u cer Fred W ein trau b , a seasoned actio n a fi cionado, had even less contact with the day-to-day running of the film. Weintraub has been involved in every thing from T om Laughlin and B illy Ja c k (Laughlin, 1971), Bruce Lee and E n te r th e D ra g o n (R o b ert C louse, 1 9 7 3 ), to the C yn thia R o th ro c k “China O’Brien” series and a little film from the early 1980s called G ym kata (Robert Clouse, 1985), which featured one Richard Norton as the film’s lead villain. (In a great case of synchronicity, both China O ’Brien and G ym kata played late-night television during the shoot for Under the Gun.) N orton describes his executive producers as just two distributor friends who had produced more than 90 movies betw een them. He goes on to say that Weintraub entrusted him with the responsibility of delivering U nder th e Gun with the follow ing line, “Look, I know if anyone knows how to do this, as far as what the market will want, you do.” If you haven’t encountered a previous product bearing Richard N orton’s moniker, then chances are you haven’t entered a video shop for at least a decade, or perhaps ignored the action section where you’ll often find entire shelves devoted to his work. A major star in the subgenre of martial-arts movies, Norton is m entioned with utm ost respect by fist-fight film enthusiasts, and spoken casually in the same breath as name exponents like Don “The Dragon” Wilson,

Benny “T h e J e t ” U rquidez, C onan Lee and B olo Yeung, all of whom he’s worked with at some stage of his hectic work life. A general martial-arts practitioner and one-time bodyguard to the stars, N orton really established his career with assistance from action star and men tor Chuck Norris, with whom he still works.1 Norris got him a small part in one of his more fully-realized efforts, The Octagon (Eric Karson, 1980). From there, N orton has virtually churned them out on an assem bly-line basis for producers as dubious as some of the credits that he’s been awarded. For some of his bet ter efforts seek out Ironheart, Kickfighter, D eathfight, L ad y Dragon and Rage an d H on ou r. The latter pair are but two of nine films in which he’s shared the billing with Cynthia Rothrock, herself a major attrac tion in the area of martial-arts action films. In fact, the world’s most widely distributed action-film peri odical, the British Im pact, recently daubed the couple “the Fred Astaire and G inger R ogers of m odern action movies”, much to N orton’s delight. From T h e M an fr o m H o n g K on g (Brian T ren chard-Smith, 1975) to Hurricane Smith (Colin Budds,

N orton : "W e didn't have

the budget to blow up buildings and cars. It w as alw ays going to be the human element action film, as I call it, where I utilize people w ho really know the fight gam e." 1 9 9 1 ) and beyond, A ustralia hasn’t been shy to contribute to the burgeoning world tally of action fea tures, though you couldn’t easily tell from the lack of critical attention often afforded them. With the excep tions of T h e S alu te o f th e Ju g g er (David Peoples, 1 9 8 9 ), the last Australian production he w orked on, and the little-seen Brian Trenchard-Smith helmed “P an th er” series, surprisingly few of these film s bear the credit of Norton. This was another reason I raced on a whirlwind tour of the truly impressive set, located inside the shell of a long-dead power station next to the Yarra River in inner-suburban Richm ond. The ingenuity and scope achieved by art director Ralph M oser is read ily apparent. U tilizing a budget th at w o u ld n ’t ordinarily cover the catering bill on your average fulllength feature, M oser and his hard-working crew, including Brett Houghton, the director of the excel lent student action film, The Huntsman (1993), totally transformed the derelict building into a fully-functional and camera-ready up-market nightclub. Fifty to 55 daily set-ups were planned. The plot of Under the Gun revolves around Frank Torrance (Norton), a former ice-hockey star turned club owner who desperately wants to walk out of his debt-ridden establishment and catch the next plane out of town. His flight leaves on the morning after the film begins, putting a time constraint a la 48HRS (Walter Hill, 1982) into the mix. In a brief moment of reflection, Norton considers the importance of the location on the development of the script: After working the plotting of M att’s script to contain a number of action scenes, we made the decision that the whole thing had P

n e w m e d ia

Designing the Interface (or how to learn to love my computer screen)

Phillip Dutchak examines the evolution o f computer screen grammar

and future trends in interface design. here are notable films that have advanced the way cin ema tells its stories. It might be enlightening to have a few sem antic d eco n stru c tio n ists exp o u n d on this subject. But as m ost o f us don’t have a couple of years up our sleeves, let’s just call it “good screen gram m ar” and be done with it. T h ere is such a thing as good television. So, what about a computer screen grammar?

The W h y s for Interface D esign A ddressing a co n feren ce last A pril, David C ourt, editor of the C o n ten t newsletter, gave his take on the future for new media. Court concluded that whatever form at or delivery medium was used for new media, “we’ll all be watching screens of some description”. T h e fo re ca st is th at 1 .4 m illion computers will be sold in Australia this year. A S p ecial R eport on T ech n olog y in the Sm all Business S ector by Yellow Pages Australia (and you thought all they were interested in were fingers) stated that “nearly three-quarters [of small business] or 71 percent have a desktop computer”. The Special R eport went on to state “close to a third, 3 0 percent, own a modem, 2 6 percent have a computer equipped with a C D -R O M drive and 71 p e rce n t own a m obile p h o n e ” . Added to this is the race by people to get online, be on the Internet, or surf the “net” or the web (worldwide web w hich supports the use of graphics, sound and video) via the computer and modem. W h at all these facts and figures indicate is that the supremacy of the television set and the home phone in A u stralian businesses and hom es is being seriously challenged by computer and telecom m unication technology. The “small screen” (traditionally the television) is increasingly com ing to mean the computer screen or the liq uid design on your mobile phone. M ark Bergman, technical assistant to IB M ’s chief executive officer Lou Gestner, while recently in Sydney gave weight to Court’s prediction by stating that easily-understood, attractive com puter in terfaces - n ot tech n olog y -

were critical to developments in the IT & T field. C o u rt’s and B erg m an ’s rem arks may be stating the obvious. Wonderful technology providing such things as multiple channels or interactive services are not going to grab the mass market if the screens people tune into are n ot attractive, inviting or entertaining, or come across as plain confusing.

Basics Screen design is based on how people com municate (the jargon is input or, even worse, inputting) to the computer. That is usually by way of a computer keyboard, and a “mouse”. Users of mul tim edia packages on C D -R O M s especially know what it is to click them selves through a computer game.

Professionals such as graphic design ers, engineers and arch itects use electronic boards or “tablets” and spe cial pens for putting information back to the com puter. T ou ch screens are appearing as public information kiosks at hotels, museums and sports facilities. A person touches icons or lettering on the screen to get things happening. These input devices have caused designers to create the screen “pull down menus”, “dialogue boxes”, icons, graphical buttons and boxes, and the subtle use of colou r eith er as b a ck ground or to highlight a screen object’s status. It is generally conceded that, apart from the trend to give screen objects more 3D modelling and animation, the objects of screen design are all in place.

The next evolution in screen design will occur with the appearance of new types of “input devices” like reliable voice recognition. Harrison Ford telling his computer screen in B lade Runner (Rid ley Sco tt, 1 9 8 2 ) to “enh an ce” is not looking that strange nowadays. Another key to this new medium is response time. Shots change instantly in film s. A dvertisem ents bom bard the view er w ith im ages. But w ith CD R O M s, being o n lin e, even using programmes on your home computer, the rule is to wait. The trick is not to keep people w aiting to o long. O r if there is a delay, give them something on-screen to watch. To multimedia developers, IT & T professionals, propeller-heads and net surfers - the converted - waiting, delays and screen freezes have always been part of the turf. For a growing number of people, the sheer novelty of new media or the promise of the next whiz-bang thing has enticed us into cutting new media slack. We won’t stand for televi sion channels not changing instantly, but new media is on a honeymoon. Take the Disney Studio online web site. People are invited to view short video clips of such current features as C rim so n T id e (Tony S co tt, 1 9 9 5 ). Sounds great, but first you have to download (transfer from the Disney site to your computer via a modem) a 4 .4 megabyte file. With any of the modems available that should take, oh say, one hour or so. It took me longer. When finally the video-type file was transferred to my computer, it didn’t work because my PC software was an old version. I didn’t care. By “surfing” web sites I got the right softw are, filled out e lectro n ic forms to be put on mailing lists I’ll never read again, and generally lost two hours. However, more to the point: through out this cybernau t tim e I w asn’t watching a video; I didn’t stop to go to the cinema and I was only half-watch ing television. There are estimates that Internet watching could cut into aver age television viewing time by up to four hours a week or 25 percent. I finally viewed the C rim son T ide clip , all 2 0 or so second s o f it. T h e sound was poor and the motion of the video was jerky. I still love the web and C IN EM A PAPERS • OCTOBER 1995

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At the web address http://www.sun.com/sun-on-net/uidesign Sun has its Home Page on Interface Design. The electronic page demonstrates Sun's evolving design for its Home Page.

Gene Hackman, but I’m not “in love” with it.

Screen D esign C onceits of falling in or out o f love with the web or your computer screen are not all that tongue-in-cheek. Peo ple view com puter screens close up and usually on a one-to-one basis. This sets up a d iffe re n t re la tio n sh ip to watching television or being at a cin ema. Computer screen design is aimed directly at what the IT industry calls the “end user” - you. C I N E M A PAPERS • OCTOBER 1 9 95

People individualize their co m pu ter screens e ith er by the arrangement of its on-screen icons, a screen’s font, by the colour they chose or by what screen savers dot a large office. W hen they get tired of it, they change it. One screen doesn’t fit all. Custom ization is high on the list for Apple Computer’s next operating platform, code-named Copland. Adam Sam uels, P rod u ct M anager fo r the software’s release next year, said Cop land will allow users to “choose a set of appearances” for their screens:

Apple’s lead in GUIs [graphical user interfaces] has been eroded by W in dows. Presently, Apple is probably viewed as having a conservative interface. W ith Copland, there will be choices in screen styles and peo ple will have the ability to create a unique style. This will extend to on screen icons changing to m atch a particular screen’s environment. Samuels stated that Apple breaks good screen design into better functionality, scalability (the ability to scale the soft w are th rou g h the design to the

expertise of the user) and customiza tion of the interface. Combined, Apple says good screen design equates to making people more productive using their computers. Samuels: Apple is moving to an interface that only prompts the user when it needs more information to perform a given task, not to an interface that shows you what to do.

Getting D ow n to It A ccording to Jak o b N ielsen, distin guished en g in eer fo r S tra teg ic

The three screen Images named Opera, Garden and RealEst are taken from simulations done for Telstra showing what broadband services might be available In the future. The file Opera Is from a simulation where someone might buy tickets to a concert at the Sydney Opera House. They have seen an Introductory video, then chosen 'bookings'. On this screen they select from the venues at the Opera House prior to choosing the artist they wish to see. After that they specify the number of seats they want, the date of the performance, and then where In the Concert Hall they would like to sit. Garden Is a method by which someone could make intelligent decisions about the type of plants they might buy from an on-line nursery based on climate and soil conditions In their area. They can browse all plants available, and find pests and diseases to which a plant Is subject. 'RealEst'is the Introductory screen to 'Real Estate On-Line'. Here the user can narrow down the area In which they want to buy, look at a house that is of Interest (to the extent of an Interactive floor plan where clicking on a room shows a picture or QuickTime VR movie of that room), overlay maps of local facilities, then finally take part in an on-line auction.

Peter M ichell D irector, B ig A nimated D igital (BAD)

SGI has developed Its worldwide web authoring soft ware to be a "point and click" operation allowing for the creation of compelling web content Silicon Graphics Home Page Is at URL

Apple's online service, Eworld, is designed using the motif of a graphical town square. When Eworld updated Its service

http://www.sgi.com.

to Include connection to the Internet, roads were added to the design.

Technology at SunSoft, a division of Sun Microsystems in California, com puter screen clarity means that people read text on the screen about 25 per cent slower than a paper document. T h e p resen t clarity o f a co m p u ter screen, its resolution, is 72 dpi (dots per square inch). T h e resolution on most television sets is lower. Nielsen reflected, “Folks get more easily tired reading screens. With that in mind, it is better to put about 50 per cent less information on a screen than you would put on paper.” Nielsen said that doubling screen resolution to 150 dpi plus using anti-aliasing technology would make screens as readable as paper. T o illu stra te screen sim p licity , Nielsen gave the example of designing for an Internet web site. “In trials, Sun learnt to avoid making the viewer have to scroll the docum ent. W e found a text document should be the size of the screen.” Nielsen noted that last year web sites and documents always had numerous hyper links (the ability to jum p fro m one e le c tro n ic page to another docum ent by “click in g ” on

highlighted words). The present trend is to limiting hyper links. Nielsen: T h e nature o f the online is as an active experience, as opposed to pas sive view ing. Users w ant ch o ice. They want links. However, people are suffering from information over load. You should have a structure, a logic, to a web site, not just links to any and every where. [...] In co n stru ctin g a web site, it is about designing an information space for the user. The need to avoid confusion is a strong theme in screen design. Betsy Zeller, Engineering Department Manager for the Entry System Division at Silicon G raphics C om puter Systems (SG I), talk ed ab o u t the sim p licity o f the design to make the next choice obvi ous to the “end users”. Zeller: You can use the simple construction of language in screen design. The sub ject and verb in language is analogous to the object and the application of the computer; highlight an icon, ini tiate the [software] application.

Good screen design should also be a rewarding experience to the user. Web design emphasizes its visual rich en v ironm ent. C u stom izing your computer screen is more a represen tation of yourself.

Icons Screen icons bear m ore than a pass ing resemblance to company logos, or trademarks. Indeed, the corporate sym bols for car makers - i.e., Ford - fulfils Zeller’s criteria for an on-screen icon. She states, “on-screen icon should be simple, easily recognizable, and have coherence and unity”. Silicon Graph ics, as do most computer vendors, have guidelines for software developers as to the respective look for its on-screen icon sets. Part of the reason is to dif fe re n tia te the co m p a n y ’s screen environment in the market. B ut screen icon s also establish brand presence either directly by name or by style. If companies start licensing their logos for use as screen icons (i.e., T elstra to denote a com m unications com puter file, the C om m onw ealth

Bank for a finance computer file), the potential of the respective companies for market penetration would be seri ous. As a fu rth e r asid e, Z e lle r categorizes icons as a “cartoon-type style”. This may partly explain the link between the cartoon, anim ation and comic world with the com puter field or why Bart Sim pson’s face is better know n than that o f the head o f the UN. M ost designers stress the need for icons not to visually interfere with the main task a person performs on screen. Peter Needham, ISSC Australia M an ager of G raFX lab, which is the doing the touch screen design for the Sydney O lym pics, says that icon design fo r IB M means clean and sim ple. “IB M has a policy o f no m ore than seven icons on the screen, and the use of pale yellows and greys for icon colour.”

W e b D e sign For designers, the hottest thing at the moment is the “web”. A long time ago you were either off or on the bus. Now you’re either online, e-mailing (using C I N E M A P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1 995

•ij

File

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Special

Apple's new Copland interface will have undergone "thousands of hours of useability testing" by the time it is released next year.

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When designing interfaces for public access, the most immediate con cern is to ensure the presentation is simple, the functionality is obvious and the path to the information is the shortest possible. The overriding design premise is that anyone w ill be able to approach the screen and with no prior knowledge guide themselves through the programme. The

Forthcoming Events

design approach was to use the motif of "finger button" which incorpo rates a banner title in its length, ending with a "fingernail icon". Touching on the icon leads to information presented as text and video.

Olympic Programme i

T im Langford GraFXlab Graphic A rtist. ISSC A ustralia

Sydney Olympics

C I N E M A PAPERS • OCTOBER 1995

n e w m e d ia Creativity and the Interactive Mass Media Revolution

C L I n t e r a c t i v e m

H a 6 It z I n c

Premiere Issue - July 1995

Time travel behind the scenes of Journeym an II with Presto Studios Feel the future a t the In tera ctiv e M ed ia F e stiv a l

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electronic mail), or net surfing (jump ing from on web site to another). The promise of electronic publishing and marketing on the web has the power to make anyone engage in hyperbole. For exam ple, I write this article for C inem a Papers and X number of peo ple can read it. I put the article on the web and anyone co n n ecte d to the worldwide web can read it. But what’s to entice people into a C in em a Papers web site, and what is the right elec tronic form at that will make people want to read the material contained within a web space? Jakob Nielsen from Sun on elec tronic publishing: Use a cover magazine format, lead with a single story, and include a secondary story. Then follow with four category titles that people can ‘hyper link’ into.

u p com in g site via the w e b ” . W eb material is either posted or e-mailed

expect web sites to evolve, as the online technology evolves, so an

by the client to Sulphuric Solutions and the company stays in touch with its custom ers by telep h o n e, e-m ail

appreciation of what the technology is capable of is essential. That’s why we created our W ebForce author ing software. B ill G ates fro m M ic ro s o ft? G ates could not be interviewed for this story because he was too busy doing other neat things, like spending U S $ 3 0 0 million to launch Windows 95 (but is he a happy man?). Another advantage of electronic publishing is the ability to author web m aterial from anyw here. T h e com pany S u lp h u ric S o lu tio n s is a w eb-authoring business and consul tancy currently operating from home offices on the C entral C oast and in Canberra. Debbie Smith, Project C o

Betsy Zeller at Silicon Graphics on the

o rd in a to r for Sulphu ric S o lu tio n s,

web:

relates that all its “page and system creation is done remotely. During the

There is a strong photo realism style on the web. There is also a demand for the use of strong colours. Good

design drives b etter design. T his whole thing is evolving. End users

development of a web system or page, the client can preview and review the

or fax.

Final Pics T here rem ains m ore to be said and shown on screen design. Concepts of virtual reality, increased communica tion bandwidth to allow more complex designs to easily travel over the web, interactive television, game design, new public display and presentations, ani mation and intelligent software agents to navigate a multimedia disc or a net work are on the agenda. Screen design is a balancing act between the ability or understanding to the com puter code that makes it happen, graphic design skills, a sense o f m arketing, an understanding for w h a t th e p e o p le w a n t (u se a b ility te s tin g ), and an eye to w h a t th e technology can con sisten tly a n d re a so n a b ly do. As a parting note, Jakob Nielsen

tells the story th at the presen t-d ay keyboard (and, for that m atter, the key pad o f the to u ch -d ia l p hones) was designed somewhat backwards. It seems that when typewriters were developing, a more useful keyboard than the p resen t Q W E R T Y w ould have allow ed o p e ra to rs to type in words so fast that the then mechnical keys would have regularly jam m ed. T o solve the problem , the Q W E R T Y layout was adopted. The other part of the story is the layout allow ed sales people to type the word “typewriter” using only the top row of keys on the typewriter. Try it. As for the touch phone keypad, th e ru m ou r is th a t w h en to u ch d ia llin g w as firs t in tro d u ce d th e switches in the phone network would never have been able to keep up if people could quickly dial in a num ber, so they designed the keypad to slow people down. M y sincere appreciation for the co o p e ra tio n and tim e o f all th o se involved in this story. © C I N E M A PAPERS • OCTOBER 1 9 95

con ’itt monthly july/august 1995 • volume 1 • number 6

►COMPUTER INTERFACE DESIGN The keyboard and, the key pad of the touch dial phones were designed to stop people typing or dialling too quickly. A more useful keyboard than the present QWERTY design would have allowed operators to type in words so fast, that the then mechanical keys would have regularly jammed. The touch phone keypad, was designed to stop people dialling faster than the then capacity of switches In the phone network could handle. Yet these are the way people access the information age. Addressing a conference last April, David Court editor o f the Content Newsletter gave his take on the future for new media. Court concluded that whatever format or delivery medium was used for new media, “we’ll all be watching screens o f some description”. The forecast is that 1.4 million computers will be sold in Australia this year. A Special Report on Technology in the Small Business Sector by Yellow Pages Australia stated that “nearly three-quarters [of small business] or 71 per cent have a desktop computer”. The Special Report went on to state “close to a third, 30 per cent, own a modem, 26 per cent have a computer equipped with a CD -RO M . drive and 7 1 per cent own a mobile phone”. Added to thi popularity for online services. These figures indicate that th television set and the home seriously challenged b1' telecommunicati (traditional! by the

contents: 1 computer interface design 4 multimedia 5 software 6 business television 7 wireless data 9 messaging 11 around the traps

CAMERAQXJIP (AUST) P.L. MOTION PICTURE EQUIPMENT RENTALS

N O W HAS AUSTRALIA’S FIRST

ARRIFLEX 535A CAMERA WITH ARRI TIMFCODF & COMPUTTR CON MOL AR R I

TIM EC O D E IS ALSO AVAILABLE W IT H ALL

434 CLARENDON ST, SOUTH MELBOURNE, VICTORIA 3205 PHO NE (03) 9699 3922 FAX (03) 9696 2564 77 D O G G E T T S T R E E T . F O R T I T U D E VALLEY. Q U E E N S L A N D 4006 P H O N E (07) 38 5 4 1919 F A X (07) 3 8 5 2 1814

A L S O IN AS IA : 340 K I N G G E O R G E S A V E S I N G A P O R E 0820 P H O N E [65] 291 7291 F A X [65] 293 2 14 1

F R A M E W O R K S N O W O F F E R S T R A C K L A Y IN G C o n t i n u i n g t o l e a d t h e w a y in n o n - l i n e a r t e c h n o l o g y , F r a m e w o r k s n o w p r o v i d e s full d i g i t a l n o n - l i n e a r s o u n d t r a c k la y in g .

We are the first facility in Australia to offer the new 24 track Avid Audio/Vision. Audio/Vision is totally compatible with our Avid Film Composers, including 44khz and 48khz digital audio sampling and digital non-linear picture. This allows us to take the audio and picture files directly from the picture cut. This avoids time consuming conforming from original DAT’s required with other systems. Likewise, Audio/Vision is the only track laying system using non-linear picture giving the sound editor the same speed and flexibility of the Avid Film Composers. Ring Stephen F. Smith a b ou t a picture and sound “package" f o r y o u r n e x t film.

S u ite 4 , 2 3 9 Pacific H ig h w a y , N o r t h S y d n e y 2 0 6 0 . P h o n e (0 2 ) 9 5 5 7 3 0 0 Fax (0 2 ) 9 5 4 0 1 7 5

CINEMA

P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

te ch n icalitie s

Watch what you’re doing, and panic early... Dominic Case looks at the highlights and issues o f the recent SMPTE Conference, while Benita Carey examines the changing rôle o f the assistant editor; S M P T E '95 Conference Signals a Move Back to Film D om inic Cade

s t r a t e D - V i s i o n n o n - l i n e a r e d it in g - a

D is k E d itin g sy ste m , an d th e d A V E d isc

W o r k fr o m b o th d ig ital sy stem s w as

c r e d i b l e l o w e r - c o s t a l t e r n a t i v e t o th e

r e c o r d e r . T h i s c le v e r a p p r o a c h a llo w s

s h o w n a t o n e o f th e s e m in a r s r u n d u r in g th e w e e k . E n title d “ F e a tu rin g D ig ita l

m o r e w e ll- e s ta b lis h e d A v id a n d L ig h t-

th e u ser to s ta r t e d itin g fr o m ta p e . R a w

w o rk s . A c o u p le o f b lo c k s a w a y , L e m a c

m a t e r ia l r e m a in s o n t a p e , a n d is o n ly

E ffe c ts o n F ilm ” , it b r o u g h t to g e th e r

d isp lay ed an A rri 3 5 3 c a m e ra fitte d w ith

t r a n s f e r r e d t o t h e h a r d d is c w h e n a n

su p p liers, an d o v e rse a s an d lo c a l e x p e rts

th e A a to n tim e c o d e sy s te m , th e T h o m

a sse m b ly e d it is m a d e . O n c e th e r e , o n e

to re v ie w th e fe a tu re s o f th e tw o p r in c i

so n 1 6 5 7 v id e o c a m e r a (s w itc h a b le

h a s all th e fin e c u ttin g fa c ilitie s o f c o n

p a l s y s te m s , a n d a ls o t o e x a m i n e t h e c h a lle n g e s p o se d in d e v e lo p in g a s tr o n g

b e tw e e n 1 6 x 9 an d 4 x 3 ) , as w ell as m u ch

v e n tio n a l n o n -lin e a r ed itin g , b u t th e disc

th is y e a r ’s

o th e r e q u ip m e n t in c lu d in g C in e m a

is n ’t fille d up w ith u n w a n te d tr im s .

e ffe c ts in d u stry in A u stra lia . T h e se ssio n

S M P T E e x h i b i t i o n ( D a r lin g H a r b o u r ,

P r o d u c t s ’ S t e a d ic a m s y s te m s , d e m o n

M u c h less d isc sto r a g e is n e e d e d .

w as c h a ir e d b y K o d a k ’s T im W a y g o o d ,

Ju ly ) m ig h t b e fo rg iv e n f o r th in k in g th a t

stra te d by C P ’s P ro d u c t M a n a g e r , Ja m e s

th e r o u t is n o w c o m p le te . N o th in g - b u t

L iv in g s to n .

F il m m a k e r s

a t t e n d in g

G r a p h ic s w o r k s ta tio n s

w h o n o te d th e g e n e r a tio n a l c h a n g e

a b o u n d e d , ru n n in g a ra n g e o f so ftw a re

b e tw e e n th e e x p e r ie n c e d o p tic a l p r in t

S ilic o n

n o t h in g - w ith s p r o c k e t s w a s o n s h o w

e rs in th e la b s , a n d th e m u c h y o u n g e r

t h is t im e . B u t t a p e o p e r a t o r s h a v e n o

a rtists u sin g c o m p u te r g ra p h ic s. W o u ld

n e e d t o b e c o m p l a c e n t e i t h e r , as t h e

th e b u r g e o n in g A u s tr a lia n in d u s tr y b e

m o s t n o t ic e a b le t r e n d w a s th e n u m b e r

ab le to a ffo rd fo r th is n e x t g e n e r a tio n to

o f d is c -b a s e d e d itin g a n d c o m p u te r -

a c h ie v e th e sa m e d e p th o f e x p e r ie n c e as

e ffe c ts sy ste m s.

th e ir p re d e c e s so r s?

A lth o u g h film e q u ip m e n t w a s n ’t to

D a le D u gu id fro m P h o to n S to c k m a n

b e s e e n , th e r e w a s p le n ty o f in t e r e s t in

(w h o se p a p e r , “ T h e D ig ita l F r e ig h t

Cinema Papers, n o .

film a t th e c o n c u r r e n t c o n f e r e n c e . S ix

T r a i n ” , a p p e a r e d in

h a lf-d a y s e m in a r s (in ste a d o f th e tr a d i

1 0 4 ) o b s e r v e d t h a t A u s tr a lia ’s fla ir f o r

t i o n a l in d iv id u a l p a p e r s ) d e a lt w ith a

in n o v a tio n an d im p ro v isa tio n h a d le d to

s e le c tio n o f to p ic a l q u e s tio n s : th e t e c h

a p rid e in a c h ie v in g sp e c ifie d sta n d a rd s

n o lo g y

b e in g

u sed

fo r

P a y -T V ;

f o r th e m in im u m c o s t o r e f f o r t - b u t,

d e v e lo p m e n t s in v id e o f ile s e r v e r s f o r

p erv ersely , th e a ch ie v e m e n t n e v e r so ared

te le v isio n sta tio n s; c o m p re ssio n an d m u l

beyond

tim e d ia

s t r e s s e d t h a t e f f e c t s s h o u ld b e d e t e r

(th e

u b iq u ito u s

M P E G 2 );

t h a t m in im u m

e ith e r .

m in e d b y t h e “ D ’ a r t i s t ” , n o t b y t h e

w id e s c re e n te le v is io n (h e re th e in te rfa c e

h a r d w a re , an d a d v ised th e m to v a ry th e

w ith film b e c o m e s c r u c ia l, as te le v is io n

t e c h n iq u e s u se d f r o m s c e n e to s c e n e -

p ro g ra m m e -m a k e rs b e c o m e a w a re o f th e

lik e c o n ju r e r s - to a v o id u sin g th e sa m e

ad v a n ta g e s an d d isa d v a n ta g es o f th e d if

tric k to o o fte n . D u g u id n o te d th a t n early

f e r e n t s c r e e n s h a p e s f ilm m a k e r s h a v e

all th e w o r k d o n e by P h o t o n S t o c k m a n

w o r k e d w ith f o r 4 0 y e a r s ) ; t h e issu e s

w a s f o r c o - o r U .S . p r o d u c t i o n s , a n d

s u r r o u n d in g n o n - lin e a r e d itin g ; an d

u rg ed lo c a l p ro d u c e r s to g rasp th e t e c h

h ig h - r e s o lu t io n d ig ita l e f f e c t s f o r film .

n o lo g y n o w . H e p o in te d o u t t h a t th e r e

T h e r e w e r e r e c o r d a t te n d a n c e s a t e a c h

w a s s c o p e f o r d ig ita l w o r k in a n y film ,

s e m in a r , w ith m o r e th a n 3 0 0 d e le g a te s

an d c o u n te r e d th e c o m m o n r e s p o n s e :

re g is te r in g f o r m o s t se ssio n s. B u t w h a t a b o u t th e h a r d w a re ?

‘B u t th e re are n o sp acesh ip s in m y p ic

K o d a k ’s a b se n ce fro m th e e x h ib itio n last

tu r e : i t ’s n o t an e f fe c ts m o v ie , i t ’s

y e a r s e e m s t o h a v e s e n t a s tr o n g sig n a l

a b o u t a su b u rb a n c o u p le in F r a n k s to n

t h a t A u s t r a li a ’s f u t u r e w a s n o t in film

c o p in g w ith a p r o s t r a t e p r o b l e m .’

(su re ly n o t w h a t w e n o r m a lly h e a r fr o m

B a c k a t t h e m a in s h o w in D a r li n g

a t C o m p u t e r E f f e c t s , D i g ita l M a s t e r s ,

T h i n k ag ain . W a t c h th e cre d its o n th e

K o d a k ), b u t th e re a l re a s o n w as th a t,

H a r b o u r , th e e x h ib itio n , a lth o u g h

F u tu r e R e a lity , I S M T a n d V is u a lis a tio n

n e x t su b u rb a n c o u p le p ic tu r e y o u see

in v ie w o f th e p la n n e d sm a lle r size o f th e

sm a lle r th a n b e fo r e , w a sn ’t s h o r t o f n e w

S o lu tio n s , as w ell as S ilic o n S tu d io s. T h e

fr o m o v e rse a s. In c re a sin g ly , th e r e a re

1 9 9 5 s h o w , th e tw o m a jo r film e q u ip

p ro d u c ts . A v id A u s tr a lia la u n c h e d its e lf

o t h e r b ig k id s o n th e d ig ita l b lo c k ,

c r e d i t s f o r d i g i t a l e f f e c t s a r t i s t s in

m ent

w ith a d e m o n s tr a tio n o f its la te s t M e d ia

K o d a k a n d Q u a n te l, b o th to o k th e

S a m m y ’s/ B a rry ’s a n d L e m a c - d e c id e d

8 0 0 0 s y s te m , fe a tu r in g c o lo u r g ra d in g

o p p o r t u n ity o f S M P T E to a n n o u n c e a

P e te r D o y le , c u r r e n tly w ith A rr i D ig ita l F i lm in G e r m a n y ( th e f i r s t E u r o p e a n

e x h ib ito r s

fro m

la s t

year

e v e ry th in g .

t o s ta g e t h e i r o w n m i n i - e x h i b i t s e l s e

a n d p o w e r fu l 3 D g r a p h ic s a n d e ffe c ts .

m a jo r in s ta lla tio n in S y d n e y . F ilm r e s o

w h e re . E a c h staged a n “ a t-h o m e ” a t th e ir

Y e s , th is is a n o n - l i n e a r e d it o r ! O t h e r

lu tio n

im a g e

C i n e s i t e ) , h a s w o r k e d in A u s t r a li a a t

resp ectiv e w a reh o u ses acro ss th e h a rb o u r

stan d s w e re fu ll o f n o n -lin e a r ed itin g sys

m a n ip u la tio n an d film re c o rd in g is c o m

A A V an d d ev elo p ed C in e o n w ith K o d a k .

in A r ta r m o n .

H e sp o k e o f th e d iffe r e n c e s b e tw e e n

d ig ita l

s c a n n in g ,

t e m s - th e y s e e m t o h a v e b e c o m e th e

in g s o o n to a site n e a r y o u , w ith A n im a l

J o h n B a r r y ’s s h o w e d th e la te s t A rri

w o r d p r o c e s s o r s o f th e p o s t-p r o d u c tio n

L o g i c o p tin g f o r th e Q u a n t e l D o m in o

e ffe c ts fo r te le v is io n c o m m e rc ia ls, w h e re

lig h tin g , w ith u n its up t o 2 0 k W , as w e ll

b u sin e s s. B r id g in g th e g ap b e tw e e n lin

(D ig ital O p tica ls fo r M o v ie s) sy stem , an d

s p e e d is e s s e n t ia l, b u t f a s t c u t t i n g a n d

as its r a n g e o f tr ip o d s , le n s e s , b a tte r ie s

e a r a n d n o n - lin e a r - a n d fly in g th e

th e K o d a k C in e o n sy ste m b e in g c h o s e n

t e le v is io n r e s o lu t io n h id e a l o t , a n d

... a n d A rri c a m e r a s , o f c o u r s e . A P A

A u s tr a lia n fla g - w a s D ig ite y e s w ith its

f o r a jo i n t v e n tu r e b e tw e e n A t la b a n d

e ffe c ts f o r fe a tu re film s, w h e r e th e a u d i

P ro d u c tio n s w as also o n h a n d to d e m o n

h y b rid S h o tlis te r N o n -L in e a r , D ir e c t-to -

A c m e P h o to V id e o .

e n c e d o e s n ’t c a r e h o w l o n g th e e f f e c t

CINEMA

P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

tech n icalities

s tro n g ’s

Little Women ( 1 9 9 4 ) a n d fo r Babe - the Gallant Pig.

t o o k t o r e n d e r as lo n g as it w o r k s . H e

a n d 3 D p a i n t i n g . H e a ls o d e a lt w ith

T h e C i n e o n s y s te m o u t p u t s o n t o

a ls o h i g h li g h t e d t h e i m p o r t a n c e o f a

t e c h n i q u e s o f m o t io n c a p t u r e , w h e r e

K o d a k in te r m e d ia te 5 2 4 4 film , u n lik e

C h ris N o o n a n ’s

b r o a d p e r s p e c t i v e o n t e c h n i q u e s . In

a c t o r s ’ m o v e m e n ts c a n b e r e c o r d e d as

th e o th e r system s w h ich use c a m e ra n e g

N a lb a n d ia n e x p la in e d th a t, f o r th is type

re m o v in g a s c r a tc h , fo r e x a m p le , a c o n

a serie s o f w h ite d o ts a tta c h e d to k n e e s ,

a tiv e , u su a lly fin e -g r a in e d 5 2 4 5 . S o m e

o f w o r k , d ig ita l t e c h n iq u e s w e r e c o m

v e n tio n a l v id e o h o u se w o u ld g o stra ig h t

a n k le s , t o e s , e t c ., a n d th e m o v e m e n ts

c r itic s h a v e c o m p la in e d t h a t th is a u to

b in e d w ith t r a d it io n a l o p tic a l p r in tin g

to a d ig ita l t r a n s fe r a n d s t a r t p a in tin g

th e n fo llo w e d e x a c tly b y d ig itally -d raw n

m a tic a lly in tr o d u c e s a “ d u p e ” l o o k to

m e th o d s w h erev er e a ch w as ap p rop riate.

o u t th e s c r a tc h fra m e b y fr a m e . A b e t

c h a r a c te r s . T h is sp e e d s up th e p r o c e s s

all e ffe c ts s h o ts, b u t K e n n e l ra n a c o m

t e r a p p r o a c h w o u ld b e f o r a f il m

a n d a llo w s f o r v e ry su b tle a n d p r e c is e

p a ris o n d e m o n s tra tio n , sh o w in g ty p ical

lig h te d th e d iffic u ltie s fa c e d b y th e lo cal

te c h n ic ia n to e x a m in e th e s c r a tc h :

m o v e m e n ts , as w e ll as fo r th e p o s s ib il

K o d a k te s t s c e n e s an d c o lo u r c h a rts

in d u stry. T h is p ro d u c tio n in clu d es m o re

m a y b e a re w a sh o r a w e t-g a te p rin t

ity o f a p p ly in g d i f f e r e n t t a k e s t o t h e

o n o r i g i n a l n e g a t i v e a n d t h e n v ia

d ig ita l-e ffe c ts w o r k th a n a n y o th e r film

w o u ld re m o v e o r re d u c e th e s c r a tc h , o r

d ig ita l im a g es.

C in e o n . E x c e p t fo r a v e ry slig h t d iffe r

p ro d u c e d in A u stra lia (th e c r e w ’s w o r k in g title w a s said to b e “Ju r a s s ic P o r k ”),

O n c e a g a in , s c r e e n i n g

Babe h ig h

it c o u ld b e p o lish e d o u t. T h e lo w e r-c o s t

K o d a k ’s G le n n K e n n e l, a p rin c ip a l

e n c e in so m e d a rk g re e n to n e s , I fo u n d

so lu tio n s are p ro b a b ly m o re sa tisfa cto ry ,

a r c h ite c t o f C in e o n , w as o n n e x t. H e

it v e ry d if f ic u lt to p ic k th e p o in t at

an d y e t o n ly th e m a in title w a s d o n e in

b u t th e v id e o h o u s e - la c k in g its o w n

e x p la in e d s o m e o f th e f e a tu r e s o f th e

w h ic h th e C in e o n o u tp u t n e g a tiv e w as

A u s tr a lia , o t h e r w o r k g o in g t o R y th m

sp lic e d o n to th e ra w o r ig in a l.

& H u e s in th e U n ite d S ta te s.

f il m e q u i p m e n t a n d t e c h n i c i a n s - is

C i n e o n p r o c e s s , a r g u in g t h a t , d e s p ite

b o u n d t o p r o m o t e th e te c h n iq u e s a n d

D a le D u g u id ’s c o m m e n ts a b o u t c o n ju r

T h e last sp e a k e r w as Z a r e h N a lb a n -

A d is c u ss io n fo llo w e d th e p re s e n ta

e q u ip m e n t th a t it has av ailab le in -h o u se.

e r s , d ig ita l e f f e c t s a r e n o t m a g ic , b u t

d ian , D ir e c to r o f A n im al L o g ic an d also

tio n s , m o d e ra te d b y p r o d u c e r and

D o y le s h o w e d a s u p e r b c lip - a

h a rd w o r k . F ilm im a g e s a re sc a n n e d in

o f A n im al L o g ic R e se a rc h , w h o se E d d ie

e f fe c ts s p e c ia lis t A n d r e w M a s o n . P r o

se n s u a l p r im a l s c r e a m

(to a r e s o lu t io n o f 4 K , a n d t e n - b it lo g

s o ftw a r e is a c k n o w le d g e d to b e o n e o f

d u ce r S a n d ra A le x a n d e r a sk ed a b o u t th e

s e q u e n c e fro m an u n n a m e d G e rm a n

to n e d e p th ) u sin g th e G e n e s is o r L ig h t

th e w o rld ’s prin cipal 3 D an im atio n tools.

r e la tio n s h ip b e tw e e n th e p r o d u c e r an d

fe a tu re film - w h ic h also u n d e rlin e d th e

n in g film scan n ers. Im ag e p ro cessin g can

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th e d ig ita l e ffe c ts te a m . W h o m sh o u ld

p o w e r o f a s t r o n g s o u n d t r a c k ( w it h

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p le n ty o f use o f th e s u rro u n d tra c k ) in

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a c h ie v in g a d r a m a t ic e f f e c t . T h i s w a s

re la tiv e ly q u ic k ly fo r a p p ro v a l p r io r to

a n n o u n c e d t h a t A n im a l L o g i c w a s to

s i t u a t i o n in t h e U . S . , w h e r e e f f e c t s

fo llo w e d b y a p r e s e n ta tio n by S te v e

re n d e rin g a t fu ll 4 K re s o lu tio n an d fin al

install a D o m in o system . T w o clip s w ere

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c o m p o s itin g .

sh o w n : th e m a in title s fo r G illia n A r m

e f fe c tiv e ly b e c a m e th e e f fe c ts su p e rv i-

g o th ic an d

in S y d n e y , w h o

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e ffe c ts ,

e x p la in e d h is c o m p a n y ’ s a p p r o a c h to so ftw a re d esig n a n d a p p lic a tio n , h a v in g p ro d u c e d d ig ital e ffe c ts fo r a n u m b e r o f r e c e n t A u stra lia n fea tu res, m o st re c e n tly

Billy’s Holiday ( R i c h a r d W h e r r e t t ) . R o b e r ts ra n a clip fro m a K ello g g s c o m m e rc ia l. P e te r O w e n , a d ir e c to r o f Q u a n te l, e x p la in e d th e te c h n ic a l c o n fig u ra tio n o f th e D o m in o sy ste m , c la im in g 6 K r e s o lu tio n ( 6 1 4 4 p ix e ls fro m sid e to sid e) at th e in p u t s c a n n in g s ta g e . H e n o te d , h o w e v e r , t h a t r e s o l u t i o n w a s o n ly as e ffe c tiv e as th e o rig in a l so u rc e m a te ria l, a n d , w h ile a s ta tic r e s o lu tio n c h a r t m a y d e m a n d th e fu ll r e s o lu t io n o f th e sy s te m - a m assiv e lo a d o n sc a n n in g tim e , p ro c e ssin g tim e an d d ata sto ra g e - sh o ts w ith c a m e ra o r im a g e m o v e m e n t, o r o n c o a r s e r -g r a in e d sto c k s , fre q u e n tly c o n ta in e d

in fo r m a tio n

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th a n

o r d in a r y te le v is io n r e s o lu tio n . A fte r a d e m o n s tr a tio n o f so m e sh o ts fr o m v a r i o u s u s e r s o f t h e s y s t e m , in w h i c h “b e fo r e ” a n d “ a fte r” sec tio n s w ere in te r c u t an d sh o w e d e x c e lle n t m a tc h in g , O w e n sh o w ed a reel o f re sto ra tio n w o rk p ro d u c e d fo r th e “ B A FT A / T A - 1 0 0 y ea rs o f B r itis h C in e m a ” p r e s e n ta tio n . T h i s t ig h t l y - c u t c o ll a g e o f h i g h lig h t s f r o m th e B r i t i s h film in d u s tr y - f r o m

Henry V (L a u re n c e O liv ie r , 1 9 4 5 ) a n d The Dam Busters ( M ic h a e l A n d e r s o n , 1 9 5 4 ) to Chariots o f Fire (H u g h H u d s o n , 1 9 8 1 ) and A Fish Called Wanda ( C h a r le s C r i c h t o n , 1 9 8 8 ) - r e q u i r e d n o th in g m o r e th a n c o lo u r r e s to r a tio n , d e s c r a tc h in g a n d d ir t re m o v a l, b u t th is resu lted in “ n e w p rin t” q u a lity th ro u g h o u t - a c o n s i d e r a b l e e n h a n c e m e n t to v ie w in g . T h e n e x t lo c a l sp e a k e r, Ia n J o h n s o n o f C o n ja , lis te d s o m e o f th e r e c e n t a d v a n c e s m a d e b y h is c o m p a n y : t e c h n iq u e s o f m o rp h in g , im a g e s ta b iliz a tio n

CINEMA

P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

s o r s f o r a p r o d u c t i o n , w i t h t h a t in

th e s c r ip t w a s n e e d e d b e tw e e n th e p r o

Non-linear editing, the solution — or the problem

E u r o p e , w h e r e h e sa id t h a t p r o d u c e r s w e r e m u c h le s s a w a r e o f w h a t e f f e c t s w e re p o s s ib le , a n d m u c h m o r e w o r k o n

d u cer and th e e ffe c ts h o u se . A n d rew

T h ere

M a s o n w a r n e d a g a in s t a llo w in g “ o n e -

a b o u t “ t h e w a y p o s t - p r o d u c t i o n is

are ev er - in creasing c o n c e r n s

s t o p - s h o p ” t e c h n iq u e s to d e v e lo p ,

g o in g ” - e n o u g h t o p r o m p t e d ito r s to

p r e fe r r in g to b e m o r e fle x ib le a n d u se a

d r a w th e w a g o n s up i n t o a c i r c l e a n d

ra n g e o f te c h n iq u e s . Z a r e h N a lb a n d ia n

fo rm a g u ild . I t ’s n o t o fte n , th o u g h , th a t

o b se r v e d th e c o m m o n r e q u e s t: “ I w a n t

th e sp e c ific c o n c e r n s o f th e

a to ta lly o r ig in a l e f fe c t th a t n o o n e ’s

to rs a re co n sid e re d . E d ito r B e n ita C arey,

assistant e d i

d o n e b e f o r e , a n d I ’ d lik e t o s e e it o n

d ra w in g o n lo n g e x p e r ie n c e as an assis

y o u r s h o w re e l so I k n o w y o u c a n d o i t .”

t a n t , p r e s e n te d th e f o llo w in g p a p e r at

In g e n e r a l , t h e r e w a s a g r e e m e n t t h a t

th e n o n - l i n e a r s e m in a r a t th e S M P T E

“ o u r p r o d u c e r s w ill t a lk t o y o u r p r o

co n fe re n ce .

d u c e r s ” , a n d t h a t c o n s u l t a t i o n h a d to s ta r t a t th e s c r ip t sta g e. T h e la s t w o r d a lso c a m e f r o m N a l b a n d ia n , a n d m a y se r v e as a s u m m a ry

S o m e h a n d y h i n t s f o r t h o s e a s p i r in g a ss is ta n t e d ito r s w h e n le a rn in g o n film : 1 D o n ’t s c r a tc h th e film ;

o f th e c u rre n t c o n c e r n s a b o u t th is w h o le area o f film w o rk . In re sp o n se to a q u es t i o n a b o u t d e a d l i n e s , h e s a i d : “Y o u

2 D o n ’t le t th e film u n s p o o l o f f th e c o re ; and

alw ays d e liv e r o n tim e . T h e clu e s a re to

3 L a b e l p ic tu re ro lls w ith a b lu e te x ta

w a t c h w h a t y o u ’ r e d o i n g , a n d p a n ic

a n d so u n d ro lls w ith a re d o n e .

e a r ly .”

S o m e h a n d y h i n t s f o r t h o s e a s p i r in g a s s is ta n t e d ito r s w h e n le a r n in g o n [an

e n ti r e l y d if f e r e n t , w ith d if f e r e n t g e a r

w ith t h e e d it o r , b u t o f t e n w i th o t h e r

A v id ] n o n - lin e a r sy stem :

a n d d if f e r e n t w o r k p a t h s . T h e c o n d i

p r o d u c tio n s . T h is le a d s to p o ssib le p e r

t io n s o f a jo b o f t e n c o m e d o w n to

m a n e n t n i g h t - s h i f t jo b s ( w h e r e t h e r e

1 I f y o u h a v e u sed y o u r p r o je c ts b in s e ttin g t o s e le c t d o u b le c lic k in g a

w h o m y o u a re w o r k in g w ith an d fo r .

clip to lo a d it in to th e so u rc e m o n ito r,

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n ig h t tr y in g t o s o lv e a p r o b l e m ) . T h e

b y h o ld in g d o w n th e

a n d n o n - l i n e a r d a y s. I k n o w t h a t o u r

p h y sica l, p s y c h o lo g ic a l an d so c ia l r e p e r

o p tio n k e y w h ile d o u b le c lic k in g ;

film d a y s a r e n u m b e r e d a n d n o n - l i n

c u s s io n s h e r e a re e n o r m o u s , n o t to

e a r is h e r e to sta y , b u t th e d if f e r e n c e s

m e n t io n w h a t it h a s d o n e to th e tr a d i

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b e tw e e n th e tw o are larg ely th e cau se o f

tio n a l e d ito r-a ssista n t e d ito r re la tio n sh ip

o u r “ g r a p p lin g ” - a n d t h e r e f o r e th e s e

- b u t so f a r e m p l o y e r s d o n ’t s e e m t o

c o m p a r is o n s sh o u ld b e d iscu ssed .

h a v e a p r o b le m w ith it!

F ir s t an d fo r e m o s t, th e r e is th e r e la tio n s h ip b e tw e e n e d ito r an d assista n t. In t h e “ o ld d a y s ” , w e a s s is te d a n

to , b u t, if w e w a n te d to w o r k n ig h t sh ift,

a n y p o i n t , y o u r n e g a t iv e m a y b e

e d ito r w h o h a d a th o r o u g h k n o w le d g e

w e c o u ld h a v e c h o s e n to b e s e c u rity

c u t in th e w r o n g p la c e .

o f th e jo b . W e w e r e d o in g as th e y t o o

g u a rd s w h e re a t le a s t w e ’ d h a v e a

A n d t h o s e h a n d y little h in ts d o n ’t ju s t

h a d d o n e in th e p a st. In th e s e “ n o n - lin

w eapon.

s t o p t h e r e . . . W e s p e n d a n a w fu l l o t

e a r d a y s ” , th e e d ito r h a s v e ry little

W h e n r e s e a r c h in g t h is , I s p o k e to

o f tim e r e a d in g m a n u a ls !!

k n o w le d g e o f th e jo b d o n e b y th e assis

o n e e d it o r w h o h a d a s s is ta n ts w h o

A t th is p o in t, b e fo r e e v e r y o n e g ets

ta n t (e v e n th o u g h th e y v e ry o fte n sh a re

w o r k e d o n ly o n th e n ig h t sh ift. H e to ld

m e w ro n g , I sh o u ld say th a t I ab so lu tely

e x a c t ly th e sa m e p ie c e o f e q u ip m e n t),

m e h o w in c r e a s in g ly b it t e r th e y h a d

love A v id ! B u t th a t is b e c a u se th e jo b o n

and

becom e.

w h ic h I a m c u rre n tly e m p lo y e d involv es

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The training aspect O n n o n - l i n e a r s y s te m s , a s s is ta n t s a r e

a lw a y s lo v e d A v id , I ju s t h a v e n ’t re a lly

th e y d id in th e p a st, a n d is h a p p y to g o

o f t e n s h o v e d in a n d t o ld “ H e r e , le a r n

lo v e d th e w a y I ’ve h a d to w o r k o n it!

w ith s o m e o n e w h o w ill

just k e e p th e

t h is ” , a n d g iv e n e n o r m o u s r e s p o n s ib il

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c o m p u te r r u n n in g s m o o th ly . ( T h a t is,

itie s

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o f c o u r s e , if th e y g e t t o c h o o s e an assis

n e v e r - e n d in g s o f t w a r e a n d h a r d w a r e

s o u g h t in a p u b lic f o r u m , a n d f o r th is

t a n t , as m a n y f a c i l i t i e s h a v e o n - s t a f f

u p d a te s, s o m e th in g is a lw a y s c h a n g in g ,

r e a s o n I h a v e s p o k e n t o m a n y a ss is ta n t

a s s is ta n t e d it o r s , r e n d e r in g th e o ld

a n d th e se t-u p is d iffe r e n t o n e v e ry jo b .

e d ito r s - a ll w ith q u ite d if f e r e n t b a c k

“ lo n g -t e r m , b u ilt-u p r e la t io n s h ip ”

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g r o u n d s , b u t a ll n o w

b e tw e e n e d ito r a n d a ss is ta n t a th in g o f

t a k e s ” - a n d i n t h e n o n - l i n e a r w o r ld

th e p a st.)

t h a t is sca ry !

w o r k in g

w ith

little

e x p e r ie n c e .

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r e s e a r c h h a s s h o w n t o b e s u r p r is in g ly

T h is h a s re p e rc u s sio n s f o r th e assis

F o r t h o s e o f us f r o m film tr a in in g ,

c o n s is te n t th r o u g h o u t, w ith stro n g fe e l

ta n t e d ito r , t o o . In th e p a st, w e lo o k e d

th is is v e ry d iffe r e n t. W e le a r n t o u r a r t

in g e x p r e s s e d b y a ll a s s is t a n t e d it o r s

to th e e d it o r f o r a d v ic e a n d h e lp , a n d

o f film -h a n d lin g th o ro u g h ly an d w o rk e d

w ith w h o m I s p o k e . [...]

w h o m d o w e tu r n to n o w ?

T h e ro le o f th e assistan t e d ito r is n o t

P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

W e h av e alw ays w o rk e d lo n g h o u rs a n d in to th e n ig h t w h e n w e ’v e n e e d e d

3 I f y o u s h o u ld m a k e a m is t a k e a t

a s s is ta n ts o n n o n - l i n e a r s y s te m s . T h i s

CINEMA

m ay be n o te c h n ic a l su p p o r t, so y o u

U n fo r tu n a te ly , I w ill h a v e to m a k e

o u r w a y up to it, a n d th e p e o p le w e w e re w o r k in g w ith h a d th e a n s w e rs

ju s t c h a n g in g o r e v o lv in g , it is e n tir e ly

A Hard Day's Night

d iffe r e n t. It is h a r d to say ju s t h o w d if

T h e g e n e r a l r u n n in g a n d e x p e n s e o f

T h is n e x t p o in t is a little s u b je c tiv e ,

f e r e n t a n d it is d iffic u lt to m a k e b la n k e t

n o n - lin e a r s y s te m s m e a n s th a t v e ry

b e c a u s e it s till d e p e n d s la r g e ly o n th e

s t a t e m e n t s , a s n o w a d a y s e v e r y j o b is

o f t e n y o u a r e s h a r i n g g e a r , n o t o n ly

re la tio n sh ip b e tw e e n assistan t e d ito r an d

th r o u g h t h e ir o w n e x p e r ie n c e .

te c h n ic a litie s

e d i t o r , b u t a ll a s s i s t a n t s I s p o k e t o e x p r e s s e d th e f o llo w in g : T h e r e ’s n o t m u c h tim e s p e n t w ith th e e d ito r , o f te n d u e to n ig h t s h ifts o r w o rk in g o n d iffe r e n t g e a r - w h e n sy n ch in g , fo r in s ta n c e - in an e n tire ly d if f e r e n t r o o m . A s a re s u lt, t h e r e is little o r n o le a r n in g o f th e c r a f t o f e d itin g , a n d little c o ll a b o r a t i o n o n th e c u t. I n d e e d , m a n y sa id t h a t th e f ir s t t im e th e y sa w th e c u t w a s w h e n th e y w e re d o in g th e a u to a s s e m b ly !

Do-it-yourself editing O f c o u r s e , if y o u

can g e t o n t o th e n o n

lin e a r

(e v e n

s y s te m

th o u g h

p r o b a b ly 3 a m a n d y o u ’ve b e e n s ta r in g at k ey b o a rd s and screen s fo r h o u rs), y o u c a n a lw a y s c u t y o u r o w n v e r s io n w i t h o u t u p s e t tin g a n y t h in g th e e d it o r has d o n e. N o o n e I sp o k e to has m a n a g e d t o d o m u c h o f th is. A t p r e s e n t , a lth o u g h I ’ m s u r e th is w ill c h a n g e in t im e , w e s e e m t o h a v e t w o t y p e s o f a s s i s t a n t e d i t o r in t h e in d u s try . T h e r e is a f e e lin g t h a t m a n y o f th e a s s is ta n t e d it o r s e m p lo y e d o n n o n - l i n e a r s y s te m s h a v e a s o lid c o m p u te r b a c k g r o u n d b u t la c k a t h o r o u g h k n o w l e d g e o f th e s h o o t, film , n e g a tiv e , p r o c e s s i n g , c r e w p o l i t i c s , la b l ia i s o n , a n d in t e r - r e l a t io n s h i p s b e tw e e n d ir e c t o r , e d it o r , p r o d u c e r , a n d o t h e r c r e w m e m b e r s - a k n o w le d g e t h a t w a s b u ilt u p in th e p a s t o v e r y e a rs o f tr a in in g .

"O n som e productions, the assistant editor m ay be the only one to vie w rushes on an SP beta tape, w hile the crew m ay vie w V H S dubs, and the editor sees only the digitized picture."

T h e s e a s s is ta n ts fin d th is f r u s t r a t

th e a ss is ta n t.

Lastly, the economic factor N o n - lin e a r e d itin g s y s te m s r e q u ir e fe w e r a ss is ta n ts . O n f e a tu r e s w h ic h m ig h t h a v e h a d t w o o r t h r e e a s s is ta n ts o r m o r e , t h e r e is n o w o n e . I n a c o m m e r c i a l p o s t - p r o d u c tio n h o u s e w h e r e I w o r k e d a fe w y e a rs a g o , th e r e w e r e th r e e e d ito r s , fo u r S te e n b e c k s a n d f o u r a ss is ta n ts - a n d w e w e r e fla t o u t. T h e sa m e c o m p a n y to d a y h a s t h r e e e d it o r s a n d t h r e e n o n - l i n e a r

in g , n o t t o m e n t i o n w h i c h e v e r o t h e r

p e o p le w h o g e t to v ie w r u s h e s o f a n y

w o r k in g to t ig h te r s c h e d u le s o n e q u ip

p a r tie s m a y b e in v o lv e d . D e s p ite th e ir

a c c e p t a b le q u a lity h a s b e e n g r e a tly

m e n t w h ic h th e y fe e l b o u n d to sit a t fo r

A n d w ith th e a d v e n t o f t e le c in e -

t e c h n ic a l b a c k g r o u n d s , th e s e a s s is ta n ts

re d u c e d .

m a x im u m tim e , an d a re t h e r e fo r e re lu c

s y n c h in g sy stem s b e in g u se d m o r e o fte n

ta n t to

s y s te m s.

a re f la t o u t le a r n in g th e e v e r -c h a n g in g

O n s o m e p r o d u c tio n s , th e a ss is ta n t

d e a l w ith p h o n e c a lls a n d

f o r n o n - lin e a r s y s te m s, w e w ill n e e d n o

u p d a te s a n d n e w p ie c e s o f e q u ip m e n t -

e d i t o r m a y b e t h e o n l y o n e t o view -

c o n v e r s a tio n s th e y m a y h a v e d e a lt w ith

s y n c h in g a s s is ta n t . W i l l a ll s y n c h e n d

o f t e n l e a r n in g a t n ig h t - a n d h a v e l i t

ru s h e s o n an SP b e ta ta p e , w h ile th e

in th e p a st.

u p l o o k i n g lik e it d o e s in th e c o m m e r

tle o p p o r t u n ity to b r u s h up o n th e

c r e w m a y v ie w V H S d u b s , a n d th e e d i

a f o r e m e n tio n e d c o n v e n tio n a l a sp e c ts .

t o r se e s o n ly th e d ig itiz e d p ic tu r e .

O f c o u r s e , t h e s e a s s is ta n ts a r e th e

T h is

m e a n s th a t an

en o rm o u s

c u r r e n tly - p r e f e r r e d e m p lo y e e s , as th e y

r e s p o n s i b i l i t y f a ll s o n t h e a s s i s t a n t ’ s

c a n o f f e r e x c e ll e n t t e c h n i c a l a n d lo g is

s h o u ld e r s to s p o t a n y p r o b le m s w h ic h

tic a l s u p p o r t to e d ito r s w h o a re n e rv o u s

m a y h a v e o c c u r r e d o n th e s h o o t, a t th e

T h e a d d e d r e s p o n s ib ility f o r s o m e

c ia ls w e a r e s e e in g o n a ir a t p r e s e n t?

o n e w h o m a y n o t b e v e ry e x p e r ie n c e d

A c t u a l l y , t h e r e is o n e o t h e r p o i n t

co u ld hav e n egativ e rep ercu ssion s in p ro

w e w o u ld a ll lik e t o m a k e a b o u t n o n

d u c tio n , p o s t-p r o d u c tio n a n d b u d g e t.

lin e a r s y s te m s : N o

Then we come to EDLs a s s i s t a n t e d i t o r is v e r y

Trims!

T h e r e is little d o u b t a t th e m o m e n t, f o r a s s is ta n t e d ito r s - t h a t is, t h o s e w h o

e n o u g h w ith t h e ir o w n le a r n in g c u rv e .

la b , o r a t t e le c in e , a n d , o n c e a g a in , th e

The

T h e “ o l d ” a s s is ta n ts , o n t h e o t h e r

a s s is ta n t m a y n o t h a v e th e e x p e r i e n c e

r e s p o n s ib le f o r th e E D L s t o b e g e n e r

sh ip to le a r n th e c r a f t o f p ic tu r e e d itin g

to s p o t th e s e .

a te d a t th e e n d o f th e fin e c u t - t h a t

- n o n - l i n e a r e d i t i n g s y s te m s a r e p r e

h a n d , a re fin d in g a c c e s s t o th e n o n - l i n

o fte n

w a n t to t a k e o n a c r e a tiv e a p p r e n t i c e

e a r w o rld e x tr e m e ly d iffic u lt. T h is ,

N o w , I k n o w th a t so m e p ro d u c

is, n o t o n ly th e E D L s f o r s o u n d e d ito r s ,

s e n tin g m o r e p r o b le m s t h a n s o lu t io n s .

o n c e a g a in , is p a rtly d u e to th e f a c t th a t

tio n s a re s c r e e n in g w o r k p r in t ru sh e s

b u t a ls o th e E D L s f o r n e g c u ttin g

S o m e o f th e s e a re c e r ta in ly s h o r t - t e r m

s o m e n o n -lin e a r fa c ilitie s h a v e a ssista n ts

e v e n t h o u g h th e y a r e c u tt i n g n o n - l i n

and/or th e o n -lin e . L a r g e r b u d g e t film s,

t r a n s itio n a l o n e s , b u t o t h e r s a r e n o t .

o n sta ff. A s a re s u lt, th e “ o ld ” a ssista n ts

e a r , a n d o t h e r s h a v e c o ll e c t i v e r u s h e s

I k n o w , a re p o s - c o n f o r m in g , b u t s o m e

a re p r e p a r e d to a c c e p t jo b s in le ss-th a n -

sc r e e n in g s o n a n S P , b u t th is is n o t n e c

p r o d u c t io n s a re s till d ir e c tly c u ttin g

o f to d a y

f a v o u r a b l e c o n d it i o n s ju s t to g e t a b it

e s s a r ily th e n o r m . I t s e e m s t o b e v e r y

n e g a t iv e t o t h e f r a m e f r o m t h is E D L .

b e c o m e e d it o r s , o r w ill t h e y b e a n e w

c o n v e n ie n t to v ie w ru s h e s a t h o m e o n

G o d f o r b id i f s o m e t h in g g o e s w r o n g !

b r e e d o f e m p lo y e e s i n t e r e s te d in c o m

o f t r a in in g !

Changing responsibilities

A re th e n o n - l i n e a r a s s is ta n t e d ito r s and

to m o rr o w

g o in g

E v e n if t h e p r o d u c t i o n is n o t c u t

p u te r s r a t h e r t h a n c r e a tiv e film m a k in g ,

T h e r e a lso se e m s to b e a fe e lin g th a t

t in g n e g , i f t h e r e is a p r o b l e m w i t h a

w h o a re h a p p y t o c o m p r o m is e o n m a n y

V H S.

d ays,

n o n - l i n e a r a s s is ta n t e d ito r s a re b e c o m

s o u n d o r o n - l i n e E D L , i t is a v e r y

a s p e c ts o f life a n d w o r k th r o u g h th e

w o r k p r in t w a s v ie w e d fir s t th in g in th e

in g p o s t - p r o d u c t i o n s u p e r v is o r s . T h i s

e x p e n s iv e p r o b le m t o fix .

m id n ig h t h o u r s ?

m o r n in g b y h ig h ly -s p e c ia liz e d la b s ta ff

is n o t n e c e s s a r ily a g o o d o r b a d th in g -

A s S im o n D ib b s sa id a t th e A F T R S

O r , a r e w e g o in g t o w o r k t o w a r d s

w h o ch e c k e d an d m ad e c o m m e n ts on

ju s t a c h a n g e . I b e lie v e it m u s t b e a

n o n - l i n e a r s e m in a r la s t y e a r : “ T h e r e ’ s

c h a n g e , w h e r e a n a s s is ta n t e d it o r h a s a

v a r io u s a s p e c ts o f w h a t th e y sa w . L a b

r e s u lt o f th e m o r e in t r i c a t e c h a in t h a t

a lo t o f s tu ff to g o w r o n g ” ; a n d , “ I f y o u

w o r k s ta tio n in a n e ig h b o u r in g r o o m to

r e p o r ts w e r e re a d b y a n u m b e r o f p e o

th e film g o e s th r o u g h , a n d th e c o n s ta n t

s t u f f u p a n y w h e r e , y o u ’v e g o t a p r o b

t h e e d i t o r , a n d n o t o n ly t r a i n s o n t h e

p le

lia is o n w h ic h th is re q u ire s . I t m ig h t also

le m , a n d it w ill p r o b a b ly g o r ig h t

sy s te m , b u t , w ith th e e d it o r ’s g u id a n c e ,

n e g -to -ta p e tr a n s fe r s , th e n u m b e r o f

b e a r e s u l t o f t h e f a c t t h a t e d it o r s a r e

t h r o u g h t o n e g m a t c h i n g .”

le a rn s th e w o n d e r fu l a r t o f film e d itin g ?

F ir s tly ,

U n fo r tu n a te ly , th e re s p o n sib ility fo r th is “ s t u f f u p ” w ill m o s t lik e ly lie w ith

ru sh es.

th e

crew .

th e

o ld

re s u lt

CINEMA

P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

WALK OUT OF ILAA WITH A SHOWREEL D ire ctio n , cin em ato grap hy, 1st A .D ., S o u n d R ecording, S c re e n w ritin g , C a m e ra O p e ra tio n , S t ill P h o t o g r a p h y , C o n t i n u i t y , E d it in g , V i d e o P r o d u c t i o n a n d V i d e o E d it in g . A n y o r all o f t h e s e c a n b e on y o u r s h o w r e e l w i t h i n t h e D i p l o m a o f S c r e e n A r t s p r o g r a m m e at I L A A . T y p i c a l l y o u r s t u d e n t s d i r e c t at l e a s t o n e film ( 1 6 m m S y n c h ) a n d c r e w on f o u r o r f i v e o t h e r k e y r o l e s . LEC TU R ER S p ra c tis in g p r o fe s s io n a ls A F T R S q u a lifie d

IN S T IT U T E O F L E N S A R T

t h e v i a b l e a l t e r n a t iv e

P O B O X 177 K A L O R A M A V IC 3766 T E L E P H O N E 728 1150

SC R E E N P LA Y S W riters, w ith a track record or not, w h o have a Feature Film S creen play they believe in, can send their m aterial to an established Production C o m p a n y in search of o rig in al an d exciting stories. Please send m aterial to:

STO R Y S E A R C H

PO BOX 3 0 9 7

1 9 9 5

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3 0

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cultural significance

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• A U S T R A L IA N F IL M IN S T IT U T E • A U S T R A L IA N C H IL D R E N 'S T E L E V IS IO N

F ilm V ic to r ia

Recognising the

BELLEVUE HILL N S W

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F O U N D A T IO N • M ELBOURNE

IN flR N A T IO N À t

of film by supporting organisations, projects

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a n il events which foster the appreciation of film and television and develop an audience and infrastructure for Australian production.

F IL M F E S T IV A L • M O D E R N liyiAG E

A S S O C IA T IO N é OPEN CHANNEL • ST K IL D A F IL M F E S T IV A L r • C IN E M A P A P E R S • M ET RO M A G A Z IN E • A W G IE A W A R D S

Film Victoria, 4th floor, 49 Spring Street, Melbourne. Tel 03 9651 4089 fix)pl3 96514090 C I N E M A P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

te c h n ic a litie s

fp s. F o r a n o n - lin e a r e d it, th e r e a re tw o

T E C H N O B IT S

D o m in ic C a s e

There seem to be some technical topics that create confusion w henever they come up - and they seem to come up again and again. This w ill be an occasional column in Cinema Papers "Technicalities" that sets out to cast a bit of light in some of these areas. Although Cinema Papers, as a bi-monthly, probably w orks a bit too slow ly to offer a "Q & A" service, "Technicalities" w ould w elcom e correspondence in this area. Please feel free to raise topics that you feel need elucidation. t h i s i s s u e : timecodes and running speeds. The thorny problem of synching this image w ith that EDL and the other sound seems as good a one as any to launch a new department.

n e tw o r k s w itc h in g .

g o o d m e t h o d s . M e t h o d o n e in v o lv e s

S o , t h e s o l u t i o n is p r o v i d e d b y

t r a n s fe r r in g b o t h p ic t u r e a n d s o u n d a t

c h a n g in g th e c o u n tin g s y s te m . N o

fra m e s a re a d d ed o r re m o v e d , b u t, ev ery

fp s , s y n c h r o n iz in g th e m

a t th e

c o m p l e t e m in u t e , t w o f r a m e

te m s s u c h as A a t o n ’s t im e c o d e o n film .

a re s k ip p e d . T im e c o d e g o e s s tr a ig h t

S o u n d an d p ic tu re a re d ig itized to g e th e r

fro m 0 0 :0 4 :5 9 :2 9 to 0 0 :0 5 : 0 0 : 0 2 , fo r

i n t o t h e n o n - l i n e a r s y s te m , w h ic h c a n

e x a m p le . T h i s r u le a p p lie s o n m in u te s

t h e n p la y b a c k a t 2 4 fp s - t h e c o r r e c t

o n e to n in e , b u t n o t o n e v e n te n -m in u te

r u n n i n g s p e e d . T h i s is s i m p l e a n d

c o d e s . D r o p fr a m e t im e c o d e th u s sta y s

s t r a i g h t f o r w a r d a n d m a k e s f o r s im p le

f a it h f u l t o t h e c l o c k , b u t m o v e s a p a r t

n e g a tiv e m a tc h in g , b u t c a u s e s d if f ic u l

f r o m n o n - d r o p fr a m e c o d e b y e ig h te e n

ties in so u n d e d itin g , as b o th th e p ic tu re

fr a m e s e v e r y te n m in u te s .

a n d s o u n d d a ta a n d th e t im e c o d e lis ts

Film Tim ecode

fr o m th e n o n -lin e a r sy stem re la te to fa st

C ou nting the Frames

i n t o t h e n o n - l i n e a r s y s te m , a t its t r u e

a n y e d itin g s y s te m s b o a s t t h a t

s p e e d , a n d w ith m e a n in g fu l t im e c o d e .

In m e th o d tw o , im a g e is tr a n s fe r r e d

th e y a re to ta lly tr a n s p a r e n t to

A n a u t o - c o m p i l e o f t h e e d it e d r e s u l t

m u te o n te le c in e a t 2 5 fp s, a n d d igitized .

t i m e c o d e : t h e e d i t o r n e v e r n e e d s ctoom e s b a c k o n t o v id e o c a s s e t te a t th e w o r r y a b o u t n u m b e r s , a n d s o is c o cmo r r e c t s p e e d , r e a d y f o r s o u n d t r a c k

S o u n d is d ig itiz e d a t its c o r r e c t s p e e d

la y p le t e ly fr e e t o g e t o n w ith th e c r e a tiv e in g a n d m ix in g . T h e o n ly d r a w b a c k is t h a t t h e v i d e o i m a g e f r a m e s d o n ’ t jo b o f e d itin g . F in e . T h e sa m e is tr u e o f e x a c t l y m a t c h t h e f il m im a g e f r a m e s . t e le c in e t r a n s fe r s , a n d o f s o u n d e d itin g

t i z i n g s t a g e . I t r u n s in s y n c w i t h t h e

o m e c a m e r a sy stem s - n o ta b ly A a to n

r u n n in g tr a n s fe r s .

( 2 4 f p s ) , a n d s y n c h r o n iz e d a t th e d ig i

- a r e c a p a b le o f e x p o s i n g a d ig it a l tim e c o d e c o u n t o n to th e n e g a tiv e as it ru n s th r o u g h th e c a m e r a . T h e t im e c o d e g e n e r a t o r f o r t h e c a m e r a is l o c k e d t o

an y o th e r c a m e ra c o v e r in g th e sam e

p ic tu r e in th e film m o d e o f th e n o n - lin

s h o t , a n d t o th e s o u n d r e c o r d e r , c o n

e a r s y s te m , a t film s p e e d . B e c a u s e th e

v e n ie n tly p ro v id in g a k e y to s y n c h ro n iz e im a g e a n d s o u n d t h r o u g h o u t p o s t - p r o

an d m ix in g . M a n y p ro d u c tio n s a re c o m

T h e te le c in e h a s h a d to fin d 2 5 fr a m e s

so u n d is a t film sp e e d , n o n -lin e a r so u n d

p le te d ju s t as th e m a n u fa c tu r e r s c la im ,

t o f il l o n e s e c o n d o f P A L v i d e o t a p e ,

e d it in g c a n f lo w d ir e c tly o n f r o m p i c

d u c t io n . I n t h e o r y , n o s la te is n e e d e d .

w ith m a c h in e s ta k in g c a r e o f th e n u m

w h e r e o n ly 2 4 a re p ro v id e d o n th e film .

tu r e e d it in g , u s in g t h e sa m e d ig ita l

T h i s m a y b e c o n v e n ie n t ( f o r e x a m p le ,

b e r s . B u t m a n y a r e n ’t. T h e d if f e r e n c e s

T h e a n s w e r - o n e fra m e e a c h s e c o n d

a u d io . T h e e d ite d im a g e c a n b e o u tp u t

in w ild life d o c u m e n ta r y w o r k ), a lth o u g h

b e tw e e n P A L a n d N T S C t im e c o d e , a n d

is r e p e a te d . ( S t r ic t ly o n e f ie ld , o r h a l f

e i t h e r a t 2 4 fp s (w ith th e e x t r a f r a m e

e d it o r s o f t e n lik e t o s e e a v is u a l r e f e r

th e sh a d e s o f d if f e r e n c e in d r o p -fr a m e , 2 4 fp s tr a n s fe r s , a n d d if f e r e n t sty le s o f E d it D e c is io n L is t o r E D L , c o n t in u e to c r e a te h e a d a c h e s fo r th e te c h n ic ia n s try in g to m a tc h u n m a tc h e d sy ste m s. O f te n a d e c is io n t a k e n e a r ly in a p r o d u c t io n c a n lead to u n n e c e ssa ry - a n d e x p e n siv e - p r o b le m s la te r o n . S o w h a t ’s it all a b o u t? T i m e c o d e o r ig i n a ll y c o u n t e d ju s t v id e o fra m e s . In P A L sy ste m s, th e r e a re e x a c t l y 2 5 f r a m e s p e r s e c o n d , a n d so t im e c o d e c o u n ts up to 2 3 h o u r s , 5 9 m in u te s , 5 9 s e c o n d s a n d 2 4 fr a m e s . In N T S C , th e fr a m e c o u n t g o e s u p t o 2 9 ,

e n c e to la b e l e a c h s h o t.

N TS C presents a slight problem in durations, because the Am erican television system runs not on a true 30 fram es per second, but strictly at 29.97 fps. When the clock show s one hour exactly, tim ecode still has 3.6 seconds to run.

W h e n f il m in g a t 2 4 fp s , n a t u r a l ly th e t im e c o d e s y s te m f o l l o w s th e s a m e s y s t e m . T h i s is d i f f e r e n t f r o m v i d e o tim e c o d e , w h ic h

fo llo w s

th e

PAL

r e q u ire m e n t o f 2 5 fra m e s p e r se c o n d . A n o th e r n o t ic e a b le d if f e r e n c e is t h a t a v id e o ro ll o f tra n s fe r re d ru sh es w ill n o r m a lly

have

tim e c o d e

r u n n in g

c o n tin u o u s ly f r o m s ta r t t o fin is h - c o r r e s p o n d in g t o th e r u n n in g d u r a t io n o f t h e t a p e o r o f t h e f il m . H o w e v e r , i n c a r n e r a t i m e c o d e , o f t e n d e s c r i b e d as tim e -o f-d a y c o d e , fo llo w s th e c lo c k . A t a c a m e r a s t o p , t h e c l o c k s till k e e p s

a fr a m e , is r e p e a te d e v e r y h a lf s e c o n d .)

p e r s e c o n d in s e r te d f o r P A L ) as a g u id e

g o in g , so th a t th e tim e c o d e s e q u e n c e

S o , b y s u b tr a c tin g th e s ta rtin g tim e -

T h is r e s u lts in th e f a m ilia r , b u t v e ry

fo r a u d io m ix in g , o r a t 2 5 fp s as a fra m e

is in te r r u p te d b e tw e e n ta k e s .

co d e o f an ev en t o r a p ro g ra m m e fro m

s lig h t , h e s i t a t i o n s e e n in v e r y s m o o t h

e x a c t g u id e f o r n e g a tiv e c u ttin g .

th e f in is h in g t im e c o d e , th e r u n n in g

p a n s o r im a g e m o v e m e n t s w h e n t h is

B e c a u s e s o u n d r u n s c o n t in u o u s ly

t r a c k b o t h v i d e o a n d f il m t i m e c o d e ,

le n g th o r d u r a tio n is e a sy to fin d . (T h e

te c h n iq u e is u sed . I t a lso m e a n s t h a t th e

r a t h e r t h a n fr a m e b y f r a m e , t im e c o d e

w h e r e b o t h e x is t, a n d a llo w E D L s to b e

s t a r t is d e f in e d as t h e f ir s t f r a m e , a n d

n o n - lin e a r e d ito r m a y c h o o s e to c u t o n

h a s a s lig h tly d if f e r e n t m e a n in g . D i g i

tr a c e d b a c k t o th e r e le v a n t c o d e .

after

a f r a m e t h a t s t r i c t l y d o e s n ’ t e x i s t in

ta l s o u n d - f o r e x a m p le , o n D A T - c a n

C le a r ly , th e r e is n o sin g le s e le c t io n

th e e n d c u t - n o t th e la s t fr a m e b e fo r e

t h e f i l m , r e s u l t i n g in m a r g i n a l c o m

c r e a t e its o w n t im e c o d e a c c o r d in g to

o f tim e c o d e a n d fr a m e r a te p r o c e d u r e s

th e c u t as in film e d g e n u m b e r s ).

p r o m is e s in th e film m a tc h b a c k .

as t h e r e a re 3 0 fr a m e s p e r s e c o n d .

th e e n d is d e fin e d as th e first fra m e

PAL Transfers

L is t m a n a g e m e n t s y s te m s u s u a lly

t h e r u n n in g s p e e d o f t h e t r a c k a t th e

t h a t su its all p r o je c ts . U s u a lly , th e id e a l

T h e m a jo r n o n - lin e a r sy s te m s h a v e

t im e , s im p ly b y c o u n t in g a g iv e n n u m

d e c is io n in o n e a r e a le a d s t o s ig n ific a n t

all ev o lv e d a n a n sw er to th is la tte r p r o b

b e r o f sa m p le s p e r s e c o n d . S o , in d ig ita l

c o m p r o m is e s in o t h e r a re a s. I t is d o u b t

h e n f ilm is s h o t a n d tr a n s fe r r e d

le m . D i g i t a l c o m p u t e r d is p la y s c a n

fo r m a t, t im e c o d e c a n b e w h a t y o u w a n t

fu l if an y o n e in d iv id u a l u n d e r s ta n d s all

to P A L v id e o a t 2 5 fra m e s p e r

d is p la y im a g e s a t a n y f r a m e r a t e th e y

it to b e . A p o w e r fu l s im p lific a tio n , u sed

th e r e q u ir e m e n t s o f e v e r y a r e a o f p r o

s e c o n d , t h e r e is a n e x a c t c o r r e s p olik n e , a n d a re n o t b e h o ld e n t o th e f ix e d

w is e ly ; a n o th e r s o u r c e o f c o n fu s io n

d u c tio n a n d p o s t -p r o d u c t io n . T h e

d e n c e . E a c h fra m e o f film r e la te s to o2n5e f p s o f P A L t e l e v i s i o n . I n “ f i l m

o th e r w is e .

le s s o n ? B e f o r e c o m m it t in g to a n y th in g , ta lk to p e o p le in ev ery a re a : so u n d , c a m

f r a m e o f v i d e o . T i m e c o d e m e a s u rme so d e ” , s c e n e s a r e t h e r e f o r e p la y e d a t

b o t h , a n d ru n s e x a c tly tru e to th e c lo c k .

2 4 fp s, w ith n o in s e rte d fr a m e . T im e

T h e r e is n o a m b ig u ity - u n le ss, t h a t is,

u n fo ld s a t th e c o r r e c t r a t e , a n d s o u n d

y o u s h o t y o u r film a t 2 4 fra m e s p e r s e c

r e m a i n s in s y n c . N a t u r a l l y , i f a v id e o

o n d , a n d y o u r s o u n d ru n s a t th a t sp e e d ,

c a s s e t t e a u t o c o n f o r m is m a d e o f th e

o r y o u a re c o m in g b a c k to film fo r a c in

fin a l e d it, it m u s t ru n a t 2 5 fp s, a n d so

e m a r e l e a s e , in w h i c h c a s e it w i ll b e

th e e x t r a fr a m e c a n b e a u to m a tic a lly

p r o je c te d a t 2 4 fp s.

i n s e r t e d , to m a in t a i n th e c o r r e c t r u n

T r a n s f e r r i n g ru s h e s n e g a tiv e to

n in g sp e e d .

v id e o f o r a n o n - lin e a r (o r o f f -lin e ) e d it

numbers

te le c in e stag e. T h is w o rk s w e ll u sin g sys

c a n b e d o n e a t 2 4 o r 2 5 fp s. A t 2 4 fp s,

Synchronizing the S o u n d

so u n d c a n b e sy n ch e d o n to th e ru sh es c a s s e tte s , th e d ig ita l m a s te r , o r d ir e c tly

N T S C Drop Frame

e r a , te le c in e , p ic tu r e e d itin g a n d s o u n d

before y o u

TSC p r e s e n t s a s l i g h t p r o b l e m in

p o s t-p r o d u c tio n . O n c e m o r e :

d u r a t io n s , b e c a u s e t h e A m e r ic a n

c o m m it t o a n y th in g . T h e a n s w e r s y o u

t e le v is io n s y s te m ru n s n o t a t a tr u e 3 g0 e t m a y w e ll d is a g r e e . Y o u r jo b is s im fr a m e s p e r s e c o n d , b u t s tr ic tly a t 2 9 . 9 p7 ly t o p i c k t h e s o l u t i o n t h a t f it s y o u r fp s . W h e n t h e c l o c k s h o w s o n e h o uorw n p a r t ic u la r n e e d s . G o o d lu c k .

e x a c t ly , t im e c o d e s till h a s 3 . 6 s e c o n d s to ru n . T h is is a se rio u s sh o r tfa ll, as t e le

NB: M y t h a n k s t o S t e v e n S m i t h o f

v is io n

F r a m e w o r k s , a n d Ia n M c L o u g h lin o f

p ro g ram m ers

w o u ld

f in d

th e m se lv e s e ith e r c u ttin g th e fin a l c re d it

S o u n d fir m , f o r r e c e n t illu m in a tin g c o n

his is sim p le fo r 2 5 fp s p ic tu re s , b u t

f r o m a d ra m a s h o w , o r lo s in g c o m m e r

v e r s a tio n s

t a k e s a l it t le m o r e p la n n in g a t 2 4

c ia l t im e , in o r d e r t o s y n c h r o n iz e w ith

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h isto ry

Australia’s First Films: Under Southern Skies

(1902)

In part IS o f this series, Chris Long examines the largely unheralded and unrecorded two-hour documentary o f Australia's early history. The Story>of the Kelly Gang ( 1 9 0 6 ) as “ th e

L im e lig h t D e p a r t m e n t film s , b u t g a v e

m e n t w a s t h e S a l v a t i o n A r m y ’s A u s

A r m y ’s A u s tr a lia n p i o n e e r s .13 In 1 8 8 4 ,

th e D e p a r t m e n t th e fu ll s u p p o r t o f

tra la s ia n C h ie f S e c r e ta r y , C o lo n e l

P e a r t jo i n e d t h e S a l v a t i o n A r m y as an

w o r ld ’s fir s t fe a tu re film ” 1 [sic],

th e S a lv a t io n A rm y h ie r a r c h y t o m a k e

W illia m P e a rt ( 1 8 5 9 - 1 9 4 8 ) . 9 P e a rt h a n

o ffic e r , risin g ra p id ly in th e r a n k s o f th e

e a rlie r A u stra lia n fe a tu re -le n g th

t h e f ilm s c o m m e r c i a l ly v ia b le . U n d e r

d le d t h e A r m y ’ s i n i t i a l c o n t a c t s w ith

o rg a n iz a tio n . H e w a s “ q u ic k o f th o u g h t

f il m p r e s e n t a t i o n s h a v e b e e n

M c K i e ’s ré g im e , th e p ro d u c tio n e m p h a

A u s tr a lia ’s g o v e r n m e n ts , o f f e r in g film

- q u ic k o f a c t i o n - q u ic k o f d e c is io n ” ,

n th e ru sh t o h y p e

ig n o re d . M e lb o u r n e ’s S a lv a tio n

s is s h i f t e d

in g f a c i li t ie s d u r in g th e F e d e r a t i o n

w ith “ a g e n iu s f o r s y s te m . E v e r y th in g

A rm y L im e lig h t D e p a r tm e n t

c o m m e r c ia l a n d d o c u m e n ta r y c o m m is

fe stiv itie s.10 H e ro d e in H e r b e r t B o o t h ’s

in h i s d a y , a s f a r a s p o s s i b l e , w a s

f ir s t e x h ib it e d its t w o - h o u r

s io n s . T h e p r o f it s , th e a m o u n t o f film

c a r r ia g e d u r in g th e S y d n e y F e d e r a tio n

a c c o r d in g t o a p r e v io u s ly -m a d e s c h e d

Under Southern

p ro d u c e d an d th e n u m b e r o f e x h ib itio n

D a y p a r a d e , a n d a p p e a r e d in P e r r y ’s

u le .” 14 A s C o lo n y C o m m a n d in g O ffic e r

Skies in A u g u s t 1 9 0 2 . W i t h

u n its all stea d ily in c re a se d . A t th a t tim e ,

f ilm

B o o th

o f th e S a lv a tio n A r m y ’s V ic t o r ia n fo rc e s

2 0 0 slid e s a n d 6 0 0 0 f e e t ( 1 0 0 m in s) o f

A u s tra lia ’s film p r o d u c tio n saga w as lit

s te p p e d d o w n as A u s tr a la s ia n C o m

in 1 8 9 4 , P e a r t w a s la r g e ly r e s p o n s ib le

f ilm , th is illu s tr a te d le c t u r e t r a c e d th e

tle m o re th a n a c h ro n icle o f th e Salv ation

m is sio n e r late in 1 9 0 1 , m a n y o f B o o t h ’s

f o r s e c u r in g t h e b u ild in g a t 6 9 B o u r k e

w h o le h is to r y o f A u s tr a lia f r o m e x p l o

A rm y L im e lig h t D e p a r tm e n t’s w o rk .

e a r lie r lite r a r y r e s p o n s ib ilitie s t r a n s

S t r e e t , M e l b o u r n e , w h ic h b e c a m e th e

fe r r e d to P e a r t.

A rm y ’s A u stra la sia n H e a d q u a r te r s 1^ an d

d o c u m e n ta r y

r a t i o n to F e d e r a t i o n .

Under Southern

fro m

r e lig io u s

e p ic s

o f th e

e v e n t . 11 W h e n

Skies w a s b y f a r th e lo n g e s t a n d m o s t

P la n n in g U n d e r S o u th e rn S k ies

C o lo n e l W illia m P e a r t w as b o r n in

th e L im e lig h t D e p a r t m e n t ’s b a s e . P e a r t

c o m p le x A u s tra lia n s c r e e n p r e s e n ta tio n

B y Ju ly 1 9 0 1 , th e L im e lig h t D e p a rtm e n t

E n g la n d , a n d c a m e to A u s tr a lia as a

w a s p e r s u a s iv e , a r t i c u l a t e a n d d ir e c t ,

m a d e u p to t h a t tim e . Its a b s e n c e f r o m

h ad c o m p le te d th re e m a jo r g o v e r n m e n

c h ild o f se v e n in 1 8 6 6 , se ttlin g a t S c a rs-

c a p a b le o f in s p ir in g o th e r s w h ile m a in

p r e v io u s l o c a l f il m c h r o n i c l e s s h o w s

ta l f il m in g c o m m is s i o n s a p p r o a c h in g

d a l e , V i c t o r i a . 12 T e n y e a r s l a t e r h e

t a in i n g a n u n p r e t e n t i o u s d e m e a n o u r .

t h a t th is p e r io d o f p r o d u c tio n h a s b e e n

fea tu re len g th . F o r th e N e w S o u th W a le s

m o v e d to C o llin g w o o d , ta k in g e m p lo y

H e w a s ra is e d t o th e r a n k o f t h e S a lv a

u n d e r -r e s e a r c h e d .

g o v e r n m e n t it p ro d u c e d

The Inaugura tion o f the Australian Commonwealth

m e n t as a c le r k w h ile h e b o a r d e d w ith

tio n

J o h n H e n d y , o n e o f th e S a lv a tio n

S e c r e t a r y in M a r c h 1 8 9 7 . 16

C h an g e s a fte r " S o ld ie rs of th e C ross" (1900)

(Ja n u a ry 1 9 0 1 ) .4 A fterw ard s, th e D e p a rt m e n t c o v e r e d th e 1 9 0 1 R o y a l V is it fo r

B e f o r e p e r m a n e n t c in e m a s e x i s t e d in

th e g o v e r n m e n ts o f V ic t o r ia

A u s tr a lia , th e S a lv a tio n A rm y w a s

1 9 0 1 )-' a n d N e w Z e a la n d (Ju n e 1 9 0 1 ) . 6

(M a y

a lm o s t u n iq u e ly e q u ip p e d t o e s ta b lis h

T h e a ccu m u la ted p r o fit fro m th ese c o m

a c o m m e r c ia lly - v ia b le film b u sin e s s. It

m is s io n s p e r m itte d th e D e p a r t m e n t to

a lre a d y h a d a n e x te n s iv e n e tw o r k o f

p u rc h a se an im p re ssiv e n e w p r o d u c tio n

s u ita b le h a lls t h r o u g h o u t A u s tr a la s ia .

ou tfit/ It u n d o u b ted ly co n v in c ed th e Sal

Its m u s ic a l e m p h a s is p la c e d a p p r o p r i

v a tio n A rm y ’s h ie r a rc h y o f th e p o te n tia l

a te

(a n d

g o ld -m in e to b e tap p ed fro m th e D e p a rt

a c c o m p a n is ts ) a t th e ir d is p o s a l. A b o v e

m e n t ’s s e c u la r film p r o d u c t io n s . W ith

screen

a c c o m p a n im e n t

a ll o t h e r c o n s id e r a t io n s , th e A rm y w a s

th e b u sin e s sm a n M c K ie a t th e S a lv a tio n

a y o u n g a n d r a d ic a l o r g a n iz a tio n w ith

A r m y ’ s h e lm , t h e L i m e l i g h t D e p a r t

o u t p r e ju d ic e a g a in s t n e w m e d ia - a n d

m e n t’s c h ie f, J o s e p h P e rry ( 1 8 6 4 - 1 9 4 3 ) ,

it h a d th e m o s t e x p e r i e n c e d film p r o

h ad u n p re c e d e n te d fre e d o m to s h o o t

d u c tio n u n it in A u s tr a la s ia .2

a n y s u b je c t o f his c h o o s in g .

C o n tr a r y to p o p u la r b e lie f, A u s

A fe w f ilm s o f r u r a l l o c a l e s w e r e

tr a lia n S a lv a tio n A rm y film p r o d u c tio n

s h o t d u rin g th e to u rs o f S a lv a tio n A rm y

d id n o t d e c lin e a f te r it m a d e “ S o ld ie r s

“ B i o r a m a ” film e x h i b i t i o n u n its a f te r

o f th e C r o s s ” ( 1 9 0 0 ) . T h e film ’s a u th o r,

its d é b u t in O c t o b e r 1 9 0 0 . 8 P e r r y sa w

th e c h a rism a tic F le r b e r t B o o t h , resig n ed

t h a t th e p h o t o o p p o r t u n itie s w h ile o n

as t h e A r m y ’s A u s t r a la s ia n C o m m i s

to u r w o u ld p e r m it h im t o p ro g re ss iv e ly

s io n e r in 1 9 0 1 , b u t h is r e p la c e m e n t w a s

a ss e m b le a film “ lib r a r y ” o f A u s tr a lia ’s

n o le ss s u p p o r tiv e o f th e L im e lig h t

w id e ly -s p r e a d n a tu r a l an d in d u s tria l

D e p a r t m e n t ’s a c tiv itie s .

a t tr a c tio n s , w ith e d u c a tio n a l, p a t r io t ic

T h e n e w A u s tr a la s ia n S a lv a tio n

a n d fu n d -r a is in g p o te n tia l.

A rm y C o m m is s io n e r w as T h o m a s

T h e m a n w h o s te p p e d in to H e r

M c K i e ( c . 1 8 6 1 - 1 9 3 7 ) , w h o a r r iv e d

b e r t B o o t h ’ s s h o e s a t t h i s t i m e as

h e re f r o m a p re v io u s c o m m a n d in G e r

s c r ip tw r it e r f o r th e L im e lig h t D e p a r t -

m a n y in N o v e m b e r 1 9 0 1 . 3 M c K i e k n e w t h a t h e w a s n o m a tc h f o r B o o t h

Right: From War Cry, London, 5 May 1906, p. 3.

as a n a u th o r o r a n o r a to r , b u t h e w as

Courtesy of George Ellis, Salvation Army Heritage

a n e x c e ll e n t b u s in e s s m a n . H e s a w th e

centre, Melbourne.

L im e lig h t D e p a r tm e n t as a v a lu a b le re v e n u e p r o d u c e r t o s u p p o r t t h e A r m y ’s

Far Right: From War Cry, Melbourne, 9 August 1902,

s o c ia l a n d r e lig io u s w o r k . H e t o o k n o

p. 16. Courtesy of George Ellis, Salvation Army Heritage

a c t i v e r o l e in s c r i p t i n g o r d i r e c t i n g

centre, Melbourne.

A rm y ’s

A u s tr a la s ia n

C h ie f

L a t e in 1 9 0 1 , P e a r t a r r a n g e d t o

th e s ix A u s tra lia n sta te s w e re e v e n tu a lly

Se gm e n ts produced for

p a r t a k e n o f t h e g o o d th in g s p r o v id e d

d ir e c t tw o L im e lig h t D e p a r t m e n t p r o

in c lu d e d in th e ir film in g . In t h e ir fin a l

U n d e r S o u th e rn S k ies

w e m a d e tr a c k s f o r th e k a n g a r o o ’s d en ,

d u c tio n s . T h e

a sse m b la g e , th e se sce n es p ro v id e d a n a r

L im e lig h t” , c o n s is te d o n ly o f “ life -

r a tiv e b u ild -u p to th e s ig n in g o f th e

m o d e l” s lid e s o f b ib lic a l s to r ie s s h o t a t

F e d e r a tio n d o c u m e n ts a t S y d n e y ’s C e n

th e L im e lig h t D e p a r t m e n t ’s M e lb o u r n e stu d io .17 T h e b e a u tifu lly -c o lo u r e d slid es

fir s t, “ S a lv a tio n

a n d t o o k a k in e m a to g r a p h e v ie w o f

1 East Street, Rockhampton

‘J o e y ’ . W e t o o k h im in a v a rie ty o f a t ti

S h o t c .1 8 S e p te m b e r 1 9 0 1 . P e rry

t u d e s - e a t i n g b r e a d , d r i n k i n g m il k ,

te n n ia l P a r k o n 1 Ja n u a r y 1 9 0 1 . 19 A fte r

p u b lis h e d h is in t e n t io n to s h o o t th is in

w a s h in g h is f a c e a n d d o in g a s e r ie s o f

G o v e r n o r - G e n e r a l H o p e t o u n w as se e n

th e

o f “T h e S y r o -P h o e n ic ia n W o m a n ” ,

ta k in g th e o a th a n d k issin g th e B ib le , a

S e p te m b e r 1 9 0 1 , p . 2 .

“T h e D e h v e ra n c e o f P e te r fr o m P ris o n ” ,

c lo s in g title slid e p ro v id e d a su b tle r e li

“T h e R a is in g o f J a ir u s ’ D a u g h te r ” , “T h e

g io u s “ p u n c h - lin e ” : “ r ig h te o u s n e s s

W i d o w o f N a i n ” , “ H e a li n g t h e B lin d

e x a lte th a n a tio n ” (“P ro v e rb s” , 1 4 : 3 4 ) . 20

M a n ” a n d “ T h e R a is in g o f L a z a r u s ”

P e r r y ’s film in g f o r

Under Southern

Rockhampton Evening Record, 1 7

h ig h ju m p s w ith th e ‘b o s s ’ h a n g in g o n t o h is ta il - a r a t h e r u n iq u e p ic t u r e in its w a y .”

2 Mount Morgan Gold M ine (Queens land): Setting Explosives at the Face S h o t 1 8 S e p te m b e r 1 9 0 1 .

War Cry,

5 Hughenden Sheep Station (Queensland): Unshorn Sheep

p r e m ie r e d a t R ic h m o n d o n 2 0 Ju ly

Skies b e g a n in e a r n e s t o n a Q u e e n s la n d

2 6 O c t o b e r 1 9 0 1 , p . 3 , sta te s , “ d u rin g

1 9 0 2 . 18 T h e y su rv iv e in t h e c o ll e c t i o n

B io r a m a C o m p a n y t o u r f o llo w in g th e

o u r [B io r a m a C o m p a n y ] to u r o v e r

S h o t 2 8 S e p te m b e r 1 9 0 1 . War Cry, 2 N o v e m b e r 1 9 0 1 , p. 1 0 , sta te s, “ O n

o f th e A d e la id e S a lv a t io n A r m y h i s t o

in itia l a p p e a r a n c e a t W a r w ic k o n 6 S e p

th e m in e , th e M a jo r [P e r ry ] t o o k tw o

S a tu r d a y , as th e t r a in d id n o t le a v e f o r

ria n , D a v id M o r r is . N o m o tio n p ic tu re s

te m b e r

C om pany

k in e m a to g r a p h e p ic tu r e s . O n e s u b je c t

C h a r t e r s T o w e r s t il l e l e v e n a .m ., w e

w e re in v o lv e d , so t h a t th is n e e d n o t

m e m b e r J o h n B r o d ie p u b lish e d re g u la r

w a s tw o m in e rs d rillin g a h o le p r e p a r a

w e re p e r m it te d to v is it H u g h e n d e n

c o n c e r n us fu r th e r .

a c c o u n t s o f t h e t r a v e l s in t h e M e l

to r y t o in s e r tin g a c h a r g e [ ...] ” .

sh e e p s ta tio n . T h e m a n a g e r - M r .

P e a r t’s o th e r illu stra te d le c tu re w a s th e h is to r ic a l d o c u m e n ta r y p r e s e n ta tio n ,

Under Southern Skies, a f a r m o r e

c o m p le x u n d e r ta k in g .

b o u rn e

1901.

B io r a m a

War Cry, c o m m e n c i n g o n 5

O c t o b e r 1 9 0 1 , o f t e n g iv in g d e ta ils o f th e film s th e y s h o t .21 T h e t o u r a n d film m a k in g c o n t i n

H a m m e r - v e ry k in d ly a n d c o u r te o u s ly

3 Mount Morgan Gold M ine (Queensland): Miners at the Face and Trucking A w ay Stone

F e d e ra tio n

I n n e s o n 2 4 O c t o b e r 1 9 0 1 , r e t u r n in g

S h o t 1 8 S e p te m b e r 1 9 0 1 . War Cry, 26 O c t o b e r 1 9 0 1 , p . 3 , sta te s “ [th e se c

f e s t iv it i e s a s a b a s is , f r o m S e p t e m b e r

t o M e l b o u r n e v ia N e w c a s t l e o n 1 2

o n d M o u n t M o r g a n film is] a n u m b e r

1 9 0 1 P e a r t a llo w e d c a m e r a m a n J o s e p h

N o v e m b e r 1 9 0 1 . 22

U s in g t h e S a l v a t i o n A r m y ’s c o m m is s io n e d

f ilm

o f th e

P e rry t o ste p u p film p r o d u c t io n a c tiv

u e d in t o N e w S o u th W a le s a t G le n

F u r t h e r film f o r

o f m e n w o r k in g a t th e fa c e o f th e

Under Southern

ity d u r i n g t o u r s o f h i s “ B i o r a m a ”

Skies w a s s h o t b y P e r r y o n B i o r a m a

C o m p a n y . C h a r a c te r is tic sc e n e s o f A u s

C o m p a n y to u rs o f V ic to r ia (Ja n u a ry -

t r a lia n lif e , in d u s tr y a n d fa u n a w e re

A p ril 1 9 0 2 ) a n d Q u e e n sla n d (A p ril-Ju ly

M o u n t , a n d t r u c k in g a w a y s t o n e ” .

S h o t 2 3 S e p te m b e r 1 9 0 1 .

War Cry,

1 9 0 2 ) , f o r w h ic h re g u la r r e p o r ts w e re

2 N o v e m b e r 1 9 0 1 , p . 1 0 , sta te s , “T h e

p u b lis h e d in th e

War Cry b y C o m p a n y

M a jo r [P e r ry ] t o o k m e o u t f o r d in n e r

c o lle c tiv e ly r e f le c t e d u p o n th e id e n tity

m em ber

o f th e n e w ly -F e d e r a te d n a tio n . M o s t o f

C r o t h e r s .23

C. H.

to o k

th re e

k in e

6 Hughenden Sheep Station (Queensland): Shorn Sheep S h o t 2 8 S e p te m b e r 1 9 0 1 . F ir s t m e n t i o n e d in

War Cry, 2 N o v e m b e r

4 Bowen (Queensland): A Kangaroo

tu n itie s a r o s e . T h e i r a m b itio u s p r o je c t

L ie u te n a n t

[P e rry ]

m a to g ra p h e v iew s [in clu d in g th is o n e ] .”

1 9 0 1 , p. 1 0 .

s y s te m a tic a lly film e d w h e n e v e r o p p o r

(M is s )

s h o w e d us o v e r t h e p r e m is e s , a n d th e M a jo r

7 Hughenden Sheep Station (Queens land): M en Shearing by M achinery S h o t 2 8 S e p te m b e r 1 9 0 1 . F ir s t

to h is b ille t - M r . E d g e r t o n ’s - w h e r e

m e n t i o n e d in

th e r e w as a k a n g a r o o . A fte r w e h ad

1 9 0 1 , p. 10.

War Cry, 2 N o v e m b e r

A NOVEL AND STRIKING BIORAMA AND KINEMATOORAPH EXHIBITION:

“Under Southern Skies,”

200 Original Slides and 35 Living Pictures, never before Exhibited, representing all Phases of Australian Life,

Unsurpassed on the Continent Two Honrs of Profit and Instruction, Under the direction of

G0L0NEL PEART, assisted by Lieut,»Colonel Gilmour, STAFF-CAPTAINS SANDALL and JACKSON will assist as Lantemist and Musical Conductor,

SUNDAY (Afternoon and Night)-$ALVATION BY LIMELIGHT, Unequalled Life-Model Sacred Subjects, Specially Illustrated Songs, Efficient Orchestra,

PRBHRRN Sun, & Mon., Hug. 10,11 WRR’N’BOOL Tuesday „ 19 NTH. MBLB,* Thursday „ 14 NCRTHeOTB Wednesday „ 20 eOLae f Friday „ 15 F1TZRCY1. • Thursday „ 21 PORT FAIRY Sat. to Mon, „16,17,18 BENDIGO ' Sun, & Mon.„ 2 4 ,2 5 1

SDNDAYS.—Silver Coin Collection at the Doors Afternoon and Evening,

"The Syro-Phoenecian Woman" story from "Salvation by Limelight" (1902). The slide was produced in the Limelight Department's Melbourne studios. Courtesy of Envoy David Morris, Salvation Army, Adelaide. (Refer "St Mark", 7:24-30; "Matthew", 15:21-28.)

8 Charters Tow ers (Queensland): An Emu

w h o is in c h a r g e o f t h e s e t t l e m e n t .

o f ‘b l a c k - b o y ’ t r e e s ! ” T h e film m ay

H e r e a g a in th e b io -c a m e r a c a m e t o th e

h a v e b e e n s h o t as f a r b a c k as A u g u s t

S h o t c. 3 0 S e p te m b e r 1 9 0 1 .

War

f r o n t , a n d w e g o t s o m e f in e v ie w s o f

1 8 9 9 , v id e

Cry, 9 N o v e m b e r 1 9 0 1 , p . 1 5 s t a t e s ,

th e b la c k b r e t h r e n a n d s is t e r s .” A f u r

1 8 9 9 , p. 7 .

“ as w e h a d a lr e a d y a film o f a k a n g a

"The Raising of Lazarus" from "Salvation by Limelight".

r o o , w e th o u g h t it a ra r e s tr o k e o f

Slide produced in Melbourne's Limelight Department

g o o d f o r t u n e w h e n a n e m u w a s d is

studios. Courtesy of Envoy David Morris, Salvation

c o v e r e d in B r o t h e r J o n e s ’ b a c k y a r d .

Army, Adelaide. (Refer "St John", chapter 11.) Under Southern Skies, film (1): East Street, Rockhampton. From The Victory, August 1902, p. 343. Salvation Army Archives, Melbourne. Colonel William Peart (1859-1948), left, scriptwriter for Under Southern Skies, and the Salvation Army's Australasian Commissioner, Thomas McKle (c. 1861 1937), who was Herbert Booth's replacement. From

T h e a n tic s o f th a t b ird w e re m o s t a m u s in g w h ile t h e M a j o r w a s t a k in g t h e p i c t u r e . ‘J u m b o ’ w a n t e d t o g o e v e r y w a y b u t t h e r ig h t o n e . ”

S h o t c. 1 0 O c t o b e r 1 9 0 1 .

War Cry,

2 3 N o v e m b e r 1 9 0 1 , p . 6 , sta te s, “ H e r e

the Salvation Army's Australian staff magazine, The

w e h a d a n e x c u r s io n t o a s u g a r p l a n

Victory, 1 June 1902, p. 267. Courtesy of George Ellis,

ta tio n , w h e r e th e M a jo r [P erry ] h a d th e

Salvation Army Heritage centre, Melbourne.

g o o d f o r tu n e to g e t a ‘k i n e ’ o f k a n a k a s

Fig. A and Fig. B: Contrary to the image presented in the film The Picture Show Man (John Power, 1977), Limelight Department operators toured mostly by train. Much of their labour consisted of helping with the load ing and unloading of freight cars, and carrying their projectors, gas-generating equipment and projectors. From War Cry, Melbourne, 25 April 1903, p. 2 (Fig. A), and 16 May 1903, p. 16 (Fig. B).

t h e r se rie s o f film s o f th e A b o r ig in e s a t D e e b in g C r e e k w a s s h o t o n P e r r y ’s s e c o n d v is it, 2 3 J u n e 1 9 0 2 . W r i t in g in th e

War Cry o n 1 9 J u l y 1 9 0 2 (p. 1 0 ) ,

B io r a m a

C om pany

m em ber

10 Bundaberg (Queensland): Children Attending Biorama Company's M atinee S h o t c. 1 0 O c t o b e r 1 9 0 1 . I n te n tio n to film th e ite m a n n o u n c e d b y P e rry in

Bundaberg Mail, 9 O c t o b e r 1 9 0 1 , p. 2 . 11 Feeding the Pigs S c r e e n e d a t Ip s w ic h , 1 6 O c t o b e r 1 9 0 1 . R e fe r

2 6 D ecem b er 1 9 0 1 . See F eb ru a ry 1 9 0 2 , p. 7.

W e w e r e e n te r ta in e d a t d in n e r , a n d p i l o t e d a ll o v e r t h e s t a t i o n b y h i m ,

S h o w n b y P e r r y a t R ic h m o n d (V ic

w h ils t h is h o r s e a n d tr a p w e r e s e n t in

t o r i a ) , 5 F e b r u a r y 1 9 0 2 . P o s s ib ly s h o t

t o d riv e u s o u t , a ls o t a k in g us b a c k

2 6 D ecem b er 1 9 0 1 . See

a g a in in t im e f o r t h e [ Ip s w ic h ] m e e t

F eb ru a ry 1 9 0 2 , p. 7 .

War Cry, 1 5

in g a t n i g h t .” T h e A b o r i g in a l film s i n c l u d e d a

21 A W est Australian Tree-Chopping Incident

r i g i n e s , “ a l iv in g p i c t u r e o f a n a t i v e

S h o w n b y P e r r y a t R ic h m o n d (V ic

c lim b in g a t r e e a n d b r in g in g d o w n a n

t o r i a ) , 5 F e b r u a r y 1 9 0 2 . P o s s ib ly s h o t

o p o s s u m o n h is w o o ll y h e a d ” , s p e a r

in A u g u s t 1 8 9 9 . S e e

in g f i s h , n a t i v e h a b i t s , c u s t o m s a n d

te m b e r 1 8 9 9 , p. 7 ; 1 5 F e b ru a ry 1 9 0 2 ,

d w e llin g s .

The Colac Daily News, 1 6

War Cry, 2 3 S e p

p. 7 .

A u g u st 1 9 0 2 , n o te d th a t o n e o f th e

22 Street Scenes of the Australian State Capitals (series)

v ie w s s h o w e d a “ c o r r o b o r e e ” .

16 Toowoomba (Queensland): Children Attending Biorama M atinee S h o t 2 1 O c to b e r 1 9 0 1 . P e r r y ’s

Toowoomba Chronicle, 1 9 O c t o b e r

1 9 0 1 , p. 3 .

S c r e e n e d a t Ip s w ic h , 1 6 O c to b e r

S h o w n b y P e r r y a t R ic h m o n d (V ic to r ia ), 5 F e b r u a ry 1 9 0 2 . S e e

War Cry,

15 F eb ru ary 1 9 0 2 , p. 7 .

lo c a l k in e m a to g r a p h e p ic tu r e s , ta k e n

S h o t c. 1 2 N o v e m b e r 1 9 0 1 . P e rry ’s

13 Boys at Riverview Boys' Home Felling a Tree S c r e e n e d a t Ip s w ic h , 1 6 O c t o b e r

Q ueensland Tim es, 1 7

in te n tio n

sh o o tin g

th e s e

w as

s h o w n , a n d w e r e r e c e iv e d b y t h e a u d i e n c e w ith g r e a t e n th u s ia s m ” . O u t t r im

N o v e m b e r 1 9 0 1 , p. 5 . P ro b ab ly in clu d ed

w a s a c o a l m in in g t o w n in G ip p s la n d ,

Ballarat

V i c t o r i a , 1 5 m il e s S o u t h o f K o r u m -

sev e ra l c o a l m in in g sce n es (vid e

b u r r a , o n a s p u r l in e f r o m t h e S o u t h

18 Commandant Booth Burning B lack-boy Trees at Collie Estate, W est Australia

14 A Scene in Queen Street, Brisbane S c r e e n e d a t Ip s w ic h , 1 6 O c to b e r

Q ueensland Tim es, 1 7

O c to b e r 1 9 0 1 .

o p en ed at W o n th a g g i a ro u n d 1 9 1 0 . A w e e k ly p a p e r w a s p u b lis h e d as th e

Outtrim N ew s i n 1 9 0 2 , w h i c h m a y

War Cry,

h a v e m o r e i n f o r m a t i o n o n t h e film s .

s ta te s,

A p p r o a c h e s t o th e S ta te L ib r a r y o f V i c

“A m o n g s t o t h e r ite m s t h e a n n o u n c e

t o r i a f o r a c c e s s t o M a r c h 1 9 0 2 issu e s

War Cry,

m e n t o f a film s h o w in g th e ‘b u r n in g o f

o f t h e p a p e r h a v e b e e n d e n ie d .

2 3 N o v e m b e r 1 9 0 1 , p . 6 , s ta te s , “T h e

th e b la c k b o y s ’ w a s r e c e iv e d w ith a

S h o t 1 9 O cto b e r 1 9 0 1 .

G ip p s la n d R a ilw a y . I t c e a s e d t o e x is t w h e n g o v e r n m e n t c o a l m in e s w e r e

F ir s t s h o w n b y P e r r y a t S o u th M e l b o u rn e , c. 1 0 Ja n u a ry 1 9 0 2 .

15 Deebing Creek Aboriginal S ettle ment (near Ipswich): Aboriginal Life

b y M a jo r P e r r y w h ile o n th e v isit, w e re

Newcastle H erald, 1 1

a n n o u n c e d in

Star, 2 3 S e p te m b e r 1 9 0 2 ) .

O c to b e r 1 9 0 1 .

23 Outtrim, V ic to r ia -T w o Coal Mining Films S h o t c . 2 2 - 4 M a r c h 1 9 0 2 . War Cry, 1 2 A p r il 1 9 0 2 , p . 1 5 , s ta te s , “tw o

17 N ew castle (N e w South W ales) Scenes

Q ueensland Tim es, 1 7

O c to b e r 1 9 0 1 .

1 9 0 1 . R e fe r

20 B aysw ater Boys' Home: The Harvester at W ork

in t e n t i o n o f ta k in g th is w a s p u b lis h e d

12 Horse Jumping

1 9 0 1 . R e fe r

War Cry, 1 5

ta k e n o f th e b la c k s . T h e m a n a g e r,

Q ueensland Tim es, 1 7

O c to b e r 1 9 0 1 .

1 9 0 1 . R e fe r

S h o w n b y P e r r y a t R ic h m o n d (V ic t o r i a ) , 5 F e b r u a r y 1 9 0 2 . P o s s ib ly s h o t

C r o t h e r s r e p o r t e d : “ O n M o n d a y [...]

M a r c h -P a s t o f th e D e e b in g C r e e k A b o

c u tt in g c a n e .”

19 B aysw ater Boys' Home: Sheep on the Farm

s e v e r a l k in e m a to g r a p h e p ic t u r e s w e r e

B r o t h e r Iv in s [s ic ], w a s k in d n e s s its e lf.

9 Bundaberg (Queensland): Kanakas Cutting Sugar Cane

War Cry, 2 3 S e p t e m b e r

F eb ru a ry

1902,

24 Port Fairy, V ictoria - Barracouta Fishing Industry (second series)

M a jo r [P e rry ] a n d y o u r s tru ly [B ro d ie ]

p e c u lia r f e e lin g o f h o r r o r , w h i c h g a v e

w e n t o u t t o D e e b in g C r e e k t o th e a b o

w a y to h e a r ty la u g h te r w h e n th e C o m

rig in a l s e ttle m e n t, w h e r e w e w e re

m a n d a n t a n d p a r t y w e r e s e e n s e t t in g

S h o t c . 2 9 M a r c h 1 9 0 2 . A f te r t a k

w a r m ly r e c e iv e d b y B r o t h e r Iv a n [sic ],

f ir e t o a s c r u b in t h e C o ll i e c o m p o s e d

in g a f e w in it ia l s h o t s o f t h e P o r t F a ir y

h isto ry

fis h in g

f le e t m a n o e u v r in g

th e

M o y n e R iv e r in O c t o b e r 1 9 0 0 , P e r r y

in c lu d e d in

Note: M a n y o t h e r film s e g m e n ts w e re Under Southern Skies f o r

tio n . T h e

d e c id e d t o e x p a n d th e c o v e r a g e in t o a

w h ic h n e w s p a p e r r e f e r e n c e s h a v e n o t

6 : “A p r e tty little r e c e p tio n f o llo w e d ,

f u ll-le n g th f is h in g in d u s tr y d o c u m e n

y e t b e e n f o u n d . T h e s e i n c l u d e film s

th e b o y s a fte r w a r d s b e in g in s p e c te d by

Port Fairy G azette, 2 8 M a r c h

d e a lin g w ith A u s tr a lia n f o r e s tr y ; g o ld

o u r le a d e r s , w h o in t u r n w e r e s e iz e d

1 9 0 2 , p u b l i s h e d P e r r y ’ s i n t e n t i o n to

p a n n in g an d s lu ic in g in V ic t o r ia ; c a ttle

b y t h e a v a r ic io u s P e r r y f o r a ‘k i n e o ’ ,

s h o o t th e c o v e r a g e . O n 4 A p r il 1 9 0 2 ,

in d u stry ; m in es a t B a lla ra t an d B e n d ig o ;

w h ic h th in g s h e has o n th e b ra in , in th e

t h e s a m e p a p e r s a id t h a t h e ’ d b e e n

d a ir y in g a n d p o u ltr y fa r m in g ; b a n a n a

b o x a n d th e stu d io [ . . . ] ” . T h e film w a s

“ e n g a g e d in a d d i n g t o h i s s t o c k o f

g r o w in g a n d s h ip p in g in Q u e e n s la n d .

ta ry .

film s ” .

War Cry, 1 2 A p ril 1 9 0 2 , p. 1 5 ,

War Cry, 4 J a n u a r y 1 9 0 2 , p.

s e n t s t r a i g h t t o t h e i r M e l b o u r n e s tu d io , p r o c e s s e d , a n d

s ta te s, “ w h ils t a t P o r t F a ir y th e M a jo r

Films unrelated to

re tu rn e d

fo r

s h o w in g th e b o y s o n th e sa m e n ig h t.

[P e rry ] w a s e n a b le d to s e c u r e so m e

U n d e r S o u th e rn S k ies

v e ry f in e k i n e m a t o g r a p h e p ic t u r e s o f

O t h e r S a lv a tio n A rm y p r o d u c tio n s

th e f is h e r m e n u n lo a d in g a n d p a c k in g

fr o m th e p e r io d J u n e 1 9 0 1 - A u g u s t

f is h , a ls o p i c t u r e s o f t h e f is h in g f le e t

1 9 0 2 a r e lis te d b e lo w :

5 Staff Captain Stagg at the Melbourne 'People's Palace' S h o w n by P e r r y ’s B io r a m a a t R ic h

an d o t h e r v ie w s , w h ic h w ill b e r e p r o d u c e d in d u e s e a s o n ” . Warrnambool Standard, 2 0 A u g u s t 1 9 0 2 , s a id t h a t

v isit, a n d P e rry film e d M c K i e ’s r e c e p

m o n d , V ic to ria , 5 F e b ru a ry 1 9 0 2 .

1 Fire At Anthony Hordern's Palace Emporium, Sydney

P o ss ib ly th e film o f W illia m s d ir e c tin g

b o a ts m a n o e u v r in g in th e o p e n se a in

s h o w e d “ e n g in e s an d fir e m e n a t w o r k

M elbourne M etropole Unem ployed Chopping Wood fo r their Breakfast w ro n g ly id e n tifie d . R e fe r : War Cry, 1 5

a fre sh b re e z e a fte r b a r r a c o u ta . T h e

a t H o r d e r n ’ s f i r e in S y d n e y ” ( v id e

F eb ru ary 1 9 0 2

sce n e w h ic h e lic ite d ro u n d s o f a p p la u se

Queensland Times, I p s w ic h , 1 7 O c t o

a p p r o p r ia t e ly c lo s e d w ith th e la n d in g

b e r 1 9 0 1 ) , a n d w a s e x h i b i t e d b y th e

o f th e b a r r a c o u t a o n th e w h a r f a t P o r t

B io r a m a C o m p a n y a t B r is b a n e o n 13

Ham ilton Spectator, 1 8

O c t o b e r 1 9 0 1 . It m a y h a v e b e e n p r o

th e film s in c lu d e d “ P o r t F a ir y fis h in g

F a ir y .” T h e

Shot

Ju ly

1901.

The

f ilm

d u c e d b y A . J . P e rie r o f B a k e r & R o u s e

Under Southern Skies, film (7): Hughenden Sheep Station ¡Queensland): Men Shearing by Machinery. From The Victory, April 1902, p. 134. This appears to

6 Reception for Commissioner Howard at Spencer Street Railw ay Station, Melbourne

have been the first film of shearing taken in Australia. Salvation Army Archives. Melbourne.

S h o t b y S id n e y C o o k , S e p te m b e r

Under Southern Skies, film (20): Bayswater Boys' Home (Vic.): The Harvester at Work. From The Victory,

L im ite d , S y d n e y , as th e e a r lie s t k n o w n

1902. The

The Aus tralasian Photographic Review, 2 2 J u ly

1 9 0 2 , p. 3 : “ O n e o r tw o c a r te r s o b lig in g ly p u lle d u p w h ile A d ju ta n t C o o k

Under Southern Skies, film (24): Port Fairy,

1 9 0 1 , p . 2 3 . T h e f ilm ’s le n g th w as 1 0 0

s n a tc h e d a liv in g r e c o r d o f th e s c e n e

Victoria - Barracouta Fishing Industry. From War Cry,

w ith o u r C o m m is s io n e r [ M c K i e ] , th e

Melbourne, 1 December 1900, p. 14. Salvation Army

F o r e ig n S e c r e ta r y [H o w a r d ] a n d M r s .

Archives, Melbourne.

re fe r e n c e to it is in its jo u r n a l,

f e e t (1 m in . 4 0 se c s ).

2 Slum W ork by Salvation Army Officers

War Cry, 1 3 S e p t e m b e r

June 1904, p. 16. Salvation Army Archives. Melbourne.

M c K i e in o r n e a r t h e b u g g y , a n d a “ L e a g u e o f M e r c y ” la d ie s c le a n in g t h e i n t e r i o r o f a slu m c o tta g e . E a r lie s t k n o w n re fe re n ce :

Warrnambool Stan

A u g u st 1 9 0 3 , lis ts “ b o a t s g o in g d o w n

dard, 1 3 S e p t e m b e r 1 9 0 1 . A l s o , Stawell New s, 2 4 S e p t e m b e r 1 9 0 1 , Bendigo Advertiser, 2 1 O c t o b e r 1 9 0 1 ; Mt. Alexander Mail ( C a s tle m a in e ), 1 2

t h e M o y n e R i v e r , m a n o e u v r i n g in

M arch 1 9 0 2 .

th e b a y , re tu r n in g a n d th r o w in g o u t 2 0 b a s k e ts o f f is h o n t h e w h a r f ” .

The

B roadford C o u rier, 1 1 S e p t e m b e r 1 9 0 3 , g iv e s t h e l e n g t h o f t h e f il m as 4 0 0 f e e t ( 7 m in u te s ).

3 Arrival of Salvation Army Commis sioner Thomas M cK ie at Spencer Street R ailw ay Station, Melbourne Shot N ovem ber 1 9 01. T he

25 Barron Falls, near Cairns (Queensland)

c r o w d o f s m ilin g , h u r r a h i n g o f f ic e r s weaving th e ir cap s, w h ile th e b lo o d -a n d f i r e f l a g w a s f l y i n g p r o u d l y in t h e s u n s h in e .” H o w a r d , th e S a lv a tio n A r m y ’s F o r e ig n S e c r e t a r y f r o m L o n don,

w a s v is itin g

g o o d w ill

to u r.

A u s tr a lia p o s s ib le

Still from Reception for Commissioner Howard at

War Cry, 1 3

Cry, Melbourne. 13 September 1902, p. 3.

l i s h e d in M e l b o u r n e ’ s S e p te m b e r 1 9 0 2 , p . 3 .

Fig. B

A Com plex Presentation

War

Under Southern Skies m e r e l y a

Cry, M e l b o u r n e , 3 0 N o v e m b e r 1 9 0 1 ,

W as

p . 8 : “ T h e n e w a r r iv a ls w e re c o n

p r o g r a m m e o f “ s h o r ts ” r a th e r t h a n a n in te g ra te d fe a tu re p re s e n ta tio n ? W h ic h c a m e fir st: P e a r t ’s le c tu r e sc r ip t, o r d id

5 Ju ly 1 9 0 2 , p . 1 1 , s ta te s , “w h ile a t

s o u n d d r e w a t t e n t io n t o th e f a c t t h a t

P e a rt o n ly w rite n a r r a tio n t o lin k e x is t

C a ir n s a v is it w a s p a id t o t h e B a r r o n

a n u p -to -d a te A rm y p h o to g r a p h e r w as

in g film s ? W e k n o w t h a t m o s t o f th e

F a lls . T h i s p ic t u r e s q u e s p o t is b e y o n d

s e c u r in g a b io g r a p h r e c o r d o f th e a n i

d e s c r ip tio n ; it is u n d o u b te d ly th e m o s t

m a te d g a t h e r i n g .”

film s w e r e s p e c if ic a lly s h o t f o r Under Southern Skies, b e c a u se a d v e rtis e m e n ts f o r it s t r e s s t h a t “ m a n y [ film s ] w e r e

b e a u t if u l p la c e y e t v is ite d in Q u e e n s

e r a .” T h i s r e f e r e n c e m a y b e t o “ s t i l l ” p h o t o g r a p h y , r a t h e r t h a n a film .

CINEMA

P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

Salvation Army Archives, George Ellis, Melbourne.

Spencer Street Railway Station, Melbourne. From War

d u c te d w ith m u c h d iffic u lty t o an o p e n

se c u re s o m e fin e p ic tu re s w ith h is c a m

Cry, Melbourne. 28 October 1905, p. 11. Courtesy of

fra m e

w a g o n e tt e , a n d a tw is tin g a n d c lic k in g

la n d . A d ju t a n t K n ig h t w a s a b le to

were taken on tour and set up in the aisle of the theatres in which they gave their shows. From War

e n la r g e m e n t f r o m t h e f ilm w a s p u b

War Cry,

S h o t c. 1 M a y 1 9 0 2 . T h e

Typical Limelight Department plant. Tri-unial slide projector and movie projector with 2,000-foot spools

4 V isit of Commissioner M cK ie to B aysw ater Boys' Home, Victoria

r e c e n t ly t a k e n a n d h a v e n e v e r b e f o r e

2 6 D e c e m b e r 1 9 0 1 . T h e B io r a m a

War Cry o f 8 N o v e m b e r 1 9 0 2 (p. 9 )

C o m p a n y a c c o m p a n ie d M c K i e o n th is

sta te s t h a t “t h e C o lo n e l [P e a rt]

b e e n e x h i b i t e d ” 24. T h e

1977 » y Luke'sKingdom, TheLastWave,BlueFireLady Number 1 5(January 1978)

> Number (O ctober ) i -Phil Noyce; Matt Carroll, Eric Rohmer, I Terry Jackman. John Huston, I i

Number

37(April 1982) 6

Stephen Maclean, Jacki Weaver, P P S ^ ^ ^III«M B|i |wtjaeaisn in drama. Number

38(Ju n e 1982)

Geoff Burrdwes, George Miller, James Ivory, ,

Number I (January

. Will I

1974)

■ David Williamson, Ray Harryhausen, Peter ! Weir Antony Ginnane, Gillian Arm trong, I Ken G Hall, j

Number

TheCarsthatAtePans 2(April 1974)

J Sandy Harbutt Rim under Allende, Between I the War

AlvmPurple

the T v m i i brothers SnLinkinfiln

TheChantofJimmieBlacksmith U | f§J!m | fer 16(A pril-June 1978) 1 Spielbeig TumJefirey TheAbu.aProtect . Swedish cinema, D awn!,Patrick j Number 17(Aug-Sept 1978) I cinema, N ewsfrontTheNighttheProwler ! - Number 18(Oct-Nov 1978) 1 John Lamond, Soma Borg, Alain Tanner, j Indian cinema, D imboola,Lith\ Child | j j Number 19(Jan-Feh 1979) I Antony Ginnane. Stanley I Jeremy Thomas Andrew Sarns, spon ored documentane

22(July-Aug 1979) Bruce Petty Luciana Arnghi Albie Thom Stax, A lisonsBirthday Tim BurstalL Australian women filmmakers, Japanese cinema, Crawfords,

MyBrilliant

1 l I !

Number

Albie Thoms on surf movies, Charles Chauvel filmography, Ross Wood, Byron Haskin, Bnan Probyn, Number

24(D e c-Ja n 1980)

tE^^^^'cnl^pm^jan;Qolriie$^£|;^^i

InnoftheDamned 6(July-August 1975)

Arthur Hiller Jerzy Toeplilz Brazilian cinema

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' ‘ i

25 1980 Peteirfyi0 nf(^gm:Rmiiion,Stir Number 26(Apnl-May 1980)

Number (Feb-M arch ) David Puttnam, Janet Strickland, Everett de Roche,

Steve Spielberg Glenda Jackson Susan Sontag, Jack Thompson Bruce Smeaton,

TheRemovalist.SundayTooFarAway

;:Ghaiiesi H;doffe,.JeromeHellman,:Malcolm Smith Australian nationalism Japanese cinema Peter Weir

WaterUndertheBndge

7 1975) ^ Caddie,PicnicafHangingRock Number 8(M arch April 1976) Number- (Nov-Dee

Francis Ford Coppola Paul Winkler Dusan Makavejev, '

1980

Number (Ju n e -Ju ly ) Randal Kleiser Peter Yeldham Donald Richie obituary of Hitchcock NZfilm industry

Pier Paolo Pasoljni, Phillip Adams, Don

GrendelGrendelGrendel

Bob Godfrey, Diane Kurys, Tim Bums, John Shea, Bruce Beresfoid,

\ ! I

Number

9(Ju n e -Ju ly 1976) Caddie,TheDevil's 10(Sept-O ct 1976) 6

~ * -C

29(Oct-Nov 1980)

i^^ÿ-Woodiikard, Lino Brocka Stephen Wallace Philippine cinéma

CruisingTheLastOutlaw

Breaker' TheChamReactionBloodMoney Number 31(M arch-April 1981) Bryan Brown, looking in on D ressedtoKill TheLastOutlaw,FattyFinn,Windows:le bian

I ! I as villain, the new generation

Nagisa Oshima, Philippe M ra, Krzysztof _ , Zanussi, Marco Ferrari, Marco Bellpcchio, gay cmema

BadTiming,

■ Sam Fuller, Morant rethought, ! Richard Lester, Canada supplement l

Milos Forman, Max l!emon, Miklos Jancso, Luchino Visconti, , Number

Number

T llllllIP «

Number

32(M ay-Jun e 1981)

Judy David, David Williamson, Richard Rush,

Number

I S f t P ljl

Emile De Antonio, Jill Robb, Samuel Z. Arkoff, Roman Polanski, Saul Bass,

Man

ThePictureShow

1977

Number (April ) Ken Loach, Tom Haydon, Donald Sutherland, | Bert Deling Piero To i John Dankworth, John I Scot J

DaysofHope,TheGettingofWisdom 13(Ju ly 1977)

Number

Louis Malle,'Paiil Cox, John Power, Jeanine Seawell, Peter Sykes, Bernardo Bertolucci,

inSearchofAnna

( "r I I

Number

33(Ju n e -Ju ly 1976)

! John Duigan, the new tax concessions, I Robert Altman Toma Gutierrez Alea, I Edward Fox,

Gallipoli,Roadg§mes>- ‘ 34and 35 SOLD OUT 1' Number 36(February 1982) ! Kevin D oBs^|gi^^|m ey, Soma Hofmanhj I Michael Rubbo, B lowOut,'BreakerMorant, I B odyHeat,The’ManfromSnowyRiver !

Numbers

1987

Number (M arch ) Screen violence, David Lynch, Cary Grant ASSA conference, production barometer, film finance;|^Stof^fifi|,i^/^ffing

Gianni Amelio, Fortress, filmrliterature connections, teen movies debate

1987

Number (M ay ) Gillian Armstrong Antony Ginnane Chns Haywood Elmore Leonard, Troy Kennedy Martin,

TheSacnhce LandslidesPeeWeesBigAdventure,Jilted Number 64(Ju ly 1987)

p ^ p Ig ^ M n ^ ^ p ^ ^ M e l.'G ite l^ ,^ . Vladimir Osherov, Brian Trenchard Smith, chartbusters

Insatiable

Australian screenwriters, cinema and China, James Bond part , James Clayden Video, De Laurentns, Now World,

41(D ecem ber 1982). Uliana Cavam Colin Higgins T heYearof LivingDangerou;ly Number 42(M arch 1983) Mel Gib on John Water lanPnngle Agnes Varda, copyright. S trikebound, TheManfromSnowyRrver Number 43(M ay-June 1983) Sydney Pollack, Denny Lawrence, Graeme Clifford, T heDismissal,Sunnier LockeBliotFsCarefulHeMightHearYou Number 44-45(April 1984) David Stevens, Simon Wincer, Susan Lambert, a personal histdry of C inemaPapers, iStreet-Kids Number 46(Ju ly 1984) Paul Cox, Russell Mulcahy, Alan J . Pakula, ‘Robert Duvafl, Jeremy Irons, E ureka Stockade, Waterfront, TheBoymtheBush: A WomanSuffers,StreetHero Rhmiher 47(August 1984)

Niimber 90(O ctober 1992) TheLastDaysofChezNous,Ridley Scott 1492,Stephen Elliott: Frauds,Giorgio Mangiamele, Cultural Differences.and Ethnicity in Australian Cinema, ’’ John Frankenheimer's

YearoftheGuh' 91(Jan u ary 1993), ! Clint Eastwood and U nforgiverr,Raul Rue, George Miller and G rossMisconduct David Elfick'S L oveinLimbo,OiltheBeach, Australia's first films, part 1 r" N um ber 92(April 1993) v s ’. f . RecklessKelly,George Miller and Lorenzo's ~O il,',Megan Simpson, Alex,The.Lover,women Number

in film and television, Australia s first films

TheNavigator,

WhosThatGnl Number 67(January 1988)

Number

l l !

Dogsin

Angela Carter, Wim Wenders, Jean Pierre Gorin, Derek Jarman, Gerald L'Ecuyer, Gustav

BlueFin i Number 20(M arch April 1979) ! Ken Cameron, Claude Lelouch, Jim Sharman, l French film M yBrilliantCareer J Number 21(M ay-Jun e 1979) I Vietnam on Rim the Cantnlls French cinema, 1 MadMax,Snapshot,TheOddAngryShot,

5(M arch-Apnl 1975)

Weofthe NeverNever •, Number 40(O ctober 1982) Kael, Wendy Hughes Ray Barrett M yDinnerwith AndreTheReturnofCaptainInmcible

Bill Shepherd, Cliff Green, Werner Herzog, Between Wars, Petersen A Salute to the Great M acA p^plJ ^Jipi

Number

Helen Morse, Richard Mason, Anja Breien, David Millilkan, Derek Granger, Norwegian cinema. National Rim Archive,

0 EskimoNell ¡¡¡lu m b e r 4(D ecem ber 1974)

Number 88(M ay-Ju n e 1992) StrictlyBallroom,HammersOvertheAnvil, DaydreamBeliever,Wim Wender's UntilThe EndofdieWorld,Satyajit Ray f. ' |l Number 89(A ugusts 992) ; Cannes *9 2, David Lynch,-Vitali Kanievsjd;

1987

Number (January ), , Alex Cox, Roman Polanski, Philippe Mora,

Richard Brennan, John Papadopolous, Willis Brien William Fnedkin, The True Story of

FarEast Number 39(August 1982)

law and insurance.

Stock

Irofz 1

|’

§1 I

93(M ay 1993) Jane Campion and T hePiano,Laune Mclnnes andBrokenHighway, Tracey Moffatt and . Bedevil,Lightworks and Avid, Australia's,first films: part3, i , Number 94(August 1993) Gannes'SW.SteveBuscemi'andfleservo/rDogs, Paul Cox, Michael Jenkin's T heHeartbreakKid, 'Coming of-Age^llns, Australia's first-films: part 4 # Number 95,(O ctober 1 993) Lynn-Mane Milbum's M emories&Dreams, Franklin on the science of previews. T he iCustodiantdocumentary supplement Tom Zubricki.JohriHughes.Australia'sfirst films: part 5 Number S B(D ecem ber 1993) : „• Number

George Miller Jim Jarmusch Soviet cinema , . women in film, mm, filmmaking in Ghana,

70 ThaYearMyVoiceBroke,SSndAGorilla Number 68'(M areh 1988) Martha Ansara, Channel 4 , Soviet cinema part 2JimMcBnde Glamour, G hostsOfThe CivilDead,Feathers,Oceag,Ocean' Number 69(M ay 1988) Sex, death and familyfilms, Cannes '8 8, film composers, VincentWard.iDavid Parker, ■ Ian Bradley, P leasureDomes Number 70(November 1988) Rim Australia, Gillian Armstrong; Fred Schepisi, Wes Craven, John Waters, Al Clark, screenplay part .

;>j

Shame 1 Queensland issue: overview of film in Queensland, early Queensland cinema, Number 71(January, 1989) Jason Donovan and Donald Crombie, : Yahoo Serious, David Cronenberg, < RoughDiamonds,Australia's first films: part 6 1988m retrospect film sound, LastTemptationofChrist,Philip Brophy „ • Number 97-8(April 1994) 'N um ber 72(M p rc h i 9^ ) ■ ‘20th Anniversary double issue wM New : supplement, Simon Wincer and LittleDorrit,Australian,sc1-fi movies, , , 5Zealand LightningJack: Richard Franklin on leaving America.'Ad^jialia's'first films;;part7' ■ LadolceVila, women and Westerns ‘ Number 99(Ju n e 1994) ' Richard Lowenstein, Wim Wenders, Number 73(M ay 1989) David Bradbury, Sophia'Turkiewicz, ' Krzysztof Kieslowski, Ken G.HallJribute, , Cannea'S9;DeadCaim}FrancoNero, Hugh Hudson R obberyUnderArms supplement; Geoffrey Burton; Jane Campion, T hePnsonerofStPetersburg, cinematography Pauline Chan and T raps,Australia's first films Frank Pierson. Pay TV Number 48{ 0ct-Nov 1984) Part8 _ V > Ken Cameron, Michael Pattinson, Jan Sàrdi,.: Number 74(J u ly 1989) Yoram Gross, B odylme,TheShmDustyMovie ;iheiDe//nguenis,AustraliansinHollywood, Number 100(August 1994) Cannes '9 4,.NSW supplement,Bernardo Number 49(D ecem ber,1984) 'Chinesecinema.PhilippeMora.YuriSokol, Bertolucci's L ittleBuddah, TheSumofUs, Alain Resnais Bnan McKenzie Angela Punch ,Twins, GhostsoftheC mlDead,Shame S piderS R ose,film and the,digital world, McGregor, Enmo Momcone, Jane Campion, screenplay Australia's first films: part 9 ' horror films,-N ielLynne " „ Number 75(Septem ber 1989) Number 101(O ctober 1 994J Number 50(F e b -M aïch 1985) :Sally Bongers, the teen movie, animated, Priscilla,QueenoftheDesertVictorian sup Stephen Wallace, Ian Pnnglt,Waleriah EdensLost,PetSematary,Martin Scorsese plement P. J . Hoganand/Wurief's W edding, Borowczyk, Peter Schreck, Bill Conti, and Paul Schrader, Ed Pressman Ben Lewin andiucky BreafcAustralia's first Bnan May, T heLastBastion,Bliss 'Number 76(November 1989) films: Part 9 Number 51(M ay 1985) Simon Wincer, Q uigleyDownUnder, Lino Brocka.HarrisonFord.NoniHazlehurst, Number 1 0 2 (D ecem ber 1 9 9 4 ) Kennedy Miller. Terry Hayes, B angkokHilton, Dusan Makavejev, E mohRunWinners, OnceWereWarriors,films we love. Backof Dennis Hopper, MomsWest'sThœNakediCountryi/MadiMax JohnQuigan/Fffftinaflomero, Beyond,Cecil Holmes, Lindsay Anderson, Frank Howson, Ron Cobb BeyondThunderdome,RobberyUnderAnns BodyMelt,AFC supplement; Spider&Rose, 'Number 77(Jan u aiy 1990) Australia's Hist Rims: Part 1 0 Number 52:(July; 1 § 55) Johri Farrovy monograph. B loo d Oath, Dennis John Schlesinger Gillian Armstrong Whitburn, Brian Williams; Don McLennan, -^lanParker.soapoperasiTVnews, Breakaway, "Crocodile"Dundeeoverseas film advertising, D oritCallMeGirlie, ForLoveAlone,DoubleSculls Number 78(M arch 1990) Num ber 53(S e p tè in b e y 985) 7fieiCross/ng,:RayArgall;ffeturo;Home^Peter Greenaway and T heCook...,Michel Ciment Bnan Brown, Nicolas Roeg, Vincent Ward, .'.BangkokHilton,BarlowandChambers Hector Crawford, Emir Kusturica, ^ NZfilm and TV, R eturntoEden' - ' Numbers 79SOLD OUT Number 54(N ovem bér 1985) ; Number 80(August 1990) Graeme Clifford, Bob Weis John Boorman Cannes report Fred Schepisi career . Menahem Golan, rock videos. W illsand irrterview.PeterWeir and G reencard/ Number 103(M arch 1995) Burke,TheGreatBookieRobbery,, Pauline Chdn, Gus Van Sant and1 Drugstore TheLancasterMillerAffair 1 ’ LittleWomen,Gillian Armstrong, Queensland C o w b o y .G em a n stories supplement Geoffrey Simpson, Weaver?// Number 55(January 1986) Creatures,Eternity,Australia's Rrst Rims: Number 81(D ecem ber 1990) Jam esStewart,DebbieByrnèi^;s|^|S;fï Brian Thompson; Paul Verhoeven, . lanPringlelsabelleEberhardLJane Campion,- Part 11 __ ______ : , . . . Derek Meddings, tie-in marketing. AnAngelAtMyTable,Martin Scorsese and TheRightHandMan,Birdsville Gopdfellas,PresumedInnocent Number 56(M arch 1986) ■Number 82(M arch 1991) Fred Schepisi Dennis 0Rourke "rhe,6gdl6i*erPartf//,‘BarbetSchroeder, Brian Trenchard Smith, John Hargreaves, ReversalofFortune.BlackRobe, Dead-endDnve-in,TheMoreThingsChange Raymond HollisLongford, B acksliding ■itij K angaroo, Tracy *'"■ Number 83(M ay 1991) Numbers 57SOLD OUT -Australia at Cannes, Gillian Armstrong, 'Number 58(July 1986) TheLastDaysatChezNous, TheSilence oftheLambs,Flynn,DeadtotheWorld, Woody Allen, Reinhard Hauff, Orson Welles, stheiCinémathèque Française, T heFringe Anthony Hopkins, Spotsw ood Number 104(Ju n e 1995) Dwellers,GreatExpectahons.TheUntold Cannes Mania, B iliksHoliday,AngelBäby, Number 84’(4ugust 1991) -Story,TheLastFrontier psilon,VacantPossession,Richard Franklin, JamesCatriejonand.Terminator2:Judgement E Australia's Rrst Rims: Part 1 2 Day,Denm sO'Rourke.Good Womanof Bangkok,SusanOermoiy,BreathmgUnder Water,Cannes report FFC Number 85(November 1 991) Jocelyn Moorhouse, P roof,BlakeEdwards, •Switch,Callie Khouri: Thelma¿¡Louise;independent exhibition and distribution, FFCpart 2 Number 86(January 1992) ^ mper,TheNostradamusKid, . Greenkeeping,Eightball,Kathryn Bigelow, Number 59(Septem ber 1966) HDTV and Super 16 Robert Altman, Paul Cox, Lino Brocka, Agnes Varda, the AR Awards, T heMovers Number 8^ (M arch 1992) Number 60(November 1986) Multi-cultural cinema, Steven Spielberg, Number 105(August 1995) Australian television Franco Zeffirelli, HookGeorge Negus and TheRedUnknown Mark-Joffe's Cost Jacqueline McKenzie, Nadia Tass, Bill Bennett Dutch cm^mC. j ; Slawomir Idziak, Cannes Review, Gaumont Jewish cinema. Retrospective; Marie^Craven, D ad&Dave MA PAPERS

0CT.0B.ER 1995

Su san L am b e rt's

Talk

PAULINE ADAMEK finds further evidence of an Australian female cinematic voice in a film “brimming with female revelations, erotic conversations, and frank and funny disclosure”

C h ristian V in c e n t's

La Séparation ANNA DZENis is impressed, by the sensitive third feature of one of France’s most-acclaimed new directors

D ylan T h o m a s: The Film scripts RAYMOND YOUNIS

R a y Barrett Sp e ak s Out One o f Australia’s finest thespians puts pen to paper (with Peter Corris) to recall his years in Australian radio, film and theatre. KEN BERRYMAN reviews the result

explores the lesser-known aspect of poet Dylan Thomas’ work: his scripts for documentaries and educational films

r e v ie w

o o k

e v ie w s

WI NT ON BECOMES CI NE MA • BRI TI SH CI NE MA CONTI NUES TO I MPRESS • RAY BARRETT RECOUNTS A LIFE

ilm

THE YOUNG POISONER'S HANDBOOK Directed by Benjamin Ross. Producer: Sam Taylor. Executive Producers: Caroline Hewitt, Eric Stonestrom. Associate Producer: David Redman. Scriptwriters: Jeff Rawle, Benjamin Ross. Director of Photography: Hubert Taczanowski. Editor: Anne Sopel. Production Designer: Maria Djurkovic. Costume Designer: Stewart Meachem. Cast Hugh O'Conor (Graham Young), Antony Sher (Dr Zeigler), Ruth Sheen (Molly), Roger Lloyd Pack (Fred), Charlotte Coleman (Winnie), Paul Stacey (Dennis), Samantha Edmonds (Sue), Vilva Hollingbery (Aunt Panty), Frank M ills (Uncle Jack). Mass Productions film in co-production with Kinowelt and Haut et Court, with the participation of the Bavarian Film Fund, British Screen, Eurimages and Pandora. Australian distributor: Dendy. 35mm. 120 mins. UK 1994.

o describe T he Young P oison er’s H an d b ook as a

fictionalized account of the life of Graham Young, a man whose passion for chemistry developed into an obsession with fatal poisons, which resulted in several murder convictions and made him a tabloid celebrity. Set in Britain in the 1950s and ’60s, the film’s depiction of Young’s (Hugh O ’Conor’s) violent, hateful family and his period in an institution for the criminally insane are sensitive portrayals of human tragedy. The gripping drama of Young’s slowly poisoning his unwitting victims places the viewer in the awkward position of vicarious sadism. But the film never loses its

black comedy is something of a

slightly offbeat tone, even in the

misnomer, not least because it is

closing scenes, where a funky

significantly more black than

bass soundtrack accompanies

comic. Sometimes, comedy is

shots of Young’s stumbling along

entirely absent from this

the sidewalk after trying to poison himself. Some of the comic touches are included in

That Eye, The Sky is directed with great sensitivity and earnestness.

period details - the vintage soundtrack and retro interior décor are outstanding - but the main source of black humour is Young’s family. When Graham is falsely

The film m anages for the m ost part to present the evangelist figure effectively w ithout lapsing into didacticism and portentousness; and it does convey with som e force the notion that m uch suffering, anger and grief has been surm ounted by these troubled and courageous characters. p

accused of using his mother’s best china for his experiments, it is revealed that his older sister was the culprit, having used a tea cup for “women’s business”. In the ensuing hysteria, with both her father and fiancé assuming the cup was used for a pregnancy test, Graham gleefully announces

C I N E M A P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

nr e v i e w Films

! Graham’s head, but that it died i slowly during his incarceration, j not before, as the authorities | believed. As Graham, Hugh O ’Conor

Jane Campion’s An Angel at My

i deftly portrays a wide-eyed

T able (1990). Both films deal

! innocence crossed with an

with misplaced or misunderstood

\ amoral curiosity, a passionate

genius. Graham stumbles upon

i chemist who is not deterred by

his first poison accidentally,

i the sight of his victims’ slow

when experimenting with

| deterioration and violent deaths.

depilatory wax for facial hair. If ■i you didn’t laugh, you would

' antimony sulphide, trying to 1 replicate Newton’s diamond.

\ Nor is he necessarily delighted by i the gruesome spectacles of

despair at Graham’s being beaten

j When the experiment fails, and

i vomiting, hair loss and bleeding.

“In such a short tim e you can

en d up n ot loving on e

_________________________ ------------------------------------

continued that she used it to mix up

about the head for a crime he

the poisonous by-product is

| He is simply fascinated, calmly

didn’t commit.

created by default, it is a moment

\ noting these symptoms in his

As Quentin Tarantino has shown, humour frequently slides

of crisis for the adolescent *1 Graham, who then begins his

“L o v e stories a ll start out w on derfu l.” (Claire) “H o w ’d w e b eco m e like this? “In such a short time.

an oth er”. (Pierre)

i experiment records. Graham

i only shows emotion when his

his is the story of two separations: the separation

| work does not go according to

I of a couple and then the

\ plan, in the cases of his initial

' separation of a father from his

i failure to produce the diamond

1 child. The film is an anatomy of

i and when his elaborately-planned

1 “final solution” is all but

1 the fracturing, the vacillations,

' Graham to replicate the

\ destroyed by something as

' the increasing disputes and the

involves remaining undetected,

' experiment once more, as part of

i fundamental as identical coffee

j desperation - as a man and a

becoming a famous one would

his therapy. This time it succeeds

i mugs.

j woman fall apart.

seem to demand getting

and Graham at last creates a

T he Young P oison er’s

i thing of beauty - the diamond

\ H a n d b o o k is a confronting film,

i bewildered male’s face. It is

i both visually and morally. It is

i Pierre’s (Daniel Auteuil’s). He is

i also a tale of great tragedy, of

1 trying to operate a video camera

' wasted genius and lost innocence,

I he has just bought to film his 15-

| with a gritty realism tempered by

i month-old son, Loulou (Louis

He is constantly treated with

i surreal comic touches. The film

i Vincent). In the process, he

suspicion by members of his

1 ends with a note that Graham

1 captures his own questioning

into place once morals are thrown out. At the cremation of his step-mother, his first victim, Graham comes to the realization

apprenticeship as a young poisoner. His sympathetic ! psychoanalyst identifies this I i trauma as the key to Graham’s

that while being a good poisoner

caught. Such were my thoughts

as I watched my step-mother

Scriptwriting like this is so black it makes Tarantino look like

The last third of the film i

1 deals with Graham’s reintegration into ’60s society.

W alt Disney. The film includes a disclaimer in the opening credits that all characters, save those in

i family, and things start to fall apart at work when he meets temptation in the form of

the Young family, are entirely fictitious. Assuming the depiction of Graham’s family in this

rehabilitation and encourages

which has haunted his dreams.

go up in smoke that day.

\ thallium, the fatal poison he used to kill his step-mother. His

the process of disintegration -

The first image is a distorted,

Young died in his prison cell in

j look and his surroundings, his

\ August 1990, adding that “the

i world turned upside down,

i precise cause of death remains a

i portentously abstract and

1 mystery”. Despite the film’s best

1 unclear.

\ efforts to understand Young’s

L a Séparation is the third

portrait of ’50s middle-class

original obsession with the

i complex psyche, his life retains a

i feature film by the French writer-

repression is close to the “truth”,

diamond is now replaced with

i sense of mystery, with the final

i director Christian Vincent,

it would appear that director

crazed notions of a “final

' question which can never be

i following L a D iscrète (1990) and

| satisfactorily answered: “Why?”.

¡ Beau Fixe (1992). A male’s

Benjamin Ross and co-writer Je ff

i solution”. His bedroom walls are covered with images of

Rawle are searching for an

F incina

H opg ood

explanation for Young’s own

i He lives with Anne (Isabelle j Huppert) and their son, Loulou,

upbringing certainly provides

j She leaves home to work, while

motivation for his subsequent

\ he stays behind writing and

behaviour, to say it provides

I illustrating. We see him painting

justification would strain the

i an image of a wolf and assume

credibility of any filmmaker, and

j he is working on a children’s

Ross seems aware of the limits of

] book. But we are not allowed

making a murderer the empathic

I any such insight into Anne’s

Nevertheless, Graham is far more

! world. There is also the i babysitter, Laurence (Laurence

j Lerel), who appears to spend

charismatic and attractive than

¡ more time with their child than

his family and friends (his victims), and we sense the cruel

i they do, and there is Victor

injustice when he is diagnosed as

i (Jerome Deschamps) and Claire

an incurable psychopath on the

j (Karin Viard), close friends in

sole ground of the pattern of his

j whom Pierre confides.

brainwaves. The head of the institution for the criminally

Early in the film, Pierre,

insane delights in telling Graham there is an empty room in his head where the devil has taken up residence. The poignancy with which

¡ café - one of many conversations concentration camps and bodily ' decay, alongside charts recording the details of each proposed victim in Graham’s plan of his

the film handles Graham’s

own small-scale holocaust.

considerable time in the

We feel that there is indeed

institution (several years) recalls

' something “dead” inside

LA SÉPARATION

I I j Directed by Christian Vincent Executive I producer: Pierre Grünstem. Screenplay: I Dan Franck, Christian Vincent, from I La Séparation by Dan Franck. Director I of photography: Denis Lenoir. Editor: I François Ceppi. Sound: Claude Bertrand.

Directed by John Ruane. Producer Peter Beilby. Executive producers: Robert Le Tet, Fred Schepisi, Tim Bevan (Working Title, UK). Scriptwriters: Tim Barton, John Ruane, based on the novel by Tim Winton. Director of photography: Ellery Ryan. Production designer: Chris Kennedy. Editor: Ken Sallows. Sound: Lloyd Carrick. Cast Peter Coyote (Henry Warburton), Lisa Harrow (Alice Flack), Jamie Croft (Ort), Mark Fairall (Sam Flack), Amanda Douge (Tegwyn Flack). Australian distributor. Premium. 35mm. 102 mins. Australia. 1994. h a t Eye, The S ky 'is a

i Victor and Claire are sitting in a

That I

¡ melodrama, this is Pierre’s story,

violent tendencies. While his

character for the audience.

Cast Isabelle Huppert (Anne), Daniel Auteuil (Pierre), Jerome Deschamps (Victor), Karin Viard (Claire), Laurence Lerel (Laurence), Louis Vincent (Loulou), Nina Morato (Marie). Renn Productions, France 2 Cinema, D.A. Films, C.M.V. Productions with the participation of Canal+. Australian distributor: Palace. 35mm. 88 mins. France. 1994.

I I I

j they will share - and Victor \ berates Pierre for his lack of i political commitment. He now ' has a nanny, has changed his I circumstances and his friends \ can’t drop by so easily any more.

■

brave book and it has yielded a brave film. Tim Winton's novel explored the discomfort that Australians feel towards forms of religious belief which cannot be readily sought out, purchased and consumed at one's leisure at the

■ The exchanges are light-hearted

CINEMA

P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

fruitless, even though there is some ambiguity in the book and in the film at the end. The process of healing takes place on other levels and it is suggested that the visitor's actions are not necessarily a matter of choice. In this way, the age-old tension betw een a type of cosmic determinism, which is coloured by a theological fram ework and the question of free will, is raised and not really dissolved (one can understand why: this is one of the most complex questions of metaphysics.) The film, like the book, implies that the work of reconstruction, acceptance and understanding is facilitated and accelerated by the adoption of a creed which this evangelist embodies - but only to a degree. A number of his statements are not fulfilled, and he seems uncertain at times of whether the comatose man needs him or whether he needs the comatose man. For this reason, interpreters need to be quite cautious in their readings: there are ambiguities and uncertainties here which neither the book nor the film resolve. Indeed, it would seem that neither author nor director wish to resolve such issues - or, perhaps, they believe that such issues are unresolvable. A t any rate, the film is in many ways a true reflection of the novel. The film relies on well-know n conventions of form and structure.

nearest opportunity store, (indeed, this is w h a t W inton seem s to regard as the post-m odernist

upon the traumatized family. The figure of the outsider who enters a hitherto closed circle of

sexual desire and the consequent

- he suggests that he has learned,

disintegration of a bourgeois family

one suspects in a traumatic

structure which cannot be

manner, of the transience and

sustained once the barriers erected

fragility of life. But the film, like the

against the repressed begin to

book, also examines the issues

crumble. In this sense, Ruane's film

such as forgiveness, hatred and

is closer to Pasolini than Dreyer.

acceptance. Certainly, Ort seems to

That Eye, The Sky offers a

represent the damaged/visionary

visitor who is dual in character.

figure who is familiar, for example,

condition of religiosity in

relationships and exercises a

Certainly, he is not averse to sexual

from the films of Andrei Tarkovsky,

contem porary Australia.)

profound effect on its structure and

dalliances. He sees himself as a

Krzysztof Kieslowski and Ingmar

But this should not prevent people from seeing it It is directed with great sensitivity and earnestness, and yet does not flinch from gentle satire. The challenge of presenting Ort's extraordinary visions in purely visual terms is m et vividly and imaginatively in the film, but, unfortunately, some viewers will find it difficult to avoid making associations with Steven Spielberg's iconography and

its members is a recurrent

servant, though it is unclear in w hat

Bergman: he has spectacular

archetype of this sort of film. Carl

sense he is such a person. He sees

visions of light above the house and

pyrotechnics - a pity, for Ruane's

Sam Flack (M ark Fairall), has been

Dreyer's O rdet( 1955) and Pier

himself as a "good man", has lost

speaks of other worlds through the

film is anything but Spielbergian

involved in a car crash and is

Paolo Pasolini's Teorem a[ 1968) are

everything, is devoted to the task of

wardrobe. The presence of the

in content or style. Some viewers

comatose. The father is brought

tw o quite different versions of this

survival, and does not mind

visitor who also seems to be a dual

will find the no doubt accidental

home and the fam ily members must

sort of film. The W estern offers a

preaching a gospel. He has come,

figure (charlatan/evangelist) seems

parallels som ewhat intrusive at

care for him and attem pt to

particularly rich body of work in this

he says, to "open eyes". He also

to intensify these visions. The two,

stages which are quite crucial in

reconstruct their shattered lives. A

context: one need only think of films

seems to be an epileptic (at least,

boy and evangelist, form a bond.

the film. Having said this,though,

mysterious stranger, Henry

such as Shane (George Stevens,

he is subject to seizures).

Clearly, the man offers the boy an

the film manages for the most part

alternative that partly fills the

to present the evangelist figure

1985) and the "M an-w ith-no-N am e"

interested in damaged characters

absence left by the comatose

effectively without lapsing into

comatose man. His motives are

series. Yet Dreyer's film combines

and lives. The family is in a sense

father, and gradually allows the boy

didacticism and portentousness;

unclear and his past is enigmatic, to

simplicity of means with an

damaged by the tragedy which has

to make some sense of the tragedy.

say the least. But, of course, the

uncomplicated view of faith at

occurred: the father is comatose;

viewer's interest and curiosity are

work. Pasolini's film attempts to

Ort and his sister struggle to make

that the visitor has failed in his

sense of this event; the mother

quest to resurrect the broken

been surmounted by these troubled and courageous characters. ÂŠ

In this film a young boy, Ort (Jamie Croft), learns th a t his father,

Warburton (Peter Coyote), arrives and offers to help with the

awakened. The film goes on to

1953), Pale Rider (Clint Eastwood,

reveal the liberating and corrupting

Ruane, like Winton, is highly

But the film clearly suggests

explore, in largely conventional

effects of the outsider, but with

suffers but hopes for better things.

father. He does not heal the father,

form, the impact of the newcom er

emphasis on the dominance of

The visitor has also been damaged

but his influence has not been

C I N E M A P A P E R S â&#x20AC;˘ OCTOBER 1995

and it does convey with some force the notion that much suffering, anger and grief has

R aymond

Y ounis

Julia), Angie Milliken (Stephanie/Detective Stephanie), Richard Roxburgh (Jack/Detective Henry), John Jarratt (Mac), Jacqueline McKenzie (The Girl). Produced by Suitcase Films Pty. Ltd. in association with the Australian Film Commission. Australian distributor AF1 Distribution. 35mm. 87 minutes. Australia. 1993.

in r e v i e w Films

[ and loss. We can only speculate on Loulou’s fate.

relationships unravel through

but also serious. Anne joins them.

conversations - the characters

She listens but says nothing until

and their insular separation,

she suggests to Pierre that they

solitary faces averting our gaze,

leave. Pierre’s efforts to talk, to

stranded within the frame.

looks and stares, faces and

usan Lambert’s Talk is aptly titled. The drama is propelled

■ by the frequent conversations between two close friends. These

conversations are open and soulsearching, as female discourse

engage, contrast violently with

A pivotal sequence begins

Anne’s stillness, her silence, her

with Anne looking out of frame -

They go to the cinema to see

often is, but best of all it is as if their relationship is one long

apparently at a group of children.

stream-of-consciousness dialogue.

The next image is of Pierre

Their conversation just picks up

Roberto Rossellini’s E uropa ’51 (1951). He wants to hold her

footage of Anne and Loulou on a

time they’ve been apart. Thus,

hand while they watch the film,

television monitor. The image of

the friendship has an energy that

but she rejects the gesture -

the television occupies the frame

suggestive signs, broken

and Loulou looks directly at us as

conversations, a tragic scene,

if returning Pierre’s gaze.

1 Longley) and Stephanie Ness

a hand not taken, a picture of

Everyone is longingly looking at

a wolf at the door.

each other - impossible, doomed

addition to a growing canon of

Mac (John Jarratt), and their daughter, Kelly. Although both

intimate films. In joining the

envy aspects of the other’s

work of Laurie M clnnes (Broken

lifestyle, all seems to be

H ighw ay) and Susan Murphy

crumbling. Julia is weathering an

Dermody [Breathing Under

emotional crisis; she knows Mac

W ater), director Susan Lambert is

is having an affaire with a

in fine company. Lambert is sure

younger woman. Stephanie’s is a

about her subject, the way-

shallow sort of happiness as she

women talk and modern

reveals she is longing to have a

concerns. She also seems aware

child but can’t seem to connect

that lengthy discourse isn’t

with anyone special.

always gripping material and

Into the women’s cosy and confidential partnership appear

looking - not at Anne but at film

from where they left off each

perseveres during absence. Julia Strong (Victoria

frequently livens up the drama with vividly-coloured, boldlv-lit

two strangers. The incidental

comic-strip sequences awash with

arrival of a gorgeous television

reds, purples, hot pink and

repairman, Jack (Richard

primary green. My only wish was

Roxburgh), who shyly yet

that a little of this colour could

unavoidably overhears

have made it into everyday life

Stephanie’s explicit account of a

as the monopoly of blue was

recent sexual adventure, opens

actually distracting in its

new possibilities for her.

predominance. Angie Milliken is excellent

Curiously, it is Julia who

(-Angie Milliken) are friends who

observes his bemused, delighted

as Stephanie, confident in her

work together writing and

interest while Stephanie is

sexuality7 without being arrogant, anxious about her elusive options

illustrating adult action comic

oblivious to him, at first. Julia is

Anne finally tells Pierre the

time and space. It is a painful,

books. Each creatively inspires

convinced that an unfamiliar Girl

without ever appearing

inevitable: that she has fallen

poignant separation.

the other to shape their vivid

(Jacqueline McKenzie), observed

desperate. Likewise Victoria

action comics. Stephanie is

at their local café, must be M ac’s

Longley is strong, as ever, as Julia

lover and her suspicions open the

- a thinker, a fighter who won’t

One night after a part)7,

exchanges, separated by even

Even their home is evoked

in love, with someone else. He barely reacts. There are no

mostly through doors and

comfortable with her sexuality

violent outbursts, no crazed

hallways: places of transition, the

and leads a fairly free and happy

door onto the team’s creative

give any ground and determined to confront one of the contributors to her misery. The

confrontations - just the

places between. A shadowy

life full of dates, parties and

world. The comic book they are

uncertainty we all share. We

corridor awaits every arrival.

fleeting new friends. She’s bright

working on takes imaginative

never know this other man, or

Dark figures walk tentatively

and breezy, and regales an avidly

form; a detective story inhabited

excellent Richard Roxburgh and

her love and happiness. We

through. Its layout remains

attentive Julia with detailed

by another Julia and Stephanie,

Jacqueline McKenzie give their

only suffer what he suffers:

essentially mysterious. Who

reports of her exploits. Julia has

where Julia can project all her

usual strong performances -

Anne’s increasingly-frequent

should remain in this house, this

a seemingly idyllic life residing in

darkest fantasies.

Roxburgh with his killer grin

disappearances, going off for

house of shadows? In the end, it

dinners, returning later and later,

is Pierre who decides that he

being ever further removed.

should leave. He is suddenly lost,

The collapse takes place over three months, framed by two

stranded on a busv street, home, unable to even catch a

videos, both freely-narrated a father to his child - resisting The first video tiptoes down the corridor into Loulou’s room to film him sleeping: a close-up of his face, a microphone placed near his mouth to record him breathing. There is a touching quirkiness to these images that get so close they almost caress. The second video marks the end. It frames a determined, oblivious Loulou playing with his toys and his surroundings, in and out of the room, consumed with his own desires. A despairing yet resigned monologue, sadly reflecting a future that Pierre will now never share with his son. He will never get to teach Loulou to draw or to write. He will have to learn to cross the road whenever he comes to a playground, to not see other children who would only remind him of his absence

\ i

taxi.

the fate of an unknown future.

j(Alngie!il|lliken).

without a family, without a

touchingly-sentimental home monologues - love letters from

The film unfolds and

continued

distance.

T alk can be seen as an

the country with her sweetheart,

The film is full of questions for which there are no answers. What did I do wrong? What did

we do wrong? Has she slept with

this stranger? Does it matter? What will happen to my child? Why must love go wrong? Over and over, Pierre meets with his friends, none of whom can even

! I

advise him how best to act. The film itself offers no analysis. Its heart lies in its patient observation

and the depth of its emotion. It

remains an enlightened film, buffeted by its confusion and inevitable sadness.

Dzenis

TALK Directed by Susan Lambert Producer: Megan McMurchy. Scriptwriter Jan Cornell. Director of photography: Ron Hagen. Production designer: Lissa Coote. Costume designer Clarrissa Patterson. Editor: Henry Dangar. Music: John Clifford White. Sound designers: John Dennison, Tony Vaccher. Cast Victoria Longley (Julia/Detective

i i

CINEMA

P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

coupled with a certain kind of

with Ralph Partridge. The

sensitive integrity, and McKenzie

I through the film like a stream,

furniture, walls, crockery, tiles and i Accompanied to wonderful effect

with her composed mystery -

all available surfaces at Tidmarsh

| by Michael Nyman’s musical score

without stealing too much

are crowded with Dora’s

\ - his best yet - the whole bears

attention from the two main

decorative fantasies. Most

\ comparison to an elegiac

players.

beautiful is the mural of Adam

i symphony, bathed in a naturalism

and Eve painted in muted fresco

| which is fitting to the film’s

Lambert’s first feature film is brimming with female

like colours on Lytton’s bedroom

revelations, erotic conversations,

wall, an imagined creation as the

\ bucolic, unpretentious sexual i

i nature.

and frank and funny disclosure.

original has been destroyed. There

These are women who don’t

are clever recreations, too, of her

Carrington being the inspiration

simply talk but, as we see by the

more serious works, including a

behind Hampton making the film,

film’s conclusion, are empowered

self-portrait (Thompson as

C arrin g to n is dominated by the

by their mutual support and easy

Carrington), and portraits of her

brilliance of Jonathan Pryce’s

confidence to act as well. ©

P auline

lovers Lytton, Gertler and Brenan. A damek

CARRINGTON Directed by Christopher Hampton. Producers: Ronald Shedlo, John McGrath. Executive producers: Francis Boespflug, Philippe Carcassone, Fabienne Vonier. Scriptwriter: Christopher Hampton, based on the book Lytton Strachey by Michael Holroyd. Director of photography: Denis Lenoir. Production designer: Caroline Amies. Music: Michael Nyman. Editor: George Akers. Costume designer: Penny Rose. Cast: Emma Thompson (Carrington), Jonathan Pryce (Lytton Strachey), Steven Waddington (Ralph Partridge), Samuel W est (Gerald Brenan), Rufus Sewell (Mark Gertler), Penelope Wilton (Lady Ottoline Morrell). Dora Productions developed with the assistance of European Co-Production Fund Ltd. Australian distributor: REP. 35mm. 121 mins. Britain-France. 1995.

impersonation of Strachey, which

aking films about literary

John Maynard Keynes, and, at

characters can be as tricky

times, Bertrand Russell, T. S. Eliot

impressive debut for Hampton.

tender. As well as looking

and Aldous Huxley.

He laboured for 20 years to

extraordinarily like Strachey, as

develop the script and bring it to

depicted in photographs and in

as filming novels, particularly great novels and biographies of

Dora Carrington was much

C arrin g to n marks an

is genuinely witty, subtle and

well-known, colourful

shorter than Strachey, and seemed

the screen, in the end under his

Carrington’s pen drawings, he

personalities. Film seems to lack

his polar opposite with her more

own direction. Along the way, he

captures everything one knows

the suggestive power of good

solid build, baby blue eyes and

has written prolifically for stage,

about the man with a multi

writing, and attempts to capture

yellow hair cut in a bob like a

screen and television, and received

faceted ease that is utterly

literary figures on films often

page boy. She was more

acclaim and awards for his

convincing. Emma Thompson is

reduce them to pastiche and

peripheral to the “Bloomsberries”,

screenplay of Stephen Frears’

less successful. She is not the

caricature. I’m thinking here of

and gained entry through several

D a n g e ro u s L ia is o n s ( 1 9 8 8 ) .

Carrington of the painter’s own

the numberless (and numbing)

painters associated with the group,

However, although fascinated by

letters and drawings, but

attempts to capture D. H.

notably the volatile Mark Gertler

Carrington’s charisma, he is not

Thompson’s screen presence is

Lawrence on film, and the recent

(Rufus Sewell), who was as

solely interested in the mystery

difficult to resist. She is always

films T o m a n d Viv (Brian Gilbert,

obsessed with her, as she was to

of her personality, and in the film

enjoyable to watch and makes

1993) and M rs. P a r k e r a n d th e

become with Strachey.

makes no attempt to unravel the

Carrington her own.

V iciou s C irc le (Alan Rudolph,

1994), which suffer from a

Carrington and Strachey first

sources of Carrington and

Carrington’s lovers are well

met in 1915, in a country cottage

Strachey’s temperament. It is left

cast, and each is given his due

stultifying staginess and over-

owned by Virginia Woolf, but

to the viewer to work out what

weight and place in her story,

zealous effort to be literate.

used on this occasion by her sister,

it was that made them able to

being fully rounded in conception

Vanessa Bell (Janet McTeer), and

engage in multiple congruent

and finely acted. Rufus Sewell as

a genre of their own from elegant,

husband Clive (Richard Clifford).

relationships that are difficult,

Gertler captures all the beauty and

tasteful reconstructions of good

On the surface, they were an

if not impossible, to understand.

turbulence of the talented young

Merchant-Ivory have created

literature [M au rice, 1987; R o o m

improbable pair. At 22, she was

Hampton offers largely sunny,

painter, and his confrontation

W ith a V iew , 1985; H o w a r d s E n d ,

talented, sexually androgenous,

impressionistic snapshots of their

with Carrington on the stairs at a

1992; T h e B o s to n ia n s , 1984). But,

had a desperate need for

life together, and of those

Bloomsbury gathering is startling

for all their cinematic success, they

independence and was in loud

tangential to them who were

in its intensity. West is suitably ambiguous and difficult to read as

have been unable to match the

revolt against conventional mores.

important in forming the rich

literary power of the original. This

He was 35 years old, had a basso-

mosaic of their lives.

is why Christopher Hampton’s

falsetto voice, was witty,

C arrin g to n is fascinating

Brenan. Best is Steven Waddington. He is perfect as Rex

C a r r in g to n , like Derek Jarman’s

physically frail and homosexual.

because it shows how old-

Partridge (renamed Ralph by

W ittg en stein (1993), comes as a

Yet, almost from the beginning,

fashioned we have become. In

Strachey), the army major who

welcome surprise. A lyrical,

Carrington was fascinated by

many ways, we have returned to

enters Carrington’s life as

passionate biopic, it breaks free of

Lytton, and in the 17 years that

Victorian morality, and our

homophobic and macho, and

stuffiness and, in a series of linked

they were together - throughout

affaires are tainted with hypocrisy.

emerges years later a man of

episodes, evokes with great

her marriage to Ralph Partridge

Carrington and Strachey spurned

generous spirit and keen

success the odd but enduring love

(Steven Waddington), and affaires

salaciousness or licentiousness,

intelligence. Waddington is an

affaire between two of the most

with Gerald Brenan (Samuel

and lived a new morality where

actor of considerably range, and

singular figures of the Bloomsbury

West) and Beacus Penrose (Jeremy

they acknowledged that emotions

shares a chameleon quality with

set: the painter Dora Carrington

Northam) - Carrington was so

were fluid, and sexuality not

Daniel Day-Lewis, which is the

(Emma Thompson) and

obsessively devoted to Lytton that

always fixed. Yet, they believed

mark of many fine English actors.

biographer-essayist Lytton

when he died she felt there was

nonetheless in fidelity, loyalty and

C arrin g to n is uniquely

Strachey (Jonathan Pryce).

nothing left to live for.

responsibility. In their efforts to be

satisfying. Beautifully lensed by

honest, and true to all facets of

Denis Lenoir, neither the lushness

Strachey was a tall,

CINEMA

Despite the title, and

Whilst Hampton’s C arrin g ton ,

emaciated-looking man with lank

which was inspired by Michael

their personalities, Carrington and

of nature nor the intrinsic appeal

hair, glasses and an unfashionably-

Holroyd’s L y t t o n S tra c h ey , is

Strachey were pioneers of sexual

of the Bloomsberries is allowed to

bushy beard. He was an early

much more than simply a

liberation. They were true

intrude or take away from the

member of the Bloomsbury group,

reconstruction of the past, the

modernists, and without

singularity of the story, which is

a coterie of writers, artists and

film’s production artists have

predecessors.

philosophers who dominated

worked overtime to capture the

Hampton has captured the

told with warmth and economy. This film will inevitably draw

England’s intellectual and artistic

look and feel of Tidmarsh Mill,

flavour of this originality in the

people to find out more about

life from before World War I to

the pastoral retreat where

portrayal of the characters

Carrington and Strachey, and new

1930. Other members of the

Carrington and Lytton first set up

themselves, and in the originality

editions of her letters and his

exclusive circle included Clive and

house in 1917, and Ham Spray,

of the film’s structure, where each

books will no doubt appear to

Vanessa Bell, Leonard and

where they later established their

episode (named for a character) is

cater to this demand.

Virginia Woolf, E. M. Forster,

much talked-about ménage á trois

linked with a fluidity that runs

P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

J an

E pstein

r e v ie Bookd

throughout the book. Some of

foreign actors, given the

these are indicated in ex-ABC

“second class” treatment and

staffer Charles Grahame’s

pay rates he has personally

perceptive review in the W eeken d

some amusing personal

experienced in the theatre

Australian (29 July 1995).

experiences also”.

and on film location.

Essentially this is what

The section of the book which I found most cohesive and

I was disappointed,

illuminating is the first,

scant treatment he devotes to

particularly that which deals with

Peter Corris connection

his post-1975 career on the

his early family life, eisteddfod

come in? You w on’t

resurgent local film and

successes and radio career. Prior

find reference to it in

television scene. I lis

to leaving for England, Barrett

the Author’s Note.

“worthwhile work” in a

had become an on-air radio

According to recent

number of television mini-

presenter in Brisbane at the

press (D aily Telegraph

series in the 1980s is

tender age of 16 and, by 1957,

M irror, 7 July 1995),

summarized in a single

had chalked up an astonishing list

f you had to describe award-

Corris’ experience in

paragraph, as are the nine films

of 89 radio programme credits,

winning Australian actor Ray

embellishing and extending

he made over the same period.

which included a four-year stint

AN AUTOBIOGRAPHY Ray Barrett with Peter Corris, Random House Australia, Milsons Point, 1995. 240pp, ¡Hus., rrp S19.95.

Barrett delivers. So where does the

the taped interview component

10; from writer-producer John

W e learn that Australian film and

in Sydney and appearances in

dependable” might spring to

of Barrett’s work was not

Elliott, who created the plum

television crews, by comparison

many of the then most popular

mind. His list of credits across

altogether a joyous one. “I didn’t

rôle of Peter Thornton, the hard

with their better-endowed

serials, dramas, comedy and

the media and on stage is quite

want it glossy and smooth”,

bitten Aussie in the long-running

overseas counterparts, are

variety series, and one-off plays.

imposing and, at 68, his services

explained Barrett (The

British television series, T he

resourceful, efficient, non-

Radio in those days, claims

appear to be in demand as ever.

Australian, 28 July 1995), “It just

T rou bleshooters (1966-72),

hierarchical, gifted, etc., but this

Barrett, “had a wonderful way of

His early despatch by Richard

had to be me.” In equally

specifically with Barrett in mind.

is hardly breakthrough reportage

touching the emotions through

Franklin (or Hannie Rayson) to a

throwaway fashion, Barrett

Other writers Barrett is quick to

in 1995. In the light of this, the

the imagination. There has never

watery grave arguably robbed

concludes his introductory note:

praise include Peter Yeldham, the

publisher’s decision to promote

been anything quite like it since

H o tel Sorrento (Richard

“I don’t know whether the end

Australian scriptwriter with a

Barrett as “the father of

in my opinion” (p. 49).

Franklin) of its strongest

result will be entertaining or of

great ear for dialogue; Bob Ellis

Australian film” is especially

presence. M ore recently, Barrett

interest to anyone, but here it is

and Denny Lawrence, for their

puzzling. Equally, I could have

opinion is most persuasive. The

can be seen alongside Leo

anyway!” (p. x).

development of the Michael

done with less emphasis on his

versatility, industriousness and

Barrett, the words “utterly

In this context, Barrett’s

aquatic pursuits, his nesting and

sheer professionalism of

drinking partner, Dwyer, in the

and-all approach gives the book a

Williamson, who impressed

building proclivities, and his

Australian radio talent in the pre

latest filmic incarnation of D ad

certain candour. Barrett is at

Barrett over a number of years

activities on the Spanish island of

television era - affirmed also by a

an d D ave On O ur Selection

times remarkably frank about his

(and rôles) with his vigour,

Formentera, but these accounts

host of personalities from Radio’s

(George Whaley).

bouts of drinking (which is

enthusiasm, and “willingness to

may well appeal to other readers.

endemic among performing

restructure a scene or amend a

M cKern as Dad’s long-time

But did you know that

This self-deprecating, warts-

Stacey character; and David

“Golden Age” interviewed in recent years as part of the

At the same time, the

Barrett compered a wartime

artists and technicians, if his

line in accordance with ideas put

anecdotal approach and the

commendable “Once Upon a

radio programme entitled

account is anything to go by), his

forward by the actors and to help

emphasis on these ‘non-

W ireless” oral history project1 - is

“Smokes for Sick Soldiers”,

extra-marital affaires and his

us on points of interpretation”

performance’ aspects lead to a

quite vividly conveyed by Barrett

designed to induce cash

three marriages:

(p. 181).

certain “jumping around” in

in these early chapters. Why was

time, which the author

that band of actors of which

In addition, Barrett’s

contributions from listeners to

The theatrical life plays hell

convert to cigarettes for

with marriage, especially

mordant wit surfaces from time

acknowledges. This not only

Barrett forms a part so versatile?

hospitalized Aussie troops? Or

touring. You are thrown

to time, especially in relation to

breaks the chronological flow -

That most of them were equally

that Barrett “plays” John in The

together with attractive, like-

“them bleedin’ ’oles” in his face.

the ‘smoothness’ or ‘glossiness’,

at home on the stage and,

T hunderbirds? Or that he

minded people, stimulated by

His funniest story in this regard

perhaps, which Corris

subsequently, in film and

recorded two albums of songs for

performing, celebrating and

concerns Barry Humphries’ use

endeavoured to bring to Barrett’s

television says much for the “on-

Fontana and Philips in 1969-70?

commiserating and the ties get

of Barrett’s countenance in close-

prose - but is also potentially

the-job” training - if not for the

Or that he was almost executed

loosened, [p. 102]

up under harsh lighting to

confusing for the reader. For

rates of pay - that Australian

simulate moon craters.

example, the text refers, without

radio provided over this period.

warning, to Gaye O ’Brien,

That many followed (or

by a firing squad in Kenya? Or

Accordingly, Barrett resists the

Some of Barrett’s anecdotes

that he was offered the Gold

temptation to apportion blame

Coast seat (by Joh no less) at the

after the disintegration of his

of the “rubbing-shoulders-with-

ultimately to become his third

preceded) Barrett in seeking

time held by Russ Hinze? Or that

second marriage, which

the-stars” variety, however, come

wife (in the context of the

better or more challenging career

his only daughter by his first wife

coincided with the completion of

across as thinly-disguised

pleasures afforded by Spanish

options overseas in the 1950s

is married to original Shadows

what is generally considered his

exercises in one-upmanship or,

island life, p. 146) in a section

reveals equally as much about the

drummer Tony Meehan?

finest screen work, as ex-cop

simply, as excuses for shameless

predominantly featuring his

diminishing range of

Michael Stacey in Carl Schultz’s

name-dropping. Robert Morley,

second wife, Mirén. But we do

opportunities for local

G ood b y e Paradise (1982)

Noël Coward, Sean Connery,

not discover the nature of Gaye’s

performers in this country prior

Probably not. If you deduce from such examples that Ray Barrett:

Barrett also generously

Larry Olivier, Stanley Baker,

relationship with the author until

i to the late 1960s and 1970s.

anecdotal in style, you’d be right.

acknowledges the “helping

Margaret Rutherford, Dame

several more chapters have

j Peter Finch, Dick Bentley, Bill

According to Barrett, the

hands” received at pivotal

Edith Evans, David Frost - the

elapsed. Earlier, we are told in

\ Kerr, Bud Tingwell, Ron

book was conceived after an

moments in his varied career:

list of overseas luminaries is

successive chapters of the “lure

! Randell, Michael Pate, Joy

approach from the publisher of a

from Charles Carson, for

extensive. While Barrett makes it

of London’s W est End” being

i Nicholls, Ruth Cracknell, Kitty

Peter Finch biography, to which

example, the 4B H station

plain that he has been more than

responsible for his overseas

j Bluett, Rod Taylor, Lyndall

he (Barrett) had contributed

manager who gave him his first

prepared to play support rôles to

departure in 1958.

\ Barbour, Guy Doleman, Dinah

several humorous reminiscences,

chance as a radio announcer;

international stars and has never

for a book containing “tales

from fellow actor Bud Tingwell,

objected to such people working

language misuse, Barrett - or at

i of Australian “defections” at the

about other people [he] had

who was instrumental in securing

in Australia - “anything else leads

least his co-writer and/or editor -

j time was quite staggering. It is

worked with over the years in

him a part in the popular BBC

to insularity and provincialism” -

is also not sufficiently attentive to

j just possible that, as the “Golden

various parts of the world and

television series, E m ergency W ard

it is a little surprising that he is

the typographical and factual

! Age of Radio” continues to

An A utobiography is largely

errors which are scattered

actually, in the comparatively

RAY BARRETT

not more sympathetic to the long-standing Equity line on

! Shearing, Madge Ryan - the list

For one so critical of

CINEMA

P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

recede, we may not see

propaganda and patriotic films

commercial films which were

their likes again.

made in time of war. Yet one can

shown at clubs, adult education

understand what attracted the

gatherings and so on.)

It is also possible to

again in the armoured floods [p.69] In W ales-G reen M ountain, B lack

deduce from Barrett’s

film producers: Thom as’ poetry

account of his home life,

had mass appeal, notwithstanding

and quite rightly, as one of his

prior to his landing the

its difficulty, because of its

most outstanding documentaries.

brought to life. The writing is

4B H job, wherein the

rhetorical tone and its grandiose

It certainly adopts a lyrical and

origins of an actor lie.

given unity by the visual m otif of

sweep. His great themes were life

loving look at the lives of

Charles Grahame’s

the mountains and Welsh history

and death, God and the holy,

fishermen, miners, factory

summation is beautifully

is surveyed. The Depression is

innocence and experience,

workers and others. It is realistic

succinct: an innate talent

evoked. Striking juxtapositions

nature, war, devastation and a

in parts and impressionistic in

for performing, a fragile

are used along with a strong

world in a state of turmoil: his

others, especially in its evocation

ego, a sense of humour

voice was loud and resonant; his

of atmosphere, time and place.

and an ambitious mother.

DYLAN THOMAS

Barrett’s recall of his formative

THE FILMSCRIPTS

years is excellent, and as a edited by John Ackerman, J. M. Dent, London, 1995,114pp, rrp S69.95

consequence reveals more about the nature of the performing

ylan Thomas the

artist than the writer probably

screenwriter is not as

intended.

familiar a figure as Thomas the

A host of photographs

O ur Country is regarded,

style was nothing less than bardic

Certainly, much of the writing is

and meticulously cadenced.

highly visual - indeed, he was a

Wales figured prominently in

highly-visual writer as one can

much of his work. It emerges as a

see from poems such as “Fern

dualistic place where the purity

Hill”, “Ceremony after a Fire-

of nature exists with the ravages

Raid” and “A Refusal to

of industrialization; where voices

M o u rn ...”, or from radio pieces

“sing in the pebbles of the holy

such as “Under Milkwood”. The

bardic Welsh poet. Yet he had a

streams” and factory workers

transition from text to screen was

revealing in their way. The book

considerable interest in the

trudge to work in terrible

a largely successful affair. The

also includes an Appendix listing

cinema. He contributed an essay

conditions. The celebration of

film was made for the Ministry

all Barrett’s roles, awards, etc.,

on film at the age of 15 to a

nature and life in Wales, which is

of Information, though it is

and has a useful index. The

school journal. He was,

so memorable in the poems, is

experimental in many parts.

book’s final (or rather initial) joy,

apparently, a rather talented

also evoked masterfully in films

Thomas employs non-linear

though, is Spike Milligan’s

amateur actor - and, given his

such as W ales - G reen M ountain,

narrative and, instead of

Foreword which, at the risk of

famous abilities as a mime, this is

B lack M ountain (a title,

employing standard rhetorical

undercutting Barrett’s

not so surprising. During World

interestingly, which captures a

strategies, provides rich and

autobiographical achievement, is

W ar II, he wrote and, in some

duality of another kind,

resonant poetry which brings

worth transcribing in full:

cases, produced a number of

especially since green is often the

fresh insight. The viewer follows

unambiguous. This collection is a valuable one. There are 23 filmscripts in all, two commentaries on film by Thomas and useful bridging Ackerman. Thom as’ scripts are often distinctive, often daring and bold, especially in their use of rhetoric, and there is no lack of passion and conviction. At and the verse lapses into obscurity, bathos and sentimentality, or Thomas becomes more concerned with sound than with sense; at their

documentaries and lyrical

colour of youth and black is

a sailor through various places

book. This is to say that Ray

evocations of Wales, in

often the colour of death or a

such as farms, London, and so

Barrett is a good man. He gets

particular, and Britain, in

type of lifelessness in his work).

on. The segments are linked by

pissed occasionally but doesn’t

general. He loved films such as

Thomas celebrates the lives of

verse commentary. Indeed, the

beat his wife. Recently she has

Dr. M abuse (Fritz Lang, 1922),

workers who proceed from “the

film and the poetry are woven

taken to beating him.

T he C abin et o f D octor Caligari

pinched, packed streets to the

into a seamless whole. The verse

I have no idea what this

(Das K abin ett des Dr. Caligari,

peak of slag”, from “dole queues

contains some fine work but also

book is about because I have

Robert Wiene, 1919) and The

to the corner and back again”.

some of his excesses:

had no time to read the

O ld D ark H ou se (James Whale,

The idiom is passionate and the

manuscript nor do I bloody

1932).

tone is stirring. Such films, which include F u el fo r B attle and A City

sense of colour and contrast. The nationalistic fervour is

their worst, they seem jingoistic

T o whomsoever is buying this

In the early 1940s, Thomas

valleys, mines and shipyards are

notes and an introduction by

augments the text, equally

well intend to. So anyway give

M ountain, the “green hills”, the

The shape of another country lies so near the wind on Dover cliffs could

best, they are imaginative, startling in their juxtapositions, technically innovative, pervaded by lyricism, love, melancholy and celebration, and full of delights. ©

Raymond

Y ounis

FLICKERS AN ILLUSTRATED CELEBRATION OF 100 YEARS OF CINEMA Gilbert Adair, Faber and Faber, London, 1995, 202pp, illus., rrp S29.95

nstead of being a catalyst for

it a fair go, he needs something

received a number of offers to

R eborn, express his anger at the

for his retirement and this

write scripts because of his

inequality, the ugliness and the

book could be it.

sonorous, resonant and booming

oppressive conditions under

verse. Indeed, he seriously

which workers conduct their

considered a career in film with

daily affairs. Stark images are

a man may hear his country’s

has resulted, by and large, in a

ject, see “Revisiting R ad io...”,

Strand Films. O f course, many of

piled on stark images; the

body talking

rather poor line-up of new

M etro, no. 100, Education Sup

these films were nothing like the

rhetoric is controlled but the

and be caught in the weathers

publications.

plement, Summer 1994-95, pp

expressionist classics he loved

impact must have been

of her eyes

24-7.

and admired. They were largely

considerable. (These were non-

and striding inland be plunged

B erryman

1 For further details on this pro

touch it with its finger

important new research and

and from this island end white faced over the shifting sea-dyes

overdue historical re-evaluations, the so-called centenary of cinema

Gilbert Adair’s effort has the most tenuous of links to the

FREE QUARTERLY CATALOGUE OF NEW TITLES AVAILABLE ELECTRI C SHADOWS BOOKSHOP SPECIALISING IN FILM, MEDIA & TV. CITY WALK, AK||Nj4 STREET, CANBERRA CITY 2601 TELEPHONE (06) 248 8352 FACSIMILE (06) 247,1230

CINEMA

P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

' f

celebrations. Despite what the

her way into the history of the

in July) has published this

title might imply, this book is not

cinema, hence into history

impressive catalogue comprising

an overview, or indeed a

itself. And, as with so many of

brief essays (by John Flaus, David

“illustrated celebration”. Rather,

the medium’s stars to come,

Perry, Peter Mudie and Quentin

it is a collection of two-page

stars whose light may well be

Tumour) and detailed notations

entries (with one smallish still) on

reaching us long after their

and illustrations of W inkler’s

what Adair considers to be an

own demise, like that of the

oeuvre.

important film from each of the

very7 stars in the firmament, I

past 100 years.

feel like applauding her

with the help of intricate

shadow as if that shadow could

diagrams, presents an accessible

actually hear my applause.

explanation of the matte

Obviously, such a structure invites debate and dissent. Not only are his choices often perplexing (and Adair’s text does but why opt for the arbitrariness

does not exist as far as Adair is concerned - though he does

have many films of great import,

apologize for not including

while another somewhat fewer.

anything by (New Zealander) Jane Campion.

S cott

M urray

PAUL WINKLER

1927, on the dubious grounds

FILMS 1964-94

this is an author who includes and writes about films he hasn’t seen! On F a tim a ’s D an ce (no director given; 1897), he writes:

Interspersed with W inkler’s personal statements on each of the 30-odd films represented in

ODD MAN OUT

THE CINEMASCOPE REVOLUTION PART 1

Dai Vaughan, BFI Publishing, London,

FIGHTING FOX

Catalogue editors: David Watson, Brian Doherty, Museum of Contemporary Art, 72pp, illus, 1995, rrp S19.95

THE GHOST AND MRS MUIR Frieda Grafe, BFI Publishing, London,

THINGS TO COME

academics. Though largely

Christopher Frayling, BFI Publishing,

anecdotal, these reminiscences

London, 1995, pp. 82, illus., rrp £6.99 Four more titles in the acclaimed

times and social contexts in which Winkler’s work has been produced. With its carefully-selected images to represent W inkler’s

BFI series of medium-sized monographs on famous films.

DEREK JARMAN'S GARDEN

retrospective of German-born,

films, the catalogue presents an

And even if I know nothing of

Sydney-based experimental

enticing education for those

Derek Jarman, with photographs by

Fatima or her dance [...] I find

filmmaker Paul Winkler, the

unfamiliar with the work of this

Howard Sooley, Thames & Hudson,

it very moving that she should

Museum of Contemporary Art

inspired experimentalist.

have the good fortune to dance

(where the retrospective screened

HART

JODIE FOSTER THE MOST POWERFUL W OMAN IN HOLLYWOOD

1995, pp. 60, illus., rrp £6.99

range of filmmaker colleagues,

o accompany the longawaited, first-ever

John Howard Reid, Reid's Film Index, Wyong, Australia, 1995, 200pp., rrp $40.00

personal reminiscences by a

provide a strong sense of the

94pp., illus., rrp S16.95

1995, pp. 79, illus., rrp £6.99

commentators, curators and

N ap oléon in 1981, instead of

reconstruction was released. Still,

Philip & Kersti French, BFI Publishing,

the retrospective are brief,

structure by putting Abel Gance’s

that that was when the

George Whaley, University of Queensland Press, Australia, 1995,

Filmmaker David Perry,

Needless to say, Australia

of a film per year? One year may-

Adair even cheats on his own

WILD STRAWBERRIES London, 1995, pp. 78, illus., rrp £6.99

perfected throughout his career.

disturbing effect, indeed.

DAD & DAVE ON OUR SELECTION THE SCREENPLAY

techniques that Winkler has

The centenary7 is having a

nothing to ease one’s doubts),

Bookd Received

London, 1995,144pp., index, illus., rrp S49.95

Philippa Kennedy, Macmillan, London, 1995, pp. 204, illus., rrp $35.00

SOVIET HIEROGLYPHICS VISUAL CULTURE IN LATE TWENTIETH-CENTURY RUSSIA Edited by Nancy Condee, BFI Publishing, London, 1995, pp. 180, index, rrp £14.99

TELEVISION AND SCREEN WRITING FROM CONCEPT TO CONTRACT (3rd Edition) Richard A. Blum, Focal Press, Boston, 1995,300pp., index, rrp $56.95

S P I RA

a re d e l i g h t e d t o a n n o u n c e t h a t N i n a S t e v e n s o n has j o i n e d t h e f i r m o n a full t i m e basis, N i n a has, f o r I 5 y e a rs, s p e c i a l i s e d in e n t e r t a i n m e n t l a w p r i m a r i l y f i l m p r o d u c t i o n a n d financing inclu ding in te rn a tio n a l c o -p ro d u c tio n s . H a r t a n d S p i r a p r o v i d e s c o m p r e h e n s i v e legal s e r v i c e s in all a rea s o f e n t e r t a i n m e n t a n d m e d ia law in c lu d in g n e g o tia tin g , packaging and financial s tr u c tu rin g , fin an ce and d is t r ib u t io n a g r r e m e n t s , c o - p r o d u c t i o n s , m u s ic , c o m p l e t i o n g u a r a n t e e s , r i g h t s a n d s e r v i c e a g r e e m e n t s , co p y rig h t, ta x a tio n , tra d e m a rk s , m u lti-m e d ia , litig a tio n and c o n flic t re s o lu tio n .

HART

SPIRA

L evel 2, 8 8 G e o r g e St , T he R o c k s N S W 2 0 0 0 . P h : 6 I 2 2 4 7 5 0 0 8 . Fa x : 6 1 2 2 4 7 5 8 5 8 C o n t a c t : L l o y d H a r t , T o m Sp i r a , N

ina

St e v e n s o n , R i c h a r d S i l v e r t o n , Ja m e s C o o p e r

CINEMA

P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

leg al ease

To Fictionalize or Not! Tom Spira examines celebrity rights in relation to factually-based and fictionalized works. Cin em a Papers, I e x a m i n e d t h e

h a v e s p o n s o r s h ip , a p p r o v a l, p e r f o r m a n c e c h a r a c te r is tic s , a c c e s s o r ie s ,

I n 1 9 8 7 , in Marcinkus v N.L. Pub lishing In c., A r c h b i s h o p M a r c i n k u s

b e tw e e n in f o r m i n g a n d e n t e r t a i n i n g is

r e c e n t U .S . d e c is io n in th e E liz

u se s o r b e n e f it s , th e y d o n o t h a v e ;

n th e M a r c h 1 9 9 5 issu e o f

e s t a b li s h e d t h e p r i n c i p l e t h a t t h e l in e

c la im e d a v io la t io n o f h is r ig h t o f p u b

sim p ly t o o e lu s iv e t o b e c o n s t r u e d n a r

a b e t h T a y l o r c a s e w h i c h d e a lt

(d) r e p r e s e n t t h a t th e c o r p o r a t i o n

lic ity b a s e d o n th e f a c t t h a t h e w as

ro w ly w ith r e s p e c t t o film s. In t h a t c a se ,

w i th c e l e b r it i e s ’ r ig h ts (“ W h a t

h a s a s p o n s o r s h ip , a p p r o v a l o r a f f i l

in c lu d e d as a c h a r a c t e r in a w o r k o f f ic

a f ic tio n a liz e d te le v is io n p r o g r a m m e o n

H a p p e n e d W h e n E liz a b e th

i a tio n i t d o e s n o t h a v e .

t io n . T h e n o v e l c o n t a in e d a d is c la im e r

th e life o f R u d o l f V a le n t in o w a s h e ld t o b e c o n s titu tio n a lly p r o t e c te d d u e t o th e

and

T h i s m e a n s i t is im p o s s ib l e f o r a p r o

sa y in g t h a t t h e A r c h b is h o p w a s m e r e ly

F a i ls ? ” , p p . 4 4 , 5 5 ) . T h a t a r t i

d u c e r in A u s t r a li a t o o b t a i n t h e s a m e

u s e d t o m a k e t h e w o r k a u t h e n t ic . T h e

“ e n lig h te n m e n t f u n c tio n ” se rv e d b y

C o u r t f o u n d t h a t s o m e r e a d e r s w o u ld

s u c h a n e n t e r t a i n m e n t v e h ic le .

T a y lo r

‘S la p p s ’

O ut

c le r e s u lt e d in a l o t o f q u e r ie s

a d v a n ta g e s t h a t n o w e x i s t in th e U .S . I n t h e U .S ., t h e n e e d t o l in k “ u s e ”

n o t r e c o g n i z e i t as m e r e l y a w o r k o f

A u s e fu l d e v ic e f o r p r o d u c e r s h a s

A u s tr a lia n film m a k e r s b e c o m e m o r e

t o t r a d e o r c o m m e r c i a l a c t i v i t y f a ll s

fic tio n . T h a t d e c is io n , th o u g h n o t o v e r

b e e n t o la b e l a w o r k “ f ic t i o n a l iz e d ” . I t

a w a r e o f th e a v a ila b ility o f m a te r ia l

w ith in a s t a t e ’s r ig h t o f “ p u b lic ity p r o

r u le d , h a s s i n c e b e e n i g n o r e d b y t h e

a p p e a r s t h a t th e U .S . C o u r ts h a v e ta k e n

t e c t i o n ” a n d is n o t a f e d e r a l r ig h t. A s a

C o u rts.

th e n o v e l a p p r o a c h t h a t a s t a t e ’s “ r ig h t

f r o m r e a d e r s . I t s e e m s t h a t as

w h ic h c a n b e a c c e s s e d f r o m U .S ., m a n y

T h e c a s e t h e C o u r t s f o l l o w is t h e

o f p u b lic ity ” , b a la n c e d a g a in s t th e F ir s t

H icks v Casablanca

A m e n d m e n t, is c o n t in g e n t o n w h e t h e r

to “ fre e d o m o f s p e e c h ” by th e F irs t

Records, a r u lin g b y t h e F e d e r a l C o u r t

th e film c o n ta in s d e lib e ra te fa ls ific a tio n s

A m e n d m e n t.

w h e r e it w a s h e ld t h a t t h e h e ir s o f

o r m a k e s a n a t t e m p t t o r e p r e s e n t d is

a r e w o n d e r in g a b o u t t h e p a r a m e te r s o f

r e s u lt, s u c h p r o t e c t i o n is t h e n d e r iv e d

t h e la w .

fr o m th e n o w b r o a d p r o te c tio n a ffo rd e d

e a rlie r

T h e m o s t c o m m o n q u e r y w a s: W ill t h e r u le s d if f e r f o r a p r o d u c e r m a k in g

1978

a film u s in g a f ic t i o n a l iz a t i o n o f a f a c -

T h e F ir s t A m e n d m e n t a llo w s n a m e s

A g a th a C h ris tie c o u ld n o t a sse rt a “rig h t

p u te d fa c ts as tru e . T h e U .S . C o u rts ta k e

t u a l l y - a c c u r a t e b i o g r a p h y o r u s in g a

o r lik e n e ss to b e p u b lish e d w ith o u t p e r

o f p u b l i c i t y ” c l a i m f o r a f ic t i o n a l i z e d

th e a p p r o a c h th a t if a fic tio n a liz e d a c c o u n t o f a n e v e n t in th e life o f a p u b lic fig u r e is d e p ic te d in a f ilm , a n d it is

m is sio n w h e r e m a tte r s o f p u b lic in te r e s t

a c c o u n t o f a tru e in s ta n c e in h e r life d u e

In th e U .S ., a p r o d u c e r n o w d o e s

a re c o n c e r n e d . T h e p o s itio n a d o p te d b y

to th e p r o te c tio n a ffo r d e d to e n te r

n o t n e c e s s a r ily n e e d to s e e k th e p e r

t h e U .S . S u p r e m e C o u r t is t h a t c o m

t a in m e n t b y th e F i r s t A m e n d m e n t.

m is sio n o f th e in d iv id u a l o r his/her h e irs

m e r c ia l s p e e c h te n d s t o b e g u a r a n te e d

A c a s e w h ic h is o f t e n c ite d in tr ia ls

titio u s , th e film m a k e r w ill g e n e r a lly n o t

t o d e p ic t t h a t in d iv id u a l in a film .

a le s s e r p r o t e c t i o n . H o w e v e r , it is la w

b e l ia b le t o a t t a c k u n d e r t h e “ r i g h t o f

p u r e ly -f ic tio n a liz e d b io g r a p h y ?

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in th e U .S . t h a t e n te r ta in m e n t, n o t s im

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p r o t e c t i o n t h r o u g h a la w k n o w n as th e

p ly n e w s r e p o r tin g , c o n s titu te s a m a tte r

th e C a lifo r n ia S u p re m e C o u r t t o o k a

“ R ig h t o f P u b l i c i t y .” T h i s p r o v id e s a n

o f p u b lic in te r e s t.

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p u b lic it y a n d a n u m b e r o f t h o s e s ta te s h a v e e x te n d e d th a t r ig h t b e y o n d an in d iv id u a l’s lif e t im e . T h e y a r e C a l i f o r n ia ,

F lo rid a ,

G e o r g ia ,

In d ia n a ,

K e n tu c k y , N e b r a s k a , N e v a d a , N e w J e r se y , O k la h o m a , T e n n e s s e e , T e x a s , U ta h a n d V ir g in ia . T h e s e sta te s e x te n d p r o te c tio n w h e r e a n id e n tity ’s n a m e o r lik e n e ss h a s b e e n u sed fo r tra d e a n d c o m m e rc ia l p u rp o s e s. T r a d e a n d c o m m e r c ia l p u r p o s e s a r e n a r r o w l y d e fin e d t o in c lu d e in s ta n c e s in w h ic h a c e le b r it y ’s n a m e o r lik e n e s s is u s e d t o a d v e r tis e a p r o d u c t o r s e r v ic e .

c o u ld

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o f la b e llin g a w o r k f ic tio n a liz e d r a t h e r t h a n tr u e . I t is r e l e v a n t t o r e - c o n s i d e r T he Estate o f Elvis Presley v Russen, d is c u s s e d i n l e n g t h in t h e M a r c h 1 9 9 5

s ta te s , e ith e r th ro u g h s ta tu te o r c o m m o n la w , d o r e c o g n iz e th e r ig h t o f

C h r i s t i e ’ s h e ir s

b io g r a p h y ; h e n c e , th e a d d e d a d v a n ta g e

n a m e o r lik e n e s s f o r c o m m e r c i a l p u r

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I t is f o r th is r e a s o n t h a t in Hicks v Casablanca Records th e c o u r t h e ld t h a t r e c o v e r d a m a g e s fo r a fic tio n a liz e d

c o n t r o l t h e e x p l o i t a t i o n o f h is o r h e r

o f p u b lic it y . I t is, h o w e v e r , a t p r e s e n t

p u b lic it y ” le g is la tio n .

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i n d iv id u a l w i t h t h e e x c l u s i v e r i g h t to

p o ses.

e v id e n t t h a t th e e v e n ts d e p ic te d a re f ic

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issu e . S u f fic e to sa y t h a t it h a s b e c o m e im p o s s ib le f o r t h e E lv is E s t a t e t o s to p th e e v e r - in c r e a s in g n u m b e r o f E lv is im p e r s o n a t o r s . In

Joplin Enterprises v Allen, t h e

F e d e r a l C o u r t r e c e n tly a p p lie d th e H i c k s ’ p r in c ip le . T h e C o u r t f o u n d t h a t a t w o - a c t p la y r e v o lv in g a r o u n d a d a y in th e life o f J a n is J o p l i n , th e s e c o n d a c t o f w h i c h c o n s i s t e d o f t h e p e r f o r m e r ’s im ita tin g J o p l i n in c o n c e r t , w a s p r o te c te d b y th e F ir s t A m e n d m e n t an d t h e r e f o r e c o u l d n o t b e h e ld t o v i o l a t e C a l i f o r n ia ’s “ r ig h t o f p u b lic it y ” . I n v ie w o f t h e t r e n d , n o n - f i c t i o n a liz e d b i o g r a p h i e s g e n e r a l ly r e c e iv e a h ig h e r d e g r e e o f p r o t e c t i o n u n d e r t h e

Common Law and the Trade Practices Act, 1974 p r o v id e s I n A u s tr a lia , th e

F ir s t A m e n d m e n t t h a n f ic tio n a liz e d

s im ila r p r o t e c t i o n . I n p a r t i c u l a r , f il m

Rosemont E nterprises v R andom H o u se In c.,

m a k e rs sh o u ld b e m in d fu l o f s e c tio n 5 3 :

w h ic h c o n c e r n e d a fa c tu a lly -a c c u r a te

A c o r p o r a t i o n s h a ll n o t , in t r a d e o r

b io g r a p h y o f H o w a rd H u g h e s , th e

w o rk s . In th e re c e n t ca se o f

c o m m e r c e , in c o n n e c t i o n w i t h t h e

C o u r t h e ld t h a t a c e l e b r i t y ’s “ r i g h t o f

su p p ly o r p o s s ib le s u p p ly o f g o o d s o r

p u b lic ity ” m u st y ie ld t o th e p u b lic in te r

s e r v ic e s o r in c o n n e c t i o n w ith th e

e s t w h e r e it “ c o n f lic t s w ith th e fr e e

p r o m o t io n b y a n y m e a n s o f t h e s u p

d is s e m in a tio n

p ly o r u s e o f g o o d s o r s e r v ic e s [...]

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CINEMA

P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

o f th o u g h ts,

m a tte r s o f p u b lic i n t e r e s t ” .

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p56

fe s tiv a ls

Sydney and Melbourne Raymond Younis and Monica Zetlin look at the highlights. S ix Fragments of a Chronology of Disorder: The 42nd Sydney Film Festival

T h e r e w e r e n u m e r o u s h ig h lig h ts .

o p p o s itio n s : s h o ts o f th e le is u r e ly m id

A n u m b e r o f e a g e rly -a w a ite d film s

d le c la s s e s a r e i n t e r c u t w i t h s h o t s o f

d id n o t d is a p p o i n t ; a n u m b e r o f

p e n u rv an d w ith sh o ts o f a n im a ls ; sh o ts

o f a jo y f u l g r o u p o f d a n c e r s a re c o u n n o t-so -e a g e rly -a w a ite d film s w e re n o less im p r e s s iv e . O n e o f th e g r e a t p le a s u rete s r a c t e d b y m o r e a u s te r e a n d s o b e r in g o f th e F estiv a l w as th e fa c t th a t it o ffe re dim a g e s ; s h o ts o f g r a v e s to n e s a r e i n t e r

m a n y p e o p le th e c h a n c e to see h ig h ly -

c u t w ith sh o ts o f an g els w h ic h a re m a d e

v a lu e d film s fr o m th e e a rly p a r t o f th e

o f s t o n e ; a n d s o o n . V i g o ’ s N i c e is a

c e n tu ry o n th e b ig sc r e e n . T h r e e e x a m

p la c e o f c o n t r a d ic t i o n s a n d s ta r k d iv i

La Passion de Jeanne d ’Arc (The Passion o f Joan o f d e s e r v e s a s p e c ia l p r o g r a m m e . I t A rc , C a r l D r e y e r , 1 9 2 8 ) , A propos de d e s e rv e s a r e tr o s p e c tiv e g la n c e Nice ( J e a n V i g o , 1 9 3 0 ) a n d Toute la f r o m t h e t im e o f th e L u m iè r e s to th em ém oire du m onde ( A la i n R e s n a i s ,

s io n s . V i g o ’ s s a tir e is r a z o r - s h a r p a n d

Raymond 1 onnu

p le s t h a t c o m e t o m in d a re

The

1 0 0 t h y e a r o f th e c in e m a

t h e b o u r g e o i s i e is m e r c i l e s s l y l a m p o o n e d in p a r t s . Y e t , t h e f i l m

is a

d e l i g h t a n d it is f u ll o f r e m i n d e r s o f V i g o ’s h u m o u r , sk ill a n d im a g in a tio n .

p r e s e n t d ay. C e r ta in ly , th e o p p o r tu n ity1 9 5 6 ) . w a s th e r e t o fe a tu r e s o m e o f th e la n d

m a r k s o f f ilm , s o m e o f t h e n e g l e c t e d film s a n d s o m e o f th e m o s t m e m o r a b le r e c e n t a c h ie v e m e n ts . T h e r e w e r e a ls o o p p o r t u n itie s t o h ig h lig h t th e a c h ie v e

JM D r e y e r ’ s f il m is as s t r i k i n g ^

a n d as fo r c e fu l as ev e r. In 2 9

■ ■

s e q u e n c e s , D r e y e r p r o v id e s

T h e F re n c h N a tio n a l L ib rary

is r e v e a l e d

as a s e e m i n g l v - e n d l e s s

a n u n u s u a lly -c o n c e n tr a te d an d -e n g a g

la b y r in th o f c o r r i d o r s , s ta ir s , p a s s a g e

m e n t o f t h e A u s tr a lia n c in e m a , w h ic h

in g film w h ic h e n c a p s u la te s in o n e d ay

w a y s, d e sk s a n d b o o k s . T h e re s tle s s

is in n o s e n s e n e g lig ib le . F o r t u n a t e l y ,

th e p a s s io n a n d a g o n y o f J o a n o f A rc .

c a m e r a c o n s ta n tly m o v e s th r o u g h c o r

t h e d ir e c t o r o f th e 4 2 n d S y d n e y F ilm

T h e t e c h n i q u e s till s e e m s a s t o n is h in g

rid o rs , p a ssa g e w a y s, r o o m s an d sp a c e s.

F e s tiv a l t o o k s o m e o f th e s e o p p o r t u n i

a n d d ir e c t - so m u c h so t h a t o n e c a n

It is c o n s ta n tly risin g a n d d e sc e n d in g . It

tie s . T h e F e s tiv a l f e a tu r e d a n u m b e r o f

n o t t u r n a w a y f r o m , o r e a s ily f o r g e t ,

is as if th e c a m e r a is ta k e n o n a jo u r n e y

h ig h lig h ts , in c lu d in g s e v e ra l r e t r o s p e c

t h e t o r t u r e d f a c e , th e s u ff e r in g fig u r e

t h a t is n e v e r - e n d i n g t h r o u g h a p l a c e

tiv e s : o n e f e a tu r e d te n A u s tr a lia n film s

a n d th e h a r r o w in g o r d e a l. D r e y e r ’s use

w h e r e th e r e a re n o e x its b u t still m o r e

w h ic h h a v e b e e n s o m e w h a t n e g le c te d in o n e w a y o r th e o t h e r , in c lu d in g

Backroads (P h illip N o y c e , 1 9 7 7 ) , Pure S... ( B e r t D e l i n g , 1 9 7 5 ) a n d G oing Down (H a y d n K e e n a n , 1 9 8 3 ) ; o n e fe a tu re d c a r e fu lly -c h o s e n

(b y M ic h e l

C im e n t) F r e n c h d o c u m e n ta r ie s in c lu d in g tr e a s u r e s b y th e L u m iè r e s , M a r c e l C a r n é , C h r is M a r k e r , J e a n V ig o an d A la in R e s n a is ; a s e c tio n o n d ir e c to r s a t w a r i n c l u d i n g f ilm s b y F r a n k C a p r a , C h a r le s C h a u v e l, “ L t. G r e g g T o l a n d ” and “ C m d r. Jo h n

F o r d ” , W illia m

W y le r , J o h n H u s to n an d R e s n a is ; a n u m b e r o f s h o r t s b y “ T h e S a r a je v o G ro u p o f A u th o r s ” ; fra m e -b y -fra m e

r o o m s a n d s till m o r e b o o k s , n e w s p a

'O n e o f the great p leasu res o f the fe stival w a s the fa c t th at it offered m a n y people the ch an ce to see high ly-valu ed film s fro m the early part o f the century on the b ig sc re e n /

p e r s , jo u r n a l s a n d m a n u s c r i p t s . A t n u m e ro u s steps, it is su ggested th a t th e re is a lw a y s s o m e t h in g m o r e to d is c o v e r , alw ays s o m e th in g m o r e to b e p re serv ed . T h e lib ra r y a n d th e c a m e r a , th e n , serv e a ta sk t h a t se e m s to b e m o r e a n d m o r e im p o s s ib le : r e d e e m in g t h a t w h ic h h a s a lre a d y b e e n c o n s ig n e d to th e d e s t r u c tiv e p a s s a g e o f t im e . I n d e e d , R e s n a i s su g g e sts th a t th e n e c e s s ity an d th e im p o ssib ility o f o rd e rin g th e c h a o tic lay e rs a n d t h e u n m a n a g e a b le a m o u n t o f m a te r ia l - i t s e lf a lw a y s in c r e a s in g , t h o u g h c r u c ia l a n d n e c e s s a r y - s e e m s c e r ta in to e n d p r e m a t u r e ly . T h e r e a r e

a n a ly se s ; sp e c ia l g u e sts, in c lu d in g M a r

o f th e c lo s e -u p is a lm o s t u n s tin tin g an d

a lw a y s o t h e r s t a ir s , le v e ls , r o o m s a n d

c e l O p h iils a n d A n d r e w S a r r is ; a n d

le n d s a p a r t ic u la r in t e n s ity a n d p u r ity

c o lle c tio n s w h ic h c a n n o t b e sh o w n , c a n

m u ch , m u ch m o re.

to th e im a g e s. O n e is a lso s tr u c k b y th e

n o t b e seen .

th in g s t h a t D r e y e r d o e s n o t s h o w ; th is

T h e l ib r a r y d o e s n o t ju s t b e c o m e

is a film w h ic h se e m s n e v e r to lo se sig h t

a m e ta p h o r o f a v a s t m e m o r y w h ic h is

c o m p le x .

o f th e e s s e n tia l. T h e e m o t io n a l is m a x

fig u r e d as a p la c e o f u n f a th o m a b le

I n d e e d , i t is t e m p t i n g t o w r i t e

im iz e d t h r o u g h t h is s t r a t e g y , a n d th e

d e p th s a n d e x p a n s e s , it a ls o m a n ife s ts

a b o u t th e la b y r in th in e n e tw o r k s o f th in e te rla c in g o f te x t a n d fo rm a liz e d im ag e

a c o m p le x ity w h ic h fru s tra te s o r d e fe a ts

le n d s a c o n s t a n t t e n s i o n t o t h e f i l m ’s F e stiv a l p r o g r a m m e - o r o f th e se n se in

a tte m p ts to im p o s e o r d e r u p o n it. T h is

w h ic h se e m s to b e in fin ite ly v a st an d

w h i c h i t c a n n o t b u t e x c e e d a n y b r i erfh e t o r i c a l la n g u a g e . T h i s w a s a tim e ly

s h o r t a n d u n u s u a l l y - r e s o n a n t f ilm

in t r i c a t e - a r e v iv id a n d in p la c e s q u ite

a t t e m p t b y a s o m e w h a t o v e r w h e lm e d

r e m in d e r o f D r e y e r ’s c a p a b il i t ie s as a

o ffe r s , in o n e s e n se , a d e lig h tfu l a n d , in

b r e a th t a k in g ly e v o k e d .

a n d h a r r ie d re v ie w e r t o d o ju s tic e to its

b o ld a n d e x p e r im e n ta l film m a k e r .

a n o t h e r s e n s e , a s a d d e n in g e n d : w h a t

T h e S y d n e y F ilm F e stiv a l se e m s to

2 be

b e c o m in g

m u ltifa r io u s

and

m o re

s e e m in g ly -in e x -

h a u s tib le c o n t e n t s . A ls o , it is t e m p tin g t o m e d it a te o n th e e x t e n t t o w h ic h th e F e s tiv a l, lik e

a v ast and

in tric a te

l a b y r i n t h , e x c e e d s a n y s in g le a t t e m p t t o p r o v id e a c o n c is e m a p o f its t o p o g

3.3

R e s n a i s ’ Toute la mémoire du monde is a tour de force.

A propos de Nice is

is s a lv a g e d is a n u m b e r o f f r a g m e n t s

a sa v a g e s a tir e , a ly r ic a l

f r o m th e “u n iv e rsa l m e m o r y ” a n d th e r e

e v o c a tio n a n d a c e le b r a tio n

is , u l t i m a t e l y , w e a r e t o l d w i t h g r e a t

V i g o ’s

A n u m b e r o f h ig h ly -p r a is e d film s an d film m a k e rs did n o t d isa p p o in t.

is s tru c tu re d in te rm s o f b in a rietsr: e ya os u rthe s . T h e m e ta p h o r s - e x p l o r i n g

N ik ita M ik h a lk o v ’s Outomlionnye Solntsem (Burnt by the Sun), H a l H a r t l e y ’s Amateur a n d J o h n S c h l e s i n g e r ’s Cold Comfort Farm a r e a ll d is tin c tiv e

a n d ag e, ric h a n d p o o r , jo y an d as sadthn eess, y d o th e p o s s ib ilitie s a n d l im i t a

an d h ig h ly -a ssu re d film s w h ic h d e se rv e

o f s e a , s u n a n d t h e R i v i e r a . Tiro h en y f il, m n o t e n o u g h film t o r e c o r d all th e

r a p h y . H o w e v e r , o n e h o p e s t h a t it w ill

a n d so o n . T h r o u g h a h ig h ly - e ff e c t iv e

tio n s o f f ilm m a k in g , th e a t te m p t to

a w id e p o s t -F e s t iv a l a u d ie n c e . I n d e e d ,

s u ffic e to m e n t io n fiv e o r s ix h ig h lig h ts

u se o f m o n ta g e , N ic e e m e rg e s as a p la ce

i m p o s e o r d e r , t h e d e s ir e t o s t r u c t u r e

H a r tle y ’s film is o n e o f h is m o s t s a tisfy

a n d s o m e o f th e d is a p p o in tm e n ts .

w ith d u a l a s p e c ts a n d m a n y u n re s o lv e d

a n d c la s s if y th e th in g s o f a d o m a in

i n g : i t is a n a m u s i n g , i n t r i c a t e a n d

C I N E M A P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

so p h istica ted p ie ce w h ic h p ro v id es so m e

m a t r i a r c h , a f ir e - b r e a t h i n g p r e a c h e r ,

I f an a w a rd h a d b e e n o f f e r e d f o r

o th e r situ a tio n s , th e film d o e s n o t avoid

ra th e r p r o v o c a tiv e th o u g h ts o n id e n tity

d u c k s a n d c o w s , a n a s p ir in g n o v e l i s t

th e m o s t in trig u in g title , th e m a in

a m b ig u ity an d in d e te rm in a c y . T h e fra g

a n d la u g h s a - p le n t y . T h e t e c h n iq u e is

c o n te n d e r su rely w o u ld h a v e b e e n

m e n ts su ggest im p licitly th a t film m a k e rs

p le ’s d esire a n d u n w illin g n e ss to c h a n g e

la rg e ly c o n v e n tio n a l, as b e fits a film o f

h a v e b e e n s o m e w h a t p re s u m p tu o u s in

w ay s o f p e r c e iv in g o t h e r s , a n d o n th e

th is s c a le , b u t th e r e a re so m e fa s c i

a n x ie ty w h ic h te c h n o lo g y e n g e n d e rs.

n a t in g e le m e n t s , e s p e c ia lly in te r m s o f

Fragm ente einer Chronologie des Zufalls (71 Fragments o f a Chronology o f Chance, M ic h a e l H a n e k e ). H a n e k e ’s

S c h l e s i n g e r is i n v e r y g o o d f o r m

t h e f il m ’s e x p l o r a t io n o f th e e x t e n t to

film is a c a r e f u ll y - c r a f t e d r e c o n s t r u c

o b je c tiv e w a y s , th e f r a g m e n ts a r e a ls o

i n d e e d . H is film - a b o u t a s o m e w h a t

w h ic h th e w r ite r a n d th e film m a k e r are

t io n o f a n in c i d e n t in w h i c h a y o u n g

u se d to m a k e a n u m b e r o f te llin g

e c c e n t r ic fa m ily o n a r u n - d o w n f a r m -

c o m p l i c i t in th e p r o c e s s o f t r a n s f o r m

m a n sto r m s in to a b a n k a n d s h o o ts a

p o in ts a b o u t th e a p p r o p r ia t io n o f

s h o w s ju s t h o w m u c h c a n b e d o n e o n

in g life in to a rtific e an d fic tio n . T h e film

n u m b e r o f p e o p l e . T h e b u i l d - u p is

im a g e s o f v io le n c e a n d d e a th as so u rc e s

a s m a ll b u d g e t . T h e r e a r e w o n d e r f u l

a lso h a s a g r e a t d e a l o f fu n w ith a n u m

f r a g m e n t e d a n d d e lib e r a te ly e llip tic a l.

o f e n te r ta in m e n t in th e c in e m a .

p e r fo r m a n c e s , e x tr a o r d in a r y c h a r a c

b e r o f g e n r e s s u c h as th e G o t h ic ,

A lth o u g h th e b e h a v io u r o f th e k ille r

H a n e k e ’ s f il m is d e l i b e r a t e l y

te r s , a f e a r s o m e a n d o v e r b e a r in g

r o m a n tic m e lo d r a m a an d so c ia l rea lism .

a n d o t h e r s is c a r e f u l l y o b s e r v e d i n

a n d s ta u n c h ly « « e n t e r t a i n i n g ,

a n d s o c ia l c o n d it io n in g , o n s o m e p e o

C I N E M A P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

m a k in g c la im s a b o u t re c o r d in g th e “fu ll s t o r y ” a n d , in p e r f e c t l y - i n t e l l ig i b l e o r

_____

history c____w a s t h e o r i g i n a t o r a n d t h e

Skies w a s t a k e n o n a t o u r o f 3 4 V i c to r ia n re g io n a l c e n tr e s o v e r th e n e x t

A s e c o n d m a j o r t o u r o f U nder S outhern Skies w a s i n a u g u r a t e d a t A lb u r y ( N e w S o u t h W a le s ) o n 2 7 J u l y

A b o r ig in a l lif e , f o r e s ts a n d a n im a ls ,

t h r e e m o n t h s . 30 P e a r t l e c t u r e d , S t a f f

m o v in g s p i r it in t h e w h o le

w o o l, m in in g , [fis h in g , d a ir y in g a n d

C a p ta in E b e n e z e r J a c k s o n (la te r an

1 9 0 3 40, t h i s t i m e w i t h S t a f f C a p t a i n

t h i n g ” , b u t n a t u r a lly h is p la n s

a g r ic u ltu r e , sh e e p a n d c a ttle , p o litic s

in d e p e n d e n t film

sh ow m an ) c o n

R o s s , S p e c ia l O ffic e r T ip p e tt a n d A d ju ta n t K n i g h t as le c t u r e r s . T h e p r o

w e re c irc u m s c rib e d b y th e a m o u n t o f

a n d F e d e r a tio n ] e t c ., e a c h p o r tio n

d u c te d th e a c c o m p a n y in g o r c h e s tr a ,

f r e e tim e a n d g o o d lu c k t h a t P e r r y h a d

b e in g a p p r o p r ia te ly illu stra te d b y th e

a n d S t a f f C a p ta in R o b e r t S a n d a ll (la te r

je c t io n is t w as p r o b a b ly E b e n e z e r

in f ilm in g d u r in g h is B io r a m a t o u r s .

l im e lig h t a n d k i n e m a t o g r a p h e . T h e

th e o ffic ia l h is to r ia n o f th e S a lv a tio n

J a c k s o n . A g a in , a u d ie n c e s w e r e c a p t i

m a r v e llo u s g r o w th o f th e c itie s o f

A r m y ) w a s t h e p r o j e c t i o n i s t . 31 C a m

v a te d , as th e

th e

v ery

e r a m a n J o s e p h P e r r y w a s a b r o a d w ith

c o n f ir m e d :

T h e s c r ip t m u st h a v e b e e n p r o d u c e d in c o n s u l t a t i o n w ith P e r r y . N e v e rth e le s s ,

Under Southern Skies

C o m m o n w e a lth

w as

A lbu ry D aily N ew s

f o r c i b ly p ic t u r e d b y a s e r ie s o f c o n

a n o t h e r B io r a m a film e x h i b i t i o n t o u r

F o r o v e r tw o h o u r s a q u ic k s u c c e s

w a s m u c h m o r e lik e a f e a t u r e f ilm

tra s ts b e tw e e n M e l b o u r n e a n d o th e r

o f N e w Z e a la n d .32 P e r r y n e v e r h a d th e

s io n o f c a p ita l life a n d c o lo u r e d

th a n “S o ld ie rs o f th e C r o s s ” . T h e la t

c itie s in e a rly d ays a n d a t th e p r e s e n t

o p p o r tu n ity to e x h ib it

Under South

[s t ill] p i c t u r e s k e p t y o u n g a n d o l d

te r p r o d u c t io n w a s la r g e ly a s lid e

t im e . A d d e d i n t e r e s t w a s g iv e n b y

ern Skies, a n d , as m o s t a c c o u n ts o f th e

in te r e s te d , an in tim a tio n to th e

s h o w .2:i T h i s t im e t h e n u m b e r o f film

t h e k in o v ie w s o f v a r io u s s t r e e t s ,

L i m e l i g h t D e p a r t m e n t ’s w o r k o r i g i

y o u n g e r fr y a t ‘h a l f - t i m e ’ t h a t t h e y

s e g m e n ts w a s 3 5 26 r a t h e r t h a n 1 5 , a n d

s h o w in g t h e r u s h a n d b u s t le o f c ity

n a t e d w i t h J o e P e r r y ’ s s o n s 33, t h i s

c o u ld g o h o m e i f th e y w a n te d to

th o s e 3 5 se g m e n ts w e re lo n g e r th a n

life .

m ig h t

b e in g r e c e iv e d w i t h d e r is iv e l a u g h

e x p la in

th e

p r o d u c tio n ’s

t h e 1 5 o n e - m i n u t e h ig h lig h t s s h o t f o r

T h e A b o r ig in a l s e c t i o n w a s e s p e

“ S o l d i e r s o f t h e C r o s s ” .27 O n s e v e r a l

c ia lly in t e r e s tin g a n d in s tr u c t iv e ,

o c c a s io n s th e s e c u la r p re ss r e p o r te d

d e a lin g w ith th e h a b its , c u s to m s a n d

Skies a t t r a c t e d u n i f o r m l y f a v o u r a b l e

c o v e ry to th e p r e s e n t d a y , a n d a

Under Southern Skies w a s i l l u s

d w e llin g s o f th e s e sa d ly d im in is h in g

r e v ie w s f r o m th e s e c u la r p r e s s , a n d

g r e a t d e a l o f in s tr u c tiv e in f o r m a t io n

tra te d by a to ta l o f 6 0 0 0 fe e t (1 0 0

p e o p l e . A liv in g p i c t u r e o f a n a t iv e

m a d e £ 2 2 0 c le a r p r o f i t f o r t h e S a lv a

w a s im p a r te d as to th e g r o w th o f

m in u te s ) o f f il m .28 T h i s w a s a n in c r e d

c l i m b in g a t r e e a n d b r in g i n g d o w n

t io n A r m y .34 I t p a r t ic u la r ly m a d e a h it

e a c h o f t h e S t a t e s , t h e d e v e lo p m e n t

ib le

a n o p o s s u m o n h is w o o ll y h e a d w a s

in V i c t o r i a ’ s p r o v i n c i a l c i t ie s . A B a l

o f t h e p r i n c i p a l c i t ie s , t h e a d v a n c e s

a p a r t i c u l a r l y s p ic y t i t - b i t [..] w h ile

la r a t s c h o o lm a s te r w ro te to P e a rt

o f m in i n g a n d o t h e r in d u s tr ie s , t h e

th a t

am ount

fo r

a s in g le - s u b je c t

p r e s e n t a t io n in 1 9 0 2 .

a b s e n c e f r o m e a r l i e r c h r o n i c le s . T h e f ir s t t o u r o f

te r. T h e le c tu r e e m b ra c e d th e s to r y

Under Southern

o f th e C o m m o n w e a lth fr o m d is

Under Southern Skies p r e m i e r e d

th e c o n tr a s t b e tw e e n th e p rim itiv e

s ta t in g t h a t i t w a s “w i t h o u t d o u b t th e

f l o r a a n d f a u n a o f A u s tr a la s ia , a n d

a t th e P ra h r a n (M e lb o u rn e ) B a rra c k s

s ty le o f fis h in g a d o p te d b y th e

f in e s t t h i n g o f t h e k i n d e v e r g iv e n in

in o t h e r e d u c a t i o n a l d ir e c t i o n s ,

o f t h e S a lv a t io n A r m y o n M o n d a y , 1 1

n a tiv e s a n d th e m o d e r n m e th o d w a s

th e S o u t h e r n w o r l d ’35. T h e

Day lesford

th e n u m e ro u s illu s tr a tio n s b y th e

A u g u s t 1 9 0 2 . 29 I t w a s a c a r e f u l l y - c o

v e r y s t r ik in g ly d e p ic te d b y a n o t h e r

Advocate's r e v i e w e r w a s q u i t e t a k e n

‘k i n n e y ’ a s t h e l e c t u r e r f a m i l i a r l y

o r d in a t e d “ r o a d s h o w ” p r e s e n t a t io n o f

k in o film . T h is c o n s is te d o f a n

w ith it:

t e r m e d it, t e a c h in g as m u c h in a f e w

r e m a r k a b le s o p h is t ic a t io n f o r its tim e .

a d m ir a b le v ie w o f th e P o r t F a ir y

War Cry

b a r r a c o u ta fis h in g o p e r a tio n s , s h o w

o f 2 3 A u g u s t 1 9 0 2 (p . 2 ) is w o r t h y

in g th e fis h in g f le e t g o in g o u t t o se a ,

o f l e n g t h y q u o t a t io n :

r e tu r n in g , c a tc h in g th e fis h , a n d

T h e r e v i e w in M e l b o u r n e ’s

T h e c r o w d in i t s e l f w a s a n i n s p ir a

u n lo a d in g in t o th e la rg e b a s k e ts . [...]

t i o n t o t h e s p e a k e r , f illin g , a s i t d id ,

E s p e c ia lly in t e r e s tin g w a s th e s e c

e v e r y s e a t in t h e b o d y o f t h e h a l l ,

t i o n o n m in i n g , w h e n t h e l e c t u r e r

a n d s tr e tc h in g r ig h t u p to th e t o p

d e s c r ib e d th e v a r io u s m e th o d s o f

m o s t b e n c h o n th e p la tfo r m . T h e

o b t a in i n g t h e p r e c io u s m e ta l , f r o m

C o l o n e l [ P e a r t ] w a s in f i n e f o r m ,

t h e h u m b l e ‘ d is h ’ t o t h e e l a b o r a t e

a n d s to o d th e h e a v y s tra in [o f n a r

a n d u p -to -d a te q u a rtz b a tte ry . T h e

r a tin g ] f o r tw o h o u r s a d m ir a b ly ,

f o s s ic k e r w a s h in g f o r g o ld w a s s e e n

w h ile t h e l im e l i g h t [s lid e ] v ie w s ,

in a liv in g p ic t u r e , a n d t h e n a n o t h e r

k i n o p i c t u r e s a n d o r c h e s t r a l m u s ic

film r e v e a le d m in e r s g o in g d o w n

a ll p la y e d t h e i r p a r t w i t h o u t a h it c h

a n d c o m i n g u p f r o m a m in e in t h e

[ ...]

m o s t r e a l i s t i c f a s h io n .

‘U n d e r S o u t h e r n S k i e s ’ [ ...] c o n s is ts

a p r o fu s e ly

illu s tr a te d

E v e r y s e c t i o n w a s d e a l t w i t h in

T h e v ie w s t h r o w n u p o n t h e s c r e e n

f la s h e s a s a h a n d b o o k i n a t w e l v e -

w e re r e m a r k a b ly g o o d , a n d th e

m o n th .

k i n e m a t o g r a p h p i c t u r e s o f m in e r s

A v e ry e x te n d e d k in e m a to g ra p h e

a t w o r k w i t h t h e i r t i n d is h e s , a n d

v ie w o f t h e m a n o e u v r e s o f t h e P o r t

o t h e r s w ith t h e i r c r a d le s w e r e v e r y

F a ir y f is h in g f le e t w a s a t r e a t in

r e a lis tic , as w e r e a ls o t h e p ic tu r e s o f

its e lf. A m o n g t h e m a n y s o c ia l p r o b

s h e a rin g sh e e p , th e c u ttin g a n d lo a d

le m s th e S a lv a tio n A r m y s u c c e e d s in

in g o f b a n a n a s e t c [ ...] 36

s o lv in g a p p e a r s t o b e t h a t o f p l e a s

The

Northcote Leader a ls o r e c o r d e d

th e s u r p r is e o f a n a u d ie n c e u n u s e d

p o p u la r is in g

e d u c a tio n a l

t o a n y s e r io u s u s a g e f o r m o t i o n p i c

T h e s e c o n d to u r v is ite d 8 4 c e n tr e s

tu r e s , w h ic h w e r e ju s t e m e r g in g f r o m

th r o u g h o u t N e w S o u th W a le s , an d

th e ir p e r io d o f te c h n ic a l c ru d ity a n d

la s te d fiv e m o n th s , c o n c lu d in g a t

n o v e lty :

G r a f t o n o n 1 5 D e c e m b e r 1 9 0 3 . 42

T h a t t h e l e c t u r e w a s h ig h ly a p p r e

T h e y e x h i b i t e d t h e s lid e s h o w “ S a lv a

c ia te d

tio n B y L im e lig h t” a t th e ir S u n d a y

a p p la u s e .

s e r v i c e s 43, w h i l e t h e m o v i e p r e s e n t a

w as

fre q u e n t

t h is w a y [...]

a n tly

t h e m e s .41

d e m o n stra te d

ro u n d s

Under Southern Skies, w a s s h o w n

a c c o u n t o f t h e h is to r y a n d p r o g r e s s

T h e d a w n in g o f F e d e r a tio n w a s

A l t h o u g h t h e l e c t u r e is a l e n g t h y

t io n ,

o f A u s tr a lia , f r o m th e tim e w h e n

b r ie f l y d e s c r i b e d , a n d v ie w s o f t h e

o n e , th e in te r e s tin g t o p i c a u x ilia r ie d

t o r a is e fu n d s o n e v e r y o t h e r n i g h t o f

T a s m a n s a ile d h is v e s s e l c lo s e in t o

c h ie f s c e n e s in t h a t h is t o r ic e v e n t

b y 2 0 0 s lid e s a n d c lo s e o n 4 0 liv in g

th e w e e k .

th e u n k n o w n s h o r e a n d th e n p a s s e d

f la s h e d u p o n t h e s c r e e n , w h i l e t h e

p ic tu r e s , w as so fa s c in a tin g th a t

o n , d e e m in g i t t o o b a r r e n a n d f o r

v is it o f th e D u k e a n d D u c h e s s o f

t h e r e w a s n o t a d u ll m o m e n t . S p e

U n d e r S o u th e r n S kies: M u s ic

b id d in g t o la n d , t o t h e f o u n d in g o f

Y o r k [ ...] w a s i l l u s t r a t e d b y h a l f - a -

c ia l a t te n t io n h a s b e e n g iv e n to

S t a f f C a p t a in E b e n e z e r J a c k s o n a p p a r

th e C o m m o n w e a lth o n Ja n u a r y 1,

d ozen

s e c u r in g v a r io u s a s p e c ts o f A b o r i g

e n tly a s s e m b le d a n a r r a n g e m e n t o f

1901.

f u n c t i o n s . [ ...]

film s

ta k e n

v a r io u s

in a l l if e - in f a c t t h e p ic t u r e s o f

p o p u la r tu n e s o f th e d a y to a c c o m

B e g in n in g w ith a s h o r t g e o g r a p h

T h e t e x t ‘R ig h te o u s n e s s e x a l t e t h

f is h in g , o p o s s u m h u n t in g , a n d c o r -

p a n y P e a r t ’s l e c t u r e . T h e “ e ig h t p i e c e

ic a l d e s c r i p t i o n o f th e c o u n t r y , th e

a n a t i o n ’ f la s h e d u p o n t h e s c r e e n ,

r o b o r e e a re u n iq u e [...] T h e h a ll w a s

o r c h e s t r a ” 44 f r o m t h e “ m e t r o p o l i t a n

C o l o n e l p r o c e e d e d t o g iv e a b r i e f

a ffo r d e d th e C o lo n e l [P e a r t] th e

p a c k e d t o its u t m o s t c a p a c i t y a n d

c o r p s ”45 le d b y J a c k s o n r e c e iv e d p r a is e

s k e tc h o f th e v a r io u s n a v ig a to r s ,

o p p o r t u n i t y f o r a f e w f in a l w o r d s

t h e g r e a t e s t e n th u s ia s m p r e v a ile d .37

fo r th e ir a c c o m p a n im e n t. “ It w as a

D u tc h a n d E n g lis h , w h o b r o u g h t b a c k re p o rts - g e n e ra lly u n fa v o u ra b le - o f th e n e w la n d o v e r th e s e a s . P o r t r a it s o f th e e a r ly n a v ig a to r s

o n th e

su p re m e im p o rta n c e

r e c o g n is in g a n d y ie ld in g to th e c la im s o f G o d . ‘L e t t h i s A u s t r a li a n n a t i o n ’ , s a id th e C h ie f S e c r e ta r y [P e a r t], ‘n o t o n ly

fin e

th e

d e v e lo p h e r m a g n if ic e n t n a t u r a l

in d o m ita b le C o o k u ltim a te ly t a k in g

r e s o u r c e s , b u t b e p r o g r e s s i v e in

p o s s e s s io n o f th e c o u n tr y fo r th e

th e h ig h e r r e a lm o f m o r a lity a n d

B ritis h C r o w n , su rro u n d e d b y o f f i

r e l i g io n ’ [...] T h u s c lo s e d t w o h o u r s

cers,

o f p le a s u r e a n d p r o f i t [...]

p ic tu r e

m a r in e s ,

r e p re s e n te d

and

g ro u p

A f te r th is p r e m ie r e ,

A fte r a W illia m s t o w n ( V ic to r ia ) s h o w in g o n

O c to b e r

1 9 0 2 , R obert

S a n d a l l d r o p p e d o u t a s p r o je c t i o n i s t

w e re th ro w n o n th e s c r e e n , an d a

w o n d e r in g A b o r ig in a ls .

T h e le c t u r e w a s d iv id e d i n t o s e c t io n s c o m p r is in g h i s t o r y , p r o g r e s s ,

Under Southern

t o t a k e u p S a l v a t i o n A r m y d u t ie s in

s t r o n g a lly t o [...] t h e l e c t u r e ” , sa id th e

War Cry, a n d “ t h e m u s i c s e e m e d t o p u l s a t e in w o n d e r f u l h a r m o n y w i t h t h e v i e w s s h o w n ” . 46 S o m e t i m e s t h e

S o u t h A f r ic a .38 H is p la c e w a s t a k e n f o r

m u s ic w a s a p p lie d w ith a w r y s e n s e o f

t h e fin a l V i c t o r i a n v e n u e s b y A d ju ta n t

h u m o u r , as th e

Ballarat Star in d ic a te d :

S id n e y C o o k . I n t h e f ir s t f o u r m o n t h s

It w a s n o tic e a b le th a t w h ile a k in e

o f 1 9 0 3 , C o o k s p o r a d ic a lly e x h i b i t e d

m a to g r a p h v ie w o f a n u m b e r o f p ig s

Under Southern Skies in V i c t o r i a , a n d

fe e d in g a t a tr o u g h w a s th r o w n o n

s u b s e q u e n tly in T a s m a n i a d u r in g M a y

th e s c r e e n , th e o r c h e s tr a f la y e d

1 9 0 3 . 39

“T h e w e a r in ’ o f th e g r e e n ” .

CINEMA

P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

T h r e e y e a r s l a t e r , J a c k s o n a n d S id n e y

A d d i t i o n a l r e s e a r c h m a t e r ia l w a s

C o o k r e s ig n e d f r o m th e S a lv a t io n

s u p p lie d b y C liv e S o w r y ( W e ll i n g t o n ,

A r m y in t a n d e m t o f o r m a c o m m e r

N ew

Z e a la n d );

S ta te

L ib r a r y

15 Ibid. 16 Peart’s Salvation Army staff record card

in Salvation Army Archives, Melbourne. 17 W ar Cry, Melbourne, 12 July 19 0 2 , p.

c i a l t r a v e l l i n g p i c t u r e s h o w o u t f i t . 48

Q u e e n s la n d ; S t a t e L ib r a r y o f V i c t o r i a ;

N o t s u r p r i s i n g l y , t h e y s p e c i a l i z e d in

P r u e L o n g ; a n d N o r m a W o o d (d a u g h

9: “Another Limelight Department T ri

th e s h o o tin g a n d e x h ib itio n o f lo c a l

t e r o f t h e l a te S id n e y C o o k ) .

umph”.

f i l m s .49

18 War Cry, Melbourne, 9 August 1902, p.

35 War Cry, Melbourne, 18 October 1902,

p. 6: “Under Southern Skies”. 36 T he D aylesford A dvocate, 16 September 1902, p. 2. 37 The N orthcote Leader, 31 (? - scrapbook citation unclear) August 1902. 38 Refer itinerary citation in the W ar Cry,

1 T he Australian, 2 June 1995: “Game as

4: “The Biorama at Richmond I”; W ar

Next In stalm ent

Ned Kelly to claim a first, but in there

Cry, Melbourne, 16 August 1902, p. 10:

U nder S o u th ern Skies ( 1 9 0 2 ) h a d th e L im e lig h t D e p a r t

with a good shot” by Bill Routt. An Aus

m e n t g r e a tly e x p a n d in g its f ilm m a k in g

of Ned Kelly had supporting literature

e ffo r ts b e tw e e n 1 9 0 2 a n d 1 9 0 4 . T h is

making this claim. The legend, without

20 Ibid.

p e a k o f th e ir p r o d u c t io n c o r r e s p o n d e d

sufficient supporting research, has taken

21 W ar Cry, Melbourne. Brodie’s articles,

40 War Cry, Melbourne, 1 August 1903, p.

w ith a d e a r th o f A u s tr a lia n o u tp u t

on a life of its own quite exclusive of the

often miscredited to “Brogan” [sic], were

e l s e w h e r e . U n f o r t u n a t e l y , t h e f il m s

11 (see also W ar Cry itineraries printed

real history involved as Routt indicates.

published under the title “Our Biorama

s u rv iv in g f r o m th is p e r io d a re fe w .

on or near the back page at this tim e);

2 Refer previous articles in the “Australi

T h e l a c k o f s y s t e m a t ic A u s tr a lia - w id e

in Q u een slan d ” or “T h e B ioram a in

A lbury D aily N ew s, 25 July 1 9 0 3 , 2 7

a’s First Films” series, especially Cinem a

n e w s p a p e r r e s e a r c h r e s u lt s in t h e fe w

Queensland”. Refer issues of 5 October

July 1903, 28 July 1903; N ew castle H er

Papers No. 9 7 -9 8 , April 1994, p. 34 et

su rv iv a ls (w h ic h h a v e n o title s) r e m a in

1 9 0 1 , p. 4 ; 26 O ctober 1 9 0 1 , p. 3 ; 2

seq: “Screening the Salvation Army”;

T h e p o p u la r ity o f

i n g u n i d e n t i f i e d i n t h e v a u lt s o f o u r f il m a r c h i v e s . F i l m s n o t i d e n t i f i e d a s A u s tr a lia n m a y a lr e a d y h a v e b e e n “ d e a c c e s s io n e d ” to a rc h iv e s a b r o a d . D o th e s e film s su rv iv e ? W i t h th is m e t h o d o lo g y , w e m a y n e v e r k n o w ! The

L im e lig h t

D e p a r t m e n t ’s

i m p o r t a t io n o f p io n e e r in g n a r r a tiv e

Life o f an American Firem an ( 1 9 0 2 ) , The Great Train Robbery ( 1 9 0 3 ) , a n d J . A . W i l l i a m s o n ’s Attack on a China Mis sion ( 1 9 0 1 ) i n f l u e n c e d i t s f i l m i n g f i c t i o n a l f il m s l ik e E . S . P o r t e r ’ s

s t y le .50 S e v e r a l o n e - r e e l d r a m a t ic film s w e r e m a d e b y th e L im e lig h t D e p a r t m ent

th is

p e r io d ,

in c lu d in g

A u s tr a lia ’s fir s t b u s h r a n g in g d ra m a ( M a r c h 1 9 0 4 ) . 51 W a t c h f o r t h e d e ta ils

tralia Post stamp issue including a stamp

No. 99, June 1994, p. 60 et seq: “Sol diers of the C ross” ; N o. 1 0 0 , August 1994, p. 60 et seq: “Colonial Cinema’s Conclusion”; No. 101, October 1994, p. 56 et seq: “Federation Film”; No. 103, M arch 1995, p. 40 et seq: “The Royal Visit Films of 1 9 0 1 ”; No. 105, August 1995, p. 42 et seq: “Our First Producers Abroad”. 3 W ar Cry, Melbourne, 26 October 1901, p. 8; 16 N ovem ber 1 9 0 1 , p. 3 ; 23 N ovem ber 1 9 0 1 , p. 7; 30 Novem ber 1 9 0 1 , p. 8; 8 May 1 9 0 9 , p. 9 et seq, “Thomas McKie, Soul Winner”; The Vic to ry , M elb ou rn e, Janu ary 1 9 1 4 , pp. 19-22. 4 C inem a Papers, October 1994, p.56 et seq: “Federation”, by Chris Long.

in o u r n e x t is s u e .

5 Ibid., M arch 1995, p. 40 et seq: “The R oyal V isit Film s of 1 9 0 1 ” by Chris Long and Clive Sowry. 6 Ibid, August 1 9 9 5 , p. 42 et seq: “Aus tralia’s First Film s Part 14: Our First Producers Abroad” by Clive Sowry and Chris Long. 7 Ibid, October 1994, p. 82. 8 Ibid, August 1994, p. 84. A magnificent new film history resource: the Salvation Army Heritage Centre, Westwood Place (rear 69 Bourke Street), Melbourne. This photo shows only a tiny corner of the vast print archives, including many records of the Salvation Army Limelight Department, Australia's first corporate film producer.

9 Peart’s Salvation Army staff record card in Salvation Army Archives, Melbourne; War Cry, Chicago U.S., 29 January 1949, pp. 4, 13, “Triumphant Finish to a Bril lian t C a re e r”, by Envoy M erle J . Hamilton (Peart’s obit.). 10 Victorian Public Records Office, Laver-

A c k n o w le d ge m e n ts P a t L a u g h r e n , G r i f f i t h U n iv e r s ity a n d t h e A u s tr a lia n R e s e a r c h C o u n c i l p r o v id e d

fin a n c ia l

research

su p p ort

p u b lis h e d

h ere.

fo r

th e

S in c e re

th a n k s ! T h e S a lv a tio n A rm y H e r ita g e C e n tr e , W e s tw o o d P la c e (r e a r 6 9

“Salvation By Limelight”. 19 W ar Cry, M elbourne, 23 August 1902, p. 2: “Under Southern Skies”.

Melbourne, at this period. 39 T h e M ercu ry , H o bart, 2 6 M ay 1 9 0 3 . Although the title Under Southern Skies is not given, the review and synopsis indicates that it is obviously the subject of the newspaper review.

ald, 10 October 1903, 13 October 1903.

N ovem ber 1 9 0 1 , p. 1 0 ; 9 N ovem ber

41 Albury D aily N ew s, 28 July 1903.

1901, p. 15; 23 November 1901, p. 6.

42 See Under Southern Skies exhibition itin

22 Itineraries were published on or near the back page of each Melbourne W ar Cry in this period. See also N ew castle H er ald, 11 November 1901, p. 5. 23 W ar Cry, Melbourne, 8 February 1902, p. 12; 15 February 1902, p. 7; 1 March

eraries

published

the

w eekly

Melbourne War Cry on or near the back page in this period. 43 Daylesford Advocate, 16 September 1902, p. 2; War Cry, Melbourne, 8 November 1902, p. 9.

1902, p. 2; 8 March 1902, p. 4 ; 5 April

44 B allarat Star, 23 September 1902.

1 9 0 2 , p. 15; 12 April 1902, p. 15; 19

45 W arm am bool Standard, 20 August 1902.

April 1902, p. 2; 24 May 1902, p. 3; 5

46 War Cry, Melbourne, 18 October 1902,

July 1902, p, 11; 19 July 1902, p. 10, (all articles by Crothers). 24 W ar Cry, Melbourne, August 1902, p.

15; 23 August 1902, p. 15; 30 August 1902, p. 16. 25 Cinem a Papers, June 1994, p. 82: “Sol

p. 6. 47 B allarat Star, 23 September 1902. 48 Sidney C ook’s Salvation Army record card held by Salvation Army Archives, Melbourne. Brisbane Courier, 13 March 1 9 0 6 , p. 5 ; 31 May 1 9 0 6 , p. 5 ; Cairns

diers of the Cross” by Chris Long and

P ost, 7 April 1 9 0 6 , 9 April 1 9 0 6 , 11

Clive Sowry.

A pril 1 9 0 6 , 12 April 1 9 0 6 , 13 April

26 War Cry, Melbourne, 9 August 1902, p.

1 9 0 6 , 16 A pril 1 9 0 6 ; R o c k h a m p to n

16, indicates 35 film segments; Argus,

E v en in g R ec o rd , 11 M ay 1 9 0 6 . F or a

Melbourne, 9 August 1902, p. 12 indi

short time after Cook’s resignation from

cates 38 film segments; Colac H erald, 15

the Salvation Army in Ju ly 1 9 0 5 he

August 1902, indicates 35 film segments.

seems to have been travelling on his own

27 See ref. (25).

as “C o o k ’s Big Biograph C om pany”,

28 T h e M ercu ry, H obart, 26 M ay 1 9 0 3 ;

refer B a lla ra t C o u rier, 18 N ovem ber

Albury D aily N ew s, 27 July 1903. 29 The Age, Melbourne, 9 August 1902, p.

1 9 0 5 , 2 0 Jan u ary 1 9 0 6 , 25 Jan u ary 1906, 26 January 1906.

12; 12 August 1902, p. 4 ; Argus, M el

49 Cook shot films for Cozens Spencer in

bourne, 9 August 1902, p. 16; W ar Cry,

Sydney during 1905 and 1906. Refer The

Melbourne, 23 August 1902, p. 2.

Sydney M orning H erald , 31 July 1905

30 Itinerary printed on or near the back

(Stanbury vs. Tow ns sculling cham pi

page of M elb ou rn e’s W ar Cry in this

onship film on Parramatta River); South

period.

A ustralian Register, 28 February 19 0 6

ton: Chief Secretary’s Correspondence

31 War Cry, Melbourne, 9 August 1902, p.

(films of Autumn Show and Adelaide

Index, 1901, p. 15 - note of letter from

16; B allarat Star, 23 September 1902.

Fire Brigade shot 1 and 2 March 1906).

Peart offering filming facilities. National

32 W ar Cry, Melbourne, 23 August 1902,

50 W ar Cry, 1 M arch 1 9 0 2 , p. 2 , records

Archives of New Zealand, Wellington,

p. 10. According to Clive Sowry, Perry

screening of A ttack on a C hina M ission

(NA), IA1 1901/ 953, attached to IA1

shot at least eleven films during his tour

( 1 9 0 1 ). W ar C ry , 4 Ju n e 1 9 0 4 , p. 7,

1908/864 - letter from Peart to Premier

of New Zealand, from 9 August 1902 to

records screening L ife o f an A m erican

Seddon, 5 March 1901.

14 November 1902.

F ir e m a n

11 NFSA video F e d e ra tio n F ilm s (1 9 9 1 )

( 1 9 0 2 ).

M a r y b o ro u g h

33 Reg P erry ’s testim on y was the core

D u n olly A dvertiser, 6 February 1 9 0 5 ,

source for Eric Reade’s books on Aus

records a Biorama Company screening

p r o v i d e d m o s t o f t h e m a t e r ia l u s e d in

12 W ar Cry (C h ica g o ?), 10 Ju ly 1 9 2 6 :

tralian film, and for Joan Long’s Film

of T h e G reat A m erican T rain R o bb ery

t h is a r t i c l e . A r c h iv is t G e o r g e E llis a n d

“Commissioner William Peart: Farewell

Australia documentary, The Pictures That

h is s e c r e t a r y S u e M c l v o r p r o v id e d

Number”.

M oved (1968).

B o u r k e S t r e e t ) , in M e l b o u r n e ’s C B D

includes this shot.

th e ir c o n s ta n t re s e a rc h su p p o rt o v e r a

13 The W ar Cry, M elbourne, 22 October

s e v e n -y e a r p e r io d , e x p e c tin g o n ly

1949, p. 8: “A Voice from the Past”.

a c c u r a c y in r e t u r n .

CINEMA

P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

14 See ref. (12).

(1903). M The North Queensland Herald, Townsville,

34 War Cry, Melbourne, 8 November 1902,

26 March 1904, p. 8; N orth Queensland

p. 9: “With Colonel Peart and the Lime

R egister, Tow nsville, 14 M arch 1 9 0 4 :

light”.

“Winton Notes - 9th March”.

legal ease

a n ’s r e t u r n t o A u s tr a lia a f te r t h e d e a th

w o m e n m u s ic ia n s w h o c h o s e life s ty le s

w h i c h a r e o f t e n c r i t i c iz e d as u n d e r d e

o f h e r m o th e r.

w h i c h r u b a g a in s t t h e g r a in .

v e lo p e d v a r ia t io n s o n e i t h e r s u c c e s s fu l

M o r e r e c e n t , in Matthews v Wozencraft, th e F e d e r a l A p p e l-

I t is a r it e s - o f -p a s s a g e film w h ic h d e a ls

T h e d o c u m e n ta r y f o r m h a s c le a r ly

H o lly w o o d fa r e , o r r ip -o ffs o f E u r o

w ith f r a g m e n t e d r e l a t i o n s h i p s , r e c o n

r is e n t o th e c h a lle n g e o f q u e s tio n in g its

p e a n a r t h o u s e . T h e s e l e c t i o n t h is y e a r

l a n t C o u r t , c o v e r in g a n u m b e r

s tr u c tio n a n d th e a tte m p t to c o m e to

o f th e 1 3 sta te s r e fe r r e d t o a b o v e , w e n t

t e r m s w ith t h e p a s t, i n c lu d in g a s p e c ts

as fa r as to h o ld t h a t a s p e c if ic a lly - p r o

o f th e re la tio n s h ip b e tw e e n b la c k an d

te c te d status sh o u ld e x ist fo r b io g ra p h ies.

w h ite A u s tra lia n s. Its c o n c e r n w ith liv es

W h a t h a p p e n s t o in d iv id u a ls w h o

r a c k e d b y b e tr a y a l, n o s ta lg ia , g r ie f a n d

a re n o t fa m o u s b u t w h o w e re a ss o c ia te d

th e c h a r a c t e r s ’ s e p a r a te a g o n ie s , an d

p r o v e d d if f e r e n t .

R e ic h a r d t , 1 9 9 3 ) w a s a f e m a le t a k e o n

je c t iv e e x p e r ie n c e as its t h e m a t ic

th e w h ite tr a s h o n t h e r o a d g e n r e . T h is

im p e tu s . A n A m e r ic a n s h o r t film ,

f ilm ta k e s a l o o k a t r e a l lo s e r s , n o t th e

Out o f Reach, is t h e

s a n itiz e d , h y b rid b o t t le b lo n d e s a n d

m o s t - s t r ik in g e x a m p le . In th is film ,

p u m p e d -u p g y m b o y s so c o m m o n to

A n n ie G r i f f i n ’s

w i t h a c e l e b r i t y a n d w o u ld p r e f e r t o

i t s s o m e w h a t o b s e s s i v e q u a l i t y , w i ll

r e m a in a n o n y m o u s ? T h e y d o n o t h a v e

p r o b a b ly n o t e n d e a r i t t o a w id e a u d i

G r iffin c re a te s a d o c u m e n ta r y a b o u t

th e g e n re .

a n a c tio n a b le rig h t t o p r o t e c t th e ir p u b

e n c e . B u t i t is i n p l a c e s a v i v i d f i l m

h e r s e l f , u s in g t a l k i n g h e a d s w i t h h e r

r ig a n ) c a n a g a in b e c la s s ifie d as a r o a d

lic ity o r p r iv a c y , p ro v id e d th a t th e

w h i c h is q u i t e d e e p l y f e l t a n d i t f e a

fa m ily as th e b a s is o n w h ic h sh e c r e a te s

m o v ie , a n d , n o t u n u s u a lly , c o n c e r n s

a n e x p l o r a t i o n o f h o w s h e is c o n

i t s e l f w ith a p s y c h o t i c m a y b e - k i l l e r o n

so m e

h ig h ly -im a g in a tiv e

Clean, Shaven ( L o d g e K e r

d e p ic tio n is fa c tu a lly a c c u r a te a n d t h a t

tu re s

t h e d e p i c t i o n o f th e in d iv id u a l is r e a

s e q u e n c e s . H o p e f u lly it w ill g a in a

s t r u c t e d as a n in d iv id u a l t h r o u g h th e ir

t h e lo o s e . W h e r e th is film g a in s its

s o n a b ly re la te d to th e c e le b r ity d e p ic te d

w id e r e le a s e .

p e r c e p t io n s o f h e r . I t is a w itt y , o r ig i

p o w e r a n d i n t e r e s t is in t h e p e r f e c t l y

n a l a n d e n g a g in g film .

p a c e d p o r tr a y a l o f in n e r life . S o u n d

in th e w o rk / p o rtra y a l. T w o c la s s ic e x a m p le s w e r e p riv a c y c la im s b r o u g h t b y th e w id o w o f E r n e s t

Carlisle v Fawcett Publications Inc. N e i

44th Melbourne International Film Festival

t h e r w a s s u c c e s s fu l b e c a u s e th e w o r k s

M onica Zctiin

The Estate o f Ernest Hemingway v Random House Inc. , a n d H e m i n g w a y in

a f o r m e r h u s b a n d o f J a n e t L e i g h in

b e c a u s e o f th e b r o a d p r o te c tio n g ra n te d t o m a tte r s o f p u b lic in te r e s t b y th e F ir s t A m e n d m e n t.

A m o n g o th e r d o c u m e n ta r ie s w o r t h

e f f e c t s a l m o s t c o m p l e t e l y r e p la c e d ia

Crum b

lo g u e , a n d l it t le is g iv e n in t h e w a y o f

s e e k in g o u t w a s th e fa b u lo u s

The

( T e r r y Z w i g o f f ) . S o r a r e l y is s u c h a

c la s s ic a l n a r r a t iv e o r e x p l a n a t i o n .

c o m p l e x fig u re p r e s e n te d so tr u th fu lly .

Glass Shield ( C h a r le s B u r n e t t ) , a film

R o b e r t C r u m b is r i d i c u l o u s , h o n

a b o u t a y o u n g b la c k c o p fin d in g o u t

o u r a b le , p a in fu l a n d ta le n te d , w ith su c h

a b o u t b ig o t r y o n t h e f o r c e , w a s o n e o f

a p s y c h o tic fa m ily it is b o t h p le a s u ra b le

th e m o r e o u tw a r d ly o b v io u s “ H o lly

h e n in v o lv e d in t h e t a s k o f

a n d e x c r u c ia t in g t o w a tc h t h e m . A ls o a

w o o d ” o f f e r in g s , a n d w a s a n in s ig h tfu l

re v ie w in g th e M e lb o u r n e

h ig h lig h t w a s t h e d e lig h t f u l

The M ae

m a n ip u la tio n o f th e g e n r e , o ffe r in g a

I n t e r n a t i o n a l F i lm F e s t iv a l,

stro, King o f the Cowboy Artists (L e s

c o m p l e x m o r a l c o d e . A ls o w o r t h m e n

w e re b a se d o n fa c tu a l a c c u ra c y an d

th e r e is o n e a s p e c t w h ic h is o f t e n o v e r-

B la n k ), a b o u t th e t a le n te d p o p a r tis t

t io n i n g is C a n a d ia n J e r e m y P o d e s w a ’s

M a r c h a r t ic le : in r e la t io n t o o t h e r sta te

lo o k e d : th e a c tu a l p h y s ic a l e f fe c t

w h o c o u ld o f f e r a s e r io u s t h r e a t to

d é b u t fe a tu r e ,

law s su ch as d e fa m a tio n , in v a sio n o f p ri

w a tc h in g so m a n y film s h a s . T h e r e a re

A n d y W a r h o l if o n ly h e w o u ld n ’t re fu se

a te d stu d y o f m o d e r n s e x u a lity .

vacy

th e s tr a in e d e y e s, th e b a d b a c k s , th e

e m o t io n a l d is tr e s s , th e s e c a u s e s o f

p a le c o u n t e n a n c e , th e s tr a n g e a n d v a r

a c t i o n m a y a f f o r d p r o t e c t i o n f o r in d i

ie d m o o d s w in g s , th e e x h a u s t i o n a n d ,

v id u a ls i f th e d e p ic tio n is f o r e x a m p le

b e in g M e l b o u r n e in w i n t e r , th e m u lti

f a r i o u s c o l d s a n d f lu s c i r c u l a t i n g . I n

T h e sa m e w o r d o f c a u tio n as in th e

and

in te n tio n a l in flic tio n

f a c t , s u c h F e s t i v a l f i l m - g o i n g is a u n iq u e p h y s ic a l e x p e r i e n c e w h ic h c a n

HART

S PI RA

Eclipse, a b e a u tifu lly -c r e

t o sell h is p a in tin g s. T h e m a e s tr o ’s c o w

T h e F e s tiv a l o f f e r e d m a n y s tr o n g

b o y s h o w d o w n w ith th e a r tw o r k s o f

r e tr o s p e c tiv e s th is y e a r , a m o n g th e m

C h r is t o is tr u ly in s p ir in g .

H u m p h re y J e n n in g s ’ id io s y n c r a tic

A u s tr a lia n o f f e r i n g s w e r e p a r t i c u

d o c u m e n t a r ie s o f t h e 1 9 3 0 s a n d ’4 0 s ;

Pat and

P h i l ip B r o p h y ’s c r o w d - p l e a s i n g l o o k

E d d ie ’s G rey h o u n d R acing Fam ily

a t O s a m u T e z u k a ’s a n i m a t i o n ; a n d

la r ly s t r o n g in t h is a r e a , w i th

H o lly w o o d

th e “ C e n tu r y o f C in e m a ” , in c lu d in g

t h e m s e l v e s a n d , it m u s t b e a d m i t t e d ,

Hotel ( F io n a H e r g s t r o m ) s ta n d in g o u t.

L u m iè r e s h o r ts a n d th e w e ll- lik e d

T h e S en tim en ta l B lo k e ( R a y m o n d L o n g fo r d , 1 9 1 9 ) fo r a s p o t o f p a tri

not

se p a ra te d

fro m

th e

film s

(B ria n M c K e n z ie ) a n d

festivals

a d d s t o t h e p l e a s u r e . P e r h a p s i t ’s t h e

T h e l a t t e r film s t r u c k m e as t h e m o r e

s e n s a tio n o f w o rk in g h a rd fo r y o u r

p r o g r e s s iv e , as it g iv e s s u c h a f a s c i n a t

^___ b u t th is is a n im p o r t a n t p a r t o f

e n jo y m e n t t h a t is s o s a tis fy in g .

in g

its p o in t. Im a g e s e m e r g e in th is

H a v in g a b a n d o n e d t h e id e a t h a t a

in s ig h t

in to

th e

o v e rlo o k e d

o tic

p rid e .

O ne

th e

m o re

h ig h -p r o file r e tr o s p e c tiv e s w a s th a t

i n n e r - u r b a n ‘w h it e t r a s h ’ .

m u lti

fa ir a n d c o m p r e h e n s iv e s e le c tio n o f th e

A u stra lia n film m a k e r s a lso p ro v id e d

o f R o b e r t W is e . W a t c h in g a s a m p le

f a c e t e d a n d w ith s o m e w h a t e lu s iv e

film s is p o s s ib le , w h a t f o llo w s is a b r ie f

s o m e o f t h e F e s t i v a l ’s s t r o n g e s t s h o r t

o f h is h u g e o u t p u t , f r o m t h e u n s a t i s fy in g

film

a m b ig u o u s ,

in t e r c o n n e c t io n s .

T h e C u rse o f the C at P eople

o v e r v i e w o f t h e m o s t s u c c e s s f u l - in

f il m s . M a r i e C r a v e n ’ s e n jo y a b l e a n d

te rm s o f a u d ie n c e n u m b e rs a n d c r it i

i m a g in a t iv e s h o r t ,

ca l p o p u la rity -

F ilm

a g e d to c o n fu s e a n d c o n f o u n d . In

p a rtic u la rly

sures a n d S u e S t a m p ’ s N an in a Box

s t r o n g in d o c u m e n t a r y , s h o w in g a

illu stra te d h o w a p t th e f o r m is f o r e m o

m a tic r e p r e s e n ta t io n s o f d e a th an d

p la y fu ln e s s a n d a p o p u la r a w a re n e s s

tio n a l v ig n e tte s , a n d h o w re a d y th e

i n c lu d e t h e A u s tr a lia n f e a tu r e s . A le k s i

m a y h e m . B u t th e title p o s e s a p r o b le m :

w ith m a n y o f its c h o i c e s . T h o s e d e a l

f o r m is f o r a r e - a s s e s s m e n t f r o m b o y ’s

V e llis ’

a l t h o u g h t h e f r a g m e n t s m ig h t s u g g e s t

in g w ith

s to r ie s a n d g ag s t o d e v e lo p e d n a r r a tiv e

R u a n e ’s

d i s o r d e r , t h e r e is n o t h i n g in t h e film

e n jo y e d b y a la r g e a u d ie n c e , e s p e c ia lly

a n d s e n s a tio n .

N a s h ’s

I t is a n i m p o r t a n t f il m w i t h s o m e i m p o r t a n t th in g s t o sa y a b o u t v io le n c e , th e r h e t o r i c a l a p p r o p r i a t i o n o f im a g e s a n d t h e e x p e c t a t i o n s o f m il l i o n s w h o h a v e b e c o m e a c c u s to m e d to s e e k in g e n te r ta in m e n t th r o u g h g ra p h ic c in e

M e lb o u rn e

F e s t iv a l y e t. The

Maidenhead, m a n

a n im a tio n , S a r a h W a t t ’s

F e s tiv a l w as

m u s ic w e r e p a r t ic u la r ly

Small Trea

w h ic h a c tu a lly su p p o r ts th e a ffir m a tio n

D on W as’

I Ju s t W asn’t M ade F o r

T h e f il m s f r o m t h e F r e n c h s e r ie s

o f c h a n c e . T h e tit le s e e m s t o b e a w il

These Times a n d H e le n a S o lb e r g ’s Car

“ T o u s le s g a r ç o n s e t le s f i l l e s d e l e u r

fu l i m p o s it io n . A s a re s u lt, th e f ilm , as

men Miranda: Bananas is my Business,

â g e ” (“ B o y s a n d G ir ls o f T h e i r T i m e ” )

b o t h o f w h ic h t o o k o n th e ic o n o g r a

w e r e p a r tic u la r ly w e ll r e c e iv e d . T h e

p h y a n d m y t h -m a k in g a p p a r e n t in th e

tw o I m a n a g e d to c a tc h ,

c a r e e r s o f B r ia n W ils o n a n d C a r m e n

moi ('Travolta and Me, P a tr ic ia M a z u y )

M ira n d a

and

i t w e r e , is n o t a l lo w e d t o s p e a k in its o w n te r m s . H a n e k e , a s a p h ilo s o p h e r , s h o u ld k n o w b e t t e r th a n t o tr y a n d im p o s e a f r a m e w o r k u p o n a film w h ic h o w e s m u c h o f its f o r c e t o its t h o u g h t

A t le a s t tw o A u s tr a lia n

f ilm s

r e s p e c tiv e ly .

Suzanne

Travolta et

Trop de Bonheur (Too Much H ap

( 1 9 4 4 ) to th e o u ts ta n d in g

The Set Up

Born to Kill ( 1 9 4 7 ) , a n d The

(1 9 4 9 ),

Haunting ( 1 9 6 3 ) , w a s a n e d u c a t i o n in it s e l f . H u g e o m i s s i o n s in t h i s o v e r v i e w

The Life o f H arry D are, J o h n That Eye, The Sky a n d M a r g o t

Vacant Possession a r e s o m e o f

t h e film s r e g r e tf u lly n o t v ie w e d . H o w e v e r , o n e is s u r e t o s e e t h e m la te r . O n e f e a tu r e w a tc h e d w a s A la n M a d d e n ’s

M ushroom s, s c r e e n e d o n

c lo s in g n ig h t. C o n s u m m a t e ly - a c t e d and

tig h tly -d ir e c te d ,

th e

n o n e th e le s s s u ffe r e d fr o m

film a p re

N ico-Icon g i v e s a f a s c i

piness, C e d r ic K a h n ), w ill r e m a in in m y

d ic ta b le a n d b a n a l s c r ip t. It w a s a

n a t in g in s ig h t in t o a n e g le c t e d m u s e o f

m in d f o r t h e i r b r u t a l y e t p o e t i c in s ig h t

r a th e r o r d in a r y e n d in g to a n e x c itin g ,

t h e a r t h o u s e r o c k s e t, w h ile L is a R o s e

i n t o a d o le s c e n c e .

f r u s tr a tin g , in f o r m a t iv e a n d h ig h ly -

O f t e r in g e ’s

fu l e x p l o r a t io n o f a m b iv a le n c e .

River o f Grass (K e lly

o w n c o n v e n tio n s a n d r e s tr ic tio n s , o fte n t a k in g t h e is s u e o f t h e p e r s o n a l , s u b

d e s e r v e m e n t i o n . M a r g o t N a s h ’s

A p r a m ia n ’s

Vacant Possession e x p lo r e s a w o m

tin u e d

N ot Bad fo r a Girl c o n e x p lo r e

th e

th e m e s

T h e F e s tiv a l o f t e n o f f e r s a s m a t t e r in g o f A m e r ic a n i n d e p e n d e n t f ilm s ,

e n jo y a b l e

F e s tiv a l

(o n ce

th e

flu

CINEMA

P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

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Cinema Papers

todayâ&#x2013; H i

Under the Gun to b e v e ry s e lf-c o n ta in e d . P 2 3

w a s d o n e w ith t h e a im o f m a k in g a s to r y fir s t, a n d th e n s e e in g h o w th e a c t i o n f i t s .”

T h a t ’s h o w th e w h o le n ig h t-

W h a te v e r , t h e r e ’s n o d o u b t th a t

in g th e se rig h ts a fte r th e ev e n t, w h ic h

The Price of Passion

is u su ally d o u b le th e a m o u n t p aid up

p a y f o r f ilm s t o c k , la b c o s ts

f r o n t. O fte n , a lth o u g h th e film m a k e r

a n d e q u ip m e n t , b u t n o fe e s .

is re q u ire d to p u rch a se th ese rig h ts up

D u r in g

fr o n t, th e film n e v e r u tilizes th e n e ed

c lu b s c e n a r io c a m e a b o u t. It

b e s id e s th e v o la t ile m ix t u r e o f y o u th ,

w a s p u rely a b u d g e ta ry c o n sid e ra tio n .

e x p e r i e n c e a n d e n e r g y o n d is p la y o n

m o d e l w a s ta g g e d as “ f e r a l f ilm -

fo r th o s e rig h ts. T h e r e f o r e , th e a d d i

W h a t a lw a y s d riv e s u p th e c o s t o f

b o th sid es o f th e c a m e r a , R ic h a r d N o r

m a k in g ” .

tio n a l co sts w e re u n n e c e ssa ry .

a p r o je c t is th e lo g is tic s o f tr a v e llin g

t o n a n d h is c o -p r o d u c e r s c a lle d in a lo t

t o m a n y d if f e r e n t l o c a t i o n s a n d th e

o f f r i e n d s h ip s a n d f a v o u r s t o g e t t h e

se t-u p tim e s . O u r id e a w a s t o h a v e a

film b e f o r e t h e c a m e r a s .

lo c a tio n w h ic h w e c o u ld p re -lig h t,

A p p e a r in g in

e x p a tr ia te U .S . a c tre s s J a n e B a d le r (v e t

a n d c u tt in g w h e n w e g o t th e r e .

e r a n o f t h e s e r ie s V) a n d K a th y L o n g ,

O u t o f t h e o ld p o w e r s t a t io n , w e

w h o m ay y e t p ro v e to b e th e film ’s

w e r e a b le to g e t a n a ir lin e t ic k e t

b ig g e s t c o u p a f t e r b e in g d u b b e d a b ig

c o u n t e r , a n o f f ic e , a n a lle y w a y , a n d

s ta r o f th e fu tu r e b y J e a n - C l a u d e V a n

a c o u r t y a r d , a s w e ll as th e w h o le b ig

D a m m e . ( L o n g is c u r r e n t l y b e i n g

s p a c e w e h a d f o r t h e c lu b .

w o o e d b y O l i v e r S t o n e f o r h is f o r t h

fu rth e r, M a tt G e o rg e

r e la te s t h e d is c o v e r y o f t h e ir “ s t u d io ” : T h e b ig g e s t h o ld - u p in p r e - p r o d u c t i o n w a s f in d i n g l o c a t i o n s t h a t w e c o u ld a f f o r d t o u se.

B u c k le y , a n d S ta n “T h e M a n ” L o n g in id is

T h e n D o u g P e tty , w h o ’s a m o d e l fro m

c o m in g v e rs io n o f M a r v e l C o m ic ’s

Electra Assassin a fte r a w a lk -o n in Nat ural Born Killers.) T h e y a r e jo i n e d b y Sale o f the C entury c o - h o s t N i c k y

Sale o f the Century a n d k n o w s

P a u l, t o l d us o f th is o ld a b a n d o n e d b u ild in g in R ic h m o n d . W h e n w e w e n t in , I ju s t k n e w th a t th is w a s it. I t w a s h u g e . It lo o k e d lik e

and

T in o

(fa th e r

K a te )

C e b e r a n o . A lth o u g h “T h e M a n ” w a s

A ngel Town, th e b u lk o f th e Under the Gun c a s t h a il f r o m t h e m a r t ia l a r t s . ( T i n o C e b e r a n o , w h o p la y s a n a c c o u n t a n t ,

A liens [ J a m e s

w a s a c tu a lly o n e o f R ic h a r d N o r t o n ’s

C a m e r o n , 1 9 8 6 ] . T r a n s f o r m i n g it

f o r m a t iv e m a r tia l a r ts in s tr u c t o r s .)

s o m e th in g o u t o f

w a s p r o b a b l y t h e b ig g e s t t h in g t h a t

N o r t o n , in b e t w e e n d e f t l y c h o r e o

P a u l a n d R ic h a r d d id . I t t o o k up to

g r a p h in g th e “ b lo c k h e a d s ” , as th e y a re

t h e v e r y la s t w e e k t o c o m p l e t e . T h e

d e s c r i b e d in t h e s c r i p t , e x p l a i n s t h e

a r t d e p a r t m e n t d id a n a b s o l u t e l y

e d g e th is g iv e s th e p r o d u c t io n :

a m a z in g jo b .

W e d id n ’t h a v e t h e b u d g e t t o b lo w

G e o r g e g o e s o n t o sp e a k a b o u t th e f o r

u p b u ild in g s a n d c a r s . I t w a s a lw a y s

m a t io n o f t h e t e a m w ith h is f e llo w

g o in g to b e th e h u m a n e le m e n t

p r o d u c e r s a n d th e f ilm th e y a lm o s t

a c t i o n film , a s I c a ll it, w h e r e I u t i

r e a liz e d b e f o r e

Under the G un:

liz e m y a b i l i ti e s a n d th e a b ilitie s o f

I ’v e b e e n w o r k in g w ith R ic h a r d f o r

th e p e o p le a r o u n d m e - p e o p le w h o

f o u r o r fiv e y e a rs a n d w ith P a u l f o r

r e a lly k n o w th e fig h t g a m e .

a b o u t s e v e n . I m e t u p w ith R ic h a r d

I n e e d e d a h a n d h e re t o d o a fig h t,

in e a r l y 1 9 9 0 , a n d k n e w t h a t w ith

so I g o t t h e m in a n d a w a y w e w e n t.

h is n a m e a t th e r ig h t le v e l w e c o u ld

T h e y a re to u g h b o y s — o n e s th a t

g e t a film u p . S o , w e s e t a b o u t w r i t

c a n ta k e a lo t o f p u n is h m e n t w ith

in g a s c r ip t t h a t c o u ld c a t e r t o w h a t R i c h a r d ’ s m a r k e t w o u ld b e , p lu s w h a t w o u ld g iv e h im t h e c h a r a c t e r a n d s t o r y t h a t w o u l d e l e v a t e h im t o t h e n e x t le v e l a s a n a c t o r . W e w e n t t h r o u g h a w h o le b u n c h o f sc rip ts a n d a w h o le b u n c h o f tu r n d o w n s, b u t w e m a n a g ed to co m e v e r y c lo s e in 1 9 9 2 w ith a s c r ip t c a lle d “ N o E a s y W a y ” . W e w e r e o n t h e v e r g e o f s ig n in g c o n t r a c t s w ith C a n n o n P ic tu r e s . W e t h o u g h t w e h a d i t in t h e b a g a n d j u s t b a n k e d e v e r y t h in g o n it, w h i c h w a s s o s t u p id . Y o u s h o u ld a lw a y s h a v e a t le a s t f o u r o r fiv e o p tio n s .

S e m in a r ,

th is

p re -n e g o tia te d a rra n g e m e n t, w h e re b y

to p a y p e o p l e ’ s w a g e s as w e ll as

th e u p -fr o n t p r o d u c tio n c o s ts a re

o th e r p r o d u c tio n c o s ts , b u t n o t

red u ced to th e m in im u m re q u ire m e n t,

alw ays a s u ffic ie n t a m o u n t to ab id e

an d [...] e v e r y a v a ila b le d o lla r a t th e

by th e ru le s o f all th e c o m p o n e n ts

tim e ca n b e seen o n th e s c r e e n , w ith

o f re g u la te d aw ard s.

o u t a c t u a l l y a v o id i n g a n u l t i m a t e o b lig a tio n to p u rch a se th ese rig h ts.

nar geared its discussion tow ard s, on bo th

A c c o rd in g to C o n n o lly th is c a n be d o n e

sid es o f th e d e b a te . A fte r a ll, th e e n tire

Se m in ar w as called “lo w -b u d g et” and n o t “ n o - b u d g e t ” . H o w e v e r , th e n o -b u d g e t m o d e l e v o lv e d as a to p ic o f d is c u ss io n , sim p ly b e c a u se it w as o f im p o r ta n c e to m an y p eo p le p re sen t, so m eth in g p erhap s n o t q u ite a n tic ip a te d by e ith e r th e o rg a

In th e s c e n e s w ith K a th y , I to ld n o t to e x p e c t n o t g e ttin g

th u m p e d , ju s t b e c a u s e s h e ’s fe m a le . I n e e d e d t h e fig h ts t o l o o k as re a l as w e c o u ld . I w o u ld n ’t d o t h a t t o a n a c t o r , b u t I c a n t o p e o p le I k n o w a re m a r t ia l a r ts o r ie n t a te d a n d c a n ta k e th e im p a c t. T h e r e a lit y o f th e fig h ts in

Under

the Gun m a k e s t h e m d if f e r e n t f r o m a l o t o f o t h e r s . I t s h o w s in t h e e y e s

T h e in te n d e d d iscu ssio n o f th e se c on d m o d e l, op tim istically titled “T h e A rt o f th e P ossib le: P anel D iscu ssio n w ith th e A sso ciatio n s” - ch aired by T im R ead (the

T h e n th e p ro d u c tio n w ou ld on ly n eed to p u rch ase a m in im u m p ack ag e o f rights in o r d e r to m a k e th e film an d th e film c o u ld b e te s te d b e fo r e w a r r a n tin g a d d itio n a l e x p e n d it u r e [ ...]

M i c h a e l G o r d o n - S m i t h (S P A A ), L o is

t o n o n - A F C - f i n a n c e d film s as w e ll,

R an d all (A SD A ) and C h ris Sh arp (A W G )

so th a t th e e x tre m e ly lo w -b u d g et film s

as sp e a k e rs - w as w o n d e rfu lly p re fa c e d

th a t c a n o n ly b e m a d e o u tsid e o f th e

by p ro d u c e r R o b e r t C o n n o lly .

b u d g eta ry o b lig a tio n s o f th e A F C ca n

In a d e t a i l e d , h o n e s t a n d w e ll

a ls o tr ig g e r th is s u p p o r t o n c e an

t h o u g h t- o u t s p e e c h , C o n n o lly b r o u g h t

a p p r o p r ia te sa le o r re le a s e is n e g o ti

up a n u m b er o f co n cern s and, un like any

ated [...] As p a rt o f th is a rr a n g e m e n t,

o n e e ls e w h o s p o k e up d u r in g t h e

th e pen alties fo r pu rch asin g rights after

c o n f e r e n c e , a c tu a lly o ffe re d so m e so lu

th e e v e n t w o u ld n eed to be w aiv ed .

t i o n s . T h e m a jo r p o i n t s c o v e r e d in

M a r io n J a c k a o f th e M E A A re p lie d :

C o n n o lly ’s sp e e c h w e re : a sp e c ts o f th e

C e r ta in ly fro m th e A llia n c e ’s p o in t o f

a w a r d w a g e s , as s e t b y t h e M E A A ,

v iew th e re is n o c o m p u n c tio n o n b u y

i n c l u d i n g t h e b u y in g o u t o f r i g h t s ;

in g t h o s e r i g h t s u p f r o n t [ . . . ] W e

frin g e s; d eferrals o f fe e s; p o in ts o f p ro fit

c e r t a i n l y d o n ’ t h a v e an o b je c t i o n if

f o r p a r t ic ip a t io n ; a p p r o a c h e s to d e v e l

p ro d u c e rs w ish to e n te r in to a rra n g e

o p m e n t; an d m o d e s o f p ro d u c tio n .

m e n ts w h e re so m e o f th o se rig h ts are

C o n n o lly c o m m e n te d :

n o t p u rch a se d u n til fu rth e r d o w n th e

F r in g e t h e a tr e th riv e s o n w h a t a re

tr a c k [...] T h e r e is a p e n a lty la te r o n ,

k n o w n as co -o p erativ e ven tu res, w here

i f t h o s e r ig h t s a r e b o u g h t l a t e r o n ,

th e ca st an d c re w fo r a p ro d u c tio n g et

w h ic h is a 1 0 0 p e r c e n t s u r c h a r g e ,

to g e th e r [and ] ta k e n o fe e s - as th e re

w h ic h is a h e d g e a g a in st in fla tio n .

is n o m o n e y t o p a y a n y o n e - [ b u t

S o m e o f th e a u d ie n ce b u rst o u t lau g h in g

re c e iv e ] an e q u al sh a re o f th e p ro fits.

at this p o in t. Ja c k a w en t on : “If you m ade

T h i s is o u t s i d e t h e a w a r d , b u t is

y o u r film in th e 1 9 7 0 s , fo r e x a m p le , and

a b so lu te ly essen tial if th e a tre is to su r

t h a t g o e s t o a m a r k e t in t h e 1 9 8 0 s o r

v iv e

o u ts id e

th e

m a jo r

th e a tre

’9 0 s , and you g et 2 0 p er c e n t o f w h a t you

c o m p a n ie s . A n d th e M E A A seem s to

g o t in t h e ’ 7 0 s , t h a t w o u ld b e t o t a l

tu rn a b lin d eye to this.

p ean u ts” - n o d ou b t a likely an d even fre

film m a k e rs. C o n n o lly th e n w e n t o n to c o m m e n t

s e q u e n c e . T h e n e t r e s u lt h a s a n itty g ritty fe e l w h e r e th e p e r s o n is g o in g ,

re q u ire th o se rig h ts.

T h is p o o l o f fu n d s c o u ld b e a v a ila b le

d o e s n ’t l o o k

b a lle t

a tric a l re le a s e o r T V sa le, th a t w o u ld

B r a n c h ) , w ith M a r io n J a c k a (M E A A ),

B u t n o s u c h lu c k f o r t h e l o w - b u d g e t

a little

rig h ts a fte r a film h as b e e n m ad e an d , in th e ev en t o f th e film ’s securing a th e

A F C ’ s D i r e c t o r , P r o je c t D e v e lo p m e n t

a n d in t h e w h o l e m a n n e r i s m s . I t lik e

th e A F C c o u ld , p e r h a p s , m a n a g e a p o o l o f fu n d s to b e u s e d t o p a y f o r

nizers o r th e speakers.

o u t c ry in g .

th e m

C o n n o lly p ro p o s e d a

g et o n e, w h ere th ere is o ften m o n ey

T h e s e c o n d m o d e l w as w h a t th e S e m i

s ig h te d in th e b a c k g r o u n d o f th e e a rly 1 9 9 0 s s ta te s id e p r o d u c tio n

th e

• T h e sec o n d is th e g en u in e lo w -b u d

Under the Gun a r e

a n d t h e n d o v e r y s e l e c t i v e lig h tin g

R e w in d in g

”

th a t

qu ent occu rren ce! N e v e rth e le ss, a glim p se o f h o p e fo l lo w ed : In r e la tio n to th e A F T R S film s, w e ’ve b e e n a b le to c o m e to an a rr a n g e m e n t

‘W o w , I ’m r e a l l y g e t t i n g p u n c h e d

th e issue o f m in im u m s gets m o re c o m

Under the Gun b a c k in h is sig h ts,

a n d k i c k e d h e r e . ’ T h a t ’s i m p o r t a n t

p lic a te d in th e a r e a o f r ig h ts . W h e n

a b o u t n o t a p p ly in g th e 1 0 0 p e r c e n t

G e o r g e - w h o m a y in d e e d b e th e

- a t le a s t f o r t h e s o r t o f film s I w a n t

p ayin g a n a c to r , fo r ex a m p le , it is n e c

su rch arg e an d , also in re la tio n to o th e r

y o u n g e s t A u s tr a lia n t o d ir e c t a fe a tu r e

to d o . ©

essa ry to bu y a c e r ta in p a c k a g e o f

lo w -b u d g e t p r o je c ts , w e ’re c e r ta in ly

W ith

a n d w h o a d m its t o f e e lin g in itia lly p e t r if ie d o n s e t - e x p r e s s e s f e a r a t h a v in g

1 Norton’s first on-screen appearance was

rig h ts [...] eq u al to 1 1 0 p e r c e n t o f th e

p r e p a r e d t o l o o k a t t h a t is s u e , p r o

[b asic n e g o tia te d a c t o r ’s r a te ], w h ic h

vided , o f co u rse, th a t p eo p le c o m e and

h is film r e g a r d e d as e x p lo it a t io n o f th e

in Tim Burstall’s The Last o f the Knuck-

m o r e t h a n d o u b le s th e f e e 1 [ ...] T h e

a c t i o n a r e a . “ I t ’s n o t ” , h e c l a i m s ; “ it

lem en (1979).

aw ard a llo c a te s a p e n a lty fo r p u rc h a s

CINEMA

P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

d iscuss it th ro u g h . N o rep ly, h o w ev er, cam e fro m any o f th e

a s s o c i a t io n s ’ m e m b e r s o n th e t o p i c o f

s io n ta k e to m a k e its c o n t r ib u tio n to

N o o n e ’s g o n n a give m e m o n e y to d o

e s t a b lis h e d a n d s u c c e s s fu l c o m p a n i e s ,

“ t h e h u g e c o s t o f f r i n g e s s p e c if i e d in

th e a r t o f th e p o s s ib le , t o h e lp m a k e

a n y th in g , b e ca u se I h a v e n ’t g o t a tra c k

p ro d u cers, a cto rs, etc. H o w e v e r, th e lo w -

th e a w a rd ” ra ised by C o n n o lly : “ O n All Men Are Liars, w h i c h w a s s h o t in f a r

lo w -b u d g e t n a rra tiv e d ra m a film m a k

re c o rd . S o w h a t I hav e to d o is c re a te

b u d g e t a re a , a n d , m o r e s p e c ific a lly , th e

in g a lib e ra tin g e x e rc ise in th e cre a tiv e

m y o w n o p p o r t u n ity , c r e a t e o p p o r

“ f e r a l ” n o -b u d g e t a r e a , is fu ll o f y o u n g

N o r t h Q u e e n s la n d , o u r c a s t p a y r o ll

re a liz a tio n o f id eas ra th e r th a n o n ly a

tu n ity f o r a l o t o f p e o p le w h o w o r k

p e o p le w h o a re ju s t s ta r tin g o u t. T h e r e

i n c u r r e d w h a t is d e fin e d in th e a w a rd

p a in fu l o n e ? A n d , o n th e o th e r sid e o f

w ith m e , a n d , if I ’m lu c k y , I ’ll h it th e

is a w o r ld o f d if f e r e n c e b e tw e e n t h e i r

as th e ‘ 1 0 % c lim a te lo a d in g ’. ”

th e q u e stio n , is th e C o m m is s io n in a d

b ig tim e a n d g e t a b it o f r e c o g n it io n

n e e d s, b o th p e r s o n a l a n d p r o fe s s io n a l -

U n d er th e aw ard , far N o rth Q u e en s

v erten tly co n trib u tin g to risin g bu dgets

[...]

th o u g h e v e ry o n e n eed s to e a t an d h av e a

land is on e o f th e lo catio n s th a t falls un der

b y i n s is t i n g o n p r a c t i s e s w h i c h a r e

I care a b o u t th e p ro cess, I care a b o u t

r o o f o v e r th e ir h e a d - a n d th o s e o f th e

this clim a te load in g . H o w e v e r, th e ca st o f

un su itab le o r u n n ecessary fo r lo w -b u d

l o o k i n g a f t e r th e p e o p le w h o w o r k

m o re estab lish ed an d m o re m atu re m e m

All Men, w h o w ere b ro u g h t up fro m M e l

g e t w o r k , a n d d o in g so a t t h e t im e

w ith m e an d m y p ro m is e to th e m w ill

b e rs

bo u rn e

d u r in g w i n t e r ,

w h e n i t ’s a s k in g film m a k e r s to c o n

b e t h a t , as s o o n as I c a n , I w ill p a y

fir s t-tim e r s , it’s n o t a b o u t “p r o t e c tin g ” ,

affectio n a tely referred to the clim ate lo a d

sid er m a k in g [film s] at lo w e r b u d g ets

th e m w e ll. B u t a t le a s t th e f ir s t tim e

to u se th e u n io n s ’ fa v o u rite e x p r e s s io n ,

in g as th e

l o a d i n g ” o r th e

th a n th ey a re a lrea d y ? Is th e p o lic y o f

’r o u n d t h a t ’ s ju s t n o t g o n n a h a p p e n

a n y o t h e r i n t e r e s ts e x c e p t f o r th e s im

“ R ay b an lo a d in g ” . M o re o v e r, “fo r th e 9 5

o ffe rin g m o re o p p o rtu n itie s by askin g

an d I ’d lik e to see th e M E A A , p a rtic u

p le o n e o f g o in g th ro u g h th e e x p e r ie n c e

p e r c e n t o f th e c a s t w h o a c tu a lly c a m e

fo r lo w er bu dgets likely to fru strate th e

la r ly , [ ...] s ta r t th in k in g a b o u t th e

o f m a k in g a f e a t u r e film . T h e m a k in g

from the local area, w ho lived in far N o rth

crea tiv e en d ea v o u r, likely to push b u d

u ltra -lo w -b u d g e t an d re c o g n iz in g an d

o f “ a liv in g ” , a n o th e r te r m fa v o u re d by

Q u een slan d m ost o f th eir lives, th e 1 0 per

g ets to a p o in t w h e re h a rm fu l c re a tiv e

se ttin g up so m e sta n d a rd s fo r th a t [...]

th e u n io n s, is n o t n e ce ssa rily th e p rio rity

c e n t clim a te lo a d in g as p er th e aw ard still

c o m p r o m is e s a re m a d e , an d c a st an d

a p p lie d .” B e in g an “aw ard film ” , All Men

c r e w e x p l o it e d - n o n e o f w h ic h , o f

h ad to abid e by th e rules. C o n n o lly :

co u rse , is th e C o m m issio n ’s in ten tio n ?

and

Syd ney

“ su n ta n

W e really d o n e ed to n e g o tia te o p en ly

P e rh a p s th is is w h e re th e su g g e stio n s o f

a n d up f r o n t w ith th e u n io n s r a t h e r

p e o p le lik e C o n n o l l y s h o u ld b e t a k e n

th a n a v o id in g th e issu es h e re . B u t th e

in to serio u s c o n s id e ra tio n :

s u c c e s s o f t h is is d e p e n d e n t o n th e u n io n s ’ a b ility to e m b ra c e th e fle x ib il ity

ap p roach

r e q u ir e d

fo r

lo w -b u d g e t film s a n d fu rth e r an o p e n n e ss to n e g o tia te w ith film m a k e r s o n c o m p o n e n ts o f th e a w ard .

a c o m m o n o n e reg a rd less o f th e b u d g e t, a n d is g o v e r n e d a n d a sse sse d by th e sam e p a ra m e te rs w h e th e r th e b u d g e t b e $ 5 0 0 , 0 0 0 o r $ 4 0 m il l i o n . In fa ct, th e A F C guid elin es fo r sh o rt film s

Ja ck a :

r e q u ir e b u d g e t s u b m is s io n s to b e

T h e a n s w e r is c e r ta in ly n o t in r e d u c

re c e iv e d o n th e sta n d a rd fe a tu re -film

in g o r a sk in g th e a rtist to su b sid ize to

b u d g e t f o r m . A s th e s u c c e s s fu l lo w -

a g reater e x te n t w h a t th ey d o no w . [...]

b u d g e t film c a se stu d ie s h a v e sh o w n ,

I t h in k i t ’s c le a r w e d o n ’t t h in k , an d

a lte r n a tiv e m o d e s o f p r o d u c t io n a re

w e w o u ld n ’t a c c e p t , th a t th e a n s w e r

m o st necessary w h en devising co st-cu t-

fo r th e lo w -b u d g e t a re a lies in e x p e c t

t in g m e a s u r e s t o w o r k w i t h i n t h e

in g th e c a s t a n d c r e w to w o r k b e lo w

lim ited re so u rce s av ailable. T h e ability

a w a r d s a f e t y - n e t m in im u m s . A n d ,

to e m b ra c e a lte rn a tiv e w ays o f w o r k

a p a rt fro m th e m o ra l o r h u m a n ita ria n

ing is, u ltim a tely , th e key to su ccessfu l

asp e cts o f re a so n s fo r th a t, I th in k th a t

l o w - b u d g e t f il m m a k i n g . I t is, u l t i

[...] at so m e p o in t it’s g o in g to b e c o m e

m a tely , th e film m a k e rs’ p re ro g ativ e to

fro m th e ind ustry b o d ies th a t w e ’re ou t

th e

in d u s try .

For

th e s e ,

in m a n y o f th e s e cases. T im R e a d :

h e r e , [th a t] w e ’re g o n n a k e e p d o in g

I w a n t to a p p la u d w h a t is c le a r ly a n

[feral film m a k in g ].

e n e r g e tic d e s ire to g e t o u t th e r e a n d

T h e y o u n g w o m a n g o t h e r re s p o n se (s). F irst, fro m G o r d o n -S m ith (SP A A ):

d o it, b u t [...] if y o u t h in k a b o u t th e w o r d ‘f e r a l ’ , i t ’s a c t u a lly s o m e t h in g t h a t is in t r o d u c e d i n t o t h e e n v i r o n

I d o n ’t t h i n k t h a t w h a t y o u ’v e sa id g o e s a g a in s t a n y th in g t h a t a n y o f us h av e said . I th in k th a t n o n e o f us [is] talk in g a b o u t w a n tin g to d isco u rag e in an y w ay th e a c tiv itie s o f w h a t y o u d e scrib e as fe ra l film m a k e r s; q u ite th e c o n tr a r y . W h a t w e a re ta lk in g a b o u t c o lle ctiv e ly an d in d iv id u ally is lo o k in g after th e interests o f th e p eo p le w e rep r e s e n t. P e o p le p ay us to d o t h a t [...] W h a t w e c a n ’t d o is to su g gest to y ou th a t you b re a k th e law [...] T h e r e is n o w ay I’m g oin g to stand up h ere and say th a t I ’m g o in g to w o r k to fin d a wayin w h ic h y ou ca n d o fe ra l film m a k in g an d w ith th e sa n c tio n th a t says, ‘T h is is rea lly sp e c ia l w o rk an d th e r e fo r e is n o t s u b je c t t o t h e la w s t h a t g o v e r n

m e n t w h ic h g o e s w ild an d e v e n tu a lly d e stro y s it. H o w e v e r , th e w o r d “ f e r a l ” a lso m e a n s s o m e th in g u n ta m e d a n d in a w ild s ta te a fte r e sc a p e fr o m c a p tiv ity . B e sid e s , n o t a ll e n v ir o n m e n t s a r e s a c r e d , g o o d o r rig h t. In M e lb o u rn e , a w e e k a fter th e S e m in ar, tw o 2 0 -s o m e th in g film m a k e rs w e re b u s ily e d it i n g t h e i r f ir s t S u p e r 1 6 m m “ in d e p e n d e n tly -fu n d e d ” fe a tu re . W h e n asked a b o u t it, th ey b e ca m e sec retiv e and e v a siv e , d e c lin e d to fill in a p r o d u c tio n fo rm fo r

Cinema Papers' “ P r o d u c t i o n

S u r v e y ” a n d g e n e r a lly w a n te d t o h id e . W h a t w e re th e y a fra id o f?

T h e B eg in n in g , th e M id d le and A n o th e r B eg in n in g

s e lf-d e fe a tin g f o r th e g o a ls o f h a v in g

co m e up w ith these tech n iq u es, y et this

g o o d p r o fe s s io n a l p r o d u c tio n v a lu es,

w ill b e s t h a p p e n w h e n th e f u n d in g

an d p ro d u ct, in clu d in g in th e lo w -b u d

b o d ie s are seen to h av e th e fle x ib ility

N e x t , c a m e t h e r e p ly o f C h r i s S h a r p

T h e L o w -b u d g e t F e a tu r e S e m in a r w as a

g e t a re a , t h a t ’s g o in g to be a rtistic a lly

r e q u i r e d to a s s e s s t h e s e a l t e r n a t i v e

(A W G ), w h o p o in te d o u t th a t th e b e s t

v alu ab le an d im p o rta n t ev e n t, an d b ra v o

an d c o m m e rc ia lly su ccessfu l [...]

m o d els [...] F ilm m ak ers w ill on ly co m e

e le m e n ts o f fe ra l film m a k in g are

to th e A F C , an d P hilip p a B a te m a n in p a r

is s o r t o f

fo rw a rd w ith [th e ir] p ro p o s a ls w h e n

s a c r e d . W e c a n ’ t b e in v o lv e d in a n y

th e y fe e l th a t th e fu n d in g b o d ie s w ill

a r r a n g e m e n t s o r d is c u s s io n , a n d w e

b e re c e p tiv e to [th em ] an d so th e r e is

d o n ’t th in k i t ’s s o r t o f fa ir , [o r] a c tu

a sh a red resp o n sib ility fo r a c tio n h e re.

ally a p o sitiv e o r u se fu l th in g , f o r th e

o th e r so rts o f e n te r p ris e s .’

en th u siasm an d cre a tiv ity . S o m e w o n

tic u la r. It sh o u ld hav e h a d a p re c e d e n t in

d e rfu l th in g s h a p p e n th a t w a y , b u t it

A u s tr a lia n film h i s t o r y ; it m u s t h a v e a

also ten d s to b e e x tre m e ly e g o -d riv e n

s e q u e l. T h e d ia lo g u e h a s b e e n m e r e ly

a n d [...] th o s e frie n d s y o u ta lk a b o u t

b e g u n . T h e q u e s tio n s h a v e b e e n a sk e d ,

A n d t h is , p e r h a p s , is w h e r e th e o t h e r ,

w h o m y o u ’re in v o lv ed w ith , an d w h o

b u t it w o u ld ta k e m a n y m o re su c h g a th

in d u stry to sta rt ta lk in g a b o u t a ‘slash

f e r a l , m o d e l o f f ilm m a k in g c o m e s in .

w ill give th e ir serv ices fo r fre e o r clo se

e rin g s fo r an y a n sw e rs to b e fo u n d .

an d b u r n ’.

S a in sb u ry ’s k e y n o te sp e ech c o n ta in e d an

to fr e e , a re n o t g o in g to s h a re in th e

T h e a w a r d m in i m u m

A n “ o p e n n e ss to n e g o tia te ” , in d eed .

in te re s tin g c o m m e n t:

g lo ry . I t is, in th e e n d , a q u e s tio n o f

M e a n w h ile , h e re a re so m e h e a r te n in g w o rd s fr o m R o l f D e H e e r :

[ L o w - b u d g e t f il m m a k i n g ] c a n n o t

fa ir n e s s . T h e r e a re v e ry r a r e ly p r o f

p o ssib ly hav e b e e n e x p e c te d fro m an y o f

th riv e w ith in th e fra m e s o f r e fe r e n c e

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m a k in g in g en eral. It is a d iffe re n t type

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o f activity fro m w h ich its co lla b o ra to rs

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to p o in t o u t to p eo p le th a t th ey sh ou ld

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d e te r m in e d p r a c tic e . It h a s to be

b e fa ir to p eo p le th ey em p loy and h o w

b u d g e t film m a k in g - [ . . . ] to m a k e th e

th e ir jo b . T h e q u e stio n is: W h a t is it th a t

su p p o rte d o n its o w n te rm s o th e rw ise

th e y pay th e m .

p ro cess in cred ib ly rew ard in g , th e n , m y

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cre a tiv e ly .

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c o m m u n ic a tio n s . W h a t th e u n io n s w e re

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“T h e A rt o f th e P o s s ib le ” , T im R e a d

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a m u ltitu d e o f o th e rs:

an d r e le v a n t a n d m o s t b e n e fic ia l fo r

p e llin g . ©

W h a t p o sitiv e step s c a n th e C o m m is

T h e in d u stry m o d el fo r fea tu re film s is

I ’ d ju s t lik e t o se e s o m e r e s p o n s e

CINEMA

P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

FCC Funding Decisions Dating the Enemy

)

Film Fund Features Dead Heart Idiot Box Fistful of Lies The Zone

59 59 59 59

David Williamson’s Brilliant Lies The Island of Dr Moreau My Entire Life The Story of C.I.A.

60 60 60 61

Features Post-production

Television Halifax f.p. 2 59 Li’l Elvis Jones and the Truckstoppers 5 9 White Lies 59

Production Survey Features Pre-production

Documentaries In a Small Valley The Edge of Instinct Requiem for a Generation of Lost Souls Now They are Fourteen Advertising Missionaries

Dating the Enemy Floating Life The Quiet Room River Street Road to Nhill

59 59 59 59 59

60 60 60 60 60

Features Production

Cosi Lilian’s Story Lust and Revenge Race the Sun Shine The Small Man True Love and Chaos Turning April

61 61 61 61 61 61 61 61

Shorts Centenary of Australian Cinema

Children of the Revolution

Television Production and Post-Production

NSW Film and Television Office Certification for the Operation of Industrial Equipment Cultural Diversity Facility Planning Capital Works Getting It Right NSW Wonders Peak Performance

62 62 62 62 62 62

Flinders Medical Centre Breast Cancer Hospital at Home

62 62

Television Pre-Production The Bite Fire II Return to Jupiter The Thorn Birds: The Missing Years

62 62 62 62

After the Beep Banjo Patterson’s The Man from Snowy River Blue Heelers Bordertown Echo Point The Feds The Genie from Down Under Lizzie’s Library Naked Ocean Girl 3 Passion Rainbow’s End Sun on the Stubble The Silver Brumby

63 63 63 63 63 63 63 63 63 63 63 63 63 63

production THE Q U I E T R O O M A N D F L O A T I N G LI F E RE ADY • J A C K I E C H A N V I S I T S FALLS

Following a Board meeting on A July, the FFC has entered into contract negotiations with the producers of the following projects:

FFC Funding Decisions Following a Board meeting in June, the FFC has entered into contract negotiations with the producers of the following projects:

were in her shoes. When they wake up, he is. He's in her body. She's in his. Forced to live each other's lives through work, friends, and sex - they get to know each other as they never have before.

Telerulon

Feature DATING THE ENEMY (95 m in s ) T o t a l F il m a n d T e l e v is io n

D: M egan S impson P: S ue M illiken EPs: P hil G erlach , H eather O gilvie W: M egan S impson modern comedy romance about relationships. She wants him to commit, and he still wants to play around. She makes a wish: that he

K ey

HALIFAX F.P. 2 (3x100

Television U 'L ELVIS JONES A N D THE TRUCKSTOPPERS (2 6x2 4 m in s ) M ic k e y D u c k A n im a t io n

N ew T ow n

F il m s

S im p s o n

L e M e s u r ie r

hese tele-features follow the adventures of Jane Halifax, a forensic psychiatrist retained by both police and solicitors. Using her specialized knowledge of criminal behaviour, she helps unravel a series of mysteries involving a convicted rapist, a cop gone wrong and organized crime.

Docunien tarLea

Co-p Co-Producer

IN A SM ALL VALLEY (55 mins , FFC-SBS A ccord)

AS Associate Producer LP Line Producer

D: N icholas P arsons Ps: B ryan B row n , H elen W atts W : N icholas Parsons PC: B ryan B rown

m in s )

Ds: P aul M oloney , S teve J odrell Ps: Roger Le M esurier , R oger S impson Ws: M ac G udgeon , David B outland , Kathrine T homson PC: R ebecca G ibney

P Producer

n a small community in the Australian outback, an unorthodox group of white fringe dwellers administers to a floating population of tribal Aborigines. A death in the police lock-up and an act of love force the local constable to balance the need for due process with traditional Aboriginal laws.

C e n t r a l P a r k F il m s

D: D avid Caesar P: G lenys R owe n action-comedy about two unemployed men bored by life and angry at the world. They spend their time drinking beer and watching videos until one day they actually decide to do something: rob a bank.

a n d

B y z a n t in e F il m

FISTFUL OF LIES

& V id e o J o t z P r o d u c t io n s

P r o d u c t io n s

SW Scriptwriter

D: D ennis K S mith P: J ack W hite EP s : G eoff B arnes , J ohn M oore W : D ennis K S mith

C Cast PC Principal Cast SE Story Editor

unique minority culture exists in Australia's deaf community. Its history, culture and linguistics are seen through the eyes of a profoundly deaf artist, Peter Adams.

THE EDGE OF INSTINCT (55 mins , FFC-SBS A ccord) S t e p h e n R a m s e y P r o d u c t io n s

D: S tephen Ramsey P: J ane Ramsey W : S tephen Ramsey he documentary follows couples undergoing the IVF programme. It examines the emotional stresses of the procedure: the devastation after failure, the joy of success and the depth of the procreative need.

C IN E M A PAPERS • OCTOBER 1995

D: M onica P ellizzari P: J ulia Overton ixteen-year-old Mars Lupi is the only daughter in a conservative Catholic, Italian-Australian family. Struggling to come to terms with her sexuality, she clashes with her sexuallyrepressed mother and her violent and philandering father. A comedy-drama about a young girl and her quest to be treated as a mature woman.

Following a Board meeting on 5 July, the F F C has entered into contract negotiations w ith the producers of the following projects: THE ZONE (95

m in s )

M e d ia W o r l d F e a t u r e s

D: J ohn T atoulis

ACTF

D: P eter V iska P s : P eter V iska , S usie Cam pbell EP: Patricia E dgar n animated series about a 10-yearold boy with the weight of the world on his shoulders. He is a boy with a gift for music, a talent for trouble and a desire for only one thing: to find out who he is and be a normal kid again.

Ps: J enny D ay , G illian A rmstrong W : G illian A rmstrong n exploration of the hopes and expectations of three workingclass women from Adelaide, and the differences and similarities they share with their daughters.

Following a Board meeting on 28 July, the F F C has entered into contract negotiations with the producers of the following projects:

Television

Docuinentanej

IDIOT BOX

O p e n C h a n n e l P r o d u c t io n s

D Director

NOTE: Production Surrey form s now adhere to a recited form at. Cinema Papers regrets it cannot accept information received in a differentform at. Cinema Papers does not accept responsibility for the accuracy of any information supplied by production companies. This is particularly the case when infor mation changes but the production company makes no attem pt to correct what has already been supplied (as with the incorrect Cthulhu entry hi the last issue)

DEAD HEART

futuristic thriller in which two border guards from warring nations play increasingly-dangerous games.

an d

EP Executive Producer

WD Writer-director

Film Fund Featurea

Ps: J ohn T atoulis , C olin S outh Ws: D eborah Parso ns , J ohn T atoulis

REQUIEM FORA GENERATION OF LOST SOULS (52 m in s ) E l e c t r ic P ic t u r e s

D: Frank R ijavec P: A ndrew Ogilvie , S ue Fleming W : Frank R ijavec group of pilgrims, Japanese war veterans and their descendants travel to the jungles of New Guinea, where their comrades/husbands fell, on a religious mission to give rest and comfort to the abandoned spirits of their loved ones. This documentary is about the people of a Japanese city trying to come to terms with the psychological legacy of war.

Following a Board meeting on 21 July, the FFC has entered into contract negotiations with the producers of the following projects:

Documentary N O W THEY ARE FOURTEEN (90 m in s ) B ig P ic t u r e C o m p a n y a n d S p ir it e d

F il m s

D: G illian A rmstrong

W HITE LIES (95

m in tele - feature )

R u t h e r f o r d F il m

H o l d in g s

D: Pauline C han P: J ohn S exton EP s : C hris B ro w n , V ictor G lynn W s: H enry T efay, K ee Y oung A ustralian broadcaster : N etwork 10 W orld d istributio n : P ortman G lobal D eveloped w ith the assistance of: Film Q ueensland political thriller about the public façade and private lives of an aspiring politician and his wife -th e little white lies that lead to revenge, blackmail and a fight for life.

Following a Board meeting on 1 August, the F F C has entered into contract negotiations with the producers of the following projects:

Documentaty ADVERTISING MISSIONARIES (52 m in s ) A s p ir e F i l m s - E l l ip s e P r o g r a m m e

Ds: C hris H ilto n , Gauthier Flauder Ps: C hris H ilto n , Gauthier Flauder W s : C hris H ilto n , Gauthier Flauder look at the determination of advertising companies to reach the remote highlands of Papua New Guinea, where more than three quarters of the population cannot be reached by regular advertising. A small theatre group travels to the remote region, performing soap operas devised around advertising messages for a variety of products.

■

production Production Survey

Editor: S imon M artin Production Designer: ROGER FORD Costume Designer: T erry Ryan Composer: NlGEL WESTLAKE P l a n n in g a n d D e v e l o p m e n t

Inform ation is as supplied and adjudged as of 15/8/95.

Featured Pre-production DATING THE ENEMY Production company: T otal Film and T elevision P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Director: M egan S impson Producer: SUE MlLLlKEN Executive producers: P hil G erlach , FIeather O gilvie

A rt D e p a r t m e n t

Set dresser: P hil S urry W ardrobe

Wardrobe supervisor: BEVERLEY FREEMAN P o s t - p r o d u c t io n

Assistant editor: SlMON WHITINGTON Mixer: PETER D. SMITH Mixed at: H endon S tudios Laboratory: ATLAB Laboratory liaison: DENISE WOOLFSON Film/Video gauge: 35 m m Screen ratio: 5:1 Shooting stock: KODAK G o vernm ent A gency In vestm en t

Development: SA Film C orporation M a r k e t in g

modern comedy romance about relationships. She wants him to commit, and he still wants to play around. She makes a wish: that he were in her shoes. When they wake up, he is. He's in her body. She's in his. Forced to live each other's lives through work, friends, and sex - they get to know each other as they never have before.

International sales agent: I ntrafilms (R om e ) Publicity: FIONA PATERSON [No OTHER DETAILS SUPPLIED.]

RIVER STREET Production company: H ouse & M oorhouse Films Budget: $3.1 million Production: 18 SEPTEMBER 1995 ... P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

FLOATING LIFE Production company: HIBISCUS Films P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Director: Clara La w Producer: BRIDGET I kin Co-producer: J ohn M aynard Scriptwriters: Eddie LlNG-CHING FONG, C lara La w comedy in which an Asian family migrates from Hong Kong to Australia and finds it is caught between two cultures.

THE QUIET ROOM Production company: V ertigo P roductions (A delaide ) Pre-Production: 24/7/95 ... Production: 21/8/95 ... Post-Production: 18/9/95 ...

Director: T ony M ahood Producer: Lynda HOUSE Associate producer: Catherine B ishop Scriptwriter: P hillip Ryall Director of photography: MARTIN M cG rath Production designer: P atrick Reardon G o v er n m en t A gen cy In v est m en t

Production: FFC n ambitious young real-estate agent misses an important land auction when his temper lands him in trouble. Sentenced to community service, he is sent to a drop-in centre terrorized by street kids. Here he is forced to take measure of his courage and to make a choice between property and people.

ROAD TO N H ILL Production company: GECKO Films Budget: $1.85 MILLION Australian distributor: R onin Films Production: OCTOBER 1995 ...

P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Director: ROLF DE H eer Producers: DOMENICO PROCACCI, Rolf de H eer Co-producers: S haron J ackson , Fiona P aterson Scriptwriter: ROLF DE H eer Director of photography: T ony Clark Sound recordist: P eter D. S mith Editor: T a n ia N ehme Production Designer: Fiona P aterson Costume Designer: BEVERLEY FREEMAN Composer: G raham T aroif

Director: SUE BROOKS Producer: SUE M aslin Scriptwriter: A lison TlLSON Director of photography: N icolette Freeman Production designer: K erith HOLMES Editor: TONY STEVENS Composer: E lizabeth D rake

P u n n in g a n d D e v e lo p m e n t

O t h e r C r e d it s

Casting: A udine L eith Budgeted by: S haron J ackson , D avid Lightfoot

Film gauge: SUPER 16

P r o d u c t io n C r e w

Production manager: D avid L ightfoot Production co-ordinator: C hristopher C orin Production secretary: N icola M ill Financial controller: S haron J ackson Insurer: Rollins H u di G Hall -L ee D eane Completion guarantor: Film Finances Legal services: B ryce M enzies -R oth W arren Ca m er a C rew

P r o d u c t io n C r e w

Production supervisor: G reg RiCKETSON Production co-ordinator: SANDY STEVENS Producer's assistant: T rish Cameron Production secretary: SARAH MlLSOME Location manager: M aude H eath Unit manager: W illiam M atthews Assistant unit manager: LAURIE PETTINARI Unit assistants: P eter K odicek , D am ien W oods Production runner: Paul S ullivan Production accountant: JAMES BRADLEY, M oneypenny S ervices Accounts assistant: C hris M oran Insurer: F.I.U.A. Completion guarantor: F.A.C.B. Legal services: M ichael Frankel and Co. Travel co-ordinator: S howtravel C a m e r a C rew

Camera operator: D anny B atterham Focus puller: I an P hillips Clapper-loader: M ichele D uval Camera assistant: D a m ia n Church Camera type: P anavisio n Key grip: B rett M c D owell Assistant grip: JOHN T ate Gaffer: DAVID PARKINSON Best boy: G reg Rawson Electrician: C live R ippon Assistant electrics: A dam H unter Generator operator: MANFRED H nilica O n -set C rew

1st assistant director: P. J. VOETEN 2nd assistant director: JOHN M artin 3rd assistant director: JENNIFER LEACEY Continuity: Kate D ennis Boom operator: Fiona M cB ain Make-up: KlRSTEN VEYSEY Make-up assistants: WENDY S a in SBURY, B eck T aylor Special fx make-up: N ik D orning Hairdresser: YVONNE SAVAGE Choreographer: JOHN O'CONNELL Stunts co-ordinator: Richard B oue Still photography: P hillip Le M asurier Photographic consultant: Lorrie G r ah a m : Catering: Eat AND S hoot T hrough A rt D ep a r t m e n t

Art director: Laurie Faen Assistant art director: S arah T ooth Art department co-ordinator: T racey M oxham Art department runner: JONATHAN TlDBALL Set dresser: K errie B rown Graphic Artist: C harlie R evai Props buyer: Faith Robinson Standby props: GEORGE Z a m m it Armourer: J ohn B owring Action vehicle co-ordinator: A dam PlNNOCK

G o v e r n m e n t A g en c y In v e s t m e n t

W ardrobe

Production: AFC, Film V ictoria

Wardrobe supervisor: HELEN D ykes Standby wardrobe: I sobel Carter W ardrobe assistant: ANDREW INFANTI Costume construction: SUZANNE HEAD

small country town leaps to action the day a car-load of lady bowlers tips on the Nhill road.

Featured Produeturn CHILDREN OF THE REVOLUTION

Focus puller: D arryl W ood Clapper-loader C orey P iper Key grip: MARCUS B osisto Assistant grip: Charles K iroff Gaffer: CHARLES KiROFF

Production Company: Rev K ids Distribution Company: Roadshow Film D istributors Production: 3/7-1/9/95

O n -set C rew

Director: PETER D uncan Producer: T ristram M i all Associate producer: GREG RiCKETSON Scriptwriter: PETER DUNCAN Director of photography: MARTIN M c G rath Sound recordist: GUNTIS SlCS

1st assistant director: D avid L ightfoot 2nd assistant director: J ulie B yrne Continuity: B everley Freeman Make-up: B everley Freeman Hairdresser: B everley Freeman

P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Script editor: S imon M artin Casting: P eter D unc an , R obyn K ershaw Casting consultants: Liz M ullinar Casting C onsultants Extras casting: GABRIELLE H ealy Storyboard artist: D an P otra

P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

C o n s t r u c t io n D e p a r t m e n t

Scenic artist: Frank Falconer Construction manager: D anny BURNETT Leading hand: A ndrew Staig Carpenters: P atrick T hompson , M urray S im m a n c e , J eremy S parks Set finisher: R ichard BALDWIN Greensman: T he Greens D epartment Studios: M entmore S tudios P o s t - p r o d u c t io n

Post-production supervisor: S im on M artin Assistant editor: M artin C onnor Editing assistant: J ohn L ee Sound transfers by: S pectrum Sound editor: A ndrew P lain Musical director. N igel W estlake Laboratory: A tlab Laboratory liaison: Ian Russell

Laboratory: ClNEVEX Laboratory liaison: Ian ANDERSON Film/Video gauge: 35 m m Screen ratio: 1:1.85 Shooting stock: Eastmancolor Video transfers by: AAV Off-line facilities: Lightworks -H orizon Films

Negative matching: N egative Cutting S ervices Film/Video gauge: 35 m m Screen ratio: 1:1.85 Shooting stock: Eastm an K odak

G o v e r n m e n t A g en c y In v e s t m e n t

Development: NSWFTO Production: FFC & NSWFTO

M a r k e t in g

International sales agent: B eyond

International sales agent: B eyond Films International distributor: M iram ax C a st

J udy D avis (J oan Fraser ), R ichard R oxburgh (J oe ), S am N eill (N in e ), Rachel G riffiths (A n n a ), G eoffrey Rush (W elch ), F. M urray A braham (S t a lin ). ew knew that Joseph Stalin spent his last night on the planet in the arms of a young Australian woman. Fewer still know that their love child brought Australia to the brink of civil war. Until now ...

DAVID W ILLIA M S O N 'S BRILLIANT LIES Production Company: BAYSIDE PICTURES Distribution Company: R oadshow Budget: S3.5 million Production: 24/7-2/9/95 Post-production: 3/9/95 ... P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Director: R ichard Franklin Producers: Richard Franklin, S ue FARRELLY Assistant producer: K im M cK illop Scriptwriters: PETER FITZPATRICK, R ichard Franklin Based on the play: B rilliant L ies W ritten by: D avid W illiamson Director of photography: GEOFF BURTON Sound recordist: LLOYD CARRICK Editor: D avid P ulbrook Production designer: T racy W att Costume designer: R oger K irk Composer: N erida T yson -C hew P l a n n in g a n d D e v e l o p m e n t

Casting: G reg A pps P r o d u c t io n C r e w

Production manager: Ray H ennessy Production co-ordinator: S andi R evelins Production secretary: KlM T ravis Location manager: N eil M c Car [?) Unit manager: MICHAEL BATCHELOR Unit assistant: Frank M angano Production runner: Em m a M oloney Production accountant: S ophie S io m is - M oneypenny Completion guarantor: Film Finances Ca m er a C rew

Focus puller: L eilani H annah Clapper-loader: L iza M cL ean Key grip: SCOTT B rOKATE Assistant grips: PETER STOCKLEY, J osh M oore Gaffer: B rian A dams Best boy: T im M orrison Electrician: G reg D e M arigny O n - set C rew

1st assistant director: CHRIS WEBB 2nd assistant director: T anya J ackson 3rd assistant director: MICHAEL AGNEW Continuity: A nny BERESFORD Boom operator: Ray P hillips Make-up: A m a n d a Rowbottom Hairdresser: Cheryl W illiam s Safety officer: BRETT ANDERSON Unit nurse: ALEX DRAPOW Still photography: JENNIFER MITCHELL Unit publicist: A nnette S mith Catering: M ichelle G ibso n -S weet S eduction A rt D e p a r t m e n t

Art director: B rian A lexander Art department co-ordinator: M iriam J ohnson Art department runner: HELEN SAXTON Set dresser: J ILL Eden Standby props: B arry K ennedy W ardrobe

Wardrobe supervisor: K erry T hompson Standby wardrobe: Rachel N ott C o n s t r u c t io n D e p a r t m e n t

Construction supervisor: WALTER S perl Set finisher: C olin B urchall Studios: H orizon Film s . P o s t - p r o d u c t io n

Assistant editor: Robert H all

C a st

G ia Carides (S usy C onnors ), A nthony La P aglia (G ary Fitzgerald ), Z oe Carides (K aty C onnors ), Ray B arrett (B rian C onnors ), Catherine W ilkin (M a rio n ), N eil M elville (V ince ), M ichael V eitch (P aul Conno rs ). study of sexual harassment about a young woman who tells a mediator from the anti-discrimination board that she was harassed and wrongfully dismissed by the insurance broker for whom she used to work.

THE ISLAND OF DR. MOREAU Production company: N ew L ine ClNEMAP ressman F ilm s - M oreau P roductions Production: 1 A ugust - late O ctober 1995 P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Director: J ohn Frankenheimer Producer: Ed P ressman Executive producer: T im Z inn e m a nn Scriptwriters: R ichard S tanley , M ichael H err, W alon G reen Based on the story by H. G. Wells Director of photography: DARIUS WOLSKI Production designer: Graham "G race " W alker Costume designer: NORMA MORICEAU Editor: T im W ellburn Art dirtector: Ian G racie Ca st

M arlon B rando (D r . M oreau ), V al K ilmer (M ontgomery ), Fairuza B alk (A is s a ), M arco H ofschneider (M 'L in g ), T emuera M orrison (A zazello ), Ron P erlman (S ayer of the La w ). tale of obsession, adventure and technology out of control. The year is 2007, the world teeters on the edge of nuclear conflict and genetic engineering has become a frighteningly exact science.

M Y ENTIRE LIFE Production company: H ayes M c E lroy-S pecific Films Distribution companies: P oly Gram Filmed Entertainm ent (UK, France , S p a in , A ustralia , B enelux ), P olyG ram Film I nternatio nal ( rest of w orld ) Production: 31 J uly 1995 ... P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Director: NADIA TASS Producers: JlM McELROY, M ichael H a m ly n , T erry H ayes Line producer: D ennis K iely Scriptwriter: T erry H ayes Director of photography: D avid P arker Sound recordist: JOHN SCHIEFELBEIN Editor: P eter Carroous Production designer: J on DowDING Costume designer: T ess S chofield Music supervisor: C hris G ough (M an a M usic ) P l a n n in g a n d D e v e l o p m e n t

Casting: LlZ MULLINAR Extras casting: A nnie M c Evoy P r o d u c t io n C r e w

Production co-ordinator: D ebbie A tkins Producer's assistant: S a m a n t h a LliKlS Director's assistant: SARAH N eal Production secretary: HEATHER M uirhead Location manager (Brisbane): H arry Y ates Location maanager (Sydney): R ichard M ontgomery Unit manager: G raham " B ricks " Ellery Asst unit manager: JlMMY D avidson Production runner: K ath ar ina K iel Production accountant: J ohn M ay Assistant accountant: J ennifer D es C ham ps Completion guarantor: FACB Insurer: H. W . W ood A ustralia Travel and acommodation: SH0WGR0UP Assistant to Mr Hamlyn-London liaison: L izzie T odm an

C IN EM A PAPERS • OCTOBER 1995

Ca m er a C rew

Camera operator: D avid W illiam so n Focus puller: D a m ia n W yvill Clapper-loader: MARGIE McCLYMONT Gaffer: I an D ewhurst Best boy: L ex M artin 3rd electrics: A ndrew Saul Key grip: WARREN G rieef Grip: J ason P arry Assistant grip: L eith K laffer TV playback unit: L ester Crombie O n -set C rew

1st assistant director: B ob D onaldson 2nd assistant director: N ao m i Enfield 3rd assistant director: Rob B rown 4th assistant director attachment: S ophie S taw aruk Continuity: Jo WEEKS Boom operator: CHRIS GOLDSMITH Key make-up artist: M argaret S tyevenson Key hairdresser: S ash Lamey Assistant to make-up-hairdresser: P eter W oodward Stunt co-ordinator-safety officer: Greg S kipper Unit nurse: Patsy B uchan Caterer: D ave and S andy M arshall Unit vehicles: C lark Film S ervices Cast driver: Liz E dward Stills photographer: J ason B oland

Featured Podt-production and Awaiting Releade COSI Production company: S miley Films Distribution company: M iram ax Films Budget: $3.5 MILLION Pre-production: 12/11/94- 19/1/95 Production: 20/1/95 - 10/3/95 Post-production: 11/3/95 - 1/9/95 P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Director: M ark J offe Producer: R ichard B rennan Executive producers: Phaedon V a ss , H arvey W einstein , B ob W einstein Associate producer: Lyn Gailey Scriptwriter: LOUIS NOWRA Based on the play: COSI DOP: Ellery Ryan Sound recordist: J ohn SCHIEFELBEIN Editor: NICHOLAS B eauman Production designer: C hris K ennedy Costume designer: T ess S chofield

Art director: P hilip D rake Set dresser: L isa T hompson Action vehicle co-ordinator: H arry W ard Props buyer: T im S anderm an Standby props: H arry Z ettel Art department assistant: D aniel M app - M oroni

Production manager: CATHERINE BISHOP Production co-ordinator: Em m a SCHOFIELD Production secretary: J ustine D endle Location manager: M aude H eath Unit manager: W lL MlLNE Unit assistants: Karen H edley, Paul N aylor Production runner: BELINDA YOUNG Production accountant: BELLE Eder Accounts assistant: C olette W ard Insurer: S teeves Lumley Completion guarantor: Film Finances Legal services: H eidim an & Co

C o n s t r u c t io n D e p a r t m e n t

Draftsperson: J ohn A ndersen Construction manager: JOHN PICKERING Leading hand no. 1: Ross DONOGHOE Leading hand no. 2: J ohn R ogers Carpenters: D avid Franks , R obert K olkka Labourer: Russell G ardiner Trades assistant: N oel BECKMAN Scenic artist: B illy M alcolm Set finishers: P eta B lack , A thol J ohn G ill Brush hand: S tephanie R owe Greensperson: B rad P im m Armourer: A llan M owbray A n im a l s

Trainer for "Nipper": S ue THOMPSON P o s t - p r o d u c t io n

Assistant editor: S trutts P syridis Sound post-production: SOUNDFIRM Film lab: ClNEVEX Telecine tape house: A A V V ideo S ervices A ustralia Film stock: K odak (B risbane ) Camera equipment: CAMERAQUIP M a r k e t in g

Publicity: Fiona S earson (D D A) C a st

C olin Friels (W ally M ellish ), J acqueline M cK enzie (B eryl); Pau l S o nkkila , Frank G allacher , B arry Otto . ased on the true story of the experiences of Wally Mellish who, in 1968, achieved Australian and international notoriety as an extraordinary folk hero when he successfully conducted a bizarre eight-day siege with his girlfriend, Beryl, in a house in a sleepy, semi-rural area on the fringes of Sydney.

THE STORY OF C.I.A. Production company: G olden H arvest

Cast J ackie C han alls Creek doubles for Russia in this Jackie Chan actioner.

1st assistant director: B ob D onaldson 2nd assistant director: Richard M c G rath

ewis, a young university graduate, accepts a job directing psychiatric patients in a therapeutic drama course. His control is usurped by Roy, a manic depressive who demands that they stage an opera by Mozart, despite the fact that none of the patients can act, sing or speak Italian.

LILIAN S STORY Production company: CML Films Pre-production: 23 /1 /95 -19 /3 /9 5 Production: 2 0 /3 /95 -14 /5 /9 5 Post-production: 15/5/95 ...

C a m e r a C rew

Camera operator: K im B atterham Focus puller: Sally Eccleston Clapper-loader: B ede Haines Camera attachment: J a sm in e Carrucan Camera type: ARRI 535B Key grip: L ester B ishop Assistant grip: T erry C ook Gaffer: J ohn M orton Best boy: M athew H oile Electrician: Paul S ellgren Assistant electrics: A lan Y ork

Director: JERZY DOMARADZKI Producer: M arian MCGOWAN Co-producer: MlKE WlLCOX Executive producers: DAVID COURT, J eremy B ean Scriptwriter: STEVE WRIGHT Based on the novel by: Kate Grenville DOP: S law omir I dziak Sound recordist: B en Osmo Editor: L e e S mith Production designer: Roger Ford Ca st

T oni C ollette (L il ia n ); Ruth C racknell; B arry Otto (L ilia n ' s Father ); M organ S mallbone (F. J. S troud ); S usie L in d e m a n , J ohn Flaus , A nne L ouise Lam bert . he unconventional life of a legendary eccentric who recited Shakespeare for a dollar on the streets of Sydney and rode taxis for the price of a sonnet. Lilian's story is a celebration of being alive. Based on a novel by Kate Grenville.

O n - set C rew

LUST AND REVENGE

1st assistant director: Euan K eddie 2nd assistant director: T ony G ilbert 3rd assistant director: Russell B oyd Continuity: Jo WEEKS Boom operator: Chris Goldsmith Make-up: N oriko W a t an abe -N eill Make-up assistant: N oreen W ilkie Hairdresser: J an Z eigenbein Special fx: Ray FOWLER Stunts co-ordinator: G lenn B oswell Still photography: P hillip L e M esurieur Unit publicists: M ar ia Farmer , T racey M air Catering: K ollage Catering , K erry Fetzer

Production company: ILLUMINATION FILMS Production: 8 /5 -9 /6 /9 5

A rt D e p a r t m e n t

Art director: H ugh B ateup Art department co-ordinator: Christina N orman Art department runner: J ohn A llan Set dressers: M arita M ussett , V iv W ilson Draftsperson: T ony W illiam s Standby props: P eter D avies W ardrobe

Wardrobe supervisor: H elen D ykes Standby wardrobe: ISOBELL Carter W ardrobe assistant: C heyne P hillips A n im a l s

Animal trainer: J oanne K ostiuk Animal assistant: T odd M ackay

O t h e r C r e d it s

Production manager: David LlGHTFOOT Distribution guarantee: S eawell Films (F rance ), A d Film (A ustralasia ), Classic Films (B elg ium ). Finance: FFC, SAFC. Gauge: 35 m m . Ca st

Scenic artist: P eta B lack Construction foremen: ANDREW Staig , Patrick Carr Carpenters: G ordon Finney , M artin J ones , M urray S im m ance Labourer: ANDREW B earman P o s t - p r o d u c t io n

Assistant editor: M artin Connor Music co-ordinator: CHRISTINE WOODRUFF Laboratory: A tlab I Lab liaison: Ian Russell, D enise W olfson

C IN E M A PAPERS â&#x20AC;˘ OCTOBER 1995

RACE THE SUN Production company: Race the S un P roductions Distributor: Co lu m b ia -T ristar Production: 6 /4 -9 /6 /9 5 P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Director: CHARLIE Kang anis Producers: R ichard H eus, B arry M orrow Executive producer: D avid N ichols Scriptwriter: B arry M orrow Director of photography: D avid B urr

i |

P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Director: G eoff B ennett Producers: H eather Ogilvie , Lael M c Call Co-producer: J ohn W inter Executive producers: P hil GERLACH, Robert Lantos Scriptwriter: JAMES W . NlCHOL DOP: S teve A rnold Sound recordist: B ronwyn M urphy Editor: S usan S hipton Production designer: M ichael P hilips Costume designer: ClARRlSSA PATTERSON

P l a n n in g a n d D e v e l o p m e n t

Casting: Faith M artin & A ssociates Extras casting: K ristin W hitfield Storyboard artist: A nnie B eauchamp

SHINE

P r o d u c t io n C r e w

Production manager: Cathy Flannery Production co-ordinator: JACQUIE Fine Location manager: Robyn B ersten Unit manager: Paul M alane Production assistant: S arah M ilsome Production runners: CLAIRE DAVIDSON, A usland I s m a il Production accountant: Dl B rown Completion guarantor: Film Finances Legal services: Lyndon S ayer - J ones

P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Director: S cott H icks Producer: JANE SCOTT Scriptwriter: J an S ardi DOP: G eoffrey S impson Editor: Pip K armel Production designer: SALLY CAMPBELL Costume designer: S ally Campbell Musical director: D avid H irschfelder

Ca m era C rew

Focus puller: Robert A gganis Clapper-loader: M ichelle C loete 2nd unit DOP: WOLFGANG K n OCHELL 2nd unit focus: PETER T erakes Key grip: R obin MORGAN Assistant grip: PAUL HAMLYN Gaffer: Paul J ohnstone Best boy: G raeme C ook 3rd electrics: M iles J ones

P l a n n in g a n d D e v e l o p m e n t

Casting consultant: Liz M ullinar P r o d u c t io n C r e w

Production manager: Elizabeth S ymes Insurer: H. W . WOOD (A ustralia ) Completion guarantor: Film Finances Legal services: M arshalls & D ent Publicity: D ennis Davidson A ssociates G o v e r n m e n t A g en c y In v e s t m e n t

Production: FFC, SAFC, Film V ictoria Ca st

Geoffrey Rush (D a v id ), N oah T aylor (Y oung Da v id ), S ir J ohn G ielgud (P arkes ), Lynn R edgrave (G ill ia n ), A rmin M ueller-S tahl (D a v id ' s Father ). fter succumbing to the pressure of his father's obsessive love and the fierce competition of the concert world as a child prodigy, David Helfgott makes a new beginning in London inspired by his passion for music and the woman he loves.

THE SM ALL M A N Production company: S m all M an P roductions Distributor: S outhern S tar Production: 12/6/95-4/8/95 P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Director: J ohn HlLLCOAT Producer: D enise P atience Associate producer: R ichard H udson Line producer: S ally A yre-S mith Scriptwriter: Gene Conkie Director of photography: A ndrew de G root Production designer: CHRIS KENNEDY Editor: S tewart Y oung Composers: N ick Cave , M ick H arvey , B uxa B argeld

O n -set C rew

1st assistant director: V icki S ugars 2nd assistant director: A dam SPENCER 3rd assistant director: Kate T urner Continuity: S usan WlLEY Boom swinger: B ob WILLIAMS Make-up: L esley V anderw alt Additional make-up: W endy S ainsbury Special fx make-up: N ick D orning Hairdresser: P aul W illiam s Stunts co-ordinator: Grant Page Safety officer: ROBERT SlMPER Still photography: T racey S chramm Unit publicist: T racey M air Catering: Cam era Cooks A rt D e p a r t m e n t

Art department co-ordinator: T racey M oxham Art department runner: M arco P inesi Buyer-dressers: A licia W alsh , A ndrew S hort Standby props: Robert " M oxy" M oxham Armourer: K en J ones Vehicle wrangler: Paul A nderson W ardrobe

Costume supervisor: Em ily S eresin Standby wardrobe: Gabrielle D unn Costume assistant: B ernadette M c Call A n im a l s

Animal wrangler: J ulie Lorrimar C o n s t r u c t io n D e p a r t m e n t

Scenic artist: M artin BRUVERIS Construction manager: B ob P aton Painter: A ndrew Robinson

O t h e r C r e d it s

Production manager: Yvonne Collins 1st assistant director: Colin Fletcher Art director: HUGH BATEUP Gauge: 35 m m

C o n s t r u c t io n D e p a r t m e n t

Production company: T urning A pril P roductions Distribution companies: T otal Film & T elevision , A lliance Production: 2 7 /2 /9 5 -7 /4 /9 5

Production company: M omentum Films Distribution companies: Pandora C in e m a , R onin Film s , BBC Entertainment Budget: S6 MILLION Production: 7 A pril 1995 ...

N icholas H ope, Claudia K arvan , G osia D obrowolska , Chris Hayw ood , P am ela Rabe , V ictoria Eager . n erotic satire of an heiress who, after a failed marriage and a corrupt family environment, decides to occupy her mind with artistic endeavours. She commissions her friend, an internationally-recognized sculptress, to create a work in the vein of Michaelangelo's David.

TURNING APRIL

Ca st

P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Director: P aul Cox Producers: J ane B allantyne , Paul Cox Executive producer: W illiam T. M arshall Scriptwriters: Paul Cox , J ohn Clarke Director of photography: N ino M artinetti Production designer: N eil A ngw in Editor: JOHN SCOTT

J im B elushi, H alle B erry, Casey A ffleck, Eliza D ushku . he attractive new science teacher at Hawaii's Kona High takes on a bunch of bored and disillusioned school kids and gives them the inspiration to design and build their own solar car. What begins as a Senior Science project becomes an entry in the World Solar Car Challenge that takes them across the Australian desert from Darwin to Adelaide.

P r in c ip a l C r e d it s P r o d u c t io n C r e w

W ardrobe

O t h e r C r e d it s

Development: NSW FTO B en M endelsohn (L ew is ), B arry Otto (R oy), T oni C ollette (J ulie ), J acki W eaver (C herry), Pam ela Rabe (R uth ), P aul C hubb (H enry ), Colin Hay (Z ac ), David W enham (D oug ), C olin Friels (E rrol), A den Y oung (N ick ), Rachel Griffiths (L ucy ), T ony L lewellyn - J ones (K irner ), K erry W alker (S a n d r a ).

P l a n n in g a n d D e v e l o p m e n t

Production designer: OWEN PATERSON Costume designer: M argot W ilson Editor: W endy G reene B ricmont

G o vern m en t A gency In vestm en t

C a st

Casting: A lison B arrett Casting Casting consultant: A lison B arrett Extras casting: GABRIELLE H ealy

A rt D e p a r t m e n t

Costume designer: T ess S cofield Costume supervisor: C hristelle Coroneos Costume standby: L isa Galea Costume assistant: Cheyne P hillips Costume supervisor: Lyn A skey Costume maker: JAMELLA H assan Buyer: MARY-LOU DA ROZA Costume cutters: S heryl P ilking ton , M arsha L idden Wardrobe assistant: K elly M ay

Film gauge: 1:1.85 Shooting stock: KODAK 5248, 5298 Video transfers: A pocalypse

G o v e r n m e n t A g en c y In v e s t m e n t

Production: FFC C a st

P o s t - p r o d u c t io n

Post-production supervisor: G regor H utchinson 1st assistant editor: NOELLEEN W estcombe 2nd assistant editor: C leo M yles Laboratories: A tlab (S ydney ), T he Film H ouse (T oronto ) Shooting stock: K odak .

T cheky Karyo , Rachel G riffiths . he story of an expatriate living in Papua New Guinea, who falls in love with a woman who rekindles memories of his dead wife. When he takes her to his tropical home, she discovers that he has a past - a past that he can neither forgive nor forget.

TRUE LOVE AND CHAOS (AKA LOVE W ISE) Directors: Emma-Kate Croghan, Stavros Efthymiou [No DETAILS SUPPLIED.]

Ca st

T ushka B ergen (A pril ), A aron B labey (L eif ), D ee S mart (K yra ), T ayler Kane (D onny ), J ustine C larke (R ose ), B radley B yquar (C harlie ), C hristopher M orsley (C happie ), K enneth W elsh (Father ), J udi Farr (M other ). he young wife of an ambitious bureaucrat, April is accidentally kidnapped by an inept street gang during a bungled robbery. Confinement turns to liberation as she comes to realize her young captors offer her a first taste of personal freedom and sexual awakening.

production Production Survey continued

P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

COUNTDOWN (aka POINT OF NO RETURN) GIRL W H A T I HAVE W RITTEN S b o r tJ

CULTURAL DIVERSITY Sponsor: Ethnic A ffairs Production company: PANORAMICA P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Director: Ross B ill Producer: Ross B ill Scriptwriter: Ross B ill Directors of photography: Dario S alpietro , M ike T w em lo w , Lou P etho Sound: P eter P urcell Off-line editors, film editors: M ark M iddis , Law rie S ilverstrin , J acquie B etlam P o s t - p r o d u c t io n

CENTENARY OF AUSTRALIAN C INEM A (trailer )

Narrator: JOHN MANGOS Laboratory: MOVIELAB Length: 20 M ins Film/Video gauge: S uper 16 m m

Production company: MURRAY M ancha P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Director: SCOTT MURRAY Producer: J ohn B. M urray Editor: TlM LEWIS Composer: P eter B est Sound: Craig Carter Assistant director: A lissa T anskaya Lengths: 2 MINS ( film ); 1 MIN (video ) Finance: AFC, Film V ictoria , C ity of M elbourne two-minute trailer highlighting Australian cinema since its beginnings.

See previous issue for details on: THE BIRDS DO A MAGNIFICENT TUNE

celebration of the cultural diversity of New South Wales and an acknowledgement of the rôle played by migrants in the establishment of NSW.

FACILITY PLANNING CAPITAL WORKS Sponsor: NSW H ealth D epartment Production company: P ilgrim I nternational L imited P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Director: J ames B ogle Producer: S ue Clothier Scriptwriter: TRACEY Lee ARESTIDES Director of photography: P reston C lothier Sound: I an S herry Off-line editor: A ndrew A ristedes P r o d u c t io n C r e w

Production manager: R ochelle Cooper

FULL BODIED GREEN LOVE AM O NG ST THE MUFFINS

New South Wales Film and Television Office CERTIFICATION FOR THE OPERATION OF INDUSTRIAL EQUIPMENT Sponsor: WORKCOVER A uthority OF N SW Production Company: O rtel T elevision P roductions P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Director: B rian O 'R eilly Producer: T ony Eames Scriptwriter: T ony Eames Director of photography: Craig W atkins Sound: S haun Cefai Off-line editor: B rian O 'R eilly

Music: Paul S mith Graphics-Animation: S imon V on W olkenstein Laboratory: PILGRIM he video describes the community consultative process of providing health facilities using interviews with both planners and community representatives, blue-screen techniques and documentary footage.

GETTING IT RIGHT Sponsor: WORKCOVER AUTHORITY OF NSW Production company: Ortel T elevision P roductions P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Director: B rian O 'R eilly Producer: T ony Eames Scriptwriter: T ony Eames Director of photography: C raig W atkins Sound: S haun C efai Off Line Editor: B rian O 'R eilly P r o d u c t io n C r e w

P r o d u c t io n C r e w

Production manager: J ames B alian

Production manager: J ames B a u a n

P o s t - p r o d u c t io n

Narrator: P eter M cA llum Graphics-Animation: CONJA Laboratory: Frame S et and M atch

Narrator: R ichard Carter Graphics-Animation: CONJA Laboratory: Frame S et and M atch

Ca st

C a st

P eter B row n , T om B uckland , A llan M cFadden , G reg I verson , M ark M cCa n n , M ark S w ad e , D on A tkin so n , Russell N e w m a n , K irsty M eares , J ack M ayers , P enny P edersen , S hane A nderson , R oss A nderson , B en S teel, T roy G r ah a m . rocedures for certification inspectors when conducting an assessment for an applicant for certification. Procedures for having an assessment for certification in line with the new nationally-recognized certificate.

Production manager: M a r in a A lbert P o s t - p r o d u c t io n

Music: O rig Robert M oss Graphics-Animation: Garner M ac L ennan , D a n a Rayson Laboratory: GARNER M a c L ennan our short similiar programmes directed to four different audiences: the Asian market, the U.S./European market, the domestic market, the interstate market. Shows icons and tourist attractions relevant to audience. For trade use and at international and local venues; conventions, etc.

PEAK PERFORMANCE Sponsor: Roads and T raffic A uthority Production company: T andem P roductions P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Director: JlLL MOONIE Producer: M arta S engers Scriptwriter: THRILLING & WILLING Director of photography: P reston Clothier Off-line Editor: D avid T indale Sound: G raham W ise P r o d u c t io n C r e w

Production manager: M arta S engers P o s t - p r o d u c t io n

Graphics-Animation: GARNER M a c L ennan Laboratory: Frame S et and M atch Video gauge: SPBETA ow the traffic control centre works with RTA and the Police co operation. Emphasis on SCATS and ANNTS systems. For use in centre's visitor's centre at the Sydney Traffic Control Centre.

P o s t - p r o d u c t io n

LIFE

M ann y Katts , Paul C oolahan , K im K nuckey . rocedures for certification inspectors when conducting an assessment for an applicant for certification. Procedures for having an assessment for certification in line with the new nationally-recognized certificate.

N SW WONDERS Sponsor: NSW T ourism C om m ission Production company: Garner M ac L ennan

Cast

W ally H ertzfeld (R etired m a n w ith hip replacement ), S haron La d ym an (M other w ith children ), M artin Hales (L a w student ), B ronwyn G litheroe (N urse ), A ndrea Ferencz (N urse )

A rt D e p a r t m e n t

Art director: ANDREW GANCZARCZYK Art department co-ordinator: A u n B entley

Director: Chris T uckfield Producer: NlCKY MuRCELL Director of photography: G eoffrey Hall Off-line Editor: Laef H oskings P r o d u c t io n C r e w

See previous issue for details on:

O n -set C rew

Safety officer: M ichael W arrell -D avies Still photography: M ichael W arrell -D avies Unit publicist: M ichael W hite

Flinders Medical Centre BREAST CANCER

(working title)

Production company: Funders M edia Distribution company: T.H.E (T rain in g , H ealth and Educational V ideos Budget: $15,000 Pre-production: D ecember 1994 ... Production: M arch - J une 1995 Post-production: JULY-OCTOBER 1995 P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Director: M ichael W arrell-D avies Producer: M ichael W arrell-D avies Co-producer: Pat Russell for Z onta Club of A delaide Flinders I nc Executive producer: A lan B entley Scriptwriter: M ichael W arrell-D avies Director of photography: M ichael W arrell -D avies Sound recordist: A ndrew Ganczarczyk Editor: M ichael W arrell-D avies Composer: M atthew A therton P u n n in g a n d D e v e lo p m e n t

Researchers: D r S teven B irrell, S tephanie D aly , Cathy B rooks Casting: Lyn P ike Casting consultants: S potlight A rtists Extras casting: Lyn P ike Shooting schedule by: M ichael W arrell -D avies

C o n s t r u c t io n D e p a r t m e n t

hree patients avail themselves of the Hospital at Home service provided by Flinders Medical Centre.

Studios: Flinders M edia

Television Pre-production

P o s t - p r o d u c t io n

Sound editor: A ndrew Ganczarczyk Narrator: A udine L eith Music performed by: M atthew A therton Recording studio: Flinders M edia Mixed at: Funders M edia Titles: M ichael W arrell -D avies Film/Video gauge: 1/2" Screen ratio: 3:4 Shooting stock: 3M M a r k e t in g

Marketing consultant: M ichael W hite Poster designer: A lan B entley Ca st

S usie P arker (J ane H ill , T he Patie nt ), Karen Lowen (H er Friend ), D ianne B arrell (P resenter ), C harles Cassar (G eneral P ractitioner ), Steve B irrell (S urgeon ), Stephanie D aly (B reast sister ). dramatization of the events which follow a suspected or real diagnosis of breast cancer. There are four scenaria to cover the diversity of diagnoses, prognoses and outcomes.

THE BITE (2 x 90

m in s )

Production company: Palm B each P ictures -W arner S isters (UK) Director: M ichael Carson Producers: D avid Elfick , La v in ia W arner Scriptwriter: TERRY JOHNSON Finance: FFC, ABC, BBC n Australian adventurer and his new English wife decide to move to Asia and set up a business. The venture quickly turns to disaster and they face financial ruin until assisted by the exotic wife of a local business man. But every favour has a price ...

FIRE II

(SERIES)

Production company: Extra DIMENSIONS IN ASSOCIATION WITH LIBERTY FILMS Production: OCTOBER 1995- M arch 1996 Distribution company: B eyond D istribution P ty Ltd

HOSPITAL AT HOME

P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Directors: P eter Fisk , G eoff B ennett Producers: M ichael Caulfield , T ony Cavanau g h , S imone N orth Executive producer: M ikael B orglund Scriptwriters: T ony Cavanau g h , Everett de R oche, P eter S chreck Composer: R oger M ason Length: 13 X 43 MINS

Production company: FLINDERS MEDIA Distribution company: T.H.E (TRAINING, H ealth and E ducational V ideos ) Pre-production: A pril 1995 ... Production: M ay 1995 ... Post-production: JUNE 1995 ... P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Director: M ichael W arrell -D avies Producer: M ichael W arrell -D avies Executive producer: A lan BENTLEY Scriptwriter: M ichael W arrell-D avies Director of photography: M ichael W arrell-D avies Sound recordist: ANDREW GANCZARCZYK Editor: M ichael W arrell -D avies Composer: M atthew A therton

urther stories about a platoon of firefighters in a small innersuburban station in Queensland.

RETURN TO JUPITER

P l a n n in g a n d D e v e l o p m e n t

P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Researchers: C heryl M ilne , B ronwyn G litheroe , A ndrea Ferencz Script editor: J utta N issan Casting: LYN PlKE Casting consultants: SPOTLIGHT A rtists Extras casting: Lyn P ike Shooting schedule by: M ichael W arrell-D avies

Director: K ate W oods Producer: T erry J ennings Executive producer: Ron S aunders , Kagari T a j im a Scriptwriter: David O gilvy Production designer: Kazuo S asaki Special fx: D ale D uguid Finance: FFC, NHK Length: 13 X 30 MINS

P r o d u c t io n C r e w

Production asssitant: J ulie Caddy Financial controller: M ichael W arrell -D avies Finance: Flinders M edical C entre Base-office liaison: M arie La m b Ca m er a C rew

(series )

Production companies: Film A ustralia , NHK (J a p a n ) Production: EARLY 1996 ...

Ca st

J ustin Ro sn iak , A n na C hoy, D aniel T aylor , A braham Forsythe , Robyn M c K enzie . n this science-fiction adventure, five children reunite on a larger space platform hovering above Earth and prepare to return to a newlyestablished mining colony on Ganymede, one of Jupiter's moons. Travelling on their state-of-the-art ship, the Icarus, the colonists encounter many dangers.

Camera operator: M ichael W arrell-D avies Camera assistant: J ulie Caddy Camera type: S ony DXC 537P O n -set C rew

Script assistant: JULIE CADDY Safety officer: M ichael W arrell -D avies Still photography: M ichael W arrell-D avies Unit publicist: M ichael W hite A rt D e p a r t m e n t

Art director: A ndrew G anczarczyk Art department co-ordinator: A lan B entley C o n s t r u c t io n D e p a r t m e n t

Studios: Flinders M edia

P r o d u c t io n C r e w

P o s t - p r o d u c t io n

Production co-ordinator: M ichael W arrell-D avies Finance: Z onta Club of A delaide Flinders I nc Financial controller: M ichael W arrell -D avies Base-office liaison: M arie La m b C a m er a C rew

Sound editor: A ndrew G anczarczyk Music performed by: M atthew A therton Recording studio: Funders M edia Mixed at: Funders M edia Titles: M ichael W arrell -D avies Film/Video gauge: 1/2" Screen ratio: 3:4 Shooting stock: 3M

Camera operator: M ichael W arrell -D avies Camera type: SONY DXC 5371

Marketing consultant: MICHAEL W hite Poster designer: A lan B entley

M a r k e t in g

THE THORN BIRDS: THE M ISSING YEARS ( 2 x 2 hours ) Production company: V illage R oadshow P roductions -W arner B ros .-W olper Org anisatio n -CBS N etwork Production: 24/9-18/11/95 P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Director: K evin J am es D obson Line producer: D arryl S heen Executive producers: M ark W olper , J effrey H ayes Scriptwriter: D avid S tevens Director of photography: Ross B erryman Production designer: S tewart B urnside Supervising editor: S teven B utler Editor: P hil R eid

C I N E M A PAPERS • OCTOBER 1 9 95

O t h e r C r e d it s

Ca st

Production manager: J u l ie FORSTER Art director: M ICHAEL R u m p f

J ohn W ood , W illia m M c I nnes , Grant B owler , D a m ia n W alshe -H ow ling , L isa M c Cune , J ulie N ihill , M artin S acks

ills in the missing years the original T h e T h o rn B ir d s skipped.

BORDERTOWN ( se r ie s )

Television Production and Post-production AFTER THE BEEP

Production company: ABC TV Production: 9 /2 /95-13/5/95 ; 1/5/95-30/6/95 P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Directors: K en Cam ero n , Ian Gilmour Producer: Steve K n apm an Executive producer: P enny C hapm an Associate producer: Jo R ooney Directors of photography: Russell B acon , Louis I rving Scriptwriters: S ue S m it h , J ohn A lsop Production designer: MARCUS N orth Editors: M ike H oney , C hris S puce

(s e r ie s )

Post-production: 12/6/95 ... P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Director: G eoff P ortman Series producer: G eoff PORTMAN Executive producer: JOHN O 'G rady Scriptwriter: J ulie H arris Production manager: CORAL P ackham

series )

THE FEDS (3

A ndrew C larke , W endy H ughes , B rett C lim o , G uy P earce, S heryl M unks , K ristie Ra ym o n d , B en G eurens , J on F inlayson Length: 1 3 x 1 HOUR

BLUE HEELERS ) I

Directors: M ark P iper , Steve M a n n , C hris M a r t in - J ones , B rian M cD uffie , J ulian M c S w in n e y , R ichard S arell Line producer: PETER A skew Executive producer: H al M c Elroy Supervising producer: RiC PELLIZZERI Composer: Garry HARDMAN

O t h e r C r e d it s

| 1 i

C a st

R obert T aylor , A ngie M illiken , J ohn B ach , M arcus Eyre, B rian V riends

second series of three telefeatures.

THE GENIE FROM DOW N UNDER ( series )

i i i

| !

)

Production company: ACTF Budget: $4.1 MILLION

P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Producers: Patricia Edgar , P hil J ones Directors: Esben S torm , J eremy S w a n ,

O n -set C rew

1st assistant directors: D avid Clarke , S tuart W ood

P r o d u c t io n C r e w

Production manager: Eva O rner Production co-ordinator: M egan W orthy Location manager: J ohn G reene Production accountant: GlNA Hallas

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C I N E M A PAPERS • OCTOBER 1995

others

| I

SUN ON THE STUBBLE

P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Director: Robert M archand Producer: TERRY JENNINGS Executive producers: RON SAUNDERS, D agmar U n G ureit Scriptwriter: N oel R obinson Based on the novel by: C olin T hiele Production manager: Cathy Flannery he adventures of the 14-year-old son of a German wheat farmer, growing up in a small Australian farming community. Based on the novels by Colin Thiele.

THE SILVER BRUM BY (a n im a t e d s er ies )

A rt D e p a r t m e n t

Art director: IAN JOBSON Standby props: P hil M a c P herson

Production company: J onathan M . S hiff P roductions Distribution companies: B eyond D istributio n , T ele I mages /IT I Budget: $7.8 MILLION Pre-production: 10/4/95-30/6/95 Production: 3 /7 /9 5 -2 /2 /9 6 Post-production: 3 /7 /95-28/7/96

Production company: M edia W orld Features Production:.... J anuary 1996

G o v er n m en t A g en cy In v e st m e n t

Development: SBS I ndependent TV Production: SBS I ndependent TV Marketing: SBS I ndependent TV

P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Supervising director: JOHN TATOULIS Animation directors: N eil Robinso n , M aggie G eddes Producers: Colin J. S outh , J ohn T atoulis Scriptwriters: J on S tephens , J udy M almgren Composer: T assos I onnides

Ca st

Carole S kinner , Russell K iefel, A ndrea M oor, P atrick D ickson , J ean K ittson , K elly B utler , N icholas Garsden , T ony T aylor . i \

ix tele-plays from the Griffin Theatre company season of

O t h e r C r e d it s

Script editor: J ohn T atoulis Pre-sale: N etwork T en , BBC Distribution guarantor: Daro F ilm D istribution Finance: FFC, Film V ictoria , AFC Length: 13 X 30 m ins

P a s s io n .

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R AIN BO W 'S END (tele - fe atu re )

! \

Production Company: H ips F ilm AND V ideo Budget: LOW BUDGET Pre-production: 1/6-21/6/95 Production: 22 /6 -1 2 /7 /9 5 Post-production: 13/7/95 ...

P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

)

Director: D enny Lawrence Co-producer: JOHN HlPWELL Executive Producer: P hillip Em anuel Scriptwriter: M ichael Cove

(s e r ie s )

Production companies: Film A ustralia , ZDF (G ermany ) Distribution companies: Film A ustralia , ZDF (G erm any ) Production: 26 /6 -22 /9/95

Ca m era C rew

(series )

Director: M ark D e Friest Producer: J onathan M . S hiff Executive producer: J onathan M . S hiff Scriptwriters: PETER HEPW0RTH (EPS 1 ,2 , 26), N eil L uxmoore (3 ,1 2 , 23), M ichael J oshua (4 ,1 8 ), D avid P hillips (5, 6 ,1 3 ), J udy Colquhoun (7, 8 ,1 5 ), A lison N iselle (9 ,1 7), A lison N eilson (25), Carole W ilkinson (10), J enny S harp (11), L ois B ooton (14, 22), G raham Hartley (16, 24), M aureen M cCarthy (19), H elen M ac W hirter (20, 21). Director of photography: R on H agen Sound recordist: J ohn W ilkinson Editors: P hilip W atts , A ndrew S cott, Ray Daley Production designer: GEORGIE G reenhill Costume designer: A lban Farrawell Composer: T he M usic D epartment (G arry M c D onald , Laurie S tone )

hen Jack and his sister, Terri, are threatened with separation by their foster parents, they decide to follow Jack's dream to find their father, Tom, a merchant seaman. They are pursued by their foster parents, welfare and the police. The ensuing chase traces Jack and Terri through a variety of cheerful adventures and mishaps. The action converges on the docks where the rainbow's end is successfully attained by all and everybody's dreams are fullfilled.

Camera operators: Rod Finlayson , A nnie B enzie , P eter B oully Key grip: M itch Logan Gaffer: M ark T hurbon

P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

\ I

P l a n n in g a n d D e v e l o p m e n t

Script editors: J ohn B a n a s , P eter D ick Trainee script editor: Em m a HONEY Script co-ordinator: A lison B oughey Police advisor: PETER Haddo w Casting: Faith M artin and A ssociates

Story editor: J ohn R eeves Production manager: Richard C lendinnen Art director: Viv W ilson Film gauge: 16 m m

P o s t - p r o d u c t io n

Laboratory liaison: Pam ela H a m m o n d Film gauge: S uper 16 m m Video transfers by: A A V

O n -set C r ew

P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

O n -set C rew

1st assistant director: D enise TOMLINSON 2nd assistant director: ( attachm ent ) J ane L ee Director's assistant: M oira G ibson Technical Director: Cathy S utherland Vision Switcher: A nne S tebbins Boom operator: JOHN D odds Make-up: H elen Evans Make-up assistant: Rebecca Leto Make-up: ( attachm ent ) N icola J asek

ix television plays reveal what men really feel about their lives today. Written by men, the anthology aims to present male emotions with piercing honesty and uncoverthe passions beneath the façade of maleness.

j I

Camera operator: M aria n a M arusic Focus puller: T om T homas Clapper-loader: ANDREW ROBERTSON Key grip: FREDDO D irk Gaffer: A dam W illiam s 1st assistant director: C raig M atthews Make-up: Cindy Ferrier

Production manager: K athy S helper Production asssitant: Lara Esden Production accountant: J ane Corden , M oneypenny

(m in i - ser ies )

OCEAN GIRL 3

P r o d u c t io n C r e w

P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

^ o v e and life in the High Country.

Directed for the theatre by: M onica P ellizzari, S arah D ucker , Ros H orin , R ichard B uckham

Producer: J an CHAPMAN Executive producer: PENNY CHAPMAN Co-producer: H elen B owden Scriptwriters: TONY AYRES, R oger M c D onald , N ick Enright , Ian D a v id , A ndrew B ovell, P aul B rown

tele - features )

Directors: M ichael Offer, C hris T h omson , K ate W oods Producer: J an M arnell Executive producer: J ohn K earney Scriptwiters: T ony M cD onald , A lison N isselle Directors of photography: D avid Foreman , Roger D owling Production designer: Paddy Reardon Editors: B ill M urphy , D enise Haratzis , N e il T humpston Composer: NERIDA T yson -C hew

P l a n n in g a n d D e v e l o p m e n t

Production company: J an Ch apm an P roductions Production: 3/4/9 5 -2 8 /7 /9 5

Production company: C rawford P roductions Production: 29 /5 -18 /8/95

C a st

yj^ serial drama.

Ca m er a C rew

(6 tele -pla ys )

N oni H azlehurst he adventures of Lizzie the Librarian, her travelling bookmobile and the townsfolk of Long Flat.

Story editor: SUSAN BOWER-ELLIS Production manager: Laura M ay A lcock Art director: M ark D awson

i i

Production manager: A nastasia S ideris Production co-ordinator: SCOTTIE CONNOLLY Location manager: S tuart B eatty Unit manager: B rad Raselli Production asssitant: E d w ina Fowler Production runner: Sam JACKSON Production accountant: ERIC LOW

P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

O t h e r C r e d it s

NAKED

P r o d u c t io n C r e w

j i i

Directors: T ed Robinso n , M ichael S ergi, R ichard J asek , S ophia T urkiewicz , M alcolm M cD onald Producer: Patricia L'H uede Line producer: A nni B rowning Executive producer: B arbara M ariotti Based on the novel/play/story titled: 1. Love Seen In Laundromat by Llssa Benyon 2. Flame by Joanna Murray-Smith 3. The Night of the Missing Bridegroom by Linden Wilkinson 4, The Gun in History by Tobsher Learner 5. Escape by Jean Kittson 6. Barefoot by Jennifer Compton Directors of photography: EDMUND M lLTS , N igel Levings , T ristan M ilani Sound recordist: Cate Cahill Editors: A ndrew M acneil , S imon J a m e s , Reva C hilds Production designer: S ue Field Costume designer: H elen Evans

Character design: T im A dlide Model construction: T im A dlide , T ony Leitch Assistant animator: J ustin W ylie Art: Liz N orman Gauge: SP B etacam Length: 26 X 5 MINS Pre-sale: ABC Distribution guarantor: BEYOND Finance: ABC, AFC, FQ

O t h e r C r e d it s

Casting: PROTOTYPE Casting consultants: Greg A pps Shooting schedule by: J ohn H ipwell Budgeted by: J ohn H ipw ell , A nastasia S ideris

Production company: MlSE En SCENE Production: 4/7-18/7/1995

Producer: P hillip B ow m an Executive producers: P hillip B o w m a n , P eter J ackson Animation director: T im A dlide Scriptwriter: Kate H enderson DOP: B randon A pps Costumes: M in A dude -S m it h , B abette G oncalves -D ’A lmeida Composers: C raig Hanicek , B rian W hite

P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

O t h e r C r e d it s

PASSION

P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Directors: J udith J ohn , H elen Gaynor , Karl Z w ic ky , S teve M ann Producers: Sand r a L evy, J ohn Edwards Line producer: Paul R emati Scriptwriters: A nthony E llis , T racey D oig , J o H orsburgh , Production designer: Ow en W illiams

Story editor: S hane B rennan Script editor: Y uki A sano Production manager: B ernadette O 'M ahony Art director: COLIN ROBERTSON Post-production supervisor: C laire W alsh Film gauge: S uper 16

j i

Production company: H enderson B o w m an P roductions Production: ... J uly 1995

Production company: S outhern S tar X anadu Production: A pril- O ctober 1995

Director of photography: M ark G ilfedder Sound recordist: P hil Sterling Editor: T ed Otten Production Designer: Ralph M oser P u n n in g a n d D e v elo p m en t

eri and the children from the underwater city of Orca set out in search of an alien device capable, when assembled, of controlling the very movement of the oceans. But the dark forces of UBRI have also stumbled upon its existence and the race is on. At stake is the Earth's salvation or its destruction. [S ee previous issue for fuller details .]

LIZZIE'S LIBRARY

ECHO POINT (se r ie s )

P r in c ip a l C r e d it s

Directors: Paul M oloney , S teve J odrell, P ino A m ent a , D an B urstall , J ulian M c S w iney Producer: J ock B lair Executive producers: R ichard B ecker, Russell B ecker Co-producer: ROCKY BESTER Scriptwriters: P eter K inloch , T ed R oberts , S hane B rennan , D enise M organ , J utta G oetze, J an S ardi , S tuart W ood , P eter G aw ler , Everett de R oche Director of photography: D an B urstall Production designer: R obby P erkins Editors: Ray D aley , S cott M c Lennan Composer: P eter S ullivan

Production company: SOUTHERN Star Films Network: S even Production:... 12/12/95

ordertown chronicles one year (1952) in the life of a migrant camp in Australia, where people strive to shake off the ghosts of the countries they have left behind.

13-year-old English blue-blood inherits an Australian genie called Bruce. Herwish is his command -s o rt of!

M arzena G odecki (N eri), D avid H oflin (J ason B ates ), J effrey W alker (B rett B ates ), K erry A rmstrong (D ianne B ates ), A lex P inder (W inston S eth ), Lauren H ewett (M era ), J eremy A ngerson (K a l ).

) | i

Production company: PRO Film s (N o. 3) Production:... 22/8/95

Rhys M uldoon , A lexandra M il m a n , M ark M itchell, J ane M enalaus , M onica M aug han .

H ugo W eaving , L inda Cropper, P eta T oppano , R obert M a m m o n e , Cate B lanchett , J oe P etruzzi, C hristine T remmarco , M itchell B utel.

BAN JO PATERSON’S THE M A N FROM SNOW Y RIVER

[ |

| |

Ca st

o is a single white female who is angered with life, and who struggles to make sense of the world around her.

C a st

Production manager: L isa S cott Art director: Col Rudder Finance: ABC Length: 10 X 50 MINS Gauge: 16 m m

C a st

)

O t h e r C r e d it s

C a st

G enevieve L em on , J une S alter , G enevieve M ooy, K errty W alker , E mily W eare , G iordano G a n g i , R ichard H ealy , B ruce S pence , S tan K ouros , Greg B epper .

(3 rd

i i

Scriptwriter: Esben S torm , Steven J. S pears , others DOPs: G raeme W ood, C raig B arden Production designer: P eta Law son Editor: RALPH THOMPSON Length: 13 X 30 MINS Pre-sales: ABC, BBC Finance: FFC

)

Ca st

Rebecca G ibney , Charles T ing w ell , Rhys M uldoon , M ichael Car m e n , R ichard A spel, J ohn H igginson , J ohn S tan to n , D oug T remlett , M arg D ow ney .

i \

he adventures of the legendary Thowra, the magnificent silver brumby and his youthful gang of High Country friends.

VANYA ON 42ND STREET A fiD BURNT-BY THE SU.N EASILY-.TOP THE POLL. HIDEAWAY BOTTOMS OUT. 1 I t 1 t Apollo 13 1H 7 7 u u 9 9 9 R on H oward i M [Batman] Forever V6 6 4 7 hIp lpb llisi g B§111 J oel Schumacher 1 i Burnt by the Sun 6 | | .8 9 10 9 H B N ikita M ikhalkov vw r Bye Bye Love 7. 3 7 7 Sam Weisman Casper 5 ÉÉ 5 5 Brad Silberlinc 1H I 1 B :E I Circle of Friends 4 3 8 8 8 Pat O ’Connor i Congo 1 3 1' 5 7 1 gg Frank Marshall r g im jggp 1 B3 H Dad and Dave On Our Selection : # v 3 G ® 4 3 4 George Whaley 11 D on Juan de M arco 6 5 7 1 B B J eremy Leven First Knight 1\1 '■ ’ -■ 5 6 3 p j § |j 1 6 Jerry Z ucker •:

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J ulio M edem Six Degrees of Separation

Fred Schepisi Species

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J ohn R uane

T he Underneath

Steven Soderbergh Vanya on 42nd Street

L ouis Malle

W hen Night is Falling

Patricia Rozema W ild Target

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NB: "Nihil obstat: [Lat.. 'nothing stands in the way'l Words appearing on the title page or elsewhere in the preliminary pages [...] indicating that it has been approved as free of doctrinal or moral error"

A panel of nine film reviewers had rated a detection of the latedt releaded on a dealt of 0 to 10, the latter being the optimum rating ( z dadh meand not oeen). The criticd are: B ill Collind (D aily M irror); B arbara Creed (The Age); Sandra H a ll (The Bulletin); P au l H orrid (3RRR; “The Green Guide”, The Age); Stan Jam ed (The Adelaide Advertiser); A drian M artin (TheAge; "The Week in Film ”, Radio N ational); Tom Ryan (The Sunday Age); D avid S tratton (Variety; SBS); and Evan W illiam d (The Australian).

C I N E M A P A P E R S • OCTOBER 1995

Photon Stockman s new alliance is a sigh of relief for producers. • «K 1I • •

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