'My Brilliant Career' producer Margaret Fink, Acs Hall of Fame inductee Daryl Binning, Emmy-winning natural history filmmaker David Parer and Heather Croall, CEO of the Adelaide Fringe and former director of Sheffield Doc/Fest, have been recognised with Australia Day honours.
The post Margaret Fink, David Parer, Heather Croall, Daryl Binning receive Australia Day honours appeared first on If Magazine.
The post Margaret Fink, David Parer, Heather Croall, Daryl Binning receive Australia Day honours appeared first on If Magazine.
- 1/25/2024
- by Sean Slatter
- IF.com.au
Gillian Armstrong and Sam Neill.
Gillian Armstrong was 29 when she won the AFI award for best director for her debut feature My Brilliant Career, the first local film to be directed by a woman since the McDonagh sisters’ Two Minute Silence in 1933.
It was Sam Neill’s first Australian movie, produced by Margaret Fink and introducing Judy Davis.
Forty years later, how do Armstrong and Neill view the seminal film and how would each describe their journey through the screen industry?
Producer Trish Lake will pose those and other questions at a Q&A on May 18 at the Tasmanian Breath of Fresh Air Film Festival (Bofa) in Launceston following a 40th anniversary screening of the film.
“Apart from what she is doing currently I am interested in knowing how Gillian regards her journey as a female director since then,” says Lake. “I will talk with her about her prolific output over the years,...
Gillian Armstrong was 29 when she won the AFI award for best director for her debut feature My Brilliant Career, the first local film to be directed by a woman since the McDonagh sisters’ Two Minute Silence in 1933.
It was Sam Neill’s first Australian movie, produced by Margaret Fink and introducing Judy Davis.
Forty years later, how do Armstrong and Neill view the seminal film and how would each describe their journey through the screen industry?
Producer Trish Lake will pose those and other questions at a Q&A on May 18 at the Tasmanian Breath of Fresh Air Film Festival (Bofa) in Launceston following a 40th anniversary screening of the film.
“Apart from what she is doing currently I am interested in knowing how Gillian regards her journey as a female director since then,” says Lake. “I will talk with her about her prolific output over the years,...
- 5/13/2019
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
Gill(ian) Armstrong’s breakthrough feature does a leapfrog over stories like Little Women, with heroines that prevail even when adhering to the Meek Sex role of their time. Judy Davis’s Sybylla Melvin knows that she’s a freckle-faced pain in the neck: despite being proud that she’s attracted the local male catch, her every sinew is committed to her goal of artistic expression and self-fulfillment. The setting is the turn-of-the-century Australian Outback but the story is universal. Sam Neill suffers through the best ‘thankless’ romantic role ever.
My Brilliant Career
Blu-ray
The Criterion Collection 973
1979 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 100 min. / available through The Criterion Collection / Street Date April 30, 2019 / 39.95
Starring: Judy Davis, Sam Neill, Wendy Hughes, Robert Grubb, Aileen Britton, Patricia Kennedy.
Cinematography: Donald McAlpine
Production Designer: Luciana Arrighi
Film Editor: Nicholas Beauman
Original Music: Nathan Waks
Written by Eleanor Witcombe from the novel by Miles Franklin
Produced by Margaret Fink...
My Brilliant Career
Blu-ray
The Criterion Collection 973
1979 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 100 min. / available through The Criterion Collection / Street Date April 30, 2019 / 39.95
Starring: Judy Davis, Sam Neill, Wendy Hughes, Robert Grubb, Aileen Britton, Patricia Kennedy.
Cinematography: Donald McAlpine
Production Designer: Luciana Arrighi
Film Editor: Nicholas Beauman
Original Music: Nathan Waks
Written by Eleanor Witcombe from the novel by Miles Franklin
Produced by Margaret Fink...
- 4/30/2019
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Eleanor Witcombe in 2017.
Screenwriter and playwright Eleanor Witcombe, whose most enduring works were the adaptations of My Brilliant Career and The Getting of Wisdom, has died in Sydney. She was 95.
My Brilliant Career producer Margaret Fink, who hired Witcombe to adapt Miles Franklin’s 1901 novel, a coming-of-age story about a headstrong young woman played by Judy Davis, tells If: “Her contribution to the film is incalculable.”
She began her professional career as a playwright in 1948 when the Mosman Children’s Theatre Club commissioned her to write three plays for children: Pirates at the Barn, The Bushranger and Smugglers Beware.
In 1952 she left for two years’ work and study in London. On her return she wrote one-hour adaptations of plays, books, and stories for ABC radio, the Lux Radio Theatre and the Macquarie Radio Theatre.
She also wrote the books for stage musicals A Ride on a Broomstick and Mistress Money for the Philllip Street Theatre.
Screenwriter and playwright Eleanor Witcombe, whose most enduring works were the adaptations of My Brilliant Career and The Getting of Wisdom, has died in Sydney. She was 95.
My Brilliant Career producer Margaret Fink, who hired Witcombe to adapt Miles Franklin’s 1901 novel, a coming-of-age story about a headstrong young woman played by Judy Davis, tells If: “Her contribution to the film is incalculable.”
She began her professional career as a playwright in 1948 when the Mosman Children’s Theatre Club commissioned her to write three plays for children: Pirates at the Barn, The Bushranger and Smugglers Beware.
In 1952 she left for two years’ work and study in London. On her return she wrote one-hour adaptations of plays, books, and stories for ABC radio, the Lux Radio Theatre and the Macquarie Radio Theatre.
She also wrote the books for stage musicals A Ride on a Broomstick and Mistress Money for the Philllip Street Theatre.
- 11/5/2018
- by The IF Team
- IF.com.au
(l-r) Angie Fielder, Luke Davies, Dev Patel, Garth Davis and Dp Greig Fraser on-set.
Aussie screenwriter Luke Davies lives in La with director David Michôd, and is repped by UTA's Bec Smith. Both are former If editors, and Davies himself used to contribute DVD reviews to the magazine. We spoke with the honorary old boy on the phone from Bondi, where he was staying on a layover in Oz late last year.
Your path into screenwriting began with Candy, is that right?.
Yeah. I was always obsessed with film but didn.t know how to break in. So I said to Margaret Fink, the producer, that she could option the book if I was allowed to try my hand at the first draft of the screenplay. That was the beginning of the path that led to here.
Had you been reading screenplays before that point or did you just learn on the job?...
Aussie screenwriter Luke Davies lives in La with director David Michôd, and is repped by UTA's Bec Smith. Both are former If editors, and Davies himself used to contribute DVD reviews to the magazine. We spoke with the honorary old boy on the phone from Bondi, where he was staying on a layover in Oz late last year.
Your path into screenwriting began with Candy, is that right?.
Yeah. I was always obsessed with film but didn.t know how to break in. So I said to Margaret Fink, the producer, that she could option the book if I was allowed to try my hand at the first draft of the screenplay. That was the beginning of the path that led to here.
Had you been reading screenplays before that point or did you just learn on the job?...
- 2/20/2017
- by Harry Windsor
- IF.com.au
Luke Davies.
Screenwriter Luke Davies is back in Sydney for the Australian premiere of his new film Lion, taking place tonight at the State Theatre..
Directed by Top of the Lake.s Garth Davis and produced by Aquarius Films. Angie Fielder and See-Saw.s Emile Sherman, the moving film is already gaining buzz as an Oscar prospect..
Davies. career in film began when he volunteered to write the screenplay adaptation of his novel, Candy, for producers Sherman and Margaret Fink..
After that film was released in 2006, he moved to La, where he now lives in a share-house with Animal Kingdom.s David Michôd and Oyster Farmer.s Alex O.Loughlin and their partners.
Davies has just delivered a script and bible for a six-episode miniseries adaptation of Catch-22, set to be directed by Michôd, who has just finished post-production in London on Netflix Original.War Machine, starring Brad Pitt.
.One...
Screenwriter Luke Davies is back in Sydney for the Australian premiere of his new film Lion, taking place tonight at the State Theatre..
Directed by Top of the Lake.s Garth Davis and produced by Aquarius Films. Angie Fielder and See-Saw.s Emile Sherman, the moving film is already gaining buzz as an Oscar prospect..
Davies. career in film began when he volunteered to write the screenplay adaptation of his novel, Candy, for producers Sherman and Margaret Fink..
After that film was released in 2006, he moved to La, where he now lives in a share-house with Animal Kingdom.s David Michôd and Oyster Farmer.s Alex O.Loughlin and their partners.
Davies has just delivered a script and bible for a six-episode miniseries adaptation of Catch-22, set to be directed by Michôd, who has just finished post-production in London on Netflix Original.War Machine, starring Brad Pitt.
.One...
- 12/18/2016
- by Harry Windsor
- IF.com.au
Luke Davies.
Screenwriter Luke Davies is back in Sydney for the Australian premiere of his new film Lion, taking place tonight at the State Theatre..
Directed by Top of the Lake.s Garth Davis and produced by Aquarius Films. Angie Fielder and See-Saw.s Emile Sherman, the moving film is already gaining buzz as an Oscar prospect..
Davies. career in film began when he volunteered to write the screenplay adaptation of his novel, Candy, for producers Sherman and Margaret Fink..
After that film was released in 2006, Davies moved to La, where he now lives in a share-house with Animal Kingdom.s David Michôd and Oyster Farmer.s Alex O.Loughlin and their partners.
Speaking to If last week in Bondi, the screenwriter had just delivered a script and bible for a six-episode miniseries adaptation of Catch-22, set to be directed by Michôd, who has just finished post-production in London on Netflix Original.War Machine,...
Screenwriter Luke Davies is back in Sydney for the Australian premiere of his new film Lion, taking place tonight at the State Theatre..
Directed by Top of the Lake.s Garth Davis and produced by Aquarius Films. Angie Fielder and See-Saw.s Emile Sherman, the moving film is already gaining buzz as an Oscar prospect..
Davies. career in film began when he volunteered to write the screenplay adaptation of his novel, Candy, for producers Sherman and Margaret Fink..
After that film was released in 2006, Davies moved to La, where he now lives in a share-house with Animal Kingdom.s David Michôd and Oyster Farmer.s Alex O.Loughlin and their partners.
Speaking to If last week in Bondi, the screenwriter had just delivered a script and bible for a six-episode miniseries adaptation of Catch-22, set to be directed by Michôd, who has just finished post-production in London on Netflix Original.War Machine,...
- 12/18/2016
- by Harry Windsor
- IF.com.au
The Sydney Film Festival has launched a new $200,000 cash fellowship to kickstart the careers of four Australian filmmakers.
The Lexus Australia Short Film Fellowship will be the largest cash fellowship for short film in Australia.
Up to four annual Fellowship winners will receive $50,000 each to produce their next short film in 2016 and 2017, to premiere at the Sydney Film Festival in 2017 and 2018.
A shortlist of the best Australian entrants to the Lexus Short Films series will be curated by the Producers at The Weinstein Company, and sent to the Lexus Australia Short Film Fellowship jury..
This jury, headed by Sydney Film Festival.s Festival Director Nashen Moodley, will then select the four winners of the Fellowships grants.
Moodley said this substantial new investment would open up vital funding to local filmmakers to enable them to tell their stories.
Australian filmmaker Gillian Armstrong, whose films include Oscar and Lucinda, Charlotte Gray, and Little Women,...
The Lexus Australia Short Film Fellowship will be the largest cash fellowship for short film in Australia.
Up to four annual Fellowship winners will receive $50,000 each to produce their next short film in 2016 and 2017, to premiere at the Sydney Film Festival in 2017 and 2018.
A shortlist of the best Australian entrants to the Lexus Short Films series will be curated by the Producers at The Weinstein Company, and sent to the Lexus Australia Short Film Fellowship jury..
This jury, headed by Sydney Film Festival.s Festival Director Nashen Moodley, will then select the four winners of the Fellowships grants.
Moodley said this substantial new investment would open up vital funding to local filmmakers to enable them to tell their stories.
Australian filmmaker Gillian Armstrong, whose films include Oscar and Lucinda, Charlotte Gray, and Little Women,...
- 10/5/2015
- by Brian Karlovsky
- IF.com.au
- It is award season in Australia again and the time for the small number of people in the Australian film industry to come together and pat each other on the back for a mostly mediocre job well done. The most prestigious of the three major award ceremonies that occur over the next month is the L’Oreal Paris Australian Film Institute (AFI) Awards. It is the ceremony that attracts big names and they like people to know that. Russell Crowe hosted last year. Who cares if he isn’t actually Australian? This year this ceremony has snagged Australian actor Geoffrey Rush to host, a step up from last year. Pleasingly there are a few nominated films that warrant the caliber of the host. Suburban Mayhem, Kenny and Ten Canoes stand out from the rest for varying reasons and look to be the big winners of the night. Suburban Mayhem
- 11/11/2006
- IONCINEMA.com
BERLIN -- "Candy" is an attempt to tell a story about heroin addiction without resorting to the scuzzy cliches that usually characterize the genre. The idea works very well for the first third, which focuses on the misguided commitment users have to their drugs rather than the social and health consequences of using. But when long-term addiction kicks in proper, the pop stylistics jar with the horrendous lives the characters are living.
"Candy" should have no trouble picking up international distribution. Director Neil Armfield might refrain from any "Just Say No" polemic, but his film still has an anti-drug message at its core. The presence of Heath Ledger as a male lead will obviously give the film a tremendous boost. It will likely appeal more to a young, MTV-oriented audience in tune with its upbeat style than an art house crowd.
The story, set in Australia and based on co-scripter Luke Davies' novel, revolves around a young, working-class couple, Dan (Ledger) and Candy (Abbie Cornish). After flirting with chasing the dragon (smoking heroin), Candy joins Dan as an intravenous user. At first, the physical high and outlaw status bestowed on addicts give her a thrill. But the lives of the two deteriorate when they become slaves to the drug; efforts to clean up follow.
"Candy" falls midway between the postmodern insouciance of "Trainspotting" and the Teutonic doom and gloom of "Christiane F". The first part, titled "Heaven", is good. Armfield resists the temptation to pass judgment on his characters. Instead he allows the viewer to experience the hedonistic drive of their addiction. The film effectively communicates the rebellious thrill and physical buzz that the young couple get from jacking up. Equally interesting is the way that he depicts the incredible resourcefulness that addicts develop to service their habit.
Parts 2 and 3, titled "Earth" and "Hell", are less successful. Here Armfield treads the well-worn druggie path of prostitution, despair and mental and physical degradation. That's necessary, of course -- that's where addicts end up when thrill seeking turns into physical need. Trouble is, that the weightiness of the duo's decay is too much for the pop approach that worked so well in the first part. There also are a few plot jitters: How come it's so easy for Dan to rob a bank and not get caught, for instance?
The performances measure up accordingly. When addiction is just a game, the hyped-up, pleasantly caricatured portrayals of Geoffrey Rush and Ledger are a blast. Rush's portrayal of a doped-up chemical whiz who acts as the kids' guru is initially roguish and charming. But when he later helps the heavily addicted young couple to score, his jaunty performance doesn't ring true. As the characters' lives fall apart, Ledger fails to bring the necessary gravitas to the role, and he looks a bit too healthy throughout.
CANDY
A Film Finance Corp. of Australia presentation in association with Paradigm Hyde Films and the New South Wales Film and Television Office
Credits:
Director: Neil Armfield
Screenwriters: Neil Armfield, Luke Davies
Producers: Margaret Fink, Emile Sherman
Executive producers: Angus Finney, Andrew Mackie, Richard Payten, Micheal Whyke, Terrence Yason
Director of photography: Gerry Phillips
Production designer: Robert Cousins
Music: Paul Charlier
Costumes: Jodie Fried
Editor: Dany Cooper
Cast:
Dan: Heath Ledger
Candy: Abbie Cornish
Casper: Geoffrey Rush
Mr. Wyatt: Tony Martin
Mrs. Wyatt: Noni Hazelhurst
No MPAA rating
Running time -- 108 minutes...
"Candy" should have no trouble picking up international distribution. Director Neil Armfield might refrain from any "Just Say No" polemic, but his film still has an anti-drug message at its core. The presence of Heath Ledger as a male lead will obviously give the film a tremendous boost. It will likely appeal more to a young, MTV-oriented audience in tune with its upbeat style than an art house crowd.
The story, set in Australia and based on co-scripter Luke Davies' novel, revolves around a young, working-class couple, Dan (Ledger) and Candy (Abbie Cornish). After flirting with chasing the dragon (smoking heroin), Candy joins Dan as an intravenous user. At first, the physical high and outlaw status bestowed on addicts give her a thrill. But the lives of the two deteriorate when they become slaves to the drug; efforts to clean up follow.
"Candy" falls midway between the postmodern insouciance of "Trainspotting" and the Teutonic doom and gloom of "Christiane F". The first part, titled "Heaven", is good. Armfield resists the temptation to pass judgment on his characters. Instead he allows the viewer to experience the hedonistic drive of their addiction. The film effectively communicates the rebellious thrill and physical buzz that the young couple get from jacking up. Equally interesting is the way that he depicts the incredible resourcefulness that addicts develop to service their habit.
Parts 2 and 3, titled "Earth" and "Hell", are less successful. Here Armfield treads the well-worn druggie path of prostitution, despair and mental and physical degradation. That's necessary, of course -- that's where addicts end up when thrill seeking turns into physical need. Trouble is, that the weightiness of the duo's decay is too much for the pop approach that worked so well in the first part. There also are a few plot jitters: How come it's so easy for Dan to rob a bank and not get caught, for instance?
The performances measure up accordingly. When addiction is just a game, the hyped-up, pleasantly caricatured portrayals of Geoffrey Rush and Ledger are a blast. Rush's portrayal of a doped-up chemical whiz who acts as the kids' guru is initially roguish and charming. But when he later helps the heavily addicted young couple to score, his jaunty performance doesn't ring true. As the characters' lives fall apart, Ledger fails to bring the necessary gravitas to the role, and he looks a bit too healthy throughout.
CANDY
A Film Finance Corp. of Australia presentation in association with Paradigm Hyde Films and the New South Wales Film and Television Office
Credits:
Director: Neil Armfield
Screenwriters: Neil Armfield, Luke Davies
Producers: Margaret Fink, Emile Sherman
Executive producers: Angus Finney, Andrew Mackie, Richard Payten, Micheal Whyke, Terrence Yason
Director of photography: Gerry Phillips
Production designer: Robert Cousins
Music: Paul Charlier
Costumes: Jodie Fried
Editor: Dany Cooper
Cast:
Dan: Heath Ledger
Candy: Abbie Cornish
Casper: Geoffrey Rush
Mr. Wyatt: Tony Martin
Mrs. Wyatt: Noni Hazelhurst
No MPAA rating
Running time -- 108 minutes...
- 2/22/2006
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
SYDNEY, Australia -- Australian stars Heath Ledger, Geoffrey Rush and Toni Collette are returning home for three films approved for funding Wednesday by the government's principal funding agency, Film Finance Corporation Australia. Two television dramas and three documentaries also were approved. Ledger, currently shooting Lasse Hallstrom's untitled Casanova project in Venice, will play alongside rising star Abbie Cornish (Somersault) and Oscar-winner Rush in an adaptation of the best-selling Australian novel Candy. The book's author, Luke Davies, adapted the screenplay with Neil Armfield, who will direct the picture, described as "a powerful story of two lovers whose intersecting lives take them on a journey of lust, addiction and self-destruction." Producers are Margaret Fink (My Brilliant Career) and Emile Sherman (The Night We Called It a Day).
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