DRUG MULE JAILED NEWS
THE Territory’s wild and iconic landscapes are lighting up the American silver screen.
IMAX documentary Australia’s Great Wild North, produced with support from Tourism NT, is raising the profile of the Top End and aims to expose the Territory to the prime United States tourism market.
The film follows the life of a saltwater crocodile from hatching through to adulthood and is an epic journey through the wildest landscapes of Northern Australia. In an attempt to convert viewers to visitors, Minister for Tourism and Culture Lauren Moss said Tourism NT has launched marke t - ing campaigns w i th some big players in the US.
“Tourism NT is aiming to amplify and leverage the launch of Australia’s Great Wild North through Expedia’s Travelocity brand,” Ms Moss said.
The film is set to go on the road throughout the US, and has already tested extremely well in San Diego, Denver and Galveston (Texas), according to Tourism NT.
Around 90 per cent of the film was shot, in the Territory’s Top End.
“Showcasing the breathtaking beauty of the Top End, the film includes Darwin surrounds, Mary River National Park, Kakadu National Park, Arnhem Land and the Katherine region,” Ms Moss said.
Tourism NT’s US partner, the Pacific Science Centre, said the film is “visually stunning” and “educate(s) guests on the wildlife and nature in the Top End of Australia.”
The focus on luring US tourists, through the film and ancillary marketing abroad, is a key plank of the Territory Government’s $103 million Turbocharging Tourism initiative.
If you are interested in checking out the trailer, you can visit the film’s website at australiasgreatwildnorth.com AN AVID sneaker collector who stepped off a plane in Darwin with 18kg of cannabis in his suitcase will spend the next 18 months in jail.
Aaron Rice-Williams, 30, of Adelaide, was on Wednesday jailed for three years, to be suspended after 18 months, after pleading guilty to supplying a commercial quantity of cannabis.
The Supreme Court heard Rice-Williams, a former South Australian State Basketball League bench-warmer, shoe collector and hip-hop producer, was set to earn $6000 for flying the drugs into Darwin.
He had been behind bars since being arrested in May, when he was refused bail despite his sister’s offer to put up a $100,000 bond.
Rice-Williams, an avid traveller, at the time had tickets booked to travel to the Middle East and the United States, and police feared he would skip the country if released. THE Territory’s Miranda Tapsell will star as herself in an Aussie one -off Christmas special.
Tapsell features as herself in The Year Before Christmas which is available on Stan.
The Territorian, whose fame has gone international, is kidnapped by Jimmy (Dan Wylie) and Bruce (David Field), who are posing as a department-store elf, and Santa, respectively. Bruce reads a letter to Tapsell assuring her they mean no harm to her:
The court heard this week that Rice-Williams, also a semi-professional photographer, had spent time travelling overseas but developed a drug habit before leaving Australia in 2015 on what he planned to they’re actually feminists and this whole hostage thing is simply a “business opportunity“.
While the plot appears to be a drama, it is actually a good hearted comedy which entices you in with a bit of an emotional twist.
Tapsell has had a busy year on both the professional and social circuit. She stared in and co-wrote Top End Wedding which was naturally filmed throughout the territory and has been a regular at Sydney and Melbourne red car- be a five-year world trip.
Rice-Williams was the victim of a coward punch at a bar in Darwin in the first week of that trip, which he eventually cut short to return to Adelaide.
The court heard that by the time Rice-Williams was arrested in Darwin he had racked up a $50,000 debt to his dealer, and that “unfair” interest rates soon saw the debt double.
Justice Jenny Blokland said Rice-Williams was a courier and didn’t appear to be involved in any broader drug distribution network.
He will be eligible for release late next year. pets events. The film, which showcases the Territory as the backdrop, tells the story of lovedup Sydney couple Lauren and Ned who have to spend the final 10 days before their wedding searching for Lauren’s missing mother.
The Tiwi Island Sistagirls make an appearance and Darwin locals were called upon to play extras in crowd scenes. The Year Before Christmas is streaming on Stan now, while Top End Wedding will be at cinemas next year.