How small screen can make Coast big bucks
THE Gold Coast is in the box seat to claim a chunk of the huge international funding pie available for content creation for small screens — from TVs to tablets and phones.
“The screen industry is worth $1 billion to Queensland and employed 7000 people last year — 80 per cent on them based on the Gold Coast,” Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said.
“It’s big business and we want it to get bigger.”
While the term ‘screen’ has traditionally referred to film and TV productions, the effects of digital disruption mean it now includes app development, interactive games and content, online digital content and subscription video on demand platforms SVOD.
Local stakeholders want big commissioning brands and services such as Netflix to invest in the local market to help sustain business so people don’t have to follow work to Los Angeles.
“We don’t want that. We know that we’ve got a great opportunity to build creatives and businesses here,” Screen Producers Australia CEO Matt Deaner said.
The industry wants the Federal Government to introduce quotas for foreign streaming services working in Australia to encourage more production on our shores — and generate more Australian content for their catalogues.
Screen Queensland (SQ) CEO Tracey Vieria said streaming service Stan had committed to making Australian content — and wants Netflix to do the same.
“Netflix don’t have any requirement to make Australian content,” she said.
“Stan are making more — it’s where they are showing a point of difference.
“Streaming video on demand audiences don’t care where the content comes from as long as it’s good.
“If you get the balance right, your content goes around the world.”
Gold Coast actor and content creator Anna WatersMassey is a perfect example of the independent content generators making the most of the new playing field.
Waters-Massey (Shaz Dicker) and Tara Page (Trace Grogan) created the web series Stage Mums to showcase their talents. The latest season of their Gold Coast-made comedy, directed by Louise Alston, is now screening internationally on US streaming platform Seeka TV.
“We started filming one off episodes in my kitchen in 2014 and loading them on YouTube,” Waters-Massey said.
After teaming up with producer Kris Maric in 2017, Waters-Massey developed Season 3 into a full production with 40 cast and 30 crew. She said the project was mostly self-funded on a “very small budget”.
“The new season is TV quality so we called that one “Stage Mums” and started shopping it around as a stand alone product,” she said.
“NYC webfest was our premiere screening at the end of 2017 and that led to us being approached by Seeka TV. Now we are airing internationally.”
While Aussies are yet to see Stage Mums, Waters-Massey is in talks with a local network.
“It’s been a lot of hard work,” she said.
Netflix commissioned its first Australian original series Tidelands, currently filming in southeast Queensland, in 2017 followed by comedian Chris Lilley’s new 10-part series filmed on the Gold Coast.
“It suggests there is an appetite ” Deaner said.