ATO hostage Paul Hogan has been released after a tense standoff in which cordial exchanges were fired back and forth and Hogan sprinted to freedom and the waiting media. By nightfall, nothing remained but puddles of laughter in the street.
The Westgarth Cinema, beloved of Melbourne picture palace historians, has been assailed by criminals. $30,000 in box office takings was lifted at gunpoint from security guards outside the building. Fortunately, no-one was harmed.
Clara Law's 21 minute short, Red Earth, China financed, is the only Australian presence at the Venice Film Festival. You'd think we didn't care about art.
Trapped in Australia by the evil ATO, Hogan said, "All I can do is assume I am being held for ransom.. It is all based on the word of a disgruntled, discharged, former employee.. Very disgruntled, very discharged." The Australian is pushing back against the tax office on this case.
Here's an unexpected entrant: Melanie Coombs has provided the opening weekend results for Mary and Max in Germany. Meanwhile, the Australian offerings in the US are pottering like happy tourists in a Sunday market.
On 22 and 23 October at Powerhouse Museum in Sydney, SPAA Fringe 2010 will gather some of Australia’s established and rising film and TV industry professionals to share their experiences and expertise. Offering insights, interactivity and creative direction, SPAA Fringe is the country’s most anticipated conference for filmmakers seeking lasting careers in this rapidly evolving industry.
The interest is mainly outside of the top 5, which changes only with some snappy fish taking over Harry Brown's #5 spot. Avatar returns, slightly longer than before. Boy and Home By Christmas both shape up to ship out for video release. Predicament opens at #8, which does not bode well for either its overall earnings or its longevity.
Aussies sometimes have a reputation for not liking their own movies, but they certainly liked one of ours this last weekend. Boy lived up to the promise its Australian festival outings suggested it was capable of delivering, topping the limited release Aussie box office rankings.
Following up research it carried out in 2006, on how young people in New Zealand were using the entertainment mediums, the Office of Film and Literature Classification did it all again, and discovered that young people are watching DVDs more often and going to the cinema less often.
Lord David Puttnam, his diplomatic skills honed by dealing with a new government which has devastated the British film bureaucracy, is coming to Australia for SPAA. By then, we should know who governs Australia.
The best-known international speaker at SPADA's annual conference this year will be Lord David Puttnam, Academy Award winner and producer of Chariots of Fire, The Mission and The Killing Fields.
DVD distributor Calvista reckons it dominates the Australian market. We are not going to check that claim, because it refers to that clandestine but sometimes convenient side to the screen sector - pornography. This is how David Newnham went overseas and got a lot of famous people in a right lather.
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