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In the summer of 2023, Canadaland opened its first call for submissions, receiving more than 275 pitches from journalists and audio makers from around the world. “We were overwhelmed by the number of amazing concepts we received. The shows we are set to release are the ones that we were most wild about and had to bring into the world,” said Canadaland’s Publisher Jesse Brown. “They are consistent with the quality of shows we’ve made like Thunder Bay and Cool Mules, but they go into entirely new directions that are expanding our own concept of what Canadaland can be.”

Over the course of the next nine months, Canadaland will release a dynamic lineup that includes four original new series, the English language premiere of Prix-Italia winning Radio France podcast Inside Kabul, new seasons of Commons, canadaLANDBACK, and The Backbench, and urgent news and insightful analysis from longtime favorites Canadaland, Short Cuts,...

Actors seldom complain about a lack of diversity in the casting of Australian films and TV programs, according to actress/filmmaker Pearl Tan.

The reason, she says, is that when actors do voice their opinions, they are .vilified. on social media. Tan has joined Equity.s Diversity Committee, which was formed in July and aims to promote and advocate the principles of diverse casting and to foster more opportunities for Equity members from diverse communities.

Reflecting the depth of feeling on the issue, the committee has 32 members including Amanda Bishop, Annette Shun Wah, Bali Padda, Eddie Tang, Jay Laga'aia, Jonathan Chan, Joy Hopwood, Kasia Kaczmarek, Kate Hood, Maria Papas, Ming-Zhu Hii, Robert Jago, Sachin Joab and Serhat Caradee.

Producers are supporting their cause. The new Australian Feature Film Agreement includes a section on diversity in casting which states .Spaa, Ipi and the Meaa recognise the need for expanding the participation...

The first round of Aacta award winners were announced yesterday in Sydney at the 2nd Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards Luncheon. Held at the Sydney.s The Star Event Centre and hosted by Adam Elliot, the luncheon drew a host of industry representatives including actors Damon Herriman, Daniel Henshall and Felicity Price. The Sapphires was a favourite of the day, taking home five coveted gongs in total for cinematography (Warwick Thornton), editing (Dany Cooper Ase), sound (Andrew Plain, Bry Jones, Pete Smith, Ben Osmo and John Simpson), costume design (Tess Schofield) and production design in a feature film (Melinda Doring.) A jovial Thornton told media working with Sapphires director Wayne Blair wasn.t exactly a walk in the park. .He.s an incredibly hard task master,. he said. .You can.t pull the wool over his eyes when you feel like being lazy.. Cooper spoke of the...

The Sapphires looks set to dominate this year’s Aacta Awards after dominating the categories announced at yesterday’s awards lunch.

The AACTAs – the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts – were held for the first time last year. Yesterday’s lunch at the Star casino in Sydney comes ahead of tomorrow night’s main Aacta ceremony.

The Sapphires won in five of the early categories, including best editing, sound and cinematography.

The event also paid tribute to producer Al Clark with the Raymond Longford Award. Clark was behind films including The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, Absolute Beginners and Nineteen Eighty Four.

Tributes were also paid to producer Pat Lovell, who died over the weekend. Lovell was a producer on films including Picnic At Hanging Rock and Gallipoli.

The winners:

Aacta Raymond Longford Award

Al Clark

Aacta Award For Best Visual Effects

Iron Sky. Samuli Torssonen, Jussi Lehtiniemi,...

Hit musical drama The Sapphires has scored 12 nominations at the 2012 Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (Aacta) Awards including in the coveted best feature film category.

The Sapphires, which follows four indigenous singers during the Vietnam war, has grossed more than $14 million in Australia to become the biggest local film of the year.

Three other films will be also be vying for the best feature film award: Burning Man (10 nominations in total), Lore (eight nominations in total) and Wish You Were Here (eight nominations in total) at the main Aacta ceremony, which will be held on January 30, 2013, at The Star Event Centre. Last year's event was held at the iconic Sydney Opera House.

P.J. Hogan's Mental also scored eight nominations including Best Lead Actress (Toni Collette), Best Supporting Actor (Liev Schreiber) Best Young Actor (Lily Sullivan) and Best Supporting Actress for Rebecca Gibney and Deborah Mailman.

Not Suitable for Children...

The Sapphires has led the Academy of Australian Cinema and Television Arts Awards nominations being nominated in 12 categories.

Awards will be handed out over two events, with an awards luncheon, focused on craft categories on Monday January 28 and the main event on January 30. Both events will be held at the Star Event Centre, the first public events for the venue.

The Sapphires, distributed by Hopscotch/eOne has been nominated for Best Film, Best Direction and best adapted screenplay as well as Best Lead Actor and Actress for Chris O’Dowd and Deborah Mailman, and Best Supporting Actress for Jessica Mauboy.

Burning Man was not far behind on 10 nominations including best film and best direction as well as best lead actor for Matthre Goode and Best Supporting Actress for Essie Davis.

Three more films, Lore, Mental and Wish You Were Here received eight nominations while Not Suitable For Children received four.

The Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts has announced the first round of nominees for the 2012 Aacta Awards.

Among the nominees is a short list of 23 local feature films which screened in theatres across Australia in the last year, or due to screen in the coming months.The feature nominees cross a wide variety of genres, with films The Sapphires, Killer Elite, Mental, Iron Sky, Bait3D, Swerve and Burning Man.

The Australian Film Institute and Aacta CEO Damian Trewhella said: “The goal for a healthy Australian feature film industry has always been to combine festival and critical acclaim with audience appeal. The exceptional collection of Feature Films in Competition demonstrates that this year we are well on the way to achieving this mix, and that despite many challenges, we can celebrate a landmark year in the industry.”

“We are thrilled to see many of our former AFI Award-winning...

Two Australian short films, both about the journey of a young boy, have won prizes at the Berlin Film Festival including the Crystal Bear, best short film Award.

The win marks the third year in a row an Australian has won the award.

Julian, written and directed by Matthew Moore was awarded the prestigious Crystal Bear Award for best short film in Generation Kplus at the festival.

The 13 minute film, about the day in a life of a nine-year-old was produced by Matthew Moore and Robert Jago, with executive producers Ian Darling, Mark Kilmurry, Phillip Verity, Joel Moss, Tara O’Sullivan, Lisa Mann and Katrina Moore.

Of Julian, the Berlin jury said: ““A sophisticated film which accompanies a misunderstood boy on his way to popularity with wit and lightness of touch. The fantastic actor displays his phenomenal talent in portraying the smart protagonist – and surprises us in the process. Really great cinema!