Launching The Angry Man Series

Its been a while since I've produced anything - 3 years to be exact - but creating The Angry Man Series has been a great way to step back into this role I love. Capping that off has been the experience of launching said series just last week March 3 2015 at 6pmWST.

The launch was always going to be a tricky event for us to manage. How many episodes do we release? Which platforms? Is there potential for return on investment if we put any money into it? Etc, etc. These decisions were based a lot on the previous outcomes of Australian web series launched recently our own gut feelings about how our audience would respond (especially important). In the end, this was the plan prior to the launch:

1. Release all 6 episodes via YouTube, Vimeo and our website (embedded) at the same time March 3 6pmWST
2. Invite respected local media outlets to review the series before March 3
3. Email friends and family about the upcoming date and ask to assist us in sharing the Facebook page with their friends and family
4. Share branded content each day in the lead up to March 3
5. Engage with like-minded comedians and content makers on Twitter
6. Send out a press release a week before the event
7. Liaise with local organisations and filmmaking bodies to ask for assistance in sharing the Facebook page

The result? A small yet solid "opening night" reception to the series, complete with amazing positive feedback from friends and family of the cast and crew, critics' reviews, and other online comments from audience members. Since then, the series has gained more and more viewers and subscribers on YouTube and Vimeo, followers on Facebook and Twitter, and positive feedback from our audience. 

The team (Meg, Aaron and I) are wrapped with how things turned out and so proud of our little team who accomplished the impossible (6 episodes in 2 days??) to produce what is turning out to be a well-rounded little show. 

The Angry Man Series is available via YouTube, Vimeo and Facebook.

Sherlock Season 3

I've had an interesting relationship with Benedict Cumberbatch over the years. No, we have never met, but one we would presume based on my highly vocalised opinions of the poor guy, that we had once had a fruitless fancy in love that did not end well. My comments about his "arrogance", "weasly-nature" and "larger-than-normal head" are just a few to mention from my tirades. Which is why it is ironic that his performance in Sherlock has managed to sway my judgements of an actor and actually like him for a change.

For those of you who don't know, this BBC modernization of the Conan Doyle series features England's most prolific fictional detective Sherlock Holmes and his wise side-kick, Dr John Watson, as they galavant around 21st century London solving mysteries. I was not a fan of the series in its inception simply because I was not a fan of Mr Cumberbatch himself. But when my boyfriend made me sit through an entire 90 minute episode during Season 2, I was suddenly hooked.

Sherlock features not only one of the greatest fictional characters ever created in English history but also the finest production value of any TV series I have seen the past 10 years. The BBC have pulled no stops in presenting their audience with exquisite (near perfect) special effects coupled with a cinematographic style that supremely exceeds anything you'd find amongst Downton Abbey. London's wet, cold, cobbled streets are suddenly refreshing even to the local govn'r and the audience becomes at one with this amazing setting, a character in itself.

Season 3 set outs to outshine its preceding seasons with more action, more drama, and more personal life at risk. We follow on from Season 2 two years after Sherlock Holmes supposedly jumped to his death following an unfortunate incident with his nemesis, Moriarty. Holmes must return to Baker St to win back his family and right the wrongs done whilst he has been MIA under the shadow of a potential terrorist attack on London City. It makes for an exciting, suspenseful series that is bound to not only suffice the strong-willed Sherlock fan, but attract an audience of watchers searching for a new breed of television. Three 90-minute episodes make viewing more of a blockbuster event than a veg-out session and are guaranteed to make people talk about it on Twitter or Facebook later that night. It may, like me, also convince a few Cumberbatch-critics to lighten their tone for an hour and a half as well.

Everyone's Talking About...Redfern Now

Ever since I heard that this show was in development, I have been dying to see it. Finally, someone got around to producing an Australian TV show featuring real Australians in the form of Redfern, Sydney's indigenous community. This show is not your typical in-your-face exposé on indigenous life but rather an intellectual look at the modern day lives of this individual group. 

Redfern Now is a 6-part series produced for the ABC by Blackfella Films that tells the stories of six inner-city households in one street. In each episode, one seemingly insignificant event will completely change the course of the main characters' daily journeys. Family dramas, relationship problems, money troubles and everyday societal issues are just a few of the plot-lines explored in this series. Working closely with Jimmy McGovern (Story Producer), the producers of RN have created a series that closely follows the successful formula of the show which catapulted McGovern's career, The Street.

The thing that worked so well for me with Redfern Now was its impecable production values. Location, production design, editing, sound design and filming style are just a few elements that caught my eye and held it throughout the duration of the first episode. As a rule, I am instantly turned off my any television show or feature film that has a disregard for fine form. Redfern Now does not belong in this category. In fact, I would go so far as to say that the sheer amount of work that has gone into making this show look so damn good is a lot better than most of the drivel existing on mainstream Australian television right now (Yes, Channel 7. I am looking at you and Winners and Losers)

Many critics today will be launching into how much of a revolution Redfern Now is for the indigenous film and television community. This is a load of wirrilkaru crap. The reality is, indigenous production houses such as Blackfella Films have made some of Australia's best movies of late. In fact, our most successful home exports, particularly in the festival circuits, have come from indigenous producers. Samson and Delilah, Ten Canoes, The Sapphires, and Ivan Sen's Toomelah which was a big hit at the Sydney Film Festival last year. At the end of the day, this is a TV series to educate, inform, entertain and abolish the divide between what is "Australian" and what is "Indigenous." For me, as long as its all good TV, I don't care what you call it. 

Redfern Now screens Thursday on ABC1 at 8:30pm. 

What I'm Watching

I've been terrible at keeping up with this for too long now so I just decided to get straight back into it with no more apologies but lots of exciting things to keep you entertained.

This week, I wanted to give you an idea of which TV shows were currently keeping me occupied/sane in my busy hectic life. Some are local; some are international; some are good; and some are so bad it hurts but you just can't stop watching them. Tell me if you agree with what's featured below.

• Law and Order: SVU Season 12

My love affair with LAO:SVU has spanned a good decade now but I have to admit that it has not always been constant. With the intermittent broadcasts of each season on Channel Ten at different times/days/dates etc I've found it hard to keep up with the latest season. However, when I found out Det. Elliot Stabler had left this "elite squad" for good, I had to get back into it.

• Game of Thrones Season 1

I'm majorly behind the eight-ball with this one but the idea of feuding kingdoms and fantasy worlds just really didn't push my buttons. How wrong of me. GOT has to be one of the best TV series I've seen in a long time. The production value on this baby alone is enough to keep you watching but the clever intertwining of stories and plotlines has also been cleverly mastered right until the very end. I can't wait to start season 2.

• The Only Way Is Essex Season 1

Who can resist the glamour, the style and the flair of England's most outrageous city. Having cottoned on to the show late last year during season 3, I decided to return to its original roots to see how on earth something like this got started. Another reason was to see Mark Wright who signed off at the end of S3 thus ending my lubricious love affair which he is not aware of in any form.

• Puberty Blues 

This was a movie that redefined my teenage experience, made me look at life differently but most importantly, made me realise that everything will be ok. Channel Ten and my favorite production house Southern Star have done an amazing job of converting one of Australia's most iconic movie into a short TV series that has got the whole nation revisiting the days of yore where a "skank" was a "moll", girls were only good for Chiko rolls and an occasional root, and you could guarantee your parents weren't up to much better.

Everyone's Talking About... The Future of TV

Loving this incredibly insightful commentary from TV Addict about the latest changes in television trends in the US. Hope our networks here in Aus cotton on soon.

The Vampire Diaries AKA Proof That Sexy Vampires Are Network Winners

I'd heard about The Vampire Diaries (TVD) in the same way I believe most other people in my generation found out - they got a bit bored of Gossip Girl's obsessive but circling plotlines and so decided to check out what other beauties CWTV (the original broadcasting network for the show) had to offer. At this point in my life, I had been exposed to the in-ignorable saturation of the Twilight series; various interpretations of the fairytale genre in the forms of new shows such as True Blood and Misfits; and had actively sought alternative material in defiance of what I believed was a short-term phase that everyone would soon grow out of. How wrong could I be. With The Hunger Games now developing the whole "alter-reality" genre that took off when Harry Potter concluded and Twilight started out, producers around the world are now tapping into this increasingly profitable drama. Beauty and The Beast, Once Upon A Time, Teen Wolf, and The Secret Circle and of course Supernatural are just some examples of this new genre that is dominating our TV screens. 

Spooky.

TVD is one such program that belongs to this group. It features vampires, then werewolves, witches, doppelgangers, and a whole variety of freaky features that accompany these fictional characters. But freaky seems to be doing well for the network with the show premiering in 2009 with an audience of 4.91m, its highest premiere ever. Over the three seasons, it has managed to maintain its grip on its eager audience with the program seeing a 3.36m premiere for season 2 and a 3.10m premiere for season 3 with there being little variation between premieres and finales. This is good news for the network that has seen some of the worst broadcast rating fails such as The LA Complex.

Personally, I like it. Apparently, not everyone else does.

Numbers aside, TVD utilises an interesting format that has worked well for its not-so-original content. The program focuses on Elena Gilbert, a normal 16 year old who lives in the quaint township of Mystic Falls, a place that prides itself on being totally undramatic (minus the occasional animal attack). Her life revolves around making cheerleading practice, making out with her boyfriend Matt, and hanging with her best friend Bonnie and frenemy Caroline. That is until the day her parents die in a car crash that she witnesses firsthand. Depression, withdrawal and a general disinterest in life defines Elena's life for the next 4 months until the first day of school where her life changes again when she meets new-man-in-town, Stefan. Your typical brooding, dark, mysterious stranger character, Stefan has a freaky way of making people do what he wants, wears a wicked yet kinda odd-looking ring all the time, and generally has a thing for creeping up on people when they least expect it. Over time, Elena soon guesses Stefan's gig and soon becomes comfortable with the idea that she's dating a vampire. At the same time as all of this, Bonnie, her best friend, discovers she has some freaky powers of her own; Jeremy, her brother (a hopeless stoner in love with the wrong girls) gets involved with the whole vampire drama; Matt, her ex, gets jealous; and Caroline becomes involved with a dark, mysterious stranger of her own who, low and behold, turns out to be Stefan's older annoying brother, Damon. 

Damon - Did I mention he's kinda hot too?

The rest of the season sees Stefan and Damon banging it out against one another which we finally learn has to do with the fact that Stefan was the one who got Damon turned 165 years ago when the woman they were both in love with bit them. Catherine is a 500 year old vampire who has been running for half a century (at this stage we are not privy to this information) but she has decided that she has come back to Mystic Falls to claim a special prize - Elena. Turns out little-miss-normal is actually a Doppelganger with all sorts of cool powers such as the ability to stop an evil Original, aka Papa Vampire. This leads us into Season 2 which comes with all sorts of fun things such as the introduction of the werewolf myth which takes up most of the season, and finally Klaus - AKA Mega Bastard. This guy is EEVVVVIILLL and you really don't want to get on his bad side, which Stefan and Damon have a habit of doing. Over time, we realise there is more than one of these bad boys as Klaus has a whole family - almost as bad as when you discover the one cockroach you found under your bed is actually a sibling of MANY. Rebecca, Elijah, Cole and Finn were all turned by their mother when they learned of the man-eating werewolfs in their neighborhood. From there, the vampire myth/reality was spawned and 900 years later, Stefan and Damon were added to the family tree.

And you thought your siblings were weird.

I've missed out A LOT of details with this very brief description of the series but that's because this particular show just has so much going on! This I feel is its most interesting quality. Normally, TV shows are outed by critics for their inability to stick to the rules they created when the show started - that is, the rules by which the characters play by everyday, the rules the audience knows the show by and gets used to. For example, in Grey's Anatomy, the rule is that sleeping with your fellow attendings or residents is ok and generally doesn't incur the wrath that most normal people would endure if they found themselves trying to sleep with their boss. TVD is different however in the way it specifically doesn't do this. The rules change. One minute, its been made pretty clear that a vampire definitely dies from the bite of a werewolf. The next, we discover that this isn't technically true as the blood of an original can cure a vampire afflicted with this particular ailment. 

This is the defining factor that makes up TVD and I believe its one of the many qualities that keeps its viewers coming back for more and more. Couple that with a brilliant love story which then turns into an even better love triangle; really well-scripted suspense; and the motive to keep everything as simple as possible and you have a real hit on your hands. Its really impossible to make any comparisons between Twilight and TVD has there are many stylistic and thematic differences that separate these two seemingly identical stories. And with a epic season 3 finale, I think The CW can expect good audience returns next season. 

IMDB - Top TV Shows

I just thought to check out IMDB's latest results for their online television ratings and voting system. Ratings are the score out of 10 that an IMDB member has given a television show whilst a vote is the number of times a show has been given a rating, no matter what the score. It's interesting to view these two results in comparison as a way of determining what essentially is the best TV show running out there at the moment. Have a look and tell me what you think:

Images courtesy of IMDB

Channel 10 For The Win

It was pretty much decided from the end of last season that Channel 10's Masterchef would take out first place at what's shaping up to be TV's night of nights.

Kicking off at 7:30pm on Sunday May 6th, Masterchef managed to retain a 1.3m average throughout its one hour premiere with its highest tune in reaching 1.6m. The success can be attributed to Ch10's careful marketing over the past two months leading up to the new season riding on the back of last year's success which capped off a stellar season with 2.74m glued to the screen to see Kate Bracks take the trophy. Clever merchandising has also seen the Masterchef brand become not just a household name for its TV series but also for its books, magazines subscriptions, celebrity chef events and cooking utensils. Add this to the major buzz around past entrants and winners and all of THEIR merchandising success stories (i.e Julie Goodwin's many family-orientated cookbooks) and you have yourself a major contender in the ratings war.

Having said that, Masterchef was not attractive enough to maintain Channel 10's audience for the rest of their Sunday night programming, with Channel 9 winning the night with their broadcasting of The Block and 60 Minutes. One could put this down to Channel 10's failure to secure a strong complementary set of shows to entice that ever elusive 18-29 crowd. Weekly showings of New Girl and Modern Family have done little to help audiences settle into Channel 10 for the night meaning an audience is only more likely to start watching the network at the time Masterchef begins, potentially missing out on that all important first 15 minutes. Following up with Touch doesn't seem to be helping either despite its success in the USA. It just goes to show that Australians are not just interested in something because its American.

The next few weeks are starting to get more and more interesting for Channel 10, with Offspring in its 3rd week, Bikie Wars starting in 2 weeks time, and Being Lara Bingle starting soon after. Despite its apparent investment in Aussie drama, Channel 10 really needs to pull their thumbs out. With ratings and profits dwindling year after year, and with share prices dropping rapidly, there needs to be a drastic overhaul of the way Channel Ten does business. Focusing on producing one major program and then filling in the gaps with a whole load of crap just doesn't cut it for the modern audience anymore who are more than happy to switch the TV off all together and go watching cat videos on YouTube for an hour instead. All I can say is, its do or die for this beloved channel.

Top Films Of...April

I have decided each month to post the top 5 films for the month that I believe are worth watching. These could be anything from the latest Hollywood blockbuster to a new release DVD that's just hit Civic Video. Here's what I'm looking forward to for April:

1. Wish You Were Here
ABSOLUTELY THE MOST EXCITING FILM OF THE YEAR!!!!! With the Blue-Tongue Films guys behind almost every aspect of this production plus the wonderful mind of Angie Fielder from Aquarius Films, this one is set to be a stunner.

2. The Hunger Games
After all the hype (and box-office success) one almost has to go watch this film purely so that you know what the difference is between a "tribute" and a "victor". Or at least so that you can look cool in front of your kids sister (come on, we all know that was the only reason you watched Twilight. Right?)

3. The Pirates! Band of Misfits
It's not everyday that you get to witness some of the best stop-motion animation this world has ever made. That's why (despite its kooky story and subject matter) I am planning to make this movie a must see on my list for April. With the makers of Chicken Run and Wallace and Gromit behind this extravanganza, what more could you want?

4. Salmon Fishing In The Yemen
Emily Blunt. Ewan MacGregor. What more needs to be said? Other than title which I believe, speaks for itself.

5. 21 Jump Street
Absolutely one of THE best movies I have seen so far this year. The editing, soundtrack, concept and acting were all brilliantly executed to entertain my fledgling 22 year old brain, which has a concentration problem bigger than Venus and a habit of resorting to one's iPhone if things get a bit boring. None of that ensued in the screening I attended of this film. Everyone from miles around could be heard laughing their asses off to the brilliant one-liners and hilarious gags on screen. GO SEE IT!

Hot Off The Press...Crownies

Ok, its not exactly hot potato hot but damn is this Aussie series good! 


Having heard about the production a while back now, I had made a mental note to keep tabs on the show and make an effort to watch the series premiere in early July. That was of course in the middle of all my crazy filmmaking/MIFF volunteering days and TV by then had become a blip of my radar; the reason why I missed the premiere. It was purely by chance today that stumbled across a free episode hosted by iTunes on the store that I made the decision to watch the first episode and boy was I glad I did. 


The series is based on the Department of Public Prosecutions and the people that run it. Janet King is the Senior Crown Prosecutor, the matriarch of the entire office and the firm bullet amongst the chaos of her much younger, irresponsible colleagues. The series premieres at an interesting time period, Christmas in Australia, where emotions (and hormones) raise with the mercury. We are introduced not only to the crosshatched collection of lawyers who work alongside King but also the standard of cases that regularly march through the DPP; everything from apparent inherited aggressive tendencies leading to assault, to diabolical cases of sexual abuse from the Attorney-General. The show is no holds barred and is swift and  exciting in its delivery of the convuluted facts (associated with the cases), as well as throwing you into the deep end with its clever assortment of DPP staff.


There's Lina, the slightly straighter-than-your-average-ruler do-gooder of the group; Erin, the ferocious-firecracker with hair color to boot; Ben, your typical eye candy who makes you feel sexy just by being on-screen; Richard, the disastrously awkward nerd of the clan; Tracey, a god-fearing, jealous old-b*#$h who's great at her Briefing and HR Manager role; David, the top-cat with the big title as Director of Public Prosecutions; and finally, Tatum, the little office intern who puts all of the above through their paces despite her age. I think of them all so far, I like Tatum the most. She looks like your average bimbo and I commiserate with her on the attitudes that this can get you from others around but luckily for her, Tatum has brains as well as boobs which makes her character all that more interesting. Layers, my friends, like an onion, aren't complicating. Just challenging. 


And it is the many layers of this new show that should have Australian audiences glued to their seats. Unfortunately however, due to its broadcast on the ABC (the only rightful destination for it really), the show has not had that great a reception. Not only that but competing with Ten's Law and Order:SVU, Seven's Masterchef, and Channel 9's AFL Footy Show, it was hard pressed to reach the much needed audience it deserves. I urge you strongly to consider this as your port of call when you're next in the mood for a little bit of great Aussie drama because Crownies really does surpass all the other reality rubbish (Yes, I do mean you Masterchef, Gap Year, Renovators and The Block) in terms of talent and story. 

Production Managing. AKA: How to function on 2 hours sleep a night.

It came to my attention recently that I promised you all recently that I would inform you of my role on the recently produced VCA third year short film "I've Been Here So Long", and how successful the overall production was. In a nutshell, "good" and "good" are two words that can be attributed to those comments. However, I know you are not merely interested in a one-word response so I thought I would give you a bit more insight into how I worked during the production.

I came to be involved on the shoot when I met the producer, Joshua Smith, at the St Kilda Film Festival earlier this year. Josh was acting as the Front of House manager for the festival whilst I was volunteering for IF and at one shift, we discovered that each one of us had a connection to the short film - me being extremely interested after hearing about it at the VCA Pitch Night, and Josh being the producer. When I explained to Josh that I had wanted to approach Rudolf (the film's writer and director) to offer my services as a crew member, Josh offered me the role of producer's assistant. Right there and then. Needless to say, I was floored. Then my mind went into overdrive - Could I do the job? Was I qualified? Did I need to be qualified? Do I have the time? etc, etc. It turned out that over time, a lot of my insecurities about my capabilities for the role were easily quashed but I'll get to that in a second.

The next step was convincing Rudy (Rudolf) that I was going to be a benefit, rather than a hinderance, to the project which involved possibly the longest interview I have ever had for a job at the VCA cafe. Rudy "interrogated" me beyond belief but in a weird way I appreciated the cross-examination as it may me face a lot of the hard questions I would need to answer over time such as, what skills could I provide for the role? and how would I be able to benefit the production? I managed to calm both Rudy and Josh's qualms by explaining that whilst I may not have any formal qualifications, I had the right attitude and if faced with an unknown task, would not stop until I had worked out how to complete it correctly. That approach worked wonders and within 2 hours of the interview, I had received a message from Josh informing me I had the job.

Over the next 2 weeks, I felt slightly useless getting into the swing of things. Coming into a production mid-way through pre-prod is possibly the worst timing because a lot has already happened without you which means you feel pretty dispensable. Luckily for me, Rudy noticed my floundering and gave me a list of jobs to complete during my time with him and Josh. A little more about the film itself at this point may give you a better indication of the scale of this project and the impact one small failure could have on the entire production.

"I've Been Here So Long" is a short film about a young man who's irresponsible lifestyle of partying and general antics is about to come to an abrupt end as he discovers the dynamics within his family are about to change for good. It is an epically majestical production shot not only in Melbourne's outer suburbs but also the beautiful alpine landscape of Lake Mountain, one of Victoria's most breathtaking unknown skiing resorts. The film was to involve many logistical complications from a large crew of around 18 - 20 average; to transporting said crew plus equipment, catering, cast and personal belongings from Melbourne to Lake Mountain for 4 days in the freezing mountain atmosphere. As well as this, the film was being shot on 35mm, an epic ambition in itself which came with its own dilemmas and production issues (i.e requiring a 3 - man camera crew at all times for loading, clapping, and general assisting)

My job within all of this foray eventually became to maintain the online profile of the film through the Facebook, Twitter, and blog set up before production. I found this to be an extremely easy aspect of my job as those online tools have become second hand to me now thanks in part to my experience at RMIT. Related to this however, were a number of other tasks which I was to complete to assist the film financially. This included finding and approaching potential sponsors for the film who would be interested in donating funds towards the film's completion. Despite my efforts, I had no success in this department and felt completely wounded and useless until I had a small win gaining a sponsorship from Lake Mountain Resort in the form of them lending us an entire snow gear range for our 22-man crew up in the snow. After that, a few other successes occurred leading up to the film so that my insecurities about how irrelevant my role was became less impacting.

The shoot itself was an amazing, inspiring experience which brought me right back to 2008 when I worked in Perth. The thrill of being on set for 12 hours a day, working till all hours of the night to prepare for the next day's shoot sounds like a nightmare to some but to me, it's the biggest adrenaline rush. Nothing makes me happier than physically seeing a film being made in front of my eyes. I don't know whether this is because I have not yet reached a point where this experience has become old hat but for now, I still revel at the idea of waking up at 5am after going to bed at 3am to work for 14 hours. Call me weird but I can't helpt it. For the 7 days we filmed, I worked on a variety of tasks ranging from wrangling extras on set, to setting up unit on location, staying on top of paperwork, attempting to source 1990's Nokia mobile phones, finding equipment vans for the snow, and keeping everything in general order amongst the chaos. And believe me, there was chaos. But that I have learnt is to be expected on film sets.

After completing the shoot, I haven't had that much to do with the film as Rudy and Josh have nestled themselves in snuggly amongst the editing suites at the VCA. I have yet to arrange with Rudy's mum and PR guru, AnneMaree Fitzgerald, a handover meeting where I will explain the processes and procedures I implemented for the running of the online profile but as far as I can see for the near future, this will just have to wait until I've completed my short film for RMIT. I'm extremely excited about seeing the final product however and from the rushes I brought back to set during filming, it is going to be look amazing. All in all, it was an amazing experience for which I will forever be indebted to Josh and Rudy for giving me and I hope that I'll be able to work with every one of the amazing crew members on that set sometime soon.

Everyone's Talking About ... Offspring

Found this great article through my old media teacher on all the cinematographic specs of the amazing Aussie series, Offspring. Finding this information about a television series that is still on the air (and has been recently picked up for a third season) is rare to say the least so it's really awesome to have this info whilst watching the show, trying to piece together the behind-the-scenes with the front-of-camera stuff. Anyway, have a read of it. I didn't understand half of what was said in regards to the camera tech stuff but I'm going to ask the DOP on the film I'm working on at the moment to explain a few things for me next time I see him:

'The Secret Life of Us' - Where Are They Now?

I've recently picked up all 4 seasons of John Edwards' "The Secret Life of Us" and am absolutely loving it. I remember nearly 10 years ago how this was one of my mum's favorite shows which I was not allowed to watch because it was "adult TV" which makes me laugh watching it now. I was going to write this post at the end of all 4 seasons but its taking me so long to get through all the episodes that I decided to do it now. I've compiled a small description for each major character with where they are in their careers at the moment which I find fascinating to think of.

1. Claudia Karvan - "Alex Christensen"

Alex was one of the key three characters in the show right up until the third season. Since then, she has done extremely well to get many amazing roles within both film and TV. She has worked on a number of projects with John Edwards again including Love My Way and Spirited (pay TV) and recently completed work on the highly acclaimed "33 Postcards" which recently premiered at the Sydney Film Festival. Claudia was recently nominated for the ASTRA awards, pay TV's biggest night, with the awards being announced July 21.

2. Samuel Johnson - "Evan Wylde"

Evan's character of TSLOU was thoroughly enjoyed by many and it was his departure from the show which was believed to have cause its demise. After TSLOU, Sam went into a starring a series of short films, finally landing a larger gig with another John Edwards produced show, Rush. I am in love with this program and have followed it blindly since its inception and Sam's character in it, Leon is hilarious. Similar to Evan, he has a knack for playing cheeky characters who know they can get away with murder. Probably the reason for why he got picked up for Underbelly Season 2 and the newest addition to Australia's gritty crime drama work, Small Time Gangster. His voice has also been featured on a number of adverts over the years. All in all, he is doing extremely well with his career.

3. Deborah Mailman - "Kelly Lewis"

Deborah's commitment to the show saw her remain with the production until it wrapped in season 4. Her work in the industry has been revered as a shining example of the talents nestled amongst the indigenous community and she has been an inspiration ever since. Having completed great work on such films as "The Rabbit Proof Fence", her skills were quickly noticed by Edwards and she was selected to play Kelly in TSLOU. "Bran Nue Dae" shortly followed after the closing of TSLOU and soon after that, Deborah returned to the small screen for yet another brilliant John Edwards production as Cherie Butterfield in Offspring. Her character is much loved on the show and with ratings still going strong, her role seems secure.

4. Joel Edgerton - "Will McGill"

I was shocked after beginning season 2 of TSLOU to watch as Will abruptly said goodbye to the show and walked away after just one episode. It turns out he had bigger fish to fry. From TSLOU, Joel starred in "Ned Kelly", "Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith", "Kinky Boots", and "Smokin Aces" whilst also developing "The Square", a feature film directed by his brother Nash. Joel has been extremely fortunate in his career, being awarded the AFI award for Best Supporting Actor for David Miçhod's "Animal Kingdom", probably my most favorite Aussie film. Next up? Joel is slated to star in "The Great Gatsby" and "Warrior", major roles which will enhance his reputation for sure.

5. Abi Tucker - "Miranda Lang"

Abi's role in TSLOU wasn't one-dimensional. Her beautiful singing can also be heard in some of the show's most popular songs (i.e "Everybody (Idiot Free)") and it was a sign for her future career. She left the show in 2003 and went onto tour for her first album, Dreamworld. Since then, Abi has been balancing her singing and acting careers, starring in "McLeod's Daughters" whilst writing her second album, One December Moon, which was released in 2008. In 2010, Abi joined "Playschool" but now has focused on her singing career, touring around Australia and internationally.

6. Sibylla Budd - "Gabrielle Kovich"

Sibylla's career began at the VCA which she attended until 1999. From there, she bypassed the usual route of most VCA graduates who enter into the short film laneway and instead found herself being offered a number of TV jobs such as "Something In the Air", one of the ABC's most successful dramas of the era in 2000. She landed the role of Gabrielle on TSLOU one year later and remained with the show until 2003. After this, she had a brief period of inactivity before being signed onto the highly popular "All Saints" series. Two roles in film (for "September" and "The Book of Revelation") most definitely helped her get onto "Sea Patrol" in 2007 and then the unfortunately unsuccessful "Canal Road" in 2008. Sibylla was last heard prepping for a Brisbane based play titled "Betrayal" in 2010.
7. Spencer McLaren - "Richie Blake"

Our favorite straight guy/closet gay came out in season 2 and it was probably the move that propelled Spencer into stardom. In between seasons and after the filming for TSLOU, Spencer performed in a number of theatrical works which helped him sustain his skills until his next role appeared on the British "Family Affairs" sitcom in 2005. Spencer went on to appear in a number of programs from "McLeod's Daughters" to "All Saints" between 2006 and 2010, finally landing a major role in the highly anticipated feature, "Surviving Georgia" which we are extremely excited to see him in. 

8. Damian De Montemas - "Jason Kennedy"

Finally (just because I have been writing this post for 2 days now and I really need to move on - sorry David), we now look at everyone's favorite DILF. Damian graduated from WAAPA in 1997 (which makes me like him even more for being a Perth boy) and from there after a long string of TV appearances in single episodes, he landed the role of Jason Kennedy in 2001. His resume after TSLOU ranges from short films to TV movies to features before he secured a stable on everyone's favorite Aussie soap "Home and Away". He left the show in 2008 and jumped straight into the role of Brian Alexander on "Underbelly" in 2009 which won him the AFI for Best Supporting Actor. Since then, Damian has been extremely lucky to be picked for the role of Brian in the hugely anticipated feature "Blame" and can also be seen on the less successful "Cops LAC" show. What next? Damian is set to appear on ABC "Crownies" later this year. Keep your eyes peeled.

So there you have it everyone! An (almost) complete account for everyone of The Secret Life of Us and there movements since the show up until now. I'll be giving you my account of Season 2 soon so keep reading.

(NB: All photos used in this post are NOT of my own work but can easily be found in a Google search. I thank the photographers for allowing me to use them)

Everyone's Talking About...2011 Fall TV Season

Yes folks its finally here. That time of the year when all of us TV fans go bonkers for the new American lineup of TV blockbusters heading our way. Whilst the Australian networks haven't yet released just who they will be picking up for their second round of ratings, the American news publications have been going crazy over the wave of great American television coming out this year. In an era where TV is slowly becoming the more dominant focus of drama production, TV is becoming more entertaining, more exciting, and more accessible to the average viewer. Here are my top 5 picks for this year's Fall lineup:

1. Pan Am - ABC Studios

This is coming straight out of my obsession with the Mad Men series. I can't help it. I am genuinely in love with the 1950s era and am so excited that there is now a trend emerging of television productions exploring life in these times.

2. The Playboy Club - NBC Studios

Read above.

3. Charlie's Angels

I love shows which have women as their main focus (Desperate Housewives, Winners and Losers, Offspring) and I am also in love with the Charlie's Angels movies of the Noughties. This show will hopefully bring all of these elements together.

4. Apartment 23

This has such an interesting concept and such a bizarre combination of actors (in the form of Krysten Ritter, James Van Der Beek, and Dreama Walker) that it should hopefully be a brilliant comedy.

5. 2 Broke Girls

I love Kat Dennings and think she is absolutely sexy as hell which is probably why I am more drawn to her in this show than the show itself. Still, it looks like it can carry through with the laughs so hopefully will be a good one to watch.

Honorable Mentions:
Good Christian Belles - ABC
Terra Nova - Fox
New Girl - Fox
Awake - NBC
Smash - NBC

There are many more due to be released (slash picked up) and thankfully, the wonderful people at the LA times have produced this fantastic online list for us all to drool over. Some of the links don't work but it gives you an idea of what's going on: Los Angeles Times

Everyone's talking about ... TV

So this is going to become a new column for my blog (not sure if blog's have columns... category?) because I figured that you, the reader, should know that whatever I write in these posts isn't necessarily going to be earth-shatteringly unique but more likely, just a rumination about what everyone is saying. Ironically, this article is actually about something I have been meaning to comment on for a while but it works in my favor just as well to cite the article that gave me inspiration. Here's what we're talking about today:

[caption id="attachment_547" align="center" width="300" caption="Television in a golden age"][/caption]

I stumbled upon this from The Australian's Arts section and its a great exposé on the rise of television as the new dominant medium for creative expression. The article proposes many interesting theories about the rise of television and its subsequent effect on everyone's new attraction to the ol' "talking box." Entertainingly, the reporter writes "There was a time when Marty would have laughed you out of town for suggesting he'd do television," says a collaborator of Scorsese. "Today he sees it's where the action's at." The new attitude we are seeing from the movie studios towards television drama production and television's capacity to provide a new platform for distribution is attributed by the article's writer to the fact that over the years, our box office attendance ratings have been the highest for the studios' sequel releases. The article says:

"The biggest earning film of this year has been Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. The fourth instalment of a Disney franchise, it has made more than $US400m worldwide. The surprise hit has been Fast Five, the fifth film in the Fast and the Furious series, which has made more than $US360m. Last weekend two more sequels battled it out: The Hangover: Part II and Kung Fu Panda 2. In Australia, the Hangover sequel has topped the box office after its first week, taking $11.3m in its opening weekend, while Pirates of the Caribbean has taken $17.3m since it opened two weeks ago."

It's a great idea and one which definitely could be said to hold up in many circumstances. The article's downfall is the writer avoidance of why sequels are such an attractive option for audiences but I'm going to give it a go. It's a stretch but I believe that because we are so immersed in this high-tech, fast-paced world, we no longer have the time anymore to devote ourselves to new experiences. Sounds contradictory doesn't it? What I mean is that even when we make that commitment to go see a movie, it is generally not with the intention of watching the film in the way film as originally meant to be shown. We will be thinking about the dishwasher, the bills, the cat and its veterinary appointment, the kids and their schoolwork (for you parents out there), and the last post we made on Davo's wall (for you Gen Y'ers.) Our brain's have managed to achieve an even smaller attention span than witnessed when television was first released. Now, we can't do anything without fidgeting, reaching for the nearest handheld device, and trying to do 3 things at once. Our brains are so overstimulated, when thrust into a new environment which requires their single, undivided attention, they go crazy. I believe this is what happens when people watch new films with new narratives, new characters, and new faces. Going to watch a sequel such as the Pirates of the Caribbean is much easier because half the work has already been done for us by the brain's memory recall center. Knowing half the story, or at least a back-story, means we don't have to focus so much attention on the film itself and can allow our brains to wander (which is what we want them to do. Its a self-preservation thing to know you did put out the bins, deflating the potential future conflict with the ol' ball and chain.)

Taking all of this into account, we can now turn our ATTENTION! (that's right, focus now), to the role of TV in these shenanigans. TV has always been associated with the idea of a limited attention span. It's why we have adverts. It's why we have remote controls. By producing TV shows, the American studios are tapping back into the audience that abandoned them at the box office, instead financing the same quality of production for a different medium with some astounding results. Already this year we have seen and heard of some amazing new shows, either heading our way or hopefully soon to be (This I shall discuss in another post.)

My final thought on the article? The point made about the fact that TV is not watched so much on the set itself but rather online is the concluding, and most important, reason I believe audiences are staying home. The American studio system has not embraced the concept of video-on-demand as well as their Televisual counterparts and thus, it is much more accessible (and easy) to watch a show than to watch a movie. This is why we can see a decline in box office numbers. This is why more people are watching TV. And its why, more than ever, studios (TV and film alike) need to start reinventing their traditional ideas of drama production to save themselves.

Straight from the horse's mouth...

It was so interesting to hear the opinion of a traditional television producer on the future of televisual distribution and it was comforting to hear about his reasons for choosing traditional methods for televisual production and broadcast.

Internet vs. The Tv

Such a great idea! One we will definitely consider for our project. And the reasons the people interviewed provide are so relevant.

Is the internet an advertising channel or a communication channel?

If nothing else, this video posed some really good questions for us to consider during this project.

How will you watch TV?

Another exciting video piece from the guys at Pulse TV (ironically, an online publication) looking into the technical differences between how we are going to be watching the ol' telebox in the coming years compared to now.

WATCH IT HERE.

Media Watch - The Future of TV

A fascinating Media Watch documentary on Channel 9's response to the very question I am looking into for our research project.

WATCH IT HERE.