The WA Screen Industry’s Future Boosted with the Announcement of the Western Australian Screen Fund
Candice and Douglas hold hands while looking out to the ocean in H...
Candice and Douglas hold hands while looking out to the ocean in H is For Happiness. Photo by Bonnie Elliott ACS © Happiness Film Productions Pty Ltd.
Screenwest applauds the foresight and acknowledgement of the Western Australian Screen Industry’s contribution to culture, community and the economy of Western Australia with their announcement of the Western Australian Screen Fund announced by Hon David Templeman MLA, Minister for Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries and Hon Alannah MacTiernan MLC, Minister for Regional Development.
The Western Australian State Government through the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development has committed sixteen million dollars over four years to the Western Australian Screen Fund, which will be administered by Screenwest.
The Western Australian Screen Fund is designed to ensure:
- Regional investment, economic diversity and job creation in the regions.
- Continued and faster growth in the WA screen sector, as measured by WA screen sector spend and jobs.
- Greater flexibility in delivering projects which benefit the whole state, with a particular focus on supporting WA production companies to develop Intellectual Property out of WA.
- That Screenwest can drive strategy in skills development, indigenous engagement, diversity and infrastructure within the Western Australian screen industry.
- Contribute to a culturally vibrant Western Australia and increase capacity within regional communities to accommodate and work with screen productions.
The Western Australian Regional Film Fund (WARFF) was a resounding success and a key contributor to a boom in production in Western Australia. In the 2018-19 financial year the State Government’s investment in the screen industry through Screenwest contributed over forty million dollars of contracted qualifying Western Australian expenditure. The WARFF delivered strong growth to the WA industry and the production of a slate of world-class films and television series which have had national and international impact. These include Mystery Road series one and two, feature film H is for Happiness, children’s series Itch and upcoming feature films Rams and Dirt Music.
Board Chair of Screenwest John Driscoll said, “This is a fantastic result for the Western Australian Screen industry, and we thank Minister MacTiernan and Minister Templeman and the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development for their commitment to the WA screen industry. We know this investment will spur the production of some fantastic screen projects and a stimulation of regional economies within the state.”
CEO of Screenwest Willie Rowe explained, “The evolution of the Western Australian Screen Fund will provide the WA screen industry with stability at this time and a fantastic opportunity to grow and develop into the future. We also acknowledge and appreciate the Western Australian State Government’s additional measures to support the arts and cultural industries in Western Australia. This is a vital sector within the state, which delivers significant economic and community benefit.”
Head of Strategic Projects and Screen Investment Matt Horrocks added, “This is a terrific result for the Western Australian screen industry. It will create sustained employment, economic outcomes for the regions and the expansion of the program to cover post-production and visual effects is an exceptional development opportunity for the sector.”
Click here to read the full statement released by the Minister for Culture and the Arts Hon David Templeman MLA and Minister for Regional Development Hon Alannah MacTiernan MLC.
About the Western Australian Regional Film Fund
For more information regarding the Western Australian Regional Film Fund in its current form, please visit the Screenwest website.
All program guidelines are to be read in conjunction with the Screenwest Terms of Trade.
Media Contact
For interviews or high resolution images please contact:
Alexandra Biddle
Head of Communications
E: alexandra.biddle@screenwest.com.au
T: +61 8 6169 2106