“Opening Shot” docos for ABC2

ABC2, together with Screen Australia, has announced 5 new documentary approvals.

As part of the Opening Shot initiative, the 5 projects by emerging documentary makers are currently in production and will air mid 2012.

ABC2 Controller, Stuart Menzies, said, “ABC2 is the natural home for Opening Shot – new stories, new film makers and challenging ideas.”

ABC TV Head of Documentaries, Alan Erson, said, “We are always on the lookout for new talent and it’s invigorating to be working with up-and-coming producers and directors.”

Screen Australia’s Chief Executive, Ruth Harley, revealed that the value of documentary production for the 2010/11 financial year was the highest on record to date.

Dr Harley said, “It’s been a great year for documentaries with 430 hours of Australian documentary projects made in 2010/11 and a total of $133 million spent on documentary production. This is above the $118 million five-year average for documentary production.”

The new ABC2 documentaries include:

Dating the H-Bomb by LaLa Pictures Pty Ltd
Producer Andrew Arbuthnot; Director Jay Court
Ordinary Australians, voiced through puppets, candidly share the lighter side of loving while living with the taboo herpes virus.

The Disassembly Line by Projector Films
Producer Daniel Joyce; Director Madeleine Parry
Madeleine Parry, documentarian and one-time slaughter woman, enlists at her local abattoir to reveal the hidden experience of the men who kill what we eat.

Future Radicals by Renegade Films (Australia) Pty Ltd
Producer Kate Pappas; Director/Writer Ben Eriksen
A group of masked vigilantes who call themselves ‘Anonymous’, are taking a stand on the issues of online censorship.

Project Baby by Secret Key Films Pty Ltd
Producer Katrina Lucas; Director/Writer Shalom Almond
Filmmaker Shalom Almond documents her own process and personal ethics as she attempts to start a family using controversial Pre-implantation Genetic Diagnosis IVF.

Queen of the Desert by 360 Degree Films
Producer Josephine Wright, Director Alex Kelly
‘Starlady’, a youthworker on a mission to bring wild fashion to remote indigenous communities.