South Australian Film Corporation

South Australian Film Corporation (SAFC) is a South Australian Government statutory corporation established in 1972. Former State Premier Don Dunstan played an instrumental role in the foundation of the Corporation and its early film production activities.

The Corporation was the first State film corporation established in Australia, and the success of its business model led other State Governments also to establish similar bodies charged with the promotion of film production and fostering industry development.

At the time of the Corporation's establishment, the Australian film industry was in the doldrums, and the Corporation played a significant role in the revival of Australian film making.

Until 1994, the Corporation was involved in the production of films and television programs. The television mini-series The Battlers was the last production in which the SAFC acted as a producer.

Since then, it has focussed on supporting the production of films and television in South Australia, including providing funding and support, as well as making available production and post-production facilities.

The Corporation has studio facilities situated at Hendon in suburban Adelaide.

The Corporation will be moving to a New Film and Screen Hub in the next two years courtesy of a major financial redevelopment from the South Australian State Government.

Major productions

The Corporation produced several significant and successful films and television productions up until 1994 and thereafter has acted in assistance with development and production facilities. These include alphabetically:

*"Alexandra's Project"
*"Australian Rules (film)"
*"Bad Boy Bubby"
*"Blue Fin"
*"Breaker Morant"
*"Dance me to my Song"
*"Dawn!"
*"December Boys"
*"Deck Dogz"
*"Finders Keepers" (See "The Finder")
*"For the Term of His Natural Life (1983) (TV)
*"Freedom
*"Golden Fiddles
*"Hammers Over the Anvil"
*"Kiss or Kill (1997 film)"
*"Like Minds"
*"Look Both Ways"
*"Lucky Miles"
*"McLeod's Daughters"
*"Money Movers" (1978)
*"Napoleon (1995 film)"
*"Opal Dream"
*"Picnic at Hanging Rock"
*"Playing Beatie Bow"
*"Rabbit-Proof Fence (film)"
*"Rain Shadow (TV series)
*"Robbery Under Arms" (TV)
*"Sara Dane"
*"Sebastien and the Sparrow
*"Shine"
*"Smokes and Lollies" (1975)
*"Storm Boy"
*"Sunday Too Far Away"
*"Sun on the Stubble" (TV)
*"The Battlers"
*"The Caterpillar Wish"
*"The Club"
*"The Fairies" (TV series)
*"The Finder" (aka Finders Keepers")
*"The Fire in the Stone" (TV)
*"The Fourth Wish"
*"The Honourable Wally Norman"
*"The Irishman"
*"The Last Wave"
*"The Old Man who read Love Stories
*"The Plumber" (1978) (TV)
*"The Shiralee" (TV)
*"The Sound of Love" (1978) (TV)
*"The Survivor (film)"
*"Ten Canoes"
*"Thunderstruck"
*"Under Capricorn" (1983) (TV)
*"Weekend of Shadows"
*"Wolf Creek (film)"

Influence on Australian film making

The Corporation's activities helped rebuild Australia's dormant film industry.

Besides its successful productions, which had critical and commercial success, the Corporation's productions helped to launch successful careers for many artists, including Peter Weir, Jack Thompson, Scott Hicks, Rolf de Heer, Mario Andreacchio, Geoffrey Rush and Bruce Beresford.

As with most production companies, not every Corporation production so far has been a critical or financial success, but each has helped to give artists opportunities to hone their craft, and move on to achieve success and professional recognition.

Current activities

Since 1994, the role of the Corporation has changed to that of facilitating productions, rather than engaging in production itself.

Its most conspicuous success in recent years has been the facilitation of the production of the popular Nine Network program McLeod's Daughters since 2001, which is filmed on location in rural South Australian settings.

The Corporation has high quality post-production facilities which have been used in connection with a broad range of productions.

ee also

* Matt Carroll (producer)
* South Australia

External links

* [http://www.safilm.com.au/ Corporate website]
* [http://www.imdb.com/company/co0036887/ South Australian Film Corporation] at the Internet Movie Database