The country’s top screen agency is supposed to help people make content. But some producers claim it is deliberately trying to force them out of business.
At the Toronto Film Festival in 2015, English film producer Phil Hunt met a senior executive at Screen Australia. And according to Hunt – who claims to have invested many millions of dollars in more than 100 Australian films, mostly low-budget, since 2007 – the true import of their conversation has only just become apparent.
“It will kneecap the independent film sector, for sure. But I think this decision will have a dramatic effect on the future of Australian film full stop, not just independents. It will become absolutely harder for Australian filmmakers to grow and get out there on the world stage.” Several producers, who spoke to this masthead on the condition of anonymity for fear of being forever ruled out of the funding system, have accused Screen Australia of “threatening and bullying treatment”, use of intimidatory tactics, lengthy delays, expensive legal battles, and a lack of transparency as the agency seeks to tighten access to the scheme.
Though it is impossible to prove there has been a shift in how the offset is administered, some in the industry who believe it to be the case suggest it is in response to pressure from Treasury to reduce the amount of money going out the door to filmmakers. The agency has spent millions on these cases. Documents tabled to Senate estimates reveal that $2.15 million went to Simpsons Solicitors in 2023 for its work on behalf of Screen Australia at the AAT. The agency has allocated at least another $300,000 to legal fees since the start of this year.According to one experienced film lawyer, the decisions that make it to the tribunal are just the tip of the iceberg.
“If you follow what’s set out in the provisional certificate, then you’ll get the final certificate,” Catanzariti told the tribunal. “That’s a lynchpin of this industry because people are committing millions of dollars … for the film to be cash-flowed the 40 per cent production offset to be paid.” Across the board, the assessor argued the rates charged by entities related to the producers – such as a post-production house owned by McLaren – were above market rates or out of line for such an inexperienced team and ad-hoc production. In response, Catanzariti claimed in court that the fees Screen Australia proposed as reasonable “were beneath what you would be paid for working in McDonald’s, below minimum wage”.
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