Toni Collette will make her feature directing debut with “The Best Of,” her screen version of Graeme Simsion’s bestselling novel, which is one of 75 projects sharing more than AUD16.9 million ($11.7 million) in production and development money from Screen Australia.
Collette, an Emmy and Golden Globe winner, produces alongside Christopher Simon. The story centers on two ex-lovers who come back into each other’s lives after spending decades apart, only to find old feelings stirring with messy and mixed results. Screen Australia made a major production investment in association with Screen NSW. Kismet handles local distribution and Cornerstone holds international sales.
The round, announced Tuesday, covers features, series and shorts.
“Australian storytellers continue to captivate audiences with their creativity, originality and distinctive perspectives. This latest round of funding supports an exciting range of projects from emerging creatives forging new paths to established voices exploring new creative territory. Screen Currency 2026 found that local stories matter deeply to Australians, and these projects will deliver on the authenticity and ambition that audiences have come to expect,” said Louise Gough, Screen Australia’s director of narrative content.
Brouhaha Entertainment, the company behind “Boy Swallows Universe,” is making “The Dark Lake,” a series based on Sarah Bailey’s award-winning novel. Tonkin plays a detective in a rural town whose investigation into the killing of a former high school classmate forces her to face buried secrets of her own. Troy Lum and Andrew Mason produce, with Becca Johnstone writing and executive producing. Giorgia Stawaruk, Tonkin and Katarina Mandic are also executive producers. Screenwest partners on the major production investment, with additional financing from Screen NSW.
Jeffrey Walker (“The Artful Dodger,” “Fing!”) directs “Bull” (working title), a feature from Infin8 Studios and Total Fiction Films. Drawn from a true story, it follows a smooth-talking prisoner who signs up for a debating team inside Tasmania’s harshest jail, hoping to change course and finally give his mother a reason to be proud. George Pullar stars, co-writes with Taylor Danworth and produces with Michael Lawrence, John Molloy and Suzanne Walker. Richard Roxburgh, Robyn Malcolm, Teresa Palmer, Thomas M Wright and Harrison Gilbertson round out the cast. Screen Queensland is on board, with Kismet distributing locally and Cornerstone handling international sales.
Sooshi Mango’s untitled feature debut follows three obstinate Italian immigrants who mobilize their multicultural neighborhood when a mysterious wellness club puts their cherished social club at risk. Nick Kozakis (“Kick On”) directs from a script by the group’s Joe Salanitri, Carlo Salanitri and Andrew Manfre with Declan Fay. Paul Dainty and Cathy Rodda produce, with Timothy Whiting as co-producer. VicScreen partners, and Roadshow has local distribution.
Rodd Rathjen directs “No Friend But the Mountains,” adapted from Behrouz Boochani’s acclaimed memoir, from a screenplay he co-wrote with Boochani. The Kurdish journalist, fleeing persecution, is intercepted at sea and sent to Manus Island, where he documents the gradual breakdown of the men held there. Gal Greenspan, Sharlene George, Amy Parry, Arkos Armont, Katy Roberts, Boochani and Antony Waddington produce. The New Zealand Film Commission, Screen Queensland and VicScreen are partners, with Madman distributing in Australia.
On the development side, Mithila Gupta’s “Desi Down Under” will turn her coming-of-age Indian-Australian audio series into a romantic comedy feature about three misfits who head from Kerala to the beach at Coogee, where they hope to pick up surf-lifesaving skills they can use to help their compatriots. Gupta writes and produces with Nina Aujla, Smriti Mundhra and Maya Gnyp.
Goalpost Pictures’ series “The Caretaker,” adapted from Gabriel Bergmoser’s bestselling novel by Alexei Mizin and Ryan van Dijk, both members of Screen Australia’s 2026 Talent Gateway cohort, also landed development backing. The thriller centers on a woman hiding out as caretaker of a ski resort out of season, who goes to ever more extreme lengths to hold on to the life she has built.
Among the shorts, BAFTA-nominated Rosie Westhoff (“The Main Part”) writes and directs “Solastalgia,” in which a young girl tries to reassemble scattered memories of the bushfire that destroyed her home while looking for connection in a transformed place. Chloe Brennan (“We Used to Own Houses”), Amanda Browne and Ashlee Russell (both “Mothmama”) produce, with Kitty Green (“The Royal Hotel”) as mentor.
Green also mentors the team behind a family short from Pasifika-led Mana Film Productions that mixes live action and animation, “My Life as a 12-Year-Old Demon Hunter… With Great Hair!” It tracks 12-year-old Tala over a single day as she fends off demons out to steal her powers – a bigger headache than her homework. AWGIE winner and bestselling author Maria Lewis writes, directs and co-produces, with Shonee Samia co-producing and Herbert Leota animating. Animator Jake Duczynski (“Magic Beach”) joins Green as mentor. Both shorts received principal production funding.
Full lists of production, development and short film approvals are on Screen Australia’s website. The agency will reveal more recently funded projects alongside the ABC Media Showcase on Oct. 21.
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