IT is not widely recognised that children's television is one of
Australia's main cultural exports, if not the leading one. And it's
not just the coloured skivvies of the Wiggles that attract attention.

At any time, somewhere in the world, young people are either tuning
in to a sun-and-surf drama-soap such as Blue Water High, a science-
fiction fantasy such as Spellbinder or perhaps the animated
children's show Bottle Top Bill.
From Brunei to the Caribbean, Ireland to Sweden, Australian fantasy,
comedy and increasingly animation are making a mark.

There are a combination of factors behind this success, says Noel
Price, the executive producer of Southern Star Entertainment, one of
the biggest distributors of English-language TV programming in the
world and the maker of hit shows Blue Water High and the animation
series Tracey McBean.


SETTING THE STANDARDS FOR
CHILDREN'S PROGRAMMING

There are two types of programs: P for pre-schoolers and C for
school-age children.
Commercial stations must screen at least 390 hours a year: 130 hours
of P programs and 260 hours of C programs.
They must be made specifically for children, be of high production
quality, enhance a child's understanding and experience and be
appropriate for Australian children.
Half of the C programs must be first-release (not previously seen)
Australian content and include 96 hours of drama. There are limits
on how often P and C non-drama programs can be repeated in a given
period.
No advertisements can run during P programs. No more than five
minutes of ads can be shown during each half-hour of a C program,
and ads can't be repeated more than twice. In the case of drama, the
number of ads is limited to 13 minutes per hour.
Conditions apply to the content of advertisements.


Not least of these are the requirements of the Australian Children's
Television Standards, which are undergoing their biggest review
since they were introduced in 1990. The Australian Communications
and Media Authority, which regulates the standards, kicked off the
marathon process in late December.

The review will encompass the classification of programs and the
quota system, which determines how many hours and what type of
children's programming must go to air, how much should be Australian
content, the highly contentious debate linking advertising to
obesity, how much advertising is allowed, as well as the effect new
media are having on the amount of TV children watch and when.

The authority will conduct extensive research, to be followed by a
discussion paper at the end of the year. The full review is expected
to take up to 18 months.

Key players such as the Australian Children's Television Foundation
and Free TV Australia, representing the commercial TV networks,
agree it is time for a review. "An awful lot has happened since
1990, socially and technologically. Pay TV hadn't taken off, the
internet hadn't taken off," says foundation chief executive Jenny
Buckland. "By the time they finish the review and draft new
standards, it will be almost 20 years."

Price says the policy and funding regime has created consistent
quality and quantity that is the envy of the world.

Children's TV is a much more internationally focused form of
production than any other in Australian TV, he says, and is plugged
into the global market from the word go.

The standards regulated by the media authority necessitate big
investment and high budgets - and therefore international partners -
so the storytelling principles have to have broad appeal.

That, combined with funding assistance available through the Film
Finance Corporation and state film bodies, and the content quota
requirements of the commercial broadcasters, has ensured a long
tradition of quality.

Under the standards, which do not apply to pay TV or the ABC, the
commercial networks are obliged to air 390 hours of children's
programming a year, one-third of which is for pre-schoolers and two-
thirds for school-age children.

A minimum requirement is 25 hours of first-release Australian drama
a year, or a total of 96 hours over three years.

"It [children's TV] is quite a remarkable success story really, and
a largely unheralded one," Price says.

"It's a very, very successful form of cultural expression and export
of Australian values."

For example, Mortified, a $9million comedy-fantasy series being shot
on the Gold Coast for tweens and teenagers, is a co-production
between the ACTF and independent production company Enjoy
Entertainment. It is funded by the Film Finance Corporation,
supported by two other film funding bodies, and has been presold to
the Nine Network, the BBC and the Disney Channel.

Children's TV is a complicated business. In fact, an hour of
children's drama has a higher price tag than the grown-up genre.
Children's drama costs an average of $600,000 an hour to make,
compared with $400,000 for adults, Price says.

Buckland says the existing standards have achieved a magnificent
amount and are still doing a good job. "I wouldn't be arguing that
we should throw them out, but I think we need to look at whether
they are doing the best job possible in view of all the change."

Central to the review will be whether the highly prescriptive
regulatory model is the best way to go or whether different models
are more appropriate in the rapidly fragmenting media environment.

Any review cannot be seen in isolation from national digital policy,
Price says.

The opening up of new media platforms - the access to broadband and
mobile telephony - is astoundingly rapid but also highly
unpredictable, he says.

"We will probably be in the most significant era of change over the
next couple of years that has existed in the last 50 years, so we do
have to look at the whole business of the multi-platforms that
children are accessing and the way habits are changing.

"But how you can assess kids' television until we work out how the
digital world is going to operate in Australia is putting the cart
before the donkey ... Even if you have an inquiry now, the
conclusions you reach in six months might change radically in 18
months because it is such a volatile time."

One of the big issues, Buckland says, is that the time when children
watch TV and want access to the best shows is changing. Children are
spending more time on the internet and gaming, and they are more
discerning. The trend is for them to pick and choose what they want
to watch. The latest research from Britain shows the most popular
time of day for children to watch television is from 7pm to 9pm.

"So many children aren't home at 4pm when a lot of the great
children's shows might be on free-to-air TV," she says.

Families in which both parents work and the trend towards after-
school care and other organised activities is a key reason why more
households are turning to pay TV: they know they can access specific
children's channels at a time that suits them.

Buckland would like the review to have a hard look at multi-
channelling and the possibility of free-to-air digital channels, or
an online library that addresses the needs of children and the time-
shifting of programs.

The legacy of the past 20 years is a vast back catalogue of
subsidised children's drama, so it makes sense, in terms of getting
a better return on that investment, to make that available, she
says.

The FFC over the past 17 years has spent more than $248million on
Australian children's drama, producing 87 series. One of the most
popular programs the ACTF produced was the 78 episodes of the puppet
show Lift Off for the ABC. "To me it's scandalous that it's not on
air. So what we're not doing is building every year on what we've
already got," Buckland says.

Another key area deserving attention is more regular daily
programming of news, current affairs and documentaries. Children of
primary school age have a thirst for knowledge but parents are
concerned about exposure to adult news.

The ABC produces Behind the News and Network Ten has The Total News,
but she would like to see a daily 15-minute news program similar to
the BBC's Newsround, which airs at 5pm. Many parents and interest
groups have raised this.

"The news would be presented to children in a way they can
understand. They are exposed to so much these days and adult news
leaves a lot to be desired."

A report on Hurricane Katrina, for example, would have more context,
explain what a hurricane is and where New Orleans is, and could be
backed up with detailed information on a website. Film footage would
not be chosen for shock value.

"During the London bombings [on Newsround] there was more of a focus
on how it is affecting children. There were lots of questions and
answers on the net with children and psychiatrists, emails from
children afraid to use the Tube. The adult news, for a start,
assumes it doesn't have to tell you what September 11 was about,"
she says.

It is also worth looking at the German experience, where two public
broadcasters have combined to create a new children's channel,
partly in response to the proliferation of American content.

Buckland is keen to get the states' children's commissioners
involved in the review and to seek out the views of young people on
media.

She is wary of the advertising and obesity debate hijacking the
review, a view shared by Price. "It's important but it is a giant
public health issue, and advertising is just the tip of the
iceberg," Buckland says.

"It would be a great shame if we did something about advertising
that had the flow-on effect of children not having any programs to
watch because there wasn't any money to make them.

"We do need to be careful. If we are only concerning ourselves with
advertising during children's programs then we are going to have
minimal effect, because I think most children are watching
television between 7pm and 9pm."

In any case, Price says, the way in which advertising works will be
transformed in the digital era.

"The main thing is that Australia has to free itself up - and this
is my view, not Southern Star's view - quite dramatically from a set
of rules and regulations that really apply to an era when basically
there was just free-to-air TV and that was it."

Sheena MacLean - 16feb06

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/printpage/0,5942,18159625,00.htm
l

There is always a sense of excitement surrounding the world premiere
of any new movie.

But as the British director Peter Cattaneo found out when his film
Opal Dream launched Berlin's Children's Film Festival on Friday, if
the audience of a 1000-seat cinema is largely children, then the
event is particularly charged with anticipation.

The ceremony marking the opening of the Kinderfilmfest, which is one
of the Berlin film festivals key competitions, was hardly finished
before some of the more enthusiastic members of the young audience
began calling for the film to be brought on.

"I absolutely loved it," said Cattaneo after the film's
premiere. "It was a really positive vibe."

The film is set in the South Australian opal town of Coober Pedy,
and is a story about dreamers. "People are only there on a whim and
a dream," Cattaneo said.

Based on a book by Ben Rice, the film revolves around Pobby and
Dingan, the imaginary friends of young Kellyanne, and the havoc they
cause her family and father, who dreams of striking it rich with the
precious rocks lurking in Coober Pedy's barren landscape.

After Kellyanne's father, played by Vince Colosimo, somehow leaves
Pobby and Dingan at the mine, her big brother, Ashmol, is forced to
climb down the mine shaft to discover their fate.

The end of the film was greeted with whistles, stamping of feet and
roars of approval before Cattaneo and his young cast took to the
stage and members of the audience crushed forward to pepper him and
Sapphire Boyce (Kellyanne) and Christian Byers (Ashmol) with a
barrage of questions about the movie and their lives.

"The moment I put the book down I had a mission to make the film,"
Cattaneo told the young cinemagoers. "But it took four years."

As is often the case with movies by directors from other countries,
Opal Dream offers keen observations about life in Australia, such as
Ashmol enjoying a glass of lemonade and potato crisps with his dad
at the pub.

Opal Dream is competing with 11 other feature films for the
festival's crystal bear, which is to be awarded next weekend by an
11-member jury made up of 11 to 14 year olds from Berlin and backed
up by a group of children's film professionals.

The festival awards another crystal bear for the best children's
short film. Among the 21 short films competing this year is Bloody
Footy, by a Melbourne director, Dean Chircop. Like Opal Dream and
many of the other films in the Children's Film Festival, a theme of
Bloody Footy is how different generations manage to coexist. The
film tells the story of Mario, whose father is a football fanatic
and who is determined that his son will play the game as they do in
his home country of Italy. But Mario's football interests are with a
game from another nation.

Byers and Boyce, who are both 12 and are from Sydney, said that they
only read through the Opal Dream scripts shortly before each scene.

"I asked them not to learn the scripts, because it not so much about
the words as the feeling of the scene," says Cattaneo, who scoured
Australia for the two young actors to play Kellyanne and Ashmol.

"We tried to do as little acting as possible." Cattaneo also also
directed The Full Monty, which is about six steel workers who form a
male striptease act.

His latest film, We're the Millers, in production, veers off in
another direction. It is a comedy set in the US about a marijuana
dealer who wants to get out of the business.

But what was the opal really like that emerged as a feature of Opal
Dream, Byers was asked at the premiere: "It was," he assures, " the
most beautiful thing you ever saw

Sapphire's Fan Group
http://movies.groups.yahoo.com/group/Sapphire_Boyce/

Christian's Fan Group
http://movies.groups.yahoo.com/group/Christian_Byers/

Article from - Andrew McCathie in Berlin - February 13, 2006
http://smh.com.au/news/film/outback-story-has-kids-roar-of-
approval/2006/02/12/1139679476282.html

Its just another hat for McGuire

UNTIL yesterday, the most important public role among the many that
Eddie McGuire performs was his presidency of Australias best-
supported football club.

Now he heads the countrys top-rating television network.

As well as being president of Collingwood, Mr McGuire, 41, is a top-
rating TV AFL commentator and host of the countrys most popular
football and games shows.

When he has a spare moment, he is a newspaper columnist, a major
figure in the republican movement, on the board of the Victorian
Major Events Company, Logies host, head of a cancer charity and
husband and father.

Hes also available for weddings and bar mitzvahs, and, seemingly, he
does them all rather well.

But from yesterday, Eddie will no longer be everywhere.

Mr McGuire has succeeded to one of the most powerful positions in
the country.

The kid whose first jobs were compiling football statistics for the
Melbourne Herald and cricket reports for Australian Associated Press
will run the TV network that, until last Christmas, was ruled by
Kerry Packer.

Mr McGuires rise and rise has been as well managed as it has been
spectacular.

And his best manager has been himself.

A popular sport in Melbourne has been to take pot-shots at the kid
from working-class Broadmeadows who made it to Toorak without
seriously offending anyone, except the considerable body of AFL fans
who hate Collingwood.

It has been a largely futile sport.

Mr McGuire first appeared on television in 1982 on the Ten Network,
where he stayed until 1993.

The following year he switched to Nine and soon after became the
host of a football show that was as unique as it was successful.

His AFL version of The Footy Show topped the ratings despite not
being allowed to show any match footage.

At the same time, Mr McGuire formed his own media company, which
produced and packaged radio shows as well as a childrens football
program and a series of other specials.

Despite the workload, the biggest problem for Mr McGuire has been
dealing with the conflicts of interest, real or apparent, that arose
from having so many irons in the same football fire.

Some of the same issues are bound to follow him into his new job,
but they will only be short-lived.

From next year, Nine wont be broadcasting AFL matches.

Even if it had, Mr McGuire wouldnt have been part of the picture or
sound.

As pointed out by Fairfax newspapers, TV commentator Ross Warneke,
one of the big questions surrounding Mr McGuires appointment
concerns whether hes a bigger asset to Nine on the screen or off.

Now that will be answered.

http://www.bordermail.com.au/newsflow/pageitem?page_id=1136052

For millions of Americans, one of the first sights of a brand-new
year is the Tournament of Roses parade winding down Pasadena's
Colorado Boulevard, with its marching bands, its equestrians, and
its floats. It's a New Year's Day tradition - one that we'll be
observing on January 2 instead next year, since New Year's falls on
a Sunday in 2006.

Oh, those flower-bedecked floats! Every year they seem to grow more
elaborate. And it's the floats that most of us think of when we
think of the Tournament of Roses. Entirely covered with plant
material, the floats are marvels of grace, beauty, humor and
animation. This year's parade has adopted the theme 'It's Magical!"
and nothing could be a better fit than Disneyland Resort's own float
entry, titled The Most Magical Celebration on Earth. We spoke with
Craig Bugajski of Festival Arts, the company that is building the
float, and show director John Addis of Disneyland Resort, to see
what Disney magic will greet the New Year.

John gave us the details. "The float is spectacular! It is 150 feet
long and over 30 feet tall. The float consists of the five Disney
Park's castles from around the world. Each castle is detailed to
completely replicate its distinctive style and color. The first
castle is from our newest Park, Hong Kong Disneyland. Standing
beside the castle is Mulan, and Chinese children waving gold
banners. Following Hong Kong is Tokyo Disneyland's castle with Belle
and Japanese children. Next is Sleeping Beauty Castle from Paris
Disneyland (with Aurora and more children), then Walt Disney World
(with Cinderella and children). There are a total of 20 children on
the float singing and waving banners. The final castle is from
Disneyland. It is bedecked with all of the 50th Anniversary finery
that exists right now on the castle at Disneyland.

"Riding on an upper balcony of the Disneyland castle are Mickey
Mouse and two featured singers. Below Mickey Mouse and the singers,
the castle drawbridge will lower and Minnie Mouse, Pluto, Goofy,
Chip, Dale, and Donald will come streaming out of the castle -- the
drawbridge will lower about every minute. The five gold crowns
topping the castle, in honor of the 50th Anniversary and the five
decades of Disneyland, will also rotate magically during the parade.
Surrounding the float are 38 Disney Characters. Also, during the
song, pyro will be shot into the air. I wanted to replicate the
wonderful fireworks that are seen at every Park around the world! Of
course because it is the Rose Parade, every inch of the float will
be covered in the most beautiful flowers imaginable!"

Although the creation of the float began in mid-September, it won't
be finished until the last possible moment - because Tournament of
Roses floats must be covered with flowers and other plant material,
they will literally wilt if they are decorated more than a few days
in advance. Volunteers began the Herculean task of covering the
Disneyland float with flowers, petals, leaves, and other fragile
botanicals the day after Christmas, and won't finish until the early
hours of the parade morning - John and his family are there too,
pitching in.

Rose Parade floats are engineering marvels, and The Most Magical
Celebration on Earth will be no exception. Craig tells us that one
peculiarity of the parade is that, because it passes under a low
freeway overpass, all floats need to be able to collapse to no
higher than 17 feet tall to fit underneath. With 14 separate moving
elements and the spires of five castles reaching to the sky, making
the Disneyland float collapsible was a real engineering challenge!

On January 2, 2006, the roses (and the mums and the pampas grass and
the orchids ...) will once again float down Colorado Boulevard. And
Mickey and crew will be there to greet the new year.

http://disney.go.com/inside/issues/stories/v051227.html

A Disney Fact

The Main Street Electrical Parade debuted at Disneyland, lit up Walt
Disney World's Magic Kingdom, and did a stint at Disneyland Paris.

It returned to California in 2001,
where it runs through the heart of Disney's California Adventure.
and is now known as Disney's Electrical Parade.

Wiggles expand empire to Japan

Popular children's entertainers The Wiggles will expand their multi-
million dollar empire next year with a spin-off group in Japan.

The four men in skivvies - Jeff Fatt, Anthony Field, Murray Cook and
Greg Page - will search Japan in 2006 to find like-minded performers
to take on the task of Japanese Wiggles.

"Next year we will be auditioning for Wiggles in Japan and then
filming them down here in Australia," said Wiggles general manager
Paul Field.

"That is the next big one for us and then we absolutely want to move
into Europe."

The five time ARIA winners have already established Wiggle groups in
Taiwan and Latin America.

While the group wants to have a Wiggles band in every country,
they're taking it slowly.

"We do it cautiously step by step," said Field.

"If you are going to be a Wiggle you wouldn't use it as a stepping
stone to go from Wiggles to soapie. It has to be what you want to
do."

The Wiggles are also realistic about their future and know that one
day the job of driving the big red car for Australia will go to
someone else.

"When we were auditioning in Latin America, Anthony said the best
thing is that in 10 years from now when they are all in walking
frames and can't wiggle any more, they can pass on the baton," said
Field.

"One day down the track it's good to know that in Australia there
will be parents of children saying I remember when it was Greg,
Murray, Jeff and Anthony."

The performers joined forces 15 years ago and will celebrate that
milestone in January.

This year has been an extraordinary year for the Australian icons,
who have taken out a swag of prestigious awards including the highly-
sought after 2005 Australian Export of the Year gong.

In Sydney ABC managing director Russell Balding presented The
Wiggles with an award acknowledging their all-time sales success.

This includes the sales of 4.5 million videos and DVDs and 1.5
million CDs and cassettes in Australia.

"When the first album came out we didn't know where this was going,"
said red Wiggle Murray Cook.

"But, let's keep doing it!"

Wednesday Dec 21 14:04 AEDT
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=61825

PROPOSAL DEADLINE 28 February, 2006

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation is seeking Expressions of
Interest from potential co-producers to submit a treatment for a
children's television program as part of the second Children's
Special Television Project.

The program must be suitable for a pre-school audience of 2-4 year
olds and meet the ABC's local broadcast requirements. It must also
have broad international potential in respect to both television
program sales and ancillary rights exploitation.

The ABC will look to finance the selected project and its
contribution will comprise a mixture of both cash and production
facilities.

Director of ABC Enterprises, Robyn Watts, said, 'We are looking for
a quality program that will engage our pre-school audience and
complement the programming currently broadcast on ABC TV. We are
looking for ideas of imagined characters and communities that will
capture the attention of Australian children, and potentially those
around the world. We are searching for quality concepts and creative
teams.'

Expressions of interest, including a Treatment document, need to
arrive at the ABC no later than February 28, 2006.

For a specification package, please contact Jodie Salmon on 61 2
8333 3986 or salmon.jodie@...

All submissions will be treated confidentially and are subject to a
confidentiality agreement.
Note to the Editor re Children's Special Television Project 1

Announced 8 December 2005: Five Minutes More was commissioned
through the first Children's Special Television Project. A puppet
series for pre-schoolers, it is to go into production in the ABC's
Sydney-based studios in 2006. A co-production between Snow River
Media (UK) and Buster Dandy Productions (Australia), Five Minutes
More (65 x 5') follows the story-telling adventures of five lovable
toy-friends who live on a patchwork quilt that covers a child's bed.
Disney UK has acquired the pay television rights to Five Minutes
More, for transmission in Western Europe, UK, Scandinavia and the
Middle East. In Australia, Five Minutes More will screen on ABC TV
and ABC2.

http://www.abcenterprises.com.au

Agro Fan card available on ebay

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/CHANNEL-7-AGROS-CARTOON-CONNECTION-
FANCARD_W0QQitemZ7563591464QQcategoryZ18820QQcmdZViewItem

It is also displayed on the group home page.
>
> 'Agro' Dunn bids farewell to station
> Friday Dec 2 16:07 AEDT
> The man who unleashed "Agro" on Australia has made a tearful goodbye
> to Brisbane radio station B105 FM after 16 years.
>
> Jamie Dunn will best be remembered for his alter ego Agro
> Vation, the furry animal puppet with an attitude that became a cult
figure with its own radio and TV shows.

'Agro' Dunn bids farewell to station
Friday Dec 2 16:07 AEDT
The man who unleashed "Agro" on Australia has made a tearful goodbye
to Brisbane radio station B105 FM after 16 years.

Jamie Dunn became Australia's longest-serving breakfast radio host
thanks to his long tenure at the B105 Morning Crew show.

But the big man will best be remembered for his alter ego Agro
Vation, the furry animal puppet with an attitude that became a cult
figure with its own radio and TV shows.

An emotional Dunn stopped four times trying to regain his composure
in his final farewell at B105 after more than 12,000 hours of live
radio.

Dunn's goodbye was part of a live broadcast from Brisbane's Royal
Children's Hospital which is the recipient of the B105 Christmas
Appeal.

Dunn instigated the appeal 11 years ago, raising more than $5
million for the hospital including almost $550,000 this year.

Dunn said the highlights during his record tenure included
Queensland Premier Peter Beattie sitting for a lie detector test,
federal treasurer Peter Costello singing karaoke and breaking the
news to musician Daniel Jones that his band Savage Garden had split
up.

"This is the end of an era. He spent almost 15 years, or 110
surveys, at No.1 - 75 wins were consecutive," said Austereo Brisbane
general manager Richard Barker.

Despite Dunn's long stint, B105 owners Austereo did not renew his
contract this year due to waning ratings.

Austereo has still not named who will replace him on the Morning
Crew with co-hosts Penny Cooper and Dean Kesby.

Coolum-resident Dunn has since signed a 10-year deal with Sunshine
Coast radio station 96.1 FM and will start in January.

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=75676

Hello,

I'd like to invite you to join my new group called: Christmas Lights
In Australia well it's not a new group because I've had it since 3rd
of November this year so hasn't been open for very long only
about a month now.

So if you enjoy decorating your house with Christmas Lights
every year or you enjoy driving around your town or city looking at
Christmas Lights Displays then join up today where you can find
out where they all are!

So don't delay and join up today!

Feel free to spread the word and tell all your friends about it!

To join just click on the link below then sign up!

Christmas Lights In Australia:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/christmaslightsinaustralia

Thank you

From Clint..

Congratulations to Hollys Heroes for taking the AFI for the Best
Childrens Drama Series.

The Other nominees were Blue Water High and Scooter Secret Agent

More About Hollys Heroes in the
fan group for Jessie Jacobs:

http://tv.groups.yahoo.com/group/Jessie_Jacobs/

A $2.6 million children's indigenous drama series is to be filmed in
the Territory next year.

The 13-part mini-series called Double Trouble will be the first of
its kind to screen on commercial TV in Australia.

It will be written, directed and shot by indigenous filmmakers in
scenic sites around Alice Springs.

The series is expected to generate large economic benefits for the
NT, including $4.7million and 58 full-time jobs.

The show will be produced by Alice Springs-based production company
Central Australian Aboriginal Media Association (CAAMA), which this
year is celebrating 25 years of operation.

The company has spent the past year raising the $2.6million for the
series to go ahead.

It is known for producing such films as the documentary Yellow
Fella, which screened at the Cannes International Film Festival this
year, and Green Bush, which won best short film at the Berlin
International Film Festival this year.

Executive producer Jacqui North said the new film is wonderful news
for CAAMA and the Territory.

Sunday Nov 20 11:47 AEST
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=73160

Hello,

This email message is a notification to let you know that
a file has been uploaded to the Files area of the Aus_Childrens_TV
group.

   File        : /thewigglesbestchildrensalbum.jpg
   Uploaded by : modelpower2006 <modelpower2006@...>
   Description : The Wiggles best childrens album at the Arias

You can access this file at the URL:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Aus_Childrens_TV/files/thewigglesbestchildrensalbu\
m.jpg

To learn more about file sharing for your group, please visit:
http://help.yahoo.com/help/us/groups/files

Regards,

modelpower2006 <modelpower2006@...>

Meat the new Wiggle - By GARRY WILLIAMS - 06nov05

HAS blue Wiggle Anthony been bumped from the group by Kath & Kim's
purveyor of fine meats, Kel Knight?

Though he is fond of saying he is more talented than "meats" the
eye, Knight admits his photo opportunity with Wiggles Greg (yellow),
Murray (red) and Jeff (purple) was to promote his latest telemovie
rather than a career move. The Wiggles will make a cameo appearance
on Da Kath and Kim Code, screening Sunday, November 27, on the ABC.
Knight, who is often mistaken for actor Glenn Robbins, was not shy
about giving the boys a few tips.

"Instead of Dorothy the Dinosaur, how about Kath the Fox?" he
suggests. "I know a lady who fits the bill and is a terrific mover.

"I also noticed the Wiggles fans are mostly kiddies. I think if they
brushed their hair to the side and made a bit more effort in the
dress department – think zip-up grey vinyl shoes and distressed
bomber jackets – they might get a few lady fans."

http://www.heraldsun.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5478,17150343%
255E2902,00.html

Hi,

I just created a new group.

If you like putting up Christmas lights on your house or you like
visiting other houses with lights on.

Then come and join my new group today!

Christmas Lights in Australia
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/christmaslightsinaustralia

You'll be able to list your own house on here and find other
houses in your state or city or town or suburb.

I'm hoping to make this group big!

So if you enjoy looking or decorating your house with Christmas
lights then join up today!

Bye From Clint..

In television drama, the FFC has approved the first children's TV
drama to be produced by CAAMA — the Central Australian Aboriginal
Media Association.

The 13-part children's series Double Trouble, which will screen
on the
Nine Network, tells the story of twins, separated at birth, who meet
and swap places in an adventure that will change their lives.

The show explores their different cultures: the white and black, the
city and bush, tradition and modern-day thinking.

Double Trouble is the first children's drama to qualify in
2005/06
under the FFC's Distinctively Australian Children's Drama
Fund, which
is designed to support projects of intrinsic interest to young
Australian audiences.

"Opal Dreams" is about a young boy Ashmol Williamson and brother of
Kellyanne , a young girl, whose unshakable faith in her two imaginary
friends has profound implications for the residents of her small
hometown in the Australian Outback.

The 2 child actors are unknown, or relatively unknown
from Sydney.

The adult leads are Jacqueline McKenzie and Vince Colosimo.

It is based on a book by Ben Rice called Poppy and Pingan

More info at:

http://movies.groups.yahoo.com/group/Sapphire_Boyce/
http://movies.groups.yahoo.com/group/Christian_Byers/

Due to space running out in Indiana Evans'original fan group,this is a
new companion group , mainly for latest uploads of her work.

Most discussion will continue  to take place on Indiana's Discussion
Group

Links to the key cast members that Indiana has scenes with are
included on the Indiana Evans Newsgroup home page for added
convenience.

http://movies.groups.yahoo.com/group/Indiana_Evans_Newsgroup/

No more brainy lot than Camelot By TONY RINDFLEISCH 04sep05

GLEN Waverley and Wheelers Hill are Australia's brainiest suburbs,
if an online test of 12,000 students is any guide.

And the test shows Glen Waverley's Camelot Rise Primary School
shares the title of Victoria's brainiest school with nearby Burwood
East Primary.
Two Camelot Rise students, Naomi and Ian, are among 11 Victorians
selected from more than 12,000 pupils to compete on the national
television quiz show Australia's Brainiest Kid this month.

The Channel 10 show will start filming in Melbourne this week, with
the winner to be awarded $20,000 cash.

The online test selected 1500 to sit supervised tests in capital
cities and 63 will appear in the eight-week program.

Results of the online test suggest Victoria has the brainiest kids,
government school pupils are more intelligent than those at private
schools, and boys are brighter than girls.

Camelot Primary School principal Joan Fary said her school
encouraged students to enter competitions, seek new experiences and
build on success without fear of failure.

Children on the TV show, to be hosted by newsreader Sandra Sully,
will be tested on general knowledge, brain teasers and such topics
as maths, science, geography, spelling and literature.

http://www.heraldsun.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5478,16481196%
255E2902,00.html

Play School presenters Justine Clark and Jay Lagaia are featured on
Aus Childrens TV home page, wearing their funny hats.

Justine's fan group is at:

http://au.groups.yahoo.com/group/Justine_Clarke/
>
> "As long as there is an ABC there will be a Play School,"
> said
> former ABC Managing Director David Hill at Play School's 25th
> birthday party.
>
> Hickory Dickory Dock: People with Games
>
> Play School is hosted by a team of talented professional actors. A
> quick glance at a list of some of the presenters, friends,
> musicians, storytellers – and even the unsuccessful auditioners
> – is
> a who's who of the Australian entertainment industry.
>
> PRESENTERS
>
> Jay Laga'aia    Deborah Mailman Andrew Macfarlane
>
> Rhys Muldoon    Trisha Goddard  George Spartels
>
> John Waters     Peter Sumner    Noni Hazlehurst
>
> Lorraine Bayly  Don Spencer     John Hamblin
>
> Simon Burke     Monica Trapaga  Colin Buchanan
>
> Justine Clarke  Glenn Butcher   Sofya Gollan
>
> Anne Haddy      Kerry Francis   Karen Pang
>
> Dianne Dorgan   Alister Smart   Benita Collings
>
> Merridy Eastman Phillip Quast   Angela Webber
>
> Darlene Johnson Ken Shorter     Jan Kingsbury
>
> Angela Moore    David James     Joy Hopwood
>
> FLEETING PRESENTERS
>
> Colin Friels    Annette Shun Wah  Sarah Chadwick
>
> Liz Burch       Bob Maza        James Valentine
>
> Tom Oliver      Peter Drake     Lucy Cannon
>
> STORYTELLERS
>
> Donald MacDonald Ruth Cracknell  Rob Inglis
>
> Eric Worrell    Pauline McLeod  Barry Lovett
>
> MUSICIANS OF NOTE
>
> Warren Carr     Don Burrows     John Morrison
>
> Jane Rutter     John Sangster   Geoff Ayling
>
> AND THE UNSUCCESSFUL AUDITIONERS…
>
> Gary McDonald   Nick Enright    Robyn Nevin
>
> Pamela Stephenson       Tony Squires
>
> Play School presenters give children their full attention by
talking
> directly into the camera, which is placed at a child's height.
> They
> must never talk down to their audience. Presenter Benita Collings
> recorded the highest number of Play School episodes with 387,
> followed by John Hamblin with 356.

The people of Launceston and Northern Tasmania are being invited to
open wide and come inside to Hickory Dickory Dock – a travelling
National Museum of Australia exhibition exploring the changing face
of Play School.

Hickory Dickory Dock traces the history of the iconic ABC
children's
program at the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery at Royal Park
on its national tour.

"Hickory Dickory Dock was extremely popular when it first opened
at
Canberra's National Museum two years ago," said Museum
Director
Chris Tassell.

"Play School's appeal is multi-generational and visitors to
the
exhibition will be taken back to their childhood, or that of their
children and grand children.

"Seeing Play School's Big Ted, the rocket and flower clocks
should
have memories of their favourite Play School moments flooding back
for everyone," he said.

The exhibition came about following a donation of iconic props to
the National Museum after a set redesign on Play School, which this
year clocks up 39 years on Australian television.

"Visitors to the Museum will be able to meet some of their
favourite
characters – including Humpty, Jemima and the rest of the toys.
Footage of Noni Hazlehurst, John Waters, John Hamblin, Jay
Laga'aia
and Deborah Mailman will take visitors of all ages back to their
childhood," said Mr Tassell.

"Hickory Dickory Dock also celebrates some of Play School's
regular
educational features - including the rocket clock, and the famous
arch, round and square windows.

"There is a peek behind the scenes of Play School highlighting
the
program's commitment to the needs of young audiences and its
ability
to introduce new ideas within a familiar structure," he said.

Mr Tassell said that the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery also
had a connection with Play School having lent the program dinosaur
teeth from the Museum's collection for a special program on
dinosaurs in 2000.

Hickory Dickory Dock was developed with the assistance of the ABC
and is supported by Visions of Australia.

Hickory Dickory Dock is on show at the Queen Victoria Museum and Art
Gallery from September 3 to October 23, 2005.

**ends**

Background information about Play School and the Exhibition

Hickory Dickory Dock: Stories to Tell

Play School was based on the BBC program which started in 1964. On
July 18, 1966 the first Australian made Play School was broadcast in
New South Wales and Victoria. The BBC version ceased production in
1988.

"Play School is fast approaching icon status as a pre-school
television program. As with all true icons, Play School healthily
assesses its place in Australian culture while maintaining the
quality that put it there – the personable interaction of
audience
and presenter," Virginia Lumsden, Executive Producer, ABC
Children's
Television, 2002.

When not on set the toys live in an ABC big red wheelie bin adorned
with a gold star. But Big Ted will receive star treatment during
this tour of Australia. After his hectic stage life, he's being
handled with white gloves and sits in a glass case under strictly
controlled temperature and humidity conditions.

The original Little Ted disappeared in 1973 – thought to be
kidnapped by a staffer bound for Hong Kong. Bill Peach launched a
nationwide appeal on This Day Tonight to establish Ted's
whereabouts. The mystery remains unsolved.

Play School musical compilations have always been popular. In 1988
There's a Bear in There was the first children's album in
Australia
to go platinum.

Meeka joined the toy team in 1993 to represent multicultural
Australia. She replaced Hamble who retired with `sticky eye'
syndrome.

An indigenous toy, Jim, joined in the early 80s, along with twins
Kim and Lisa, believed to be of Vietnamese parentage.

"Television has changed over the last 36 years, but Play School
has
continued to be a program watched with enjoyment and enthusiasm.  In
2002, by keeping up with modern technology and social changes while
at the same time respecting the physical and mental development of
children, Play School still lives!" June Buckingham, long-serving
Play School Early Childhood Adviser, 2002.

Animals have always been a feature of Play School. One of the live
goats used to illustrate the story of Billy Goat's Gruff
didn't have
a beard, which was solved by a quick trip to makeup. The goat played
his role perfectly, until a shot at the end of the show revealed him
eating his fake beard.

The Play School set was redesigned in 1999. The windows, the rocket
and flower clocks were donated to the National Museum and replaced
with the slippery dip and hickory dickory dock clocks. The windows
are now a rotating prop which include a diamond window.
Play School's philosophy is to encourage a child to wonder,
think,
feel and imagine.

"As long as there is an ABC there will be a Play School,"
said
former ABC Managing Director David Hill at Play School's 25th
birthday party.

Hickory Dickory Dock: People with Games

Play School is hosted by a team of talented professional actors. A
quick glance at a list of some of the presenters, friends,
musicians, storytellers – and even the unsuccessful auditioners
– is
a who's who of the Australian entertainment industry.

PRESENTERS

Jay Laga'aia    Deborah Mailman Andrew Macfarlane

Rhys Muldoon    Trisha Goddard  George Spartels

John Waters     Peter Sumner    Noni Hazlehurst

Lorraine Bayly  Don Spencer     John Hamblin

Simon Burke     Monica Trapaga  Colin Buchanan

Justine Clarke  Glenn Butcher   Sofya Gollan

Anne Haddy      Kerry Francis   Karen Pang

Dianne Dorgan   Alister Smart   Benita Collings

Merridy Eastman Phillip Quast   Angela Webber

Darlene Johnson Ken Shorter     Jan Kingsbury

Angela Moore    David James     Joy Hopwood

FLEETING PRESENTERS

Colin Friels    Annette Shun Wah  Sarah Chadwick

Liz Burch       Bob Maza        James Valentine

Tom Oliver      Peter Drake     Lucy Cannon

STORYTELLERS

Donald MacDonald Ruth Cracknell  Rob Inglis

Eric Worrell    Pauline McLeod  Barry Lovett

MUSICIANS OF NOTE

Warren Carr     Don Burrows     John Morrison

Jane Rutter     John Sangster   Geoff Ayling

AND THE UNSUCCESSFUL AUDITIONERS…

Gary McDonald   Nick Enright    Robyn Nevin

Pamela Stephenson       Tony Squires

Play School presenters give children their full attention by talking
directly into the camera, which is placed at a child's height.
They
must never talk down to their audience. Presenter Benita Collings
recorded the highest number of Play School episodes with 387,
followed by John Hamblin with 356.



Issued: Launceston, September 2, 2005

For further information please contact

Gary Stokes, Media Officer, Launceston City Council

phone 6323 3123 or 0419 376 952




http://groups.yahoo.com/group/artznews/

Squiggle as sharp as ever By John Huxley September 1, 2005

Time may have blunted his famous pencil nose, but Mr Squiggle can
still draw a big crowd. That, at least, is the hope of Norman
Hetherington, creator of Squiggle and other enduring children's TV
puppet characters such as Rocket, Blackboard and Bill Steamshovel.

Hetherington, 84, and Squiggle, who first appeared on Australian
television in 1959, are coming out of retirement, sharpening up
their act and preparing to put on a show as part of the Mosman
Festival which begins on Friday.

"It's all very exciting - and a bit worrying," Hetherington said
yesterday, as he tried to arrange rehearsals that involve not just
his interplanetary puppet, but his assistant, daughter Rebecca, and
his scriptwriter, wife Margaret.

Squiggle's comeback coincides with an exhibition, entitled "Who's
Pulling the Strings?", at the local art gallery. It is devoted to
the works of Hetherington, an unassuming man who was not just a
master puppeteer, but an accomplished artist, entertainer and
craftsman.

The exhibition, the first of its kind, is long overdue, insists the
director of the gallery, Tony Geddes. "The man is a national
treasure. He has brought joy to millions of children and adults.
Through his wit, his imagination and his drawing skills, he's become
an integral part of Australian culture."

"Phew! It's a great honour, but all a bit embarrassing," says
Hetherington, sitting in the extensive cellar of his house,
surrounded by memorabilia.

Mother, he explains, always wanted him to have a safe job, "a
teacher or a bank clerk". Instead, he chose to go to art school,
determined to become a cartoonist. During the war he was attached to
the army entertainment unit. On his return he joined The Bulletin as
a cartoonist, working alongside artists such as Norman Lindsay.

For more than four decades he created and performed puppet shows for
the top Sydney stores, and in 1956 appeared with Nicky & Noodle at
the launch of ABC TV from a studio at Kings Cross.

In 1959, he was asked to devise a new character. "I wanted someone
to draw. So I think I had Squiggle, or someone like him, for some
time."

Even after 50 years, he and Squiggle are still good friends. He
laughs at stories of ventriloquists becoming dominated by their
dummies.

He still pulls the strings, he insists, adding with a chuckle that
it is a bit galling to see himself ageing while up in the attic
Squiggle stays forever young. "All he needs is the occasional coat
of paint."

http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2005/08/31/1125302627942.html

NEW FLASHBACK PICTURE #34
Making his debut on Melbourne's new ATV Channel 0 in 1964 is Colin
McEwan, a former radio announcer, as Captain Ace Beam on The
Children's Show (later The Magic Circle Club). Assisting the
captain
in his first appearance is Michael Boddy, Alec Finlay and Nancy
Cato.
(Footnote: Colin McEwan recently passed away, on 22 August 2005, on
the Gold Coast at the age of 64) Picture: TV WEEK, 8 August 1964

http://televisionau.siv.net.au

This young New Zealand Actor,will be talking about his craft today on
Hot Source.

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0517535/

Australian story ... Rabbit-Proof Fence is the only local film in
the British top 50.

Australian critics and filmmakers offer their list of must-see
movies for children. Alexa Moses reports.

Peter Castaldi and his 14-year-old daughter operate under a
democratic cinematic regime. On Saturdays or Sundays when they both
have time, they go to the movies. One visit, the pair see a
commercial blockbuster chosen by Isabelle. The next, Castaldi
chooses.

"I see one of her bad films and she sees one of my good ones," is
how Castaldi puts it. "To begin with, I dragged her in kicking and
screaming. Now it's less and less."

As a film critic and director of the Australian Film Commission's
Big Screen touring film festival, Castaldi naturally believes cinema
is crucial to children's development. So it was with pleasure that
he read a list released by the British Film Institute late last
month of 10 films the institute believes children should see by the
age of 14. This cinema canon was chosen by filmmakers, teachers and
the heads of children's film organisations across Europe.

Behind the list is a belief that adults have become overly
restrictive about what children see. Discussion about children's
viewing, the institute argues, should focus more on exploration than
prohibition and censorship. There's also the task of deciding what
age is the right age to see a particular film, and that's without
factoring in the individual child's maturity. Castaldi, for
instance, has been taking his daughter to see carefully vetted MA15+
films since she was 12.

The institute's top 10 includes obvious picks such as The Wizard of
Oz, ET and Toy Story, some of the offerings are more obscure: the
Japanese film Spirited Away, the 1948 Italian classic Bicycle
Thieves, Swedish director Lukas Moodysson's romantic comedy Show Me
Love, and the Charles Laughton classic The Night of the Hunter.

The list has been criticised for being too prescriptive, too fuddy-
duddy, and for being heavy with films in which boys are the heroes.
From an Australian perspective, it barely reflects our culture. Only
one local movie made the top 50: Phillip Noyce's 2002 film Rabbit-
Proof Fence.

Such a list, then, could be expanded to include other adventurous
films that tell Australian stories - not necessarily made for
children - that children under 14 could appreciate.

Castaldi loves the list, but would include more silent films, such
as Buster Keaton's The General and Charlie Chaplin's Modern Times.
If more Australian films were to be added, he would plug the 1976
film Storm Boy, adapted from a novel by Colin Thiele. Storm Boy is
the only film that has been part of the Big Screen festival for five
years.

Other Australian or semi-Australian films he believes would be
appropriate for older children are the "quite scary" Picnic at
Hanging Rock, and the movie Romeo + Juliet, directed by the
Australian Baz Luhrmann, which made the British institute's top 50.

"Because it was financed overseas, Romeo + Juliet doesn't qualify as
an Australian film, but it's so irreverent it could only have come
from a country like Australia," Castaldi says.

Denny Lawrence, a filmmaker and the chairman of the Australian Film
Institute, is also a fan of the British list.

"I think it's terribly important children see powerful adult stories
as well as films aimed specifically for children," he says.

He would fight for Walkabout, from the director Nicolas Roeg,
Looking for Alibrandi, directed by Kate Woods, and George Miller's
Babe to be added, although the second Babe film is not usually
considered Australian.

Dr Patricia Edgar, chairwoman of the World Summit on Media for
Children, and founding director of the Australian Children's
Television Foundation, feels the list has an overly European
sensibility.

"But they're all life-affirming legends," Edgar says. "I think it's
important for kids to see those sort of films."

She would add the comedy School of Rock, directed by Richard
Linklater and starring Jack Black, to the list. "The pity is, you
wouldn't be able to come up with a list of Australian films to
actually match that," she says. "We don't have the same European
tradition for making films for kids."

The Australian film she thinks children would enjoy is the 1957 film
The Shiralee, starring Peter Finch, because of the strong child's
perspective within the movie.

Peter Tapp, from the Australian Teachers of Media, which produces
study guides for students and teachers about films and
documentaries, reckons Australian children should take a look at the
1983 classic Careful, He Might Hear You, from the novel by Sumner
Locke Elliott. He thinks older children might appreciate John
Duigan's coming-of-age flick The Year My Voice Broke, starring Noah
Taylor.

And the children? Admittedly, she's exposed to more art-house cinema
than most teenagers, but Isabelle Castaldi says she's learning to
appreciate her father's "different" films. She last took her father
to see Madagascar, and he took her to the Australian film Peaches,
which she loved. She adores Disney animation, and her favourite film
of all time is Monty Python's Life of Brian, which she first watched
when she was four. What she would love to see added to the list is
the Australian film Looking for Alibrandi.

"I would use a list like that if people said they were good movies,"
Isabelle says.

"If it appealed to me, I'd definitely rent it."

THE BFI TOP 10

·Bicycle Thieves (Vittorio De Sica, 1948, Italy)

·ET The Extra-Terrestrial (Steven Spielberg, 1982, US)

·Kes (Ken Loach, 1969, UK)

·The Night of the Hunter (Charles Laughton, 1955, US)

·Les Quatre Cents Coups (400 Blows) ( Francois Truffaut, 1959,
France)

· Show Me Love (Lukas Moodys- son, 1998, Sweden/Denmark)

·Spirited Away (Hayao Miyazaki, 2001, Japan)

·Toy Story (John Lasseter, 1995, US)

·Where is My Friend's House? (Abbas Kiarostami, 1987, Iran)

·The Wizard of Oz (Victor Fleming, 1939, US)

AN AUSTRALIAN TOP 10

·Babe (George Miller, 1995)

·Careful, He Might Hear You (Carl Schultz, 1983)

·Looking for Alibrandi (Kate Woods, 2000)

·Picnic at Hanging Rock (Peter Weir, 1975)

·Rabbit-Proof Fence (Phillip Noyce, 2002)

·Storm Boy (Henri Safran, 1976)

·The Shiralee (Leslie Norman, 1957)

·Strictly Ballroom (Baz Luhrmann, 1992)

·Walkabout (Nicolas Roeg, 1971)

·The Year My Voice Broke (John Duigan, 1987)

August 4, 2005
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2005/08/03/1122748696418.html

Mortified follows the adventures of 11-year-old Taylor Fry whose rich
inner world of imagination is played out on the screen. Animals
suddenly talk, Egyptian mummies come to life and Taylor takes career
advice from St Francis of Assisi. Taylor's a lively kid, courageous
and with plenty of attitude, but the truth is she feels as if she
doesn't belong. Mortified is about the awkward 11-year-old in us all.

The lead role of Taylor will be played by Marny Kennedy, young
Brisbane actors Nicolas Dunn and Dajana Cahill also have major roles.
Other Queensland actors in regular roles include Rachel Blakely,
Sally McKenzie and Steven Tandy.

The producers of the series are Phillip Bowman from Enjoy
Entertainment and Bernadette O'Mahony from the Australian Children's
Television Foundation. Phillip has produced adult and children's
drama in both the UK and Australia, including the children's animated
series Lizzie's Library and the UK series Minder. Bernadette's
credits as producer include the children's series Legacy of the
Silver Shadow and Crash Zone.

The Australian Children's Television Foundation produces quality
children's programming which has screened in over 100 countries and
won more than 95 national and international awards. Their programs
include Round the Twist, The Genie from Down Under and Noah and
Saskia.

Mortified was created and written by scriptwriter and author Angela
Webber. Series director is Pino Amenta. Other directors on the series
include Paul Moloney, Ian Gilmour and Queenslanders Michael Pattinson
and Evan Clarry.

Queensland heads of department include production designer Georgie
Greenhill and director of photography Henry Pierce.

Mortified has been financed with the assistance of the Film Finance
Corporation Australia, Australian Children's Television Foundation,
Pacific Film and Television Commission and Film Victoria's Melbourne
Film Office.

> http://www.if.com.au/

Filming of a $9.3 million live action children¹s
television series, Mortfied, begins on the Gold Coast today.

Mortified is a co-production between the Australian Children¹s
Television Foundation and Enjoy Entertainment for the Nine Network
Australia, Disney Channel and the BBC.

The Pacific Film and Television Commission is a major investor in
the 26-part series which will be shot entirely on location on the Gold
Coast.

Several of the lead actors and senior production crew are from
Queensland.

http://www.if.com.au/press/2005/07/18.html#item10441

Australia's first Indigenous children's short-film series is
attracting much deserved national and international attention.
Described as 'beautiful and inspirational', Us Mob is a a docu-drama
series about Aboriginal kids living in the town-camps of Alice
Springs told by the kids at the coalface of a social and cultural
landscape filled with beauty and despair.

Us Mob is compelling, funny, rich in depth and unique in content and
it's coming soon to the big screen in Darwin.

'Through the Us Mob project it is hoped that young people worldwide
can experience some of the many aspects of bicultural life in central
Australia and be encouraged to understand life from another
perspective — to share their thoughts and their own experiences,'
David Vadiveloo (Director).

You can access and interact with the lives of these four teenagers as
they take you through their challenges and cultural experiences that
shape their lives, check it out: http://www.usmob.com.au

The film version of Us Mob screens at the Deckchair Cinema on Sunday
24 July and Monday 25 July at 7.30pm with a special presentation by
the Director of the series, David Vadiveloo.

Us Mob
24 and 25 July, 7.30pm
Deckchair Cinema, Darwin

UsMob is the first project to be launched under the AFC and ABC New
Media and Digital Services AFC/ABC Broadband Production Initiative
(BPI), which supports dynamic projects developed and produced
specifically for broadband delivery on ABC Online.

Tonight's caps from Blue Water High have been uploaded to:

http://tv.groups.yahoo.com/group/Blue_Water_High/

Thanks Craig for adding the link to Girl TV

Girl TV
website for promoting the girls from girl tv
http://girl-2005.tripod.com

Some other children's programmes are:

Mr Squiggle
http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Mister-Squiggle

Ocean Girl
http://www.factbites.com/topics/Ocean-Girl

Round The Twist
http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Round-the-Twist

Skippy The Bush Kangaroo
http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Skippy-the-Bush-Kangaroo

Documentaries and a handful of low-budget Australian gems impressed
patrons at the Sydney Film Festival, write Garry Maddox and Alexa
Moses.

A gripping Danish drama about two mismatched brothers and an
entertaining American documentary on schoolchildren learning ballroom
dancing have won the major prizes at the close of the Sydney Film
Festival.

Director Susanne Bier, best known for Open Hearts, captured the
audience vote with Brothers, which shows an army major's mission in
Afghanistan dramatically changing the relationship with his petty
criminal younger brother and wife back in Denmark. At a festival
premiering at least 24 films headed for cinemas, this was one that
did not have an Australian release scheduled when it won best feature
in the Contemporary World Cinema program that screened at the State
Theatre.

The awards, announced at the State on Saturday night, closed a
positive first festival for artistic director Lynden Barber. His well-
received program was strongest on documentaries, marred only by poor
programming in some prime timeslots and a rash of technical problems.

The documentary award went to Mad Hot Ballroom, a lively account of
underprivileged New York schoolchildren learning to dance then
training for a competition that brings triumphs and tears. Made by
director Marilyn Agrelo and writer-producer Amy Sewell, it is a dance-
floor version of the documentary Spellbound and is heading for
cinemas in September.

Advertisement
AdvertisementMad Hot Ballroom also won the audience award for the
Sidebar program that screened in other cinemas.

The awards, which have taken over from the top 10 audience-favourite
lists normally issued by the festival, were a boost for Sydney
director Kriv Stenders, whose self-funded romance, Blacktown, won
best feature in the Sidebar program. The raw love story between two
lost souls, an Aboriginal bus driver played by Tony Ryan and an Anglo
office worker played by Niki Owen, is another audience favourite
without a distributor.

Alongside The Magician, a mockumentary about a Melbourne hitman, and
Mosaic, an intense drama about the relationship between a young
sexual assault victim and her abuser, Blacktown showed the surprising
vitality of self-funded Australian features at the festival.

Also impressive was the Aboriginal short Green Bush, in which a radio
station DJ sees a parade of indigenous Australia go through his
studio one night.

Lively and often provocative were three American docos - Inside Deep
Thoat, on the hugely popular porn movie from the 1970s, Enron: The
Smartest Guys in the Room, about the infamous American corporate
collapse, and Tell Them Who You Are, a son's account of his
relationship with a famous father.

Also up there were Shake Hands With The Devil, showing a UN military
leader's return to Rwanda after the mass slaughter of a decade
earlier, Murderball, on the furious world of wheelchair rugby, Be
Here To Love Me, on musician Townes Van Zandt, and Sisters in Law, on
the colourful justice system in Cameroon.

Some of the most engaging films mixed forms - Ryan was a brilliant
short animated documentary and I Am A Sex Addict was a comic
dramatised documentary about American filmmaker Caveh Zahedi's
obsession with prostitutes that cost him two marriages.

There was also vitality in the Australian documentaries, notably
director Kathy Drayton's Girl In A Mirror, about the counterculture
photographer Carol Jerrems; Janet Merewether's Jabe Babe, about a
woman with the growing disease Marfan syndrome; and Blowin' In The
Wind, David Bradbury's confronting film about the United States' use
of depleted uranium in warheads that were unleashed on Iraq and
Kosovo and, it's suggested, possibly even tested in Australia.

The features at the festival were largely less distinctive. While it
left audiences strangely silent, the dramatised account of how a
carefree Muslim became a September 11 hijacker in The Hamburg Cell
took a long time to become absorbing. The pay-off was a powerful
conclusion that had the hijackers boarding planes amid images of the
destruction their mission caused.

The festival closed with the animated Howl's Moving Castle from
Japanese director Hayao Miyazaki, who won an Oscar for Spirited Away.
The vivid fantasy, set during a war involving flying destroyers and
strange spirit creatures, has a storyline that is difficult to
summarise and just as hard to follow.

A teenage hat-maker, Sophie, is transformed into an old woman by a
witch then falls in love with a wizard who lives in a giant castle
that walks on chicken legs between locations. Shown at the festival
with subtitles rather than the dubbed American version, Howl's Moving
Castle has an inventive charm.

While still calculating ticket sales, the festival's general manager,
Jennifer Naughton, considers the expansion to the George Street
cinema centre to have been a success.

"If you're converting audiences from a multiplex to a film festival,
it has worked," she says.

But for a multi-venue festival seeking to bring in a new audience,
there were way too many logistical and technical problems. Paradise
Now screened without subtitles; Dias was replaced after arriving with
the wrong subtitles; there was confusion over the rescheduling of New
Police Story and Story Undone; and there were projection, microphone,
ticketing and sponsorship servicing problems.

Simple things upset patrons: not being allowed back into cinemas
during Q and A sessions; vacant seats during supposedly sold-out
sessions; late starts while audiences queued for tickets; confusion
when non-subscribers took allocated seats; subscribers having to pay
for the silent film instead of having it as part of their program;
and a low-profile, at least initially, at the George Street cinemas.

"It's a festival with over 200 films," says Naughton. "You're always
going to find there are some small issues, particularly in the first
few days."

The most popular sessions for ticket sales were Howl's Moving Castle,
which organisers say could have sold out twice at the 2000- seat
State Theatre on closing night.

Also selling out at the State were the Argentinian drama Bombon - el
Perro, French thriller 36 Quai de Orfevres, Latino comedy A Day
Without a Mexican and Bosnian comedy Life is a Miracle.

Organisers say the biggest disappointment in terms of ticket sales
was the German silent film People on Sunday, which had live
accompaniment from the 14-piece Ensemble Offspring.

http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2005/06/26/1119724524712.html?
oneclick=true