NSW playing the starring role in Australian film and TV industry

 

Thursday, 2 November 2023

 

NSW has recorded blockbuster results in the annual wrap of television and film production, accounting for more than half of the $2.3 billion spend across Australia.

 

Screen Australia’s 33rd annual Drama Report released today shows a content boom is underway and NSW is cashing in most, with production spend locally hitting more than $1.3 billion in 2022/23 – a 20% increase in 12 months.

 

The state set a new record for the third year in a row, with spend on foreign features up 305% since 2021–22 and foreign TV and Video On Demand spend up 25% and 77% respectively.

 

The state’s success in securing big-budget international productions The Fall Guy, Anyone But You and Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, helped to drive foreign expenditure in the state to a record $822 million, more than half of the $1.22 billion national total of foreign production.

 

Post-production and visual effects continues to grow from strength to strength across the country, generating a total of $714 million in 2022/23. NSW saw a 15% increase in post-production and visual effects in a single year, bringing a total of $356 million from domestic and international film and television post production into the state’s economy.

 

This result is 64% above the 5-year average. In 2022–23, New South Wales accounted for 50% of Australian PDV spend, slightly above the 5-year average of 49%. Sydney based, world-leading post-production and visual effects studios including, Animal Logic and Fin Design contributing to major releases including The Magician’s Elephant and Marvel’s Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. Upcoming releases Furiosa and The Shrinking of Treehorn are also the result of NSW’s leading post-production and visual effects talent from DNEG and Animal Logic.

 

Minister for the Arts John Graham said:

 

“NSW is the leading state for film and television production in Australia demonstrating remarkable growth and I welcome these results. Close to 50% of the industry is based here, with over 2,300 screen production businesses employing over 15,000 people.

 

“There has been extraordinary growth on the post production and visual effects side of the industry. Our NSW talent is second to none in post production studios and visual effects suites. I’m pleased to see these often unsung heroes of our industry are getting the national and international recognition they deserve.

 

“The screen industry is vital for the state’s economy, creating jobs, driving growth and injecting much-needed dollars into our regional communities, it is also critical for our social wellbeing.

 

“Stories that inspire, entertain, and bring us together are important for the social fabric of our communities, and showcase our great state on a global stage.

 

“With the continued support of the NSW Government through Screen NSW, I look forward to seeing our local screen industry continue to boom and showing that we really are the place for every story.”

 

Head of Screen NSW, Kyas Hepworth said:

 

“With a strong pipeline of local and international production and post-production, visual effects and animation, the content boom has continued throughout 2022-23.

 

“Screen NSW continues to offer targeted programs that will help the NSW industry go from strength to strength. We’re here to help tell your stories and take our local content and unparalleled filming locations to a global audience, whether it’s on the big screen, or the one in your back pocket.”

 

Major productions filmed in NSW in 2022-23

• Furiosa, the latest film in the Mad Max franchise is currently in post-production. It has supported over 1,000 local jobs.
• Universal Pictures’ The Fall Guy filming ended in February 2023. The film, starring Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt, will showcase Sydney to the world. It delivered almost 4,000 jobs.
• 20th Century Studios’ blockbuster Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes filming ended in February 2023.
• Anyone But You filming ended in March 2023. Set in Sydney, it will showcase NSW to the world. It created 390 NSW jobs.
• Significant local productions include Warwick Thornton’s The New Boy, which was selected for the Cannes Film Festival Un Certain Regard and opened the Sydney Film Festival.
• Other local productions include inaugural Screen NSW First Nations Screen Fellowship recipient Jon Bell’s The Moogai feature film, Erotic Stories (SBS), Paper Dolls (Paramount+), The Disposables (ABC Me), Prosper (Stan), and the Royal Flying Doctor Series (Seven).

 

The full report is available on the Screen Australia website.