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Screen Queensland and Screenworks have announced the ten members of the newly formed Far North and North Queensland Screen Advisory Committee to support Screen Queensland’s multi-year $4 million North Queensland Regional Program. 

Delivered in partnership with Screenworks, the program is designed to build the production capacity of the local screen industry across North Queensland and Far North Queensland through targeted skills development. 

The 10 members of the committee offer vast industry expertise across a range of disciplines including screenwriting, directing, cinematography and production. Over the next three years they will provide recommendations to help shape the impact and benefits of the program in the region. 

Chair of the Far North Queensland Studios Implementation Group and Member for Mulgrave Curtis Pitt said that the appointment of the new Far North and North Queensland Advisory Committee was the next step in securing a robust screen production industry. 

Pitt advised “forging a new multi-million dollar industry based in Far North Queensland is more than just building a sound stage and production studio.

“It was always my intent that we engage and work with local industry practitioners, to ensure the longevity of the industry and authenticity of local and First Nations content.

“The committee will ensure that we continue to develop the educational components associated with production, to ensure that we’re not only providing great locations, but can back that up with access to screen practitioners and production experts.”

Screen Queensland Chief Executive Kylie Munnich said the primary goal of the North Queensland Regional Program is to increase screen production opportunities for the region, through locally produced projects as well as those attracted from interstate and overseas. 

“We have proudly appointed a committee of diverse and accomplished local practitioners with the knowledge and perspectives to inform a rigorous, strategic program focused specifically on nurturing local production talent,” said Munnich.

“Not only do we want to see more Queensland-made productions telling authentic regional stories, but also it’s essential that we create a strong local crew-base, primed to work on a range of productions, including those that will occupy Screen Queensland Studios: Cairns from 2023.” 

Screenworks Chief Executive Ken Crouch said that next year’s opening of the studios will mark an exciting new era for the screen industry in the north of the state. 

“The inaugural members of our Advisory Committee have a wide range and depth of experience in the sector and we’re confident their insights and advice will be invaluable in helping guide the North Queensland Regional Program,” said Crouch.

“This will ensure that crews in the region are appropriately skilled and ready for the anticipated production boom.”   

Productions recently supported by the Queensland Government through Screen Queensland in North and Far North Queensland include U.S. feature film Wizards!, Stan Original documentary Revealed: Reefshot, Stan Original drama Black Snow, reality series Australian Survivor: Blood V Water and Universal Pictures’ romantic comedy Ticket to Paradise, which opens in cinemas next month. 

Nominations for the Far North and North Queensland Screen Advisory Committee opened in May 2022 and the call for applications was followed by a detailed selection process to appoint the 10 representatives, drawn from a broad cross-section of the region’s screen sector.

The far north and north queensland screen advisory committee:
Jan Cattoni – CQUniversity Representative
John Baker – Committee Member
Riannon Belcher – Screenworks Representative
Rowena Billard – Screen Queensland Representative
Gabriel Deveraux – Supplementary Member
Aaron Fa’aoso – Committee Member
Karen Jackson – Committee Member
Daniel Mulvihill – Supplementary Member
Caden Pearson – Committee Member
Tamera Simpson – Committee Member

Image: The Far North and North Queensland Screen Advisory Committee. Top Row (from left): Jan Cattoni, John Baker, Riannon Belcher, Rowena Billard, Gabriel Deveraux. Bottom Row (from left): Aaron Fa'Aoso, Karen Jackson, Daniel Mulvihill, Caden Pearson, Tamera Simpson.

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