2022 AACTA Pitch: Regional Landscapes in partnership with SCREENWORKS

Have a great idea for the next classic Aussie film? Inspired by Australia’s diverse and unique landscapes? It’s time to get writing again for the chance to pitch your idea to key industry figures and receive developmental support to take your film project to market.

Entries are now open for the third AACTA Pitch: Regional Landscapes in partnership with Screenworks and AISF; a national pitching and screenwriting initiative aimed at discovering and developing an original feature film that celebrates Australia’s stunning regional areas. This initiative presents a great opportunity for early career filmmakers, particularly those from regional areas, to build a supportive industry network.

This year, finalists will be pitching for the chance to receive:

• A grant to cover travel and accommodation expenses to attend the 2022 AISF in New York, USA
• Complimentary access to all AISF sessions including networking opportunities in an exclusive setting with US based producers, studio executives, and other key decision makers
• Script development guidance
• Access to the AWG Pathways Program
• A guidance and feedback session with each of the AACTA PITCH: Regional Landscapes in partnership with Screenworks judges/Industry Panel
• 3 Day pass to all sessions at the 2022 Screenworks Regional to Global Screen Forum
• 1x AACTA annual membership
• 1x Screenworks annual membership
• 1x Australian Writers’ Guild associate membership
• 2x tickets to the AACTA Awards Ceremony

Entries for AACTA Pitch Regional Landscapes 2022 are now closed. 

$40 AACTA, AWG, or Screenworks members 

$60 non AACTA, AWG, or Screenworks members

February 9 - Call for Entries Opens (Round 1)

Entrants are asked to submit a Logline (1-2 sentence description of the film), up to 250 word description of the regional area where the film is set, 1,000 word synopsis/treatment/outline, first 5 pages of the screenplay, and resume/s of each of the creatives in the team.

March 14 - Entries Close

Entries are due by 11.59pm AEDT, Monday March 14, 2022. 

March 25 - Review & Shortlist

April 4 - Top 5 finalists confirmed (delayed)

Mid-late April - Final Pitch Training

May 12 - Final Pitch

May 28 - Recipient Announced

THE BANK MANAGER (set in Cloncurry, QLD) | Madeleine Chaplain, Luke Chaplain
Based on true events surrounding the 1932 Cloncurry bank robberies. Amidst drought and recession, a farmer assembles a team of colourful locals to pull off a sophisticated heist. It will take skill, bravery, a few bars of soap and a woman named Peach. But in this small country town, where everyone knows everyone’s secrets - will they succeed? Or worse - will they be caught? 

BLACK MAGIC (set in Scone, NSW) | Leonie Kelly, Di Smith
From the outback to Tarakan, bound together by love, loss and incredible danger, two warriors fight for the recognition of Len Waters, the first Aboriginal fighter pilot, Australia’s ‘Missing Man’.

LAND’S END (set in Ballarat, VIC) | Lou Sanz, John Kachoyan
After a devastating loss, an emergency room Doctor flees to a remote property ‘prepping’ for an imagined apocalypse. But when a global catastrophe actually strikes, survivors start trickling in and she’s forced to choose between isolation or life amongst the survivors.

RADIO INFREQUENCY (set in Kangaroo Island, SA) | Dave Wade
Volunteers from a community radio station are forced to navigate their way through a merger bid from a multimedia corporation with ulterior motives.

THE TRACK (set on the Birdsville Track, QLD/SA) | Travis Akbar, Adam Gerard
Following an abduction, cops and journalists charter a plane to the Birdsville Track to negotiate the safe release of three hostages from dangerous, armed convicts. Based on true events.

Tony Briggs

Tony Briggs is an Australian stage and screen creative - actor, writer, director, and producer - based in Melbourne. He is the creator and writer of the hit feature film The Sapphires, adapted from his award- winning stage play The Sapphires. Tony is co-creator, executive producer, and writer of the eight-part TV series The Warriors. As an actor of many years, Tony holds various credits to his name including roles in The Fires, The Slap, Seven Types of Ambiguity, Nowhere Boys, The Broken Shore, and The Circuit.

Tony is the Artistic Director of the Birrarangga Film Festival, a celebration of Indigenous films from around the globe. Tony runs his Melbourne base production company Typecast Entertainment which has various film and Television projects in development.

Peter Cron

Peter Cron is a Vice President of Production & Development at Likely Story. His past credits include Someone Great, I’m Thinking of Ending Things, Sing Street, American Ultra, Indignation, Topside, The Circle, Collateral Beauty, Every Day, Things Heard & Seen, and The Whole Truth.  His upcoming films include Jennifer Kaytin Robinson’s Strangers for Netflix, and William Oldroyd’s Eileen, based on the novel by Ottessa Moshfegh, starring Thomasin McKenzie and Anne Hathaway.  Prior to his tenure at Likely Story, Cron was a creative executive at both Scott Rudin Productions and The Weinstein Company.

Kevin Misher

Kevin Misher has produced feature films via his Los Angeles-based production company, Misher Films for over two decades. After receiving a Bachelor’s degree in economics, Misher soon relocated to Los Angeles working in talent agencies, where he oversaw numerous productions, including DONNIE BRASCO, starring Al Pacino and Johnny Depp and the sports classic RUDY.

Misher worked as the President of Production at Universal Pictures from 1996 to 2001, after which he left to form Misher Films and in the two decades since has produced a variety of films in all genres with A List talent in front of and behind the camera - THE INTERPRETER, PUBLIC ENEMIES, and MIRROR, MIRROR to name a few. In 2021 Amazon premiered Misher’s sequel to the comedy classic COMING TO AMERICA with Eddie Murphy to record breaking viewership levels and Apple and Amblin’s FINCH starring Tom Hanks premiered as the most viewed movie in Apple’s history.

Rachel Okine

Rachel Okine is the Head of Features and Development Executive at Stan. After starting her career in acquisitions at FilmFour, Rachel was the first employee of Hopscotch, and has been the Managing Director of Aquarius Films as well as Vice President of International Acquisitions for STX Entertainment.

Michael Pontin

Michael Pontin is the head of Ticket To Ride, a subsidiary of See Pictures. He has produced award winning films, including LONG STORY SHORT for writer/director Josh Lawson in 2021 and JUNE AGAIN, which was theatrically released in Australia in May 2021 by Studio Canal and won the 2021 AACTA Award for Best Score.