Perth Film Studios to welcome Stan Original mystery-thriller, Two Birds

Screenwest is pleased to announce Australia’s newest world class studios, Perth Film Studios has welcomed six-part Stan Original Two Birds, from BAFTA and Peabody Award winning producer Patrick Spence (Mr Bates vs The Post Office, A Spy Among Friends, Stan Original The Hack) through AC Chapter One and Western Australian producer Martha Coleman (Stan Original Scrublands: Silver, Diary of an Uber Driver) through Third Act Stories, with pre-production kicking off this week.

Filming in studio and on location in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, the series is led by BAFTA award winning Sheridan Smith (I Fought The Law, No Return, The Teacher, Mrs Biggs) and will be supported by an incredible Australian cast including Judy Davis (Stan Original Nitram, Mystery Road) and Stephen Peacocke (Five Bedrooms, The Newsreader).

The Stan Original Two Birds will be the first production to film in the brand-new Perth Film Studios and is supported by the WA Production Attraction Incentive. The incentive is designed to attract high profile, market driven footloose screen productions to Western Australia and is managed by Screenwest. The production is also accessing the Australian Government’s Location Offset.

The series is estimated to inject more than $17 million into the WA economy and directly employ more than 100 Western Australians cast and crew.

Martha Coleman, founder of WA production company Third Act Stories has joined forces with international heavy weight producers AC Chapter One to produce the series.

Western Australian writer Megan Palinkas is writing an episode and Western Australian heads of department include Production Designer Clayton Jauncey, First Assistant Director John Fairhead, Costume Designer Lisa Galea Gunning, Hair and Makeup Designer Karen Sims, Sound Recordist Gavin Repton, Stills Photographer Finlay MacKay, Unit Publicist Adriana Begovich, Post Production Supervisor Louise Bertoncini and Post Production Facility Sandbox.

Two Birds is a unique and twisty crime mystery set against the rarely-seen-on-screen landscape of Kalgoorlie, a remote Australian mining town carved from red earth, where rusted shafts and weatherboard pubs fade into endless bush. This harsh, beautiful, and isolating world clings tightly to its secrets.

The series centres on Constable Izzie Cornwell (Smith), who arrives in Dugdale from the UK, hoping for a fresh start, only to have one disastrous misstep pull her into an increasingly tight web of deceit, guilt, and rising danger. In this new take on the red dirt crime genre, our detective is complicit in the case she is investigating, with her morals compromised and personal burdens driving each turn of the investigation.

Nine Managing Director of Streaming & Broadcast in Australia, Amanda Laing said: “For more than a decade, we’ve backed bold local stories and the creative talent behind them, building a slate that resonates locally and travels globally. Two Birds is a strong example of that commitment in action, bringing together world-class international partners with Australian creatives, and marking the first production at Perth Film Studios. It reflects the kind of sustained, long-term investment and creative ambition required to grow Australia’s production capability and ensure local stories continue to reach audiences both here and around the world.”

ITV’s Commissioner Callum Dziedzic said: “From the very first script, it felt like we’d struck gold with Two Birds. Built on an irresistible hook, Helen FitzGerald has crafted a propulsive, twisty thriller with real humanity. Sheridan is perfect in the lead and brings her inimitable warmth and depth to Izzie. We can’t wait for our audience to join her in Dugdale and see the extraordinary scale of the gold mine for themselves.”

Executive Producer Patrick Spence said: “A lifetime of producing abroad has taught me how badly we need great partners in each country. But working with the Western Australian team has been on a different level. Screenwest has helped introduce us to a world class studio, brilliant crew, fantastic locations in Kalgoorlie and backed us with meaningful support.”

Producer Martha Coleman said: “It’s incredibly exciting to be the first production to film in the brand new, utterly world-class Perth Film Studios. Patrick Spence and AC Chapter One are premium program creators and their choice of Western Australia as the setting for Two Birds creates huge benefits for the local industry and the state.  It’s a joy to be part of this milestone production.”

Writer Helen FitzGerald said: “I’ve been dreaming about Izzie Cornwell and Mrs Baxter in my head for years now, they are the most personal characters I have ever created. I asked Griff if we could try for Sheridan and Judy to play them, and he only came back with them both! ‘Two Birds’, indeed. So this really is a dream come true for me.”

Sheridan Smith said: “I’m thrilled to be playing the irresistibly complex Izzie Cornwell who is in search of new beginnings in Australia. Helen FitzGerald has created a dream role for me, as Izzie, through no fault of her own, becomes embroiled in a web of secrets and lies. I’m also looking forward to returning to film in Australia and working with the team at AC Chapter One, ITV and STAN, Australia as we bring Two Birds to life.”

Perth Film Studios will be hosting independent and government-incentivised productions throughout 2026 as it provides a home for increasing screen production activity in WA across scripted and documentary projects.

A Western Australian filmmaking team is currently utilising the studios as a production base for Saltwater Cowboys of Shark Bay, a documentary series for NITV and SBS. Produced by Karla Hart, Nathan Gibbs and Shari Hutchison and executive produced by Renée Kennedy, the six-part First Nations-led series is directed by Kimberley Benjamin and Gary Hamaguchi.

Screenwest CEO Rikki Lea Bestall said: “Screenwest is pleased to be supporting the first production to take place at the brand-new Perth Film Studios. Two Birds is set to be a prestige drama series and we look forward to working with Third Act Stories, AC Chapter One, Stan and ITV. We’re excited to see Perth Film Studios hosting incoming productions like Two Birds, as well as local independent productions such as Saltwater Cowboys of Shark Bay over the coming months.”

Perth Film Studios CEO Tom Avison said: “We are enormously proud to welcome Two Birds as the first production to shoot at Perth Film Studios. A project that brings together international partners, Australian producers and Western Australian crews is a strong signal of what this studio – and Western Australia more broadly – can offer as a base for ambitious, high-end screen production with global reach.

Equally important to us is what this moment means for our local industry. Seeing Saltwater Cowboys of Shark Bay working on site at the same time is incredibly exciting – it reflects our ambition for a studio that is alive, inclusive and grounded in Western Australian storytelling whilst supporting growth in the screen ecosystem, where projects of every scale can thrive side-by-side.”

Comments attributed to Premier of Western Australia Roger Cook: “This is an exciting development, and we look forward to welcoming the Two Birds production to our world-class Perth Film Studios. Our local screen industry is going from strength to strength with a production of this calibre being filmed in our studios in Perth and in Kalgoorlie. The Two Birds production will generate $17 million for the State’s economy and employ 100 local cast and crew, which is all part of my government’s strategy to diversify the economy and create local creative jobs.”

Comments attributed to Creative Industries Minister Simone McGurk: “I’m thrilled to announce the first production at the Perth Film Studios, with internationally renowned and celebrated Australian actor Judy Davis. The Two Birds production is estimated to generate $17 million for the State’s economy and employ over 100 local cast and crew. This is all part of the Cook Government’s vision to grow the State’s film industry to help diversify the economy, create local jobs and unlock new opportunities for the creative workforce in Western Australia.”

Two Birds will be executive produced by the BAFTA and Peabody Award winning Patrick Spence (Mr Bates vs The Post Office, A Spy Among Friends, Stan Original The Hack) through AC Chapter One and produced by Martha Coleman (Stan Original Scrublands: Silver) through Third Act Stories. Written by Helen FitzGerald (The Cry) and Megan Palinkas (Heartbreak High), and directed by BAFTA nominated James Griffiths (The Ballad of Wallis Island, Maternal, Episodes) and Corrie Chen (Stan Original Good Cop/Bad Cop). Stan Executive Producers are Andy Ryan and Donna Chang, alongside ITV’s Callum Dziedzic, James Griffiths, Helen FitzGerald and Luke Speed. Commissioned on behalf of ITV by Director of Drama Polly Hill and Drama Commissioner Callum Dziedzic. Two Birds is a co-production between ITV and Stan, with major production investment from Screenwest and the Western Australian Production Attraction Incentive. Two Birds is produced in association with and distributed internationally by ITV Studios.

The Stan Original Two Birds is currently in pre-production.

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