WA Screen Industry End of Year Wrap Up 2024
2024 has been a bumper year of production in WA. A major factor contributing to this has been the increased support from Lotterywest and the WA Government.
We saw record levels of scripted film and television produced in 2024. Local scripted productions that entered principal photography include Invisible Boys, Birthright, We Bury the Dead, Proclivitas, Warm Props, Scrublands: Silver and animated series Tales for Outer Suburbia.
Clockwise from top left: Revelation Perth International Film Festival 2024, first look image of Our Medicine, CinefestOZ 2024 Film Prize Jury, Invisible Boys.
We welcomed back to the State The Twelve for Season 3 and Mystery Road: Origin for Season 2. We also welcomed Academy Award-winning director Bruce Beresford’s feature film Overture.
Scripted feature film Runt was released in September. It has taken over $6 million at the Australian box office and is now the 11th most popular Australian family film of all time.
The Surfer, which was filmed in Yallingup and stars Nicolas Cage, had its world premiere at the 77th Festival de Cannes in May. In June three WA feature films, He Ain’t Heavy, Kid Snow and 200% Wolf had their world premieres at the Sydney Film Festival.
The year saw WA documentary companies continuing to produce high-quality content. Some of the projects include Shipwreck Hunters Australia Season 2, West Coast Cops, Our Medicine, The Great Kimberley Wilderness and Aussie Gold Hunters Season 10 – ten seasons is a huge feat. On our screens we saw a number of projects premiering including Maggie Beer’s Big Mission, Outback Crystal Hunters, The Hospital: In the Deep End, Australia’s Sleep Revolution with Dr Michael Mosley and Our Law.
During the year we doubled down on our support for the local industry. With support from the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries (DLGSC) we launched a series of workforce capacity programs. We announced that as of 2025, our West Coast Visions funding will increase to $1 million. Together with Screen Australia’s pre-commitment of $500,000 in equity, recipients can now receive up to $1.5 million production funding. Alongside West Coast Visions, we also rolled out the following programs for WA filmmakers:
- First Nations Truth-Telling VR Documentary Initiative – supports up to three WA First Nations teams to produce a short VR documentary.
- Producer Talent Accelerator – year long skills development program for an early to mid-career WA producer.
- Bill Warnock Talent Accelerator – year long skills development program for an early to mid-career WA screenwriter.
- Elevate 2024 – skills development initiative for early to mid-career WA filmmakers. The initiative will support up to six teams to produce a scripted short film, animation or series.
- Tele-Navigator 2024 – development initiative for local writers, directors and/or producers with scripted TV concepts that can be made in WA.
- WA Reflections – short documentary initiative for early to mid-career filmmaking teams. The State Library/Screenwest initiative will support up to four teams.
- Feature Navigator Program – development initiative for local writers, directors and/or producers with scripted feature film concepts that can be made in WA.
The WA Government renewed the Digital Games Fund for another two years. This enabled us to continue to support local games practitioners and we were delighted to see An Engineer and the Great Machine made available on Steam.
Clockwise from left: Lily LaTorre in Runt, Nekograms+, Mystery Road: Origin Series 2, Shipwreck Hunters Australia Season 2.
In September gaming and animation expo Pixel Expo: Act III took place. The expo showcased several Screenwest supported console and PC games – These Starless Skies, Misc. A Tiny Tale, Tether Brawl, Snow Cone, Nekograms, The Last Werewolf, Power Sink, Zodiac Mountain and VR games Monster House Racing, Me, You and Kaiju and Ghost Cam.
In 2024 CinefestOZ Busselton, CinefestOZ Albany and Revelation Perth International Film Festival screened WA made content to festival goers. Combined, these festivals saw over 36,000 attendees.
None of the year’s achievements can happen without significant financial support. We take this opportunity to acknowledge the commitment of our long-term funding partners Lotterywest, the Department of Local Government and Cultural Industries and the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development. Thank you. We would also like to take this opportunity to thank Minister Templeman for his unwavering support of the local screen industry.
To our talented local screen creatives, crew and cast, a giant thank you for your hard work and sharing your stories with us.
We would also like to recognise all the work in the wider WA screen industry that occurs outside of Screenwest funding. You form a valuable part of the eco-system.
Looking to the future Screenwest is focused on driving growth in the local screen for the cultural and economic benefit of the WA community. We want:
- WA creatives, crew and production companies to excel, and people be able to build long lasting careers in the industry here in our State.
- A diverse and sustainable industry that not only reflects the unique stories and talent of WA but elevates them onto the global stage.
- Western Australians to be proud of their screen industry when they see local stories and locations on the big screen at the cinema or on their screens at home.
We look forward to working with our WA government and screen industry partners in 2025 and beyond to continue to build the capacity, capability and sustainability of our sector.
Contact Screenwest
T: +61 8 6169 2100
E: info@screenwest.com.au
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