Australia’s screen sector

One hundred years ago Australia was one the world’s biggest film makers. The arrival of American cinema and infrastructure saw the amount of Australian film and television made shrink to around 3 percent by the late ‘60s.

The revival of Australian film and television began with commitments from both the Gorton and Whitlam governments to support Australians not only to tell our own stories to ourselves, but export them to the world. A second Golden Age of Australian screen was born.

With the rise of streaming platforms and cuts to funding of Australian productions, Australian content once again shrunk to around 2 percent. First Tier Media, through Fund the Arts and in conjunction with other screen bodies like the Australian Writers Guild has pushed successfully for the introduction of local content quotas which will be applied to streaming services.