Producing Paul Hogan’s latest film

DEBORAH BLASHKI-MARKS INTERVIEWS FILM PRODUCER SHANA LEVINE

EVERY production company is different. We have four partners in the business, some casual administration staff and we employ crew according to each project.

There are often 100 or more employed people per film, including actors, directors, cinematographers, caterers etc.

I was in Los Angeles recently and it was a bit like being in Entourage. Every second person in the film industry seems Jewish, but here in Australia there are relatively few Jewish people involved in the industry.

It’s an interesting time in film. In the ‘80s the 10BA tax benefit attracted investors, but that was reduced over the years. Now that benefit has been replaced with the new tax offset, and we are hopeful the community will respond with an increased appetite for film investment. Often people are attracted to investing in a film if it’s a passion project.

We’re getting projects up with a combination of private investment, tax offset, television network support like Channel Nine, cable television support like Showtime, studio support through Paramount Pictures and state and federal film agencies. For every film we get up there are 10 we don’t.

I often get asked what a producer does? Basically you are responsible for everything. Most importantly you need to begin with a good story. Then you attempt to attract the necessary elements to make it viable. You spend several years trying to get a project up, trying to get the script right and it’s like walking a tight rope. You have to get everything together at the right time. There’s development, financing, production, post-production, marketing, theatrical release, DVD and television.

It’s a long journey. You really need to enjoy the process. It’s a real achievement to get to the first day of shooting for any project.

I moved into film, even though I studied law and economics. Anyone that knows me thinks it’s hilarious that I have an economics degree. While studying at Monash University, I remember thinking, “What am I doing?”

My interest was in film and television and I attended a media law seminar one day and thought maybe there was a way I could combine my interests with my studies.

I applied to study entertainment law at the University of California, Los Angeles and got a scholarship to study there for a year. It was an amazing time. I also got to take a film class with Peter Guber, then head of Sony Tristar pictures. The experience and friends I made while there were invaluable.

Then I returned to Australia to finish my studies and worked with Bryce Menzies, an entertainment lawyer, one of only a few in Australia and it was great working with him. The first film I worked on was Muriel’s Wedding. Bryce was a great mentor to me for many years.

While working there I co-produced a documentary on the ABC called For The Defence. It was a film profiling three Melbourne criminal barristers. It was then time for me to take the leap and move into production. My legal background was invaluable.

The hardest thing for me has been to learn to balance my creative side with the more risk-averse cautious side. I’m more conservative than my partners in the business, but hopefully between us we find the right balance.

People think it’s very glamorous industry, but there’s a lot of administration in running a film production company. It’s not always easy to ascertain when you’ve finished working and you’re often doing 14-16-hour days, especially during production.

Filmmaking is about finding solutions with limited resources and managing creative and financial expectations.

The current economic climate doesn’t necessarily have a negative impact on the business. On the contrary, history has shown during times of hardship that the film industry has thrived. People are always looking for a means of escapism and entertainment in hard times.

As with any successful endeavour, you need belief and persistence. We’ve been in business for 10 years and most producers rarely make a second film. So the fact that we get to make another one is a success in itself.

We all have varied taste in films and aim to produce films in different genres. Our current project, Charlie & Boots, has been released nationally by Paramount Pictures. It stars Paul Hogan and Shane Jacobson and should appeal to a wide audience.

It’s a celebration of the relationship between a father and son and is a heart-warming and emotional comedy. We shot the film during the last three months of 2008, beginning in Warrnambool and ending in Queensland.

It was an amazing journey that many people would never have had the opportunity to travel. Logistically it was very challenging, with a crew of about 80 on the road the whole time.

We were like a travelling circus and had to deal with varied conditions, which, because of the tight schedule, meant we had to keep going even through floods in Tamworth and unbelievable heat in Emerald, Queensland.

Working with Jacobson, of Kenny fame, and Hogan has been a real highlight on this project. As this role was written for Hogan, he was very comfortable with it.

He and Jacobson got along so well and that is reflected on the screen. We’ve been very lucky to have worked with some great actors in addition to Jacobson and Hogan, including Guy Pearce, Helena Bonham Carter, Damien Richardson and Michael Caton.

One of the benefits of the business is getting to travel to different locations and meet new people. A couple of years ago we managed the Australian portion of the most successful Bollywood film to date -— Sing is Kingh.

It was an amazing cultural experience working with an Indian cast and crew and living in Surfers Paradise for several months. We now have good friends in Mumbai.

There are many sources of inspiration for the company and we have a number of different projects at various stages of development and production. We hope to continue to expand and produce films that people want to see to critical and commercial acclaim.