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Indigenous jobs on Redfern Now

ABC's drama series for 2012 will employ over 250 Indigenous Australians including producers, directors, writers, actors and post-production staff.

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The ABC has released a little more detail on Redfern Now (working title), its drama series that will be crafted by Indigenous Australians under script guidance from Jimmy McGovern (The Street, Cracker, The Lakes).

McGovern has been working with local writers since earlier in the year and the series, set in the Sydney suburb of Redfern, will employ over 250 Indigenous Australians in various roles from producers, directors, writers, actors to production and post-production staff.

To be produced by Blackfella Films (First Australians, The Tall Man, Mabo) and ABC TV’s Indigenous Department, the series will tell “the explosive and dramatic stories of six households in Redfern. Nestled in the heart of Sydney, Redfern is one of Australia’s most famous suburbs – an area full of contradictions; Aboriginal icon, centre of black struggle, and a real estate goldmine.”

Sally Riley, Head of ABC TV’s Indigenous Department said; “Redfern Now is a turning point in the Australian television industry. We are providing the finance and infrastructure for real career opportunities for creative Indigenous Australians, which is very exciting. This contribution to the industry will hopefully have an amazing impact for years to come.”

Jimmy McGovern, who came to Australia earlier this year for a series of workshops with the writers said; “We’ve all been working hard on the scripts and this is a wonderful reward for our efforts. I think it’s going to be a brilliant series.”

Darren Dale from Blackfella Films said, “As Samson & Delilah and Bran Nue Dae created excitement for Australian cinema, I am positive that Redfern Now will be a bold and adventurous television series.”

Cast and directors are yet to be announced.

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  2. This is great news. The other night my family and I watched The New Black on NITV – it was brilliant. There are so many exciting cultures and stories just waiting to be told. The sooner the better!

  3. From the sound of it, it’s an indigenous spin on McGovern’s series The Street. I imagine this could well be the reason he has been ask to mentor the creation process. Apart from anything else, he will be able to pass on a huge number of lessons on the craft of writing a tv series.

  4. Don’t tell Bolt. “Reverse Discrimination!” “Are they checking their papers? They need to go back in the bloodline at least 2 generations!”

  6. Would the ABC please tell us what fee Jimmy McGovern is being paid for overseeing this production? It is ironic that it needs an Englishman to come here to help indigenous Australians how to write a television series.

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