Toni Collette will make her feature directing debut with “The Best Of,” her screen version of Graeme Simsion’s bestselling novel, which is one of 75 projects sharing more than AUD16.9 million ($11.7 million) in production and development money from Screen Australia. Collette, an Emmy and Golden Globe winner, produces alongside Christopher Simon. The story centers on two ex-lovers who come back into each other’s lives after spending decades apart, only to find old feelings stirring with messy and mixed results.
Screen Australia made a major production investment in association with Screen NSW. Kismet handles local distribution and Cornerstone holds international sales. The round, announced Tuesday, covers features, series and shorts.
This latest round of funding supports an exciting range of projects from emerging creatives forging new paths to established voices exploring new creative territory. Screen Currency 2026 found that local stories matter deeply to Australians, and these projects will deliver on the authenticity and ambition that audiences have come to expect,” said Louise Gough, Screen Australia’s director of narrative content. Brouhaha Entertainment, the company behind “Boy Swallows Universe,” is making “The Dark Lake,” a series based on Sarah Bailey’s award-winning novel.
Tonkin plays a detective in a rural town whose investigation into the killing of a former high school classmate forces her to face buried secrets of her own. Troy Lum and Andrew Mason produce, with Becca Johnstone writing and executive producing. Giorgia Stawaruk, Tonkin and Katarina Mandic are also executive producers.
Screenwest partners on the major production investment, with additional financing from Screen NSW. Jeffrey Walker (“The Artful Dodger,” “Fing!”) directs “Bull” (working title), a feature from Infin8 Studios and Total Fiction Films. Drawn from a true story, it follows a smooth-talking prisoner who signs up for a debating team inside Tasmania’s harshest jail, hoping to change course and finally give his mother a reason to be proud.
George Pullar stars, co-writes with Taylor Danworth and produces with Michael Lawrence, John Molloy and Suzanne Walker. Richard Roxburgh, Robyn Malcolm, Teresa Palmer, Thomas M Wright and Harrison Gilbertson round out the cast. Screen Queensland is on board, with Kismet distributing locally and Cornerstone handling international sales.
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