Latest news with #AustralianFilm
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Film legend who produced Australia's first kangaroo horror movie starring The Terminator actor dies in shock accident at 42
Legendary Australian film identity Liz Tomkins died on Monday in a road accident, just days after stepping down from her role as chair at Women in Film and Television. The news of her sudden death at just 42 has sent shockwaves through the Australian screen community, leaving many mourning the loss of a dedicated leader. Throughout her celebrated career, Tomkins worked as a film producer, advocate, bookkeeper, production manager and general all-rounder. The Queensland-born producer also worked with many renowned Australian actors, including Home and Away star Tess Haubrich and Stingers' Brett Whittingham. WIFT announced the heartbreaking news of her death in a social media statement. From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the DailyMail's new showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. 'It is with heavy hearts and profound sadness that we announce today the sudden passing of our colleague, former Chair, and friend Liz Tomkins on Monday,' they began. 'The Australian screen community has lost a shining light, an inspirational and dynamic leader, and a wonderful human being whose legacy will endure for generations to come.' Tomkins made significant contributions to the Australian film sector in the two decades she spent working in it. She helped shape many acclaimed productions including Steven Spielberg's Australian-filmed 2010 mini-series The Pacific, the science fiction show Terra Nova and the Doctor Who spin-off K9. Her final work was as co-producer of the 2024 Australian kangaroo horror movie Rippy, featuring The Terminator star Michael Biehn and Home and Away's Tess Haubrich. During her three-year tenure as Chair of WIFT Australia, Tomkins helped the organisation make strides in promoting opportunities for women in showbusiness. She relocated to North America for several years in the early 2020s to work for the Canadian Australian Chamber of Commerce, to help promote and develop joint productions with Australia. According to a statement from WIFT, Liz's leadership was marked by 'infectious energy, enthusiasm, and unwavering pride,' which contributed to unprecedented growth and impact on the organisation. She had stepped down from her position at WIFT just one week before her death. Many of Tomkins' former industry colleagues took to social media to pay tribute to her. 'Such a terrible tragedy. Liz had such a massive heart and will be deeply missed,' wrote TV director Helena Brooks. 'I'm so shocked this morning to hear that sad news,' added motion capture actress Silvia Gaillard. 'So so sad. Such a soft, hard working, and brave woman,' added Rippy actress Mara Jean Quinn. Tomkins is survived by her parents and brother.
The Guardian
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Bring Her Back review – Talk to Me directors return with a film you'll watch from between your fingers
Australian horror film-makers have spectacularly overdelivered in the last few years, conjuring various nerve-shredding bangers including Late Night with the Devil, You Won't Be Alone, You'll Never Find Me, Sissy, Leigh Whannell's underrated Wolf Man reboot and Talk to Me. The latter – which revolves around thrill-seeking teenagers who converse with spirits instead of taking recreational drugs (kids these days!) – marked the fiendishly good debut of Adelaide-born directors Danny and Michael Philippou. They're back – or baaa-ack! – with another serving of macabre bravado pulled from the black cauldron. Bring Her Back is lighter on thrills and spills for the midnight movie and heavy with thick, abject horror and despair, featuring an intensely disturbing performance from Sally Hawkins as a foster mother from hell. She plays Laura, a former social worker who welcomes into her house two teens around whom the story orbits: Piper (Sora Wong), who is vision impaired, and her older brother, Andy (Billy Barratt). Early in the run time, the pair discover their father dead in the bathroom, and, with Andy three months too young to be Piper's guardian, they move in with Laura and her other foster child, Oliver (Jonah Wren Phillips). The latter is a creepy kid from central casting: mute, with a shaved head, a thousand-yard stare and a tendency to do things that literally left me watching the film through the gaps between my fingers. It's clear that something's a little off about Laura, whose daughter died some time ago. But the script (written by Danny Philippou and Bill Hinzman) obscures her intentions for a long time, fuelling an aura of dreadful anticipation. Hawkins' performance is coy, evasively dancing between light and heavy emotions; trying to nail down exactly what's wrong with Laura is like trying to pin down water with a knife. She creates a character who's needy, desperate and, as we increasingly realise, choked up with intense longing, before moving into a more volcanic space. Strange sounds rumble and buzz on the soundtrack, with Cornel Wilczek's shapeshifting score unfolding as if it were partly composed by demons; perhaps he got a hold of the embalmed hand from Talk to Me and consulted the spirit world. Circles become a visual motif, implying dark magic and rituals, and there are blurry sporadic visions of demonic undertakings recorded on videotapes. The humble old VHS format has been retooled into an eerie relic of yesteryear, ghouls from the past roaming around in the shadows of a passé technology, insulated from the modern digital world. Keep an eye on Oliver: when this kid starts doing crazy stuff, Bring Her Back goes next-level, conjuring images that will challenge even horror enthusiasts with cast-iron stomachs. There's no doubting this film's art, craft and impact, although I did leave the cinema wondering whether I was a richer person for having experienced it, or in some way irrevocably tarnished. I might ordinarily have felt inclined to go home and take a cold shower – but not after this film. Water is often used to signify cleansing, renewal and rebirth but, in their most audacious visual accomplishment, the Philippous turn H20 into something hideous, a metaphorical devil's rain signifying unrelenting emotional pressure. They achieve this partly through contrast: there's either too much water or not enough. An example of the former belongs to that terrible early scene when Piper and Andy encounter the corpse of their fathe, water still gushing from the shower, steam thickening the air into a horrible deathly fog. An example of the latter can be found in Laura's empty swimming pool, which is an oddly evocative image: to observe a pool without water is to see something that just isn't right – a literal emptiness; a space that should be filled. I dare say that the pool might not be front of mind when the closing credits roll. You'll be plagued by much more distressing visuals – and, like me, wondering how to get rid of them. Bring Her Back is in cinemas in Australia from Thursday, in the US from Friday, and in the UK from 1 August
Daily Mail
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Nicole Kidman voices support for Australian film and television industry as it faces threats from Donald Trump's tariff plans
Hollywood superstar Nicole Kidman has come out in support of the Australian film and TV industry as it faces a threat from Donald Trump 's White House. The US President alarmed the international film and TV sector when he announced earlier this month that Hollywood movies made outside of the US could face a 100 per cent tariff. Such a move could make a significant impact on the health of the local screen sector. While Trump's scheme is yet to unfold, The Last Anniversary star says that it is important for Australians to keep creating their own home grown content. 'I was just glad that The Last Anniversary, which we made in Australia with Australians, has been a huge success,' Nicole told Confidential on Thursday. Nicole was one of the producers of the Binge mystery series which has been wowing critics and fans since it dropped on Binge in March. From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the DailyMail's new showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. While Nicole did not mention Trump's tariff threat directly in her interview with the publication, she did say a major disruption would be unfavourable to the local content sector, which typically relies upon foreign interests to bolster production of home grown content. 'I think a lot of [us are] just right now hoping that things stay [the same] because we're not sure with streamers what's happening... there's a lot of change happening,' she said. Foreign investment in the local screen sector, including both film and TV, was worth a whopping $768 million in 2023-2024 reported the ABC earlier this month. Recent high-profile OS productions made in Australia include The Fall Guy, Anyone But You, the streaming series Apples Never Fall and more recently The Mongoose. It comes after Nicole Kidman shocked host Waleed Aly into stunned silence on Monday's episode of The Project when she suddenly ' moprhed' into her sinister character from the streaming hit Nine Perfect Strangers. The 57-year-old Oscar winner appeared on the panel show alongside her co-star, fellow Aussie Murray Bartlett, to tease details about season two of the thriller in which she plays the creepy 'wellness' guru Masha. Fans were first introduced to the sinister 'psychedelic therapist' in 2021 in season one of NPS which saw Masha drugging guests on her retreat without their knowledge. After Waleed asked Nicole why her character did not end up in 'jail' Nicole appeared to get into her character of Masha. 'Because I'm on the run,' she said in a tone fans familiar with the show would recognise in an instant. Nicole continued in character as she answered, 'I'm very clever, very smart and I am able to shape shift.' Uncharacteristically, Waleed appeared lost for words before continuing the interview. However, Nicole's screen companion, Murray appeared to love his co-stars spontaneous 'performance' and laughed hysterically. Season two of the streaming hit, which is set to drop on May 22 on Amazon Prime Video, shifts the action from Down Under to the Austrian Alps. This season Masha is the director and proprietor of Tranquillum House, a resort that offers wellness treatments and is a relaxing vacation destination. The enigmatic Russian-American figure appears eager to take any measures necessary to enhance her guests' path toward better health. Nine distinct characters arrived at the resort and began their journey toward healing but some of the guests started to question the unconventional methods of the retreat. In 2023, Hulu renewed Nine Perfect Strangers for another season following a successful debut. The show's first season was based on the book written by Liane Moriarty, who also authored Big Little Lies.
