Media releases - 2012
Australian films in 2011 at the box office and beyond

Monday 23 January 2012

With earnings of $21.3 million in Australian cinemas, Red Dog was the standout success for our local production sector in 2011. Not only did it rank among the top 10 films of the year, it also marks the first time in two decades that an Australian film has broken the $20 million barrier without having the backing of a major Hollywood studio.

Red Dog was followed by the 3D action adventure Sanctum and the emotionally charged Oranges and Sunshine as the second and third highest grossing Australian films of the year, with $3.9 million and $3.8 million respectively. However, the international appeal of Sanctum resulted in strong audiences worldwide, achieving a global box office of more than US$100 million, placing it in the all time top 10 Australian films in overseas territories.

“Last year we had some great achievements with Red Dog leading the way. But the other notable performance that deserves praise is Bob Connolly and Sophie Raymond's feature documentary Mrs Carey’s Concert, which took over $1 million at the box office to become the fourth highest grossing documentary of all time,” said Fiona Cameron, Screen Australia’s acting Chief Executive.

In total, films screening in Australian cinemas in 2011 grossed $1.09 billion. Of these, 44 were Australian titles and together they accounted for $42.9 million or 3.9 per cent of the box office earnings, according to Screen Australia analysis of Motion Picture Distributors Association of Australia (MPDAA) data.

“While our overall domestic share of the box office is down, 2011 was certainly the year of critical success. Australian films featured in all six premiere international film festivals with the standout achievement of Sleeping Beauty screening in Competition at the Cannes Film Festival.”

“Furthermore, it is also important to remember that cinema screens are just one of the ways that Australians enjoy watching their films. For example, in 2011 there were 24 local films that completed their first release after screening in cinemas on video, online and television. Together these films have achieved 72.7 million views thus far, above the annual average of 47.7 million viewings over the last three years,” said Ms Cameron.

Screen Australia has released a statistical snapshot of Australian films on Australian screens in 2011 which lists the top 10 Australian films in terms of total viewings.

Coinciding with this year’s box office release is a new online widget that will provide the industry with unprecedented access to regular, relevant and in-depth information on the performance of Australian content on screens. Highlights include a variety of weekly and monthly updates on the performance of films at the box office, the progressive share of Australian films and programs on Australian TV across both free-to-air and subscription TV: www.screenaustralia.gov.au/research

Australian films in 2012

A selection of Australian films with an anticipated release in 2012:

Scope and definitions

Australian share of the box office is calculated based on the results for projects under Australian creative control, including those that are 100 per cent foreign financed, as well as projects where creative control is shared between Australian and foreign partners with a balanced mix of Australian and foreign elements in the key creative positions (‘co- productions’).

The classification is unrelated to whether or not a project has been certified as eligible for the Producer Offset, as the Strategy & Research Unit does not have direct access to this information. Administration of the Offset is governed by the secrecy provisions of the Tax Act and only the taxpayer, in this case the production company, can share information about their tax affairs, including the Offset status of their projects.

 
Media Enquiries
Teri Calder T: 02 8113 5833; M: 0408 440 995
teri.calder@screenaustralia.gov.au