CSB has been working for months on an exciting project with film journalist Andrew Urban of Urbancinefile. We’re interviewing film and television practitioners about their business experiences.
Our aim is to develop a deeper understanding about the history of business decision-making in film and television and to share with our audience the wisdom from the accumulated mistakes, experiments and achievements of the contributors.
Marcus Gillezeau - biography
Marcus Gillezeau has 15 years experience producing and directing award winning television programs for Australian and international broadcasters. He has produced dozens of documentaries, entertainment and reality TV programs, youth TV as well as OBs and music videos.
His recent credits include In the Line of Fire and Rock Eisteddfod Challenge for the Nine Network, Off the Record for the World Movies Channel and My Home - Your War for SBS TV. In 2004 Marcus wrote the successful book Hands On: A practical guide to production and technology in film, TV and new media (Currency Press). Marcus has also written regularly for Inside Film Magazine, Encore and Screen Education.
Audio download
Chapter 1 - Creativity and business- 10 minutes
- Setting up Firelight Productions – to make TV and to make a living
- Corporate communications and the crossplatform/convergence area
- Wrote a book called ‘Hands On’ - to crystallise ideas
- Angel investors
- Business style not ‘kitchen table’
- Creativity and running a business
- Left school at 15, put on first show at 17
Video downloads
Chapter 2 - The producer offset - 10 minutes
- Producer offset and its impact on Firefly
- This is NO LONGER a cottage industry
- Three tiers of production business: 100 hours plus production, 10 – 100 hours, 1- 10 hours
- Offset has a different impact on all three
- Sustainable businesses do exist already – but only because of Govt funding
- Offset encourages us to find bigger budget projects
- And encourages more interest in feature films
Video downloads
Chapter 3 - Towards the future - 16 minutes
- Controlling costs – strategy to expand our client list
- Working capital – a big problem; the offset could be useful
- The need for a better producers’ corridor
- Return On Investment – for Govt it’s a good spend
- Limits of assessing Australian films by box office alone
- Being ‘competition savvy’ & watching the industry
- Time demands of post production eat into planning
- Crucial for Screen Australia to develop a first-rate development system
Video downloads
