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.
Melanie Coombs - biography
Melanie Coombs worked in radio and television before studying producing at AFTRS, where her productions included Flying Over Mother, which was nominated for the AFI Award for Best Short Film in 1997. Melanie then worked as a production manager and began developing creative relationships and producing under her Melodrama Pictures banner. She produced a series of award-winning shorts and television documentaries before producing Adam Elliot’s Harvie Krumpet, which went on to win the 2003 Academy Award for Short Film – Animation. The DVD has sold more than 40,000 units in Australia and NZ and is now available in the US and UK.
Subsequently, she has been executive producer on further award-winning documentaries and shorts, and produced the one-hour drama The Glenmoore Job for SBS and the documentary The Fabric Of A Dream: The Fletcher Jones Story for Film Australia and SBS. Fabric was nominated for a BANFF World Television Award and an AWGIE (Australian Writers Guild award). Currently Melanie is producing Mary and Max, a feature animation written and directed by Adam Elliot, whilst continuing to develop a diverse slate of projects.
Audio download
Chapter 1 - Becoming a producer - 14 minutes
- Mum met a clown, went to work in the circus - taught me value of risk taking, and survival away from the safe middle class
- Ideas were important
- Did a BA in Communication and AFTRS course
- The more I knew what it was, producing became more and more attractive
- After the film school course, I had a passion and ability to manage projects
- The Producer Offset is a great step forward for producers
- Knew value of relationships
- Learnt to try and be ‘undeniable’
- Learnt you cannot be proud
Video downloads
Chapter 2 - Focused development and clear communication - 17 minutes
- Forming Melodrama Pictures
- Develop only that which will get made
- Inspired by others, eg Sue Maslin’s business
- Discovering the notion of ‘profit’
- Producer Offset allows a break away from paternalism
- Aim - to be able to fund own development
- Producers are enablers – their job is about advocacy
- Must have great communication skills
- The circus taught me how to be understood by different people
- Conflict resolution starts with ‘why’
Video downloads
Chapter 3 - Managing relationships and defining audiences - 18 minutes
- Creative and business relationship case study: Adam Elliott and Oscar winning animation Harvie Krumpet
- Emotional contracts
- Surviving success & changing direction
- The role of the creative producer
- Struggling with a lack of acknowledgment
- Defining the potential audience
Video downloads
