So, naturally I was happy to find some like minded souls to endure the process with, and to find out that the permit issues, schedule setbacks, budget constraints and general insanity of the filmmaking process seems to be international.  This is a language I speak fluently.   But in Oz I do run into something new; a general question that even if not asked out loud I can see in people’s eyes when I explain where my accent came from.  “What are you doing here?”  True, I was born and raised in LA, the world capitol of filmmaking and I just spent ten years in NY, its not-so-little sister in “the industry.”  So yes, all of my connections (if you can call them that) are back in NY and all of the kids I grew up with who didn’t become lawyers found positions in the business that is Hollywood.  Most of the filmmakers I meet here are trying to get over there, so they can’t really fathom why I went the other direction.

I could write an entire dissertation about the many reasons I came all the way to Oz, life experience being chief amongst them, but everyone already understands those.  What I can’t seem to get people out here to see, is what an amazing filmmaking resource they have right here on their native soil.  The big studios set up shop in Hollywood because California offered almost every environment imaginable within one state and surrounded by a nice temperate climate.  Australia has that!  So what else do films require?  Money, for one, and there isn’t much of that in California or even NY these days.  But Australia has that!  Out here I’ve seen more opportunities for grants from each state and from the entire country than there are people to snatch them up (at least for a worthy film).  And what about a solid source of acting talent?  Hmm, well since a surprising amount of Hollywood’s biggest starts are Australian, and received their training in Australia at one of the most acclaimed acting schools in the world, I think it’s safe to say that Australia has that too!

So why isn’t the country crawling with wanna be directors and people who just happen to have a copy of their latest screenplay in the trunk of their car?  Why are the few people who dream in 16:9 trying to slap their storyboards down onto the overcrowded conference tables on Wilshire Boulevard?  It probably doesn’t help that, generally speaking, Australians tend to hate their own films.  I have yet to figure out why this is, but I’ve read several articles about how badly the home grown films do out here as opposed to when they are overseas.  And the filmmakers I recently met all seemed to agree.  They don’t like those “same old gritty stories.”  Aussie’s also have a lukewarm relationship with their biggest stars.  There are always current favorites and tabloid darlings, but Russell Crow’s and Nicole Kidman’s heydays have long past.  Gee, I’d still give them leading roles.  I just hope nobody badmouths any of Baz Luhrmann’s films around me, I might just deck them.

But if any of my fellow Aussie filmmakers were to ask for advice from someone with a little experience begging for jobs in the other hemisphere, I would tell them to ignore those snooty know-it-all American’s for a while.  The world does not need another cop drama set in NYC, another show about the spoiled and vapid in LA (think about what you have done to yourselves Los Angelinos!) any more reality TV stars, another heart-felt drama about a middle class American family, or any more parts that would be just perfect for George Clooney (Do you ever take a break, man?).  Take a page out of my favorite Australian’s book, and make your own movie, your own way.  Grab some of that money your country is so desperate for you to use to make them look good, take your camera out into the middle of nowhere (it won’t take long for you to get there) and film some of that great undiscovered talent that is going to sweep the Oscars one day.  You have everything you need right here, so use it!  I know you can do much better than re-making Mad Max (remember, that was a snooty American’s idea).

Hmm, maybe I ought to take my own advice.

Even though I have already been won over by the classy experience offered at the Hayden Orpheum theater, I couldn’t refuse an opportunity for promotionaly priced Gold Class movie tickets at another theater.  What is Gold Class, you ask?  I think it’s probably best described like this, as close as you’ll ever get to watching a movie in Spielberg’s private screening room, plus waiter service.  For the wallet thinning price of $32, a Gold Class ticket lets you wait for the theater to open in a lounge instead of a line, gets you a lazy boy style seat in the theater, complete with adjustable back and leg rests, offers a menu that includes more than just hot dogs and plastic cheese covered nachos, and waiter service that can time food deliveries with the beginning, middle and dramatic conclusion of the movie you’re watching.  Awesome!

Even though you have to pay extra for the food and drinks, they actually come at reasonable price, a decent (for Sydney) $7 per cocktail and $11 per dessert or entree (which we would call an appetizer, but they call them entrees here.  Which one of us is right about that?)   My malteser covered sunday was delicious, even if a little hard to eat while leaning back in a lazy boy, in a darkened theater.  Despite the hefty price, it’s an experience well worth repeating.

The other safe indoor activity we decided to participate in was getting ourselves cultured.  This was done at a combination of the Art Gallery of New South Whales, and the Powerhouse Museum.  The Art Gallery of New South Whales, is an interesting combination of the Met and MOMA, housed in a lovely landmark building in the heart of the Royal Botanic Gardens.  In addition to a large collection of historic paintings from all over the world, that included a fair number of Australian landscapes (makes sense) the gallery also displays the works of many contemporary artists.  Did you know that Christo once wrapped up a piece of the Australian coast line?  What hasn’t that man covered in fabric?

The Powerhouse Museum is more a kin to the Smithsonian, with a dash of the Exploratorium and a design museum, all rolled into one.  Located inside an actual old powerhouse, this massive structure houses an interesting collection of furniture, clothing, planes, trains, automobiles, satellites, spaceships and I saw more than one kitchen sink on display.  The lower level of the museum includes an area full of interactive displays, where you can experiment with electricity, magnets, chemistry, sound waves, gravity, and all other things that are only cool when learned about outside of the classroom.  I’m sure that had I been the primary target age for the displays, that I would have had a blast, but my mature Sunday morning gin haze was a bit overstimulated by the noise.  Personally, I wanted to play with the art nouveau era dressing table, but that’s just me.

It still gets a bit windy in the afternoons these days, but I can’t complain about the temperature.  I’ve enjoyed my cultural excursions around Sydney, but hope that this weekend will bring with it the opportunity to add to my steadily increasing number of freckles with a little sunshine.