ACMI and Film Victoria have officially announced the full lineup for Series Mania 2018, packed with a program of 23 series set to launch in Melbourne at ACMI in Melbourne’s Federation Square later this month.
The program consists of 20 TV series and 3 web series, including highlights in the form of 5 world premieres, 16 Australian premieres and 2 Melbourne premieres of both drama and comedy series. The festival will include a dedicated industry day, along with a public program of screenings and Q&A’s with key creators and casts. David Nicholls, acclaimed screenwriter of Patrick Melrose is also set to appear along with actor Hugo Weaving (The Matrix) in an ‘In Conversation’ event on 20 July.
With the 2018 event marking the addition of 8 further TV titles and 1 web series, there’s no doubt the line-up will always have room to grow. Opening the festival is the internationally acclaimed Australian film Wrong Kind of Black from director Catriona McKenzie, in a high-end 4-part digital drama comedy series exploring Australia’s diverse pop culture and history starting from the cops and crocs of the 1960’s.
ACMI CEO and Director Katrina Sedgwick commented on these highlights, saying, “Bringing together some of the finest local and international content, Series Mania Melbourne 2018 presents 16 Australian premieres and 5 world premieres. Highlights of the festival range from an opening night world premiere of Catriona McKenzie’s Indigenous web series Wrong Kind of Black to an in- conversation on BBC First’s Patrick Melrose with cast member Hugo Weaving and writer David Nicholls. Series Mania Melbourne has something to offer everyone from fans to TV industry professionals alike.”
Other highlight films include Aquí en la Tierra (Here on Earth), an international crime drama starring Garcia Bernal based on Mexico’s most influential families and two men that stand on opposite side of the fence. The Chi presents itself as a coming of age drama based around a group of Chicago’s south side coincidentally linked but bonded over the need for redemption. Finally, the world premiere of Back in Very Small Business, a new 8-part ABC series from the makers of Upper Middle Bogan tells us the tale of Don Angel, who heads an organisation staffed by an ethically diverse, gender-fluid, psychologically fragile menagerie, all hired on government subsidies who coincidentally work for the World Wide Business Group. The series is created by Wayne Hope, Robyn Butler and Gary McCaffrie, and will star Wayne Hope, Robyn Nevin and Kim Gyngell.
Taking place at ACMI in Federation Square, Melbourne, the event will run from 19-22 July, with the industry day taking place 20 July. For the full program, you can click here.
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