FINANCIAL DATA
The 2002-03 ABS Cultural Funding by Government collection reported that the Australian Government provided total funding of $91.3 million for Film and video, while state and territory governments contributed $84.7m.
16.4 AUSTRALIAN FEATURE FILMS, Sources of Finance |
|  |
 |  | Contribution | Proportion of total budget | No. of films invested in |  |
 |  | $m | % | no. |  |
|  |
Australian government sources(a) |  |  |  |  |
 | 2000-01 | 43.5 | 54 | 13 |  |
 | 2001-02 | 28.9 | 22 | 16 |  |
 | 2002-03 | 18.8 | 39 | 8 |  |
 | 2003-04 | 31.6 | 24 | 11 |  |
Australian private investors(b) |  |  |  |  |
 | 2000-01 | 8.4 | 10 | 9 |  |
 | 2001-02 | 28.9 | 22 | 16 |  |
 | 2002-03 | 21.3 | 44 | 10 |  |
 | 2003-04 | 10.1 | 8 | 6 |  |
Australian film/TV industry(c) |  |  |  |  |
 | 2000-01 | 6.4 | 8 | 9 |  |
 | 2001-02 | 16.6 | 13 | 17 |  |
 | 2002-03 | 4.0 | 8 | 6 |  |
 | 2003-04 | 7.1 | 5 | 9 |  |
Foreign sources |  |  |  |  |
 | 2000-01 | 22.0 | 27 | 10 |  |
 | 2001-02 | 56.5 | 43 | 9 |  |
 | 2002-03 | 4.5 | 9 | 5 |  |
 | 2003-04 | 85.2 | 64 | 5 |  |
|  |
(a) Australian state and federal agencies and funding bodies, the Australian Broadcasting Commission and Special Broadcasting Service. |
(b) Private investment sources including Film Licensed Investment Companies (FLICs). |
(c) Mainly Australian free-to-air broadcasters and pay TV channels, as well as Australian-based TV production and distribution companies. |
Australian Film Commission, National Survey of Feature Film and TV Drama Production, 2003-04. |
Data from the National Survey of Feature Film and TV Drama Production, conducted by the Australian Film Commission, show that government sources accounted for 24% of total funding for Australian features in 2003-04. The majority of these funds came via the Film Finance Corporation, which invested $29.7m in Australian features and co-productions, while state agencies contributed a further $3.8m.
Overseas investors were the most significant source of funds in 2003-04, contributing $85.2m (or 64% of total funding) to five titles, with the animated feature Happy Feet accounting for the bulk of their investment.
Australian films accounted for only four per cent of the total box office receipts of Australian cinemas. As the graph shows, this percentage has fluctuated over time, depending on the success of Australian movies released in each of the years.
16.5 AUSTRALIAN FILMS' SHARE OF THE AUSTRALIAN BOX OFFICE

While the income derived from the production of commercials increased by 23% between 1999-2000 and 2002-03, the income from all other types of film and video production decreased. This meant overall production income was 8% lower in 2002-03 than in 1999-2000. However, increases in income from other sources, particularly postproduction and other production services meant the total income for film and video production businesses was greater in 2002-03.
16.6 INCOME AND EXPENSES OF BUSINESSES IN THE FILM AND VIDEO PRODUCTION INDUSTRY - 1999-2000 and 2002-03 |
|  |
 |  |  | 1999-2000 | 2002-03 |  |
 |  |  | Value | Percentage contribution | Value | Percentage contribution |  |
 |  |  | $m | % | $m | % |  |
|  |
Income |  |  |  |  |  |
 | Income from the production of: |  |  |  |  |  |
 |  | Feature films | 74.0 | 5.0 | 59.2 | 3.7 |  |
 |  | Television programs | 472.2 | 32.0 | 393.6 | 24.7 |  |
 |  | Commercials | 186.2 | 12.6 | 228.4 | 14.3 |  |
 |  | Corporate, training and marketing videos | 72.0 | 4.9 | 70.6 | 4.4 |  |
 |  | Other | 45.5 | 3.1 | 26.8 | 1.7 |  |
 |  | Total | 849.9 | 57.7 | (a)778.6 | 48.8 |  |
 | Income from the provision of production services to other businesses | 233.1 | 15.8 | 350.9 | 22.0 |  |
 | Income from the provision of post-production/film laboratory services to other businesses | 262.6 | 17.8 | 360.5 | 22.6 |  |
 | Other income | 128.2 | 8.7 | 106.5 | 6.7 |  |
Total income | 1 473.8 | 100.0 | 1 596.6 | 100.0 |  |
Expenses |  |  |  |  |  |
 | Labour costs |  |  |  |  |  |
 |  | Wages and salaries | 373.5 | 26.7 | 402.4 | 26.7 |  |
 |  | Other | 53.1 | 3.8 | 63.9 | 4.2 |  |
 |  | Total | 426.6 | 30.5 | 466.3 | 31.0 |  |
 | Payments to other businesses for production services | 250.8 | 17.9 | 215.8 | 14.3 |  |
 | Payments to other businesses for post-production/film laboratory services | 88.3 | 6.3 | 89.5 | 5.9 |  |
 | Rent, leasing and hiring expenses | 65.5 | 4.7 | 85.4 | 5.7 |  |
 | Travelling, accommodation and entertainment expenses | 34.8 | 2.5 | 38.5 | 2.6 |  |
 | Purchases of film stock and video tape stock | 50.6 | 3.6 | 62.4 | 4.1 |  |
 | Other purchases | 45.8 | 3.3 | 63.1 | 4.2 |  |
 | Amortisation of productions | 61.1 | 4.4 | *38.7 | 2.6 |  |
 | Other | 374.4 | 26.8 | 445.1 | 29.6 |  |
Total expenses | 1 397.9 | 100.0 | 1 504.8 | 100.0 |  |
|  |
* estimate has a relative standard error of 25% to 50% and should be used with caution |
(a) Of the $778.6m received from the production of films and programs etc., $88.9m were commissioned (i.e. the business did not retain the rights to the production). |
ABS, Television, Film and Video Production, 2002-03 (cat. no. 8679.0) and Film and Video Production and Distribution, 1999-2000 (cat. no. 8679.0). |