ORGANISATIONS

Television, film and video

The ABS survey of Television, Film and Video Production and Post-Production Services conducted in respect of the 2006-07 financial year found that at the end of June 2007 there were:

• 2,492 film and video production and post-production services businesses operating in Australia employing 13,844 people
• 13 subscription television broadcasting businesses employing 3,052 people
• 24 commercial free-to-air television broadcasting businesses (excluding public television broadcasting) employing 6,980 people.

Cultural Funding by Government, Australia, 2007-08 (cat. no. 4183.0) reported that the Australian Government provided total funding of $115.5m for Film and video production and distribution, while state and territory governments contributed $91.8m.

Film and video production services businesses generated $1,584.2m in income during 2006-07. The majority of this income (71% or $1,131.2m) was earned from the production of television programs ($549.7m), commercials ($245.4m), feature films ($213.7m) and other media content ($122.4m). Income from the provision of production services to other businesses accounted for 21% ($332.3m) of total income.

Post-production services businesses generated $444.0m in income during 2006-07. The majority of this income (91% or $402.3m) was earned from the provision of post-production services to other businesses, such as visual editing services (58% or $255.1m) and duplication services (12% or $51.1m).

16.3 SOURCES OF INCOME, Film and video production and post-production services - 2006-07
			Income	Proportion of total income
			$m	%
Film and video production services
	Production income from
		Feature films	213.7	13.5
		Television programs	549.7	34.7
		Commercials	*245.4	15.5
		Corporate, marketing and training media	*89.6	5.7
		Educational media	*10.2	0.6
		Music media	*2.1	0.1
		Other	20.5	1.3
		Total	1 131.2	71.4
	Provision of production services to other businesses		332.3	21.0
	Provision of post-production services to other businesses		*25.3	1.6
	Sale of program format rights		3.3	0.2
	Rent, leasing and hiring		*7.6	0.5
	Interest		11.0	0.7
	Other income		73.4	4.6
	Total income		1 584.2	100.0
Post-production services
	Production income		**1.2	0.3
	Provision of production service to other businesses		**11.4	2.6
	Provision of post-production services to other businesses
		Visual editing	255.1	57.5
		Sound editing	20.0	4.5
		Duplication	51.1	11.5
		Transferring	5.0	1.1
		Film laboratory services	-	-
		Other post-production services	-	-
		Total	402.3	90.6
	Sale of program format rights		-	-
	Rent, leasing and hiring		3.7	0.8
	Interest		2.5	0.6
	Other		23.0	5.2
	Total income		444.0	100.0
* estimate has a relative standard error of 25% to 50% and should be used with caution
** estimate has a relative standard error greater than 50% and is considered too unreliable for general use
- nil or rounded to zero (including null cells)
Source: Television, Film and Video Production and Post-Production Services, Australia, 2006-07 (cat. no. 8679.0).

Film and video production services businesses incurred $1,461.8m in expenses during 2006-07. Labour costs accounted for just under a third (31% or $453.2m) of total expenses, followed by payments to other businesses for production services (24% or $345.6m), purchases (6% or $87.7m) and rent, leasing and hiring expenses (6% or $79.9m).

Post-production services businesses incurred $395.6m in expenses during 2006-07. Labour costs accounted for 42% ($166.9m) of total expenses, followed by purchases (10% or $39.1m) and depreciation and amortisation (8% or $31.9m).

16.4 SOURCES OF EXPENSES, Film and video production and post-production services - 2006-07
		Film and video production services		Post-production services
		Expenses	Proportion of total expenses	Expenses	Proportion of total expenses
		$m	%	$m	%
Labour costs
	Wages and salaries	386.2	26.4	143.3	36.2
	Other	67.0	4.6	23.6	6.0
	Total	453.2	31.0	166.9	42.2
Payments to other businesses/contractors for production services		345.6	23.6	*10.6	2.7
Payments to other businesses/contractors for post-production services		78.0	5.3	26.1	6.6
Other contract, subcontract and commission expenses		63.1	4.3	21.2	5.4
Purchases		87.7	6.0	39.1	9.9
Rent, leasing and hiring expenses		79.9	5.5	23.8	6.0
Depreciation and amortisation		45.6	3.1	31.9	8.1
Travelling, accommodation and entertainment		52.6	3.6	6.5	1.7
Royalties		38.4	2.6	0.6	0.1
Other		217.7	15.0	68.9	17.3
Total expenses		1 461.8	100.0	395.6	100.0
* estimate has a relative standard error of 25% to 50% and should be used with caution
Source: Television, Film and Video Production and Post-Production Services, Australia, 2006-07 (cat. no. 8679.0).

Production activity - Not for Television

Film and video production and post-production businesses work on a range of outputs. These can broadly be divided into productions made specifically for television and those made other than for television. Productions made other than for television include outputs such as feature films, documentaries and educational media. The 2006-07 ABS Survey of Television, Film and Video Production and Post-Production Services reports that during 2006-07, there were 14,269 productions created which were not specifically made for television, at a total production cost of $273.2m. While the majority of these (75%) were educational media, around 67% of total production costs were devoted to the production of 85 feature films.

16.5 PRODUCTIONS MADE OTHER THAN FOR TELEVISION(a) - 2006-07
	Businesses at end June 2007(b)	Productions	Total cost of production	Average cost per production(c)
	no.	no.	$m	$'000
Feature films	78	85	183.8	2 174.3
Short films	**46	*79	4.8	*61.2
Documentaries	33	46	1.4	31.1
Corporate, marketing and training media	*107	*353	*6.0	*16.9
Educational media(d)	454	*10 672	*71.7	*6.7
Music media	*27	**313	1.3	**4.2
Other	*74	2 722	4.1	1.5
Total	652	*14 269	273.2	19.1
* estimate has a relative standard error of 25% to 50% and should be used with caution
** estimate has a relative standard error greater than 50% and is considered too unreliable for general use
(a) Includes businesses whose primary activity was film and video production or post-production services.
(b) As businesses may have been involved in more than one type of production, the counts of businesses do not sum to the total.
(c) As data for 'total cost of production' have been rounded to $m, discrepancies may occur in the 'average cost per production'.
(d) Includes media produced for schools, tertiary and other educational institutions.
Source: Television, Film and Video Production and Post-Production Services, Australia, 2006-07 (cat. no. 8679.0).

Screen Australia's 2007-08 National Survey of Feature Film and Television Drama Production provides further information on Australian production of feature films. It shows that 34 Australian and co-production feature films began principal photography (the period of major and ongoing shooting) in Australia in 2007-08, up from 27 in 2006-07 and well above the five year average of 29 films.

The value of production activity (as measured by budget expenditure in Australia) in 2007-08 fell to $168m, well below the 2006-07 figure of $231m and just above the five-year average of $162 million. Of the 34 feature films produced, $119m was spent on the production of 29 Australian feature films. This is lower than the five-year average of $139 million.

16.6 AUSTRALIAN AND CO-PRODUCTION, FEATURE FILMS, Production activity - 2003-04 to 2007-08(a)
	Australian production(b)		Co-production(c)		Total
Year of production	No.	Spend in Aust. ($M)	No.	Spend in Aust. ($M)	No.	Spend in Aust. ($M)
2003-04	21	196	1	5	22	201
2004-05	24	66	3	27	27	93
2005-06	29	100	3	13	32	112
2006-07	24	212	3	19	27	231
2007-08	29	119	5	49	34	168
5-year average	26	139	3	23	29	162
(a) Year of production is the year in which principal photography commenced.
(b) Projects under Australian creative control where the key elements are predominantly Australian and the project was originated and developed by Australians.
(c) Projects where creative control is shared between Australian and foreign partners and there is a mix of Australian and foreign elements in the key creative positions.
Source: Screen Australia, National Survey of Feature Film and Television Drama Production, 2007-08.

Foreign investors accounted for a total of $103.3m (47%) of funding for Australian and co-production feature films in 2007-08. This figure included $21.4m (17%) for Australian only feature feature films. The foreign investment contribution went towards a total of 11 films, of which six were Australian only productions. It is important to note that foreign investment fluctuates from year to year, depending on production schedules.

Government sources were also a significant source of funds in 2007-08, investing a total of $62.2m in 22 Australian and co-production titles. This accounted for 28% of total funding for Australian and co-production features, and 41% of the funding for the 21 Australian only feature films.

16.7 AUSTRALIAN AND CO-PRODUCTION FEATURE FILMS, Sources of Finance - 2003-04 to 2007-08
	Australian Only(a)			Total Australian and Co-production(b)
	Contribution	Proportion of Total Finance	No. of films invested in	Contribution	Proportion of total finance	No. of films invested in
	$m	%	no.	$m	%	no.
Australian Government Sources(c)
2003-04	30.6	14.0	11	34.5	15.4	12
2004-05	25.4	38.3	11	33.0	29.8	14
2005-06	46.4	46.3	19	50.9	41.6	22
2006-07	32.5	14.9	15	44.9	16.6	18
2007-08	52.8	41.2	21	62.2	28.1	22
5-yr average	37.6	30.8	15.4	45.1	26.3	17.6
Australian Private Investors(d)
2003-04	11.2	5.1	11	11.2	5.0	11
2004-05	20.3	30.5	15	20.3	18.3	15
2005-06	8.6	8.6	14	9.0	7.3	15
2006-07	13.3	6.1	13	13.3	4.9	13
2007-08	37.9	29.6	17	38.2	17.3	18
5-yr average	18.8	16.4	15.0	18.4	10.6	14.4
Australian Film/TV Industry(e)
2003-04	68.3	31.4	11	69.5	30.9	12
2004-05	8.6	12.9	14	11.0	9.9	16
2005-06	17.4	17.4	21	19.9	16.2	22
2006-07	8.6	3.9	21	14.2	5.3	22
2007-08	16.0	12.4	18	17.6	7.9	20
5-yr average	25.5	18.3	17.2	26.4	14.1	18.4
Foreign Investors
2003-04	107.5	49.4	6	109.5	48.7	7
2004-05	12.1	18.2	5	46.7	42.1	8
2005-06	27.8	27.8	9	42.6	34.8	12
2006-07	163.6	75.1	10	197.8	73.2	13
2007-08	21.4	16.7	6	103.3	46.7	11
5-yr average	66.5	37.3	7.2	100.0	49.1	10.2
(a) Projects are under Australian creative control where the key elements are predominantly Australian and the project was originated and developed by Australians.
(b) A co-production is a project where creative control is shared between Australian and foreign partners and there is a mix of Australian and foreign elements in the key creative positions.
(c) Includes Australian state and Federal agencies and funding bodies. Comprises equity investments only - distribution guarantees, loan and underwriting are not included. Producer offset included from 2007-08.
(d) Includes private non-industry sources such as Film Licensed Investment Companies, (FLICs), 10B and 10BA investors (Film tax incentives).
(e) Includes Australian-based distribution companies, free-to-air broadcasters (commercial and public) and subscription channels.
Source: Screen Australia, National Survey of Feature Film and Television Drama Production, 2007-08.

Production activity - Television

Productions made primarily for television refers to outputs such as news, current affairs, light entertainment, variety and drama programs. In addition to film and video production and post-production businesses, businesses in the television industry also spend substantial amounts on such productions. In 2006-07, $1,366.2m was spent on productions made specifically for television, 65% by television broadcasters.

16.8 PRODUCTIONS MADE PRIMARILY FOR TELEVISION - 2006-07
		Businesses at end June 2007(a)	Commercial broadcast hours(b)	Total cost of production	Average cost per hour(c)
		no.	no.	$m	$'000
Type of production
	Drama(d)	22	448	152.9	341.5
	Documentaries	67	283	39.8	140.9
	Situation and sketch comedy	8	146	15.1	103.6
	Light entertainment and variety	*84	5 165	306.1	59.3
	News and current affairs	*63	20 556	411.5	20.0
	Sport	*50	22 181	268.4	12.1
	Quiz, panel and game shows	8	np	74.8	np
	Children's drama	12	147	33.8	229.2
	Other children's programs	*23	935	*30.7	32.9
	Total	*33	1 083	64.5	59.6
	Other types of productions	10	np	33.0	np
	Total	272	55 546	1 366.2	24.6
Productions made by television broadcasters(e)		20	29 064	889.3	30.6
Productions made by other businesses(f)		252	26 482	476.8	18.0
* estimate has a relative standard error of 25% to 50% and should be used with caution
np not available for publication but included in totals where applicable, unless otherwise indicated
(a) As businesses may have been involved in more than one type of production, the counts of businesses do not sum to the total.
(b) Relates to first release productions only.
(c) As data for 'total cost of production' have been rounded to $m, discrepancies may occur in the 'average cost per hour'.
(d) Excludes children's programs.
(e) Includes commercial free-to-air, subscription and public television broadcasters. Excludes community television broadcasters. Also excludes co-productions between television broadcasters and other businesses.
(f) Includes two types of businesses: those whose primary activity was film and video production or post-production services and those whose primary activity was subscription television channel provision with in-house production. Includes co-productions between television broadcasters and other businesses.
Source: Television, Film and Video Production and Post-Production Services, Australia, 2006-07 (cat. no. 8679.0).

Further insight into the production of television drama programs can be gained from Screen Australia's National Survey of Feature Film and Television Drama Production. This survey reveals that the value of Australian and co-production TV drama as measured by budget expenditure in Australia, increased in 2007-08 to $256m. This is up slightly on the $253m in 2006-07 and above the five-year average of $223m. Total hours produced also increased to 690 hours in 2007-08, up on the 615 hours produced in 2006-07 and well above the five-year average of 626 hours.

16.9 AUSTRALIAN AND CO-PRODUCTION, TV drama - Production activity - 2003-04 to 2007-08(a)
	Australian production(b)			Co-production(c)			Total
	No.	Hours produced (d)	Spend in Aust. ($m)	No.	Hours produced (d)	Spend in Aust. ($m)	No.	Hours produced (d)	Spend in Aust. ($m)
2003-04	36	583	189	3	39	10	39	622	199
2004-05	29	588	189	4	32	13	33	620	202
2005-06	35	516	182	7	67	23	42	583	205
2006-07	41	581	242	4	34	11	45	615	253
2007-08	35	605	228	7	85	27	42	690	256
5-year average	35	575	206	5	51	17	40	626	223
(a) Year of production is the year in which principal photography commenced.
(b) Projects under Australian creative control where the key elements are Australian and the project was originated and developed by Australians.
(c) Projects where creative control is shared between Australian and foreign partners and there is a mix of Australian and foreign elements in the key creative positions.
(d) Duration is rounded to 15, 30 or 60 minutes as appropriate. 'Hours produced' therefore refers to 'commercial broadcast hours' rather than actual running time.
Source: Screen Australia, National Survey of Feature Film and Television Drama Production, 2007-08.

More information about the National Survey of Feature Film and Television Drama Production is available from the Screen Australia website, www.afc.gov.au.


Motion picture exhibition

Screen Australia's analysis of data from the Motion Picture Distributors Association of Australia shows that in 2008, 11% of the films screened in Australian cinemas were of Australian origin. By comparison, 52% of the films screened originated in the United States of America.

Furthermore, Australian films accounted for only 3.8% ($35.5m) of the total box office receipts of Australian cinemas in 2008, down slightly from 4.0% in 2007 ($36.0m). As the following graph shows, this percentage has fluctuated over time.

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