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Screen Producers Australia (SPA), formerly the Screen Producers' Association of Australia (SPAA) and earlier names, is a national organisation representing
film production Filmmaking or film production is the process by which a Film, motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, beginning with an initial story, idea, or commission. Production then continues through screen ...
businesses, emerging producers, service providers and screen industry supporters. It campaigns for a healthy commercial environment for the
Australian film industry The cinema of Australia began with the 1906 production of ''The Story of the Kelly Gang'', arguably the world's first feature film. Since then, Australian crews have produced many films, a number of which have received international recogni ...
. It also organises and hosts the annual SCREEN FOREVER conference for film industry professionals, and the Screen Producers Australia Awards, also known as the SPA Awards.


History

In 1956, independent producers united to lobby federal and
state governments State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...
to support Australian content on television and in the cinema, using both regulation and subsidies. A secondary goal was to increase their bargaining power in
industrial relations Industrial relations or employment relations is the multidisciplinary academic field that studies the employment relationship; that is, the complex interrelations between employers and employees, labor union, labor/trade unions, employer organ ...
negotiations with
trade union A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...
s representing actors and technicians. In the late 1950s, the Australian Film Producers Association (AFPA)was created, mostly consisting of producers of advertisements, who lobbied against the importation of
television advertising A television advertisement (also called a commercial, spot, break, advert, or ad) is a span of television programming produced and paid for by an organization. It conveys a message promoting, and aiming to market, a product, service or idea. ...
. For the next ten years, they lobbied to ensure higher levels of Australian content on
commercial television Commercial broadcasting (also called private broadcasting) is the broadcasting of television programs and radio programming by privately owned corporate media, as opposed to state sponsorship, for example. It was the United States' first model ...
. AFPA became the Film Production Association of Australia (FPAA), registered in 1972 as an employer association. The
Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance The Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance (MEAA) is the Australian trade union and professional organisation which covers the media, entertainment, sports and arts industries. Its Musicians section consists of the SOMA (Symphony Orchestra Musi ...
(MEAA) and the producers' association have sometimes joined forces (such as lobbying for the protection of Australian industry and content), and sometimes clashed (such as with regard to the use of foreign actors in Australian films). Governments started funding some Australian
feature film A feature film or feature-length film (often abbreviated to feature), also called a theatrical film, is a film (Film, motion picture, "movie" or simply “picture”) with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole present ...
s during the 1970s, leading to the founding of the Independent Feature Film Producers Association (IFPA) in 1973. Difficulties in negotiating agreements with Actors’ Equity led to a merger of IFPA and FPAA in 1976, forming the Film and Television Production Association of Australia (FTPAA). In 1985, the FTPAA rebranded as the Screen Production Association of Australia (SPAA), and held the inaugural SPAA Conference, with the aim of increasing membership and funds. In 1994, the name changed to Screen Producers' Association of Australia (SPAA). In November 2013, it rebranded as Screen Producers Australia. In 2023 the
Australian film industry The cinema of Australia began with the 1906 production of ''The Story of the Kelly Gang'', arguably the world's first feature film. Since then, Australian crews have produced many films, a number of which have received international recogni ...
was affected by the SAG-AFTRA strike in the United States. In July 2023 SPA announced that wholly local film and TV productions, even those engaging members of the
Screen Actors Guild The Screen Actors Guild (SAG) was an American labor union which represented over 100,000 film and television principal and background performers worldwide. On March 30, 2012, the union leadership announced that the SAG membership voted to m ...
, could continue. It stated that a limited number of scripted offshore productions would be affected by the strike. Cast and crew working on series and films funded from the US would be stood down during the strike, but Australian-scripted productions using Australian and SAG members would not be affected by the strike order "if they were engaged under Australian industry contracts agreed to by SAG-AFTRA and the
MEAA The Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance (MEAA) is the Australian trade union and professional organisation which covers the media industry, media, entertainment industry, entertainment, sports and arts industries. Its Musicians section consis ...
". SPA supported the strike, but said that its members would not be supported if they withheld their labour. In November, SPA expected a negative effect on foreign productions shot in Australia.


Description

Screen Producers Australia supports the interests of businesses in their production of
feature film A feature film or feature-length film (often abbreviated to feature), also called a theatrical film, is a film (Film, motion picture, "movie" or simply “picture”) with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole present ...
s,
television program A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via Terrestrial television, over-the-air, Satellite television, satellite, and cable te ...
s, interactive content, and games across all genres and formats. Since its origins in the 1950s, the organisation has provided a consistent voice lobbying for Australian content regulation. Today its focus remains on advocacy, as well as industrial relations, and conferences and other events, such as SCREEN FOREVER and the Screen Producers Australia Awards. SPA is a member of the International Federation of Film Producers Associations (FIAPF).


See also

* Screen Forever (conference)


References


Further reading

* *


External links

* {{Cinema of Australia Television organisations in Australia Film organisations in Australia