South Australian Film Corporation

South Australian Film Corporation (SAFC) is a South Australian Government statutory corporation established in 1972 to engage in film production and promote the film industry, located in Adelaide.

Origin
The South Australian Film Corporation was founded as a production company in 1972, established under an act of parliament by the Dunstan government. It was intended “to stimulate and encourage the formation and continued development of the South Australian film and television industry”. At the time of the Corporation's establishment, the Australian film industry was stagnating, and the Corporation played a significant role in the revival of Australian film making. Premier Don Dunstan played an instrumental role in the foundation of the Corporation and its early film production activities.

Operation
From its genesis, the SAFC collaborated with various government departments and agencies in the production of short documentaries and educational films. These included co-productions with the South Australian Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, Department of Marine & Harbors, the Education Department, the Office of Fair Trading, the Department of Housing, Urban and Regional Affairs and others.

In the 1980s, the SAFC shifted its focus to television production. It relocated to a disused Philips factory in Hendon in the north-west suburbs of Adelaide. Jock Bair was head of drama.

In 1994 its role changed, as it ceased producing films and became the government’s central agency to provide assistance to independent film makers. The television mini-series The Battlers was the last production produced by the SAFC. As the first state film corporation in Australia, the success of its business model led other state governments to establish similar bodies charged with the promotion of film production and fostering industry development. Since then, it has focused on supporting (including providing funding) and facilitating the production of films and television in South Australia, as well as making production and post-production facilities available.

SAFC facilitated the production of the Nine Network program McLeod's Daughters (2001-2009), which was filmed on location in rural South Australia.

Relocation
In 2008, SA Premier and Arts Minister Mike Rann secured cabinet approval from the South Australian Government to fund the relocation of the SAFC at a cost of A$43 million. The project included new sound stages and mixing suites, as well as a major refurbishment of an historic 19th-century building as a high-tech film hub. The Corporation moved its headquarters to Glenside, an inner eastern suburb of Adelaide, sharing the historic former administration building of Glenside Hospital with film production company Closer Productions. The new Adelaide Studios were opened by Rann on 20 October 2011.

Recent activities
In 2017, the Corporation announced that a new TV Series called "Soccer Swap" was a co-production with Australia's 57 Films and China’s Qingdao TV.

, the Corporation continues to operate post-production facilities which have been used for a broad range of productions.

Major productions
Works listed below can be found via the SAFC "Made is SA Showcase" web page.

SAFC as producer

 * Sunday Too Far Away (1975)
 * Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975) (co-production with McElroy & McElroy)
 * Smokes and Lollies (1975) (documentary short)
 * Storm Boy (1976)
 * The Fourth Wish (1976)
 * The Last Wave (1977) (co-production with McElroy & McElroy)
 * Blue Fin (1978) (co-production with McElroy & McElroy)
 * The Irishman (1978) (co-production with Forest Home Films)
 * Money Movers (1978)
 * The Sound of Love (1978) (TV movie)
 * Weekend of Shadows (1978)
 * Dawn! (1979)
 * Harvest of Hate (1979 TV movie)
 * The Plumber (1979) (TV movie)
 * Breaker Morant (1980)
 * The Club (1980)
 * Pacific Banana (1981)
 * The Survivor (1981) (Co-production)
 * Freedom (1982)
 * Teenage (1982)
 * Sara Dane (1982) (TV mini-series)
 * For the Term of His Natural Life (1983) (TV mini-series)
 * Under Capricorn (1983) (TV mini-series)
 * The Fire in the Stone (1984) (TV movie)
 * Robbery Under Arms (1985) (Feature film and mini-series)
 * Playing Beatie Bow (1986)
 * Run Chrissie Run! (TV) (Released straight to video in 1986, shot in 1984)
 * The Shiralee (TV) (1987 TV movie)
 * Sebastian and the Sparrow (1988)
 * Ultraman: Towards the Future (co-production with Japan's Tsuburaya Productions) (1990)
 * Finders Keepers (See The Finder) (1991 TV series)
 * Bad Boy Bubby (1993)
 * Hammers Over the Anvil (1993)
 * The Battlers (1994) (TV mini-series)

SAFC as production facilitator

 * Golden Fiddles (1994) (TV mini-series)
 * The Life of Harry Dare (1995)
 * Napoleon (1995)
 * Shine (1996)
 * Sun on the Stubble (1996) (TV mini-series)
 * Kiss or Kill (1997)
 * Dance Me to My Song (1998)
 * The Fairies (1998 - 2009) (Vintage VHS and TV series)
 * McLeod's Daughters (2001 - 2009) (TV series)
 * The Old Man Who Read Love Stories (2001)
 * Australian Rules (2002)
 * Rabbit-Proof Fence (2002)
 * The Honourable Wally Norman (2003)
 * Alexandra's Project (2003)
 * Thunderstruck (2004)
 * Deck Dogz (2005)
 * Look Both Ways (2005)
 * Wolf Creek (2005)
 * The Caterpillar Wish (2006)
 * Like Minds (2006)
 * Opal Dream (2006)
 * Ten Canoes (2006)
 * December Boys (2007)
 * Lucky Miles (2007)
 * Rain Shadow (2007) (TV series)
 * Beautiful (2009)
 * Sweet Country (2017)

Influence on Australian film making
The Corporation's activities contributed to the rebuilding process undertaken by Australia's film industry. Besides its productions that had critical and commercial success, the Corporation's productions helped to launch the careers of many artists, including Peter Weir, Jack Thompson, Scott Hicks, Rolf de Heer, Mario Andreacchio, Bryan Brown, Geoffrey Rush and Bruce Beresford.