MRC Announces National Pitch information session presenters

The Media Resource Centre is delighted to announce the presenters at the National Pitch South Australian information session, to be held in the Mercury Cinema from 6-7pm on Monday September 12.

Interested pitch applicants can come and hear advice from Quentin Kenihan (Head of Development, Quail TV – At Home With Julia, Dinner Date, Find My Family) and Emmy award-winning producer/director Mario Andreacchio (The Dragon Pearl, Elephant Tales).

The National Pitch is an initiative of Screen Development Australia, with the South Australian round held in the Mercury Cinema from 11am – 2pm on Tuesday September 20. The winner of the South Australian round will then be flown to Sydney for the national finals October 12, pitching to Stephen Jenner (Motion Picture Australia), Chris Oliver (Screen Australia), Vincent Sheehan (Porchlight), Richard Payten (Transmission Films) and Jan Chapman (producer – The Piano, Bright Star).

The Australian winner will then represent Australia at the MPA-CICE Film Workshop in Beijing, December 2011. The workshop brings together senior international, Chinese film industry professions and emerging filmmakers from across the Asia/Pacific region to provide a forum for the exchange of ideas on the craft, business and technology of filmmaking, with similar competitions being held in 13 other territories in the Asia Pacific.

Presentations by Quentin and Mario are an exclusive opportunity for South Australian participants to gain an insider’s knowledge that will advance their competitive pitch. Based on his extensive career in television, Kenihan will talk about what makes a good pitch and the proven techniques applicants can employ when pitching to best sell their idea to a market.

Following up from his successful Australian-Chinese co-production launch of The Dragon Pearl on over 3500 screens in China (prior to its upcoming Australian theatrical release in February 2012), Andreacchio will be talking about pitching films to the Asian market plus the growing opportunities for Australian filmmakers willing to embrace the Chinese feature market.

For more information, contact Katie Powell at the MRC on 8410 0979 or k.powell@mrc.org.au