A SCREENTIME Production for ABC TV
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A SCREENTIME production for ABC TV MEDIA CONTACTS Catherine Lavelle Kris Way FOR SCREENTIME ABC TV PUBLICITY T 02 9405 2880 T 02 8333 3844 M 0413 88 55 95 M 0419 969 282 E [email protected] E [email protected] As at 4.7.13 The powerful new 8 x 1 hour miniseries produced by Screentime, a Banijay Group company, for ABC1. Following twelve months maternity leave, Senior Crown Prosecutor Janet King (Marta Dusseldorp) returns to the DPP to confront a high-profile murder and a conspiracy, which will have shocking ramifications throughout the judicial system - as well as threaten all she holds dear. With Tony Gillies (Peter Kowitz) now the Director and a rising star prosecutor (Damian Walshe-Howling as Owen Mitchell) well entrenched in the DPP, Janet juggles legal cases and motherhood in equal measure. Following the Attorney General’s decree that there be a closer working relationship between the DPP and the Police, Chief Superintendent Jack Rizzoli (Vince Colosimo) is taking a very ‘hands on’ approach in the cases for prosecution, and especially Janet’s campaign to expose the truth behind a shocking murder that strikes at the very heart of the justice system. Also appearing in the compelling high stakes legal thriller are John Howard, Jessica Napier, Zoe Carides, Terry Serio, Deborah Kennedy and Tiriel Mora, as well as returning Crownies alumni Hamish Michael, Ella Scott Lynch, Christopher Morris, Andrea Demetriades, Jeanette Cronin, Lewis Fitz-Gerald, Aimee Pedersen, and Indiana Evans. © 2013 Screentime Pty Ltd, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Screen NSW Page 2 Janet King was series produced by Karl Zwicky, produced by Lisa Scott and co-produced by Jane Allen, with Hilary Bonney as story consultant and associate producer. Written by Greg Haddrick, Jane Allen, Kris Mrksa and Shaun Grant, Janet King was directed by Grant Brown, Peter Andrikidis and Ian Watson with Screentime’s Des Monaghan and Greg Haddrick as Executive Producers. “Screentime is delighted that the strength of this production attracted such an outstanding calibre of cast, to realise characters both new and returning. They join some of this country's most talented writers, directors and producers to bring Janet King to vibrant life on screen” said Des Monaghan. “After Crownies, Jack Irish and Devil’s Dust, Marta Dusseldorp is loved by Australian audiences and deservedly so” ABC TV Head of Fiction, Carole Sklan, said. “Janet King returns to the DPP to confront a high-profile murder and a conspiracy which will threaten to unravel her life and everything she loves” she continued. ABOUT SCREENTIME Screentime, a Banijay Group company, is a specialist television production company with an outstanding list of award winning and celebrated dramas including five series of Underbelly, the Underbelly Files, The Incredible Journey of Mary Bryant, Society Murders, Jessica, My Husband My Killer, A Model Daughter: The Killing of Caroline Byrne, Breakers, MDA, Crownies for ABC TV and the critically acclaimed Tim Winton’s Cloudstreet. Most recent drama productions include Brothers In Arms for Network TEN and Tricky Business and Underbelly: Badness for the Nine Network. The company recently completed production of the latest in the Underbelly franchise – Underbelly: Squizzy. A MEMBER OF THE BANIJAY GROUP, Screentime includes Screentime Pty Ltd and Screentime Communications in Australia, Screentime Limited in New Zealand and joint venture partners Flying Start Pictures in New Zealand and Screentime ShinAwiL Productions Limited in Ireland. © 2013 Screentime Pty Ltd, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Screen NSW Page 3 KEY CAST THE DPP JANET KING Marta Dusseldorp TONY GILLIES Peter Kowitz OWEN MITCHELL Damian Walshe-Howling ERIN O’SHAUGHNESSY Ella Scott Lynch RICHARD STIRLING Hamish Michael LINA BADIR Andrea Demetriades TRACEY SAMUELS Jeanette Cronin THE POLICE JACK RIZZOLI Vince Colosimo ANDY CAMPBELL Christopher Morris STEVEN BLAKELY John Howard TERRY RENNER Terry Serio GUEST CAST AG GAIL JONES Sonia Todd DANNY NOVAK Marcus Graham ASH LARSSON Aimee Pedersen DREW BLAKELY Akos Armont MAYA BLAKELY Harriet Dyer JUDGE RENMARK Tiriel Mora TATUM NOVAK Indiana Evans DAVID SINCLAIR Lewis Fitz-Gerald CAROLINE MARTIN Jessica Napier KEITH NELSON Andrew McFarlane ALEX MORENO Darren Gilshenan JUSTICE WALKER Heather Mitchell DIANNE VASILICH Deborah Kennedy © 2013 Screentime Pty Ltd, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Screen NSW Page 4 KEY CREW EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS Des Monaghan Greg Haddrick SERIES PRODUCER Karl Zwicky PRODUCER Lisa Scott CO-PRODUCER Jane Allen ASSOCIATE PRODUCER Hilary Bonney EPISODES DIRECTORS Grant Brown 1, 2 and 3 Peter Andrikidis 4, 5 and 6 Ian Watson 7 and 8 WRITERS Greg Haddrick 1 and 7 Jane Allen 2, 4, 5 and 8 Kris Mrksa 3 and 6 Shaun Grant 4 and 7 DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY Joseph Pickering PRODUCTION DESIGNER Scott Bird © 2013 Screentime Pty Ltd, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Screen NSW Page 5 A Political Thriller Following twelve months maternity leave, Senior Crown Prosecutor Janet King (Marta Dusseldorp) returns to the DPP to confront a high-profile murder and a conspiracy, which will have shocking ramifications throughout the judicial system - as well as threaten all she holds dear. With Tony Gillies (Peter Kowitz) now the Director and a rising star prosecutor (Damian Walshe-Howling as Owen Mitchell) well entrenched in the DPP, Janet juggles legal cases and motherhood in equal measure. Following the Attorney General’s decree that there be a closer working relationship between the DPP and the Police, Chief Superintendent Jack Rizzoli (Vince Colosimo) is taking a very ‘hands on’ approach in the cases for prosecution, and especially Janet’s campaign to expose the truth behind a shocking murder that strikes at the very heart of the justice system. Janet returns to work after a year with her newborn twins. She’s thrown straight into court, prosecuting a photographer, Alex Moreno (Darren Gilshenan), who takes provocative photos of young children, grooming them on the internet. All are surprised when Judge Renmark (Tiriel Mora) finds him not guilty. Janet’s next case is prosecuting Steven Blakely (John Howard), a high-ranking police officer, for the assisted suicide of his terminally ill wife and mentor to Police Chief Superintendent Jack Rizzoli (Vince Colosimo). A woman, Dianne Vasilich (Deborah Kennedy), comes forward, accusing Blakely of deliberately failing to solve the murder of her daughter nearly twenty years ago. Against everyone’s expectations, Janet recommends a long custodial sentence for Blakely, arguing he deliberately killed his wife – an action that throws her into direct conflict with the police. On the night before his sentencing, Blakely disappears. Andy Campbell (Christopher Morris) discovers that Dianne had been at Blakely’s house the night before he disappeared. What’s more, she has his blood in her pockets. She and her son are charged with his murder. Although at first unconvinced of their guilt, Janet proceeds with their prosecution. They are convicted, but this decision is thrown into doubt when Blakely’s body is discovered – somewhere Dianne and her son could not possibly have buried him. Danny Novak (Marcus Graham), one of the first people the police suspect of being the third man, suggests Janet take another look at the Moreno matter as a way of solving Blakely’s murder. © 2013 Screentime Pty Ltd, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Screen NSW Page 6 As Janet pores over the Moreno file, her suspicions grow about the moral character of Judge Renmark. She discovers that a beach house owned by Steven Blakely was filled with secret cameras used to take photos and video of unsuspecting children – those photos later appearing on the internet. When Blakely’s son Drew admits he bought the cameras for his father, it looks increasingly like Steve is involved in the production of illegal pornography. Dianne and her son appeal their conviction and are released from custody, bringing the DPP, and Janet, under public scrutiny - a delicate situation inflamed by a tabloid accusation that Janet is having an affair with Erin (Ella Scott Lynch), her friend and colleague, who has recently been promoted. A judicial inquiry into the DPP is announced, headed by Judge Renmark, but that danger seems insignificant when Janet and her partner Ash’s (Aimee Pedersen) car is blown up. Janet is isolated in a safe house, while Ash goes to another safe house with the twins. Following up on her belief that Blakely’s death is connected to all this, Janet pursues Maya (Harriet Dyer) (Blakely’s daughter) for details about her father, only for Maya to reveal that she was molested as a child by a close friend of her father’s. Judge Renmark commences his investigation into Janet’s behaviour at the DPP, and makes it clear he is unlikely to find in her favour. Janet counters with the fact that she is investigating his judicial record. When Renmark is discovered murdered, Janet is convinced that the members of the ring feel threatened and are seeking revenge. She is sure there is a link between Blakely, the judge, and the photographer – but proving it is another matter. Maya’s brother Drew (Akos Armont) appears in court against her, asserting that their father molested her, not a family friend. But in the process of giving evidence Drew reveals that he hated his father – giving him motive for killing him. The police investigate Drew, and discover DNA evidence linking him to the murder scene and the burial. He is charged with Blakely’s murder. When more evidence comes forward implicating Drew in the porn ring, it becomes clear that he is a major player in it, but that he has been aided and protected by someone else – but not his father. Janet discovers the identity of the person pulling the strings, but not before she finds herself somewhere secluded with that person, at a time when no one else knows where she is… © 2013 Screentime Pty Ltd, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Screen NSW Page 7 SENIOR CROWN PROSECUTOR JANET KING One of the most feared and admired advocates at the bar, Janet King is one of the DPP’s most senior prosecutors.