MEDIA WATCH RESPONSES
Q1) How has the ABC’s decision to refuse access to archival footage affected your production?
ANSWER: Co Producer Frank Haines and I both have long and cordial histories of dealing with the ABC archive. The scripting, budgeting, scheduling and filming of our series was done based on knowledge of what we would require from the ABC archive. The last minute decision to terminate the agreement has resulted in our schedule and budget being thrown into chaos.
Our approach is not current affairs but a non-fiction feature presentation of Australia’s political history through layers of meaning. The archive represents the reality upon which our interviewees reflect.. When you lose the archive, you lose the construction of the layers. In few words, we have had to delay and extend our edit period while we scour alternate approaches to the archive material - material we have now had to search for from scratch from all available options (principally commercial TV). It should also be noted that we are frequently unsuccessful at finding what we need as the approach and the coverage is of a different character, to which we must adapt. Numerous requests are duplicated over and over again. And much of our intended source material is unique to the ABC (4 corners, lateline, 7.30 report, radio national etc etc etc). This has necessitated the employment of additional research staff, editing staff and production staff; all unbudgeted.
Nick Torrens Film Productions is subject to its contractual arrangements with SBS television for the delivery of the series. The ABC’s decision puts in severe jeopardy our ability to fulfil that contract. In our view we are subject to an unreasonable restraint of trade by the ABC.
Q2) The ABC claims much of the footage would be available elsewhere. Is this true? Is there any specific footage which you require that can only be sourced from the ABC (please give examples)?
ANSWER: Some footage is available from other sources. Much material is not. This is particularly true of ABC news and current affairs material and ABC Radio material, particularly Rural ABC Radio. I doubt that anyone at the ABC would contest that the ABC as the National Broadcaster does record, produce and store material for the nation which is unique.
Q3) Did you have an agreement with the ABC to provide access to the footage? Have you sought legal advice on this issue and if there is an agreement could it be enforced?
ANSWER : Frank Haines approached the ABC Library Sales representative Simon Kain after first speaking to Cyrus Irani, Manager Library Sales, in April 2007. Simon then sent an E- mail on 30 April setting out the terms of the ABC archive deal.
Frank responded to Simon Kain by E-mail on 6 May 2007 thanking him for the ABC’s offer and stated that once the financing was complete we would be in contact. Our legal advice is that this is an arguable acceptance of their offer given Australian Industry practice.
The question I have is , if there was no offer in place why did the ABC need to inform us in June 2008 that they were withdrawing their offer.
Q4) Have you provided the ABC with details of the footage you require? Has anyone at the ABC indicated to you that the footage is not available as it is currently in use?
ANSWER: When the ABC was initially contacted, by phone, a brief was given as to the type of material we required. This brief was for footage from the last thirty years plus of Australian political history, social history material that showed the nation and its people as they were at a particular time and any other material that illustrated our intentions in the series.
It wasn’t until we called to initiate the ordering process before commencing our edit that we were informed that the ABC had decided not to proceed with the agreement to provide the footage we wanted. This was on June 11 2008
The precise wording of that written E mail response of 11 June 2008 from Cyrus Irani , Manager Library Sales, was:
“ After discussion with News and Current Affairs division we have decided we cannot supply footage for your production at this time. I apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.”
No one at the ABC has verbally or in a written form told us the material is currently in use.
Q5) Why did you wait almost twelve months after the ABC quoted prices before proceeding with your footage request?
ANSWER: It is not customary to acquire and stockpile the footage you require for a film when you are spending a protracted time filming. To do so would mean having to pay for storage of the materials and the engaging of staff ahead of the time they are required. The gap between receiving a quote from the ABC in April 2007 and the beginning of the ordering process of footage a month out from editing is the most economical way to approach the process of making the series.
It should be noted that the production company , Nick Torrens Film Productions, is an independent production company. It has no business or structural ties to any broadcaster. It survives by making films that are commissioned by broadcasters in the main.
One of the impacts of this situation is that we are always working on tight budgets with extremely limited resources. Every decision has a real dollar impact. For an independent production company, technical and human resources are scarce. All us done by a few people.
Q6) The ABC has offered to provide the footage on the basis your doco is not aired before January 2009. Why have you not agreed to this stipulation?
Answer: That is not a decision we can make. WE make the series, SBS schedules it.
Q7) Is your documentary, “Liberal Rule” a competitor to the ABC’s “The Howard Years”? Is there any significant difference in the material you will cover?
Answer: ‘Liberal Rule “ is a three by one hour series that takes as its aim the examination of the last thirty years of Australian political leadership and Liberalism. I commenced working on these ideas after the 2004 Federal election (without any thought or knowledge of an ABC political series). I have no sense of competition with the ABC or its series, possibly because my own career of over 30 years as a filmmaker has been totally outside television and has followed entirely different paths and approaches from journalism or current affairs. As an enthusiastic viewer of films and programs of ideas though, I am looking forward greatly to watching the ABC’s Howard series – almost as much as I am to watching ours.
Not being privy to any knowledge, script or treatment for “The Howard Years”, I have no idea about any differences or similarities between the programs. I might imagine that our aim is more philosophical than an event-based coverage – but this is pure surmise.