ACCS 2024: “We’re all feeling it” over lack of local quotas, say Kids producers.
Producers at Children's Content Summit say they are doing it tough to get TV commissions outside of ABC and delays to streaming quotas.
- Published by David Knox
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Children’s Television producers in Australia are feeling the squeeze from a perfect storm of no sub-quotas on Free to Air networks, no streaming quotas as promised by July 1st and the downturn in commissions due to the advertising market.
At the Australian Children’s Content Summit, a show of hands from delegates demonstrated how many businesses are hurting right now.
Suzanne Ryan from SLR Productions and convenor of the Summit said, “We were promised a quota, and we worked very hard with our own dollars, going to Canberra and doing a lot of work over the last few years, when the subquotas left the Free to Airs. We really hoped that (quotas) would be here. I’m sure we could get a show of hands if you’re all feeling let down.
“If you’re finding it tough right now to get a show financed, if you want to put your hand up if you’re in that bucket.”
She continued, “The ABC are doing the heavy lifting. They are the number one place that we all go to. (ABC) cannot provide for the entire industry. It’s really hard a a company. You have overheads, you have staff, you want to develop really great content. We tend to go to the ACTF who’s also doing the heavy lifting to support us. It is really, really tough right now.
“We definitely need direct and indirect funding. We need more of it. We need support for the ABC. The ABC needs more money from government. The ACTF needs more money. Screen Australia needs more money. We need an uplift in the Offset. I know it sounds like a laundry list, but it’s true. We do need all of that, and we need more pathways to marketplace in Australia.”
Her words drew a round of applause from delegates at the Summit.
Dirt Girl World creator Cate McQuillen from mememe productions also addressed a panel saying, “If I was a blueberry farmer and what had changed in policy settings by government had affected my business so poorly, there would be a rescue package for me. And there isn’t. But I don’t want a rescue package. I want the whole industry rescued because I deeply care about children and stories that we’re telling.
“There are other industries that get a hand out, and we don’t want to hand out. We don’t really even want a hand up. I don’t want you to feel sorry for us. I want you to recognise who we are and what we do, and the joy and love that we share and that we’re a business.”
Minister for the Arts Tony Burke sent a video message of support telling delegates, “There’s so many great Children’s stories being told, I know, and I fought against the changes that were made before I came back to Office, where some of the quotas for the Children’s content were taken away. There’s a whole lot happening at the moment … we are doing everything we can to try to make sure that what we lost when those Free to Air quotas were taken away, we can find ways of rebuilding in terms of a guarantee of Children’s content. We have, as you know, provided funding for the Children’s Television Foundation. That’s an incredibly important part, but wherever wewe can find an extra edge for you, I want to do it.”
He continued, “What matters is every child will find the shows that speak to them, but unless we get the right policy around it with the right creatives -and that’s you- unless we get those things together, it just won’t happen. I don’t want us to have a generation of Australians who either watch their screen shows and think they live in a different part of the world, or are watching shows that never actually speak to them. I want them to see themselves.”
3 Responses
The delays by the Labor government suggest unresolved issues, but these delays create uncertainty in the industry and stifle production.
Government may need to intervene with initiatives like financial subsidies or grants for networks that commission and air children’s programming. Tax incentives, co-funding with educational institutions, and an increase in corporate sponsorships could also help.
Networks might consider programming blocks that pair children’s content with family-oriented shows. The core issue is revenue for commercial broadcasters, who lack incentives when the ABC offers children’s channels.
However, commercial networks are among the most recognised brands, and there is an expectation of corporate and social responsibility. With ABC Me no longer available, a gap in the teenage market has emerged that commercial networks could fill.
Although it’s not as if one of the commercial networks is currently running a FTA version of one of the world’s leading channels/TV brands aimed at older children and teenagers…oh wait.
With that factor in mind, surely the local children’s TV industry should be pressuring Ten/Paramount ANZ to make our Nickelodeon more Australian? There was a reasonable effort made with local productions for Nickelodeon/Nick Jr on Pay TV way back when (particularly during the XYZnetworks era), but as far as the FTA channel originally launched as 10 SHAKE is concerned, I think there’s only been Rock Island Mysteries and occasional interstitial segments under various brands.
Thank you for bringing that up. I’ve previously noted that certain MTV content, though aimed at teenagers, might not fully align with what is considered wholesome or family-friendly.
This creates an opportunity for a channel or network to offer more wholesome content that teenagers can still appreciate. Yet, some MTV programs, and possibly certain content on Nick at Nite, do indeed capture the evolving culture of youth. In such cases, it may be wise for parents to engage with their teenagers regarding this content, encouraging media literacy and critical thinking.