Welcome to Behind The Screen, a new SPA series putting the spotlight on the producers behind Australian screen stories.
Each edition will take you behind the scenes with a SPA member to discover more about their journey as a producer, the realities of bringing stories to the screen, and the projects they’re working on now.
In our first edition, we hear from Julia Redwood, Managing Director at Prospero Productions, who shares what they find most rewarding and challenging about producing, the story behind Outback Terror: The Falconio Murder, and their perspective on the future of Australia’s screen industry.
1. What's the most rewarding part of your job?
Watching a film go to air, or screen in a theatre, knowing the extraordinary talent and effort that has gone into making it I find so incredibly rewarding.
2. What's the most challenging part of your job?
Raising the funding for a film is the hardest role I play and sadly, it never seems to get any easier! It is a very special skill that producers have and I take my hat off to any producer that does it successfully. It is an incredible achievement at any level.
3. Tell us about your latest production. What makes this story one you wanted to bring to the screen?
Outback Terror: The Falconio Murder is a two -part true crime series for Channel 9 and UKTV. I was aware that 2026 would be the 25th anniversary of the murder of British backpacker, Peter Falconio. It was a huge story 25 years ago and so much misinformation has swirled around it ever since. For me, the last remaining mystery to be solved was, where is Peter? His body has never been found despite a number of searches by the NT Police.
The question we posed to ourselves was, could the latest science and investigative techniques find Peter Falconio? Crucial to answering this was discovering Dr. Harrison who is an expert in the science of search or geo-forensics and who had conducted a previous analysis of the case. Dr. Harrison then suggested that former FBI profiler and expert in criminal behaviour, Kathy Canning-Mello, join him in the field. It was also very important to me and the team, that the film re-frame the narrative around Peter’s girlfriend, Joanne Lees, who survived the attack, but who suffered, and still does to this day, media and online scrutiny.
4. Looking back on your career, what's made the biggest difference in helping you get your productions to the screen?
Many things have helped me over the years; support from Lotterywest via Screenwest, the Producers Offset, strong relationships with distributors and broadcasters, passion and determination but most of it’s been the team, the people I have around me. Truly, I couldn’t do what I do without them!
5. If you could see one positive change for Australia's screen industry over the next five years, what would it be?
Increase in the Producer Offset. It's fair and democratic and gives producers much greater certainty in their financing.
Stay tuned for the next Behind The Screen, as we continue to spotlight the producers and stories shaping Australia's screen advocacy.