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Gary Sweet and Rachel Griffiths in ‘House Husbands.’

Gary Sweet will play a fictional version of himself in a six-part comedy which is being developed by Rachel Griffiths and writer/actor Maddie Dyer.

In Saving Gary Sweet, the former House Husbands star will play a troubled TV actor who has been married four times and ends up in hospital after a drug and alcohol binge.

Griffiths discussed the project today in conversation with Denise Eriksen in Running Free Skills, a webinar presented by Acmi, Film Victoria and Media Monitors.

She got the idea when she co-starred with Sweet in House Husbands after having a number of dreams in which she “saved” Ben Affleck.

The premise has Sweet as a TV actor whose career is derailed after a video of him bagging his co-star in a procedural cop show while doing cocaine with an underage girl goes viral.

Sweet loved the...

"There's a reason the call it the most dangerous sport on Earth." Saban Films has debuted one more official trailer for the inspiring true story Ride Like a Girl. We already posted two Australian trailers for this film last year, for its Australian release in the fall. This finally will open in this Us this March. The film tells the true story of Michelle Payne, the first female jockey to win the Melbourne Cup - horse-racing's toughest two-mile race - in 2015. Teresa Palmer stars as Michelle, also joined by Sam Neill, Sullivan Stapleton, Stevie Payne (as himself), Genevieve Morris, Sophia Forrest, Henry Nixon, Aaron Glenane, and Zara Zoe. This definitely does seem like it's worth catching up with when it releases in the Us next month. Here's the (third) official Us trailer (+ poster) for Rachel Griffiths' Ride Like a Girl, direct from YouTube: You can still watch the first...

Rachel Griffiths. (Photo: Lisa Tomasetti)

Actor, director and producer Rachel Griffiths has joined Bus Stop Films as the organisation’s patron.

Griffiths’ appointment comes as Bus Stop Films, which promotes inclusive filmmaking and accessible film studies and employment for people with disability in screen, celebrates 10 years.

Bus Stop Films was established by co-founder Genevieve Clay-Smith after winning Tropfest with her inclusively made film Be My Brother in 2009. Today, Bus Stop Films has produced more than 25 inclusive films, and has won a a number of accolades, including a Human Rights Award. The organisation’s film studies program offers a professional level film education for older teens and adults living with intellectual disability, across four locations, including Aftrs, Fox Studios, Information Cultural Exchange (I.C.E) in Parramatta and, in 2020, the program will be hosted by Screen Canberra and the University of Wollongong, alongside its international program in Mongolia.

As director of Ride Like A Girl,...

"The only thing that matters... is the odds you give yourself." Even though this film already opened a few months back in Australia, we're only just catching up with this second trailer from Transmission Films for Ride Like a Girl. The film marks the feature directorial debut of actress Rachel Griffiths, telling the true story of Michelle Payne, the first female jockey to win the Melbourne Cup - horse-racing's toughest two-mile race - in 2015. Teresa Palmer stars as Michelle, with a cast including Sam Neill, Sullivan Stapleton, Stevie Payne (as himself), Genevieve Morris, Sophia Forrest, Henry Nixon, Aaron Glenane, and Zara Zoe. This does look like an inspiring, exciting film, plus it's always wonderful to watch Sam & Teresa. Here's the second Australian trailer (+ another poster) for Rachel Griffiths' Ride Like a Girl, on YouTube: You can still watch the first official trailer for Griffiths' Ride Like a Girl right here,...

‘Terminator: Dark Fate.’

The latest iterations of Maleficent, Godzilla, Men in Black, The Angry Birds and Rambo flopped or under-performed in cinemas this year and Terminator: Dark Fate is the latest victim of moviegoers’ sequel fatigue.

It might be an exaggeration to say the sixth edition of the franchise self-destructed but the opening figures in Australia, the Us and 38 other markets last weekend weren’t pretty.

James Cameron’s name in the credits as one of the five “story by” writers and the novelty of seeing Arnold Schwarzenegger and Linda Hamilton together on screen for the first time since 1991’s Terminator 2: Judgment Day counted for very little.

Speaking of sequels no one wanted or asked for, Roadshow’s 47 Meters Down: Uncaged sank without trace, mirroring its Us fate.

Meanwhile Transmission Films launched writer-director Paul Downs Colaizzo’s Brittany Runs a Marathon on 20 screens three weeks before the dramedy starts streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

‘Promised.’

Most of the new releases in Australian cinemas last weekend had bombed or under-performed in the Us weeks or months ago, so their fates were probably sealed.

Splatter comedy Ready or Not, Ron Howard’s homage to the late tenor Luciano Pavarotti, English musical dramedy Blinded by the Light and indie Us drama After the Wedding were among the Halloween strugglers.

The top-grossing title at the Lavazza Italian Film Festival, writer-director Nick Conidi’s Promised opened on 45 screens via Umbrella Entertainment. The weekend take for the 1950s-set drama starring Tina Arena, Paul Mercurio, Antoniette Iesue, Daniel Berini and Mirko Grillini was a modest $57,000 but the total including festival screenings is a decent $198,000.

The top 20 titles generated $11.3 million, down 21 per cent on the prior frame according to Numero, getting some uplift from Indian imports Bigil and, to a lesser extent, Housefull 4.

Facing minimal competition, Todd Phillips’ Joker led the field for the fourth consecutive weekend,...

‘Maleficent: Mistress of Evil.’

In the battle of the sequels Disney’s Maleficent: Mistress of Evil beat Sony’s Zombieland: Double Tap last weekend but neither was a match for the third frame of Warner Bros’ juggernaut Joker.

Launching on 60 screens, Universal’s Judy Garland biopic Judy hit a high note while Cinema Live’s Billy Connolly: The Sex Life of Bandages did not generate many laughs or dollars and Icon’s mystery thriller Strange But True bombed.

It was a soft trading weekend at cinemas as the top 20 titles harvested $14.2 million, down 27 per cent on the previous frame, according to Numero.

Todd Phillips’ Joker rang up $4.3 million despite falling by 41 per cent, hoisting its total to $28.5 million. The WB/Village Roadshow/Bron Studios’ production has amassed $738.5 million worldwide: $247.2 million in the Us and $491.3 million internationally, where it now ranks as the fourth biggest DC comics-based blockbuster of all time.

‘Hustlers’ (Photo credit: Stx Films).

Lorene Scafaria’s Hustlers is a hit in the Us but the crime caper starring Jennifer Lopez, Constance Wu, Lili Reinhart and Cardi B was never going to beat the second weekend of Todd Phillips’ blockbuster Joker in Australia.

Meanwhile Ang Lee’s $140 million-budgeted action thriller Gemini Man is shaping as a write-off for Paramount Pictures and co-investors Skydance, Alibaba and Fosun.

Rachel Griffiths’ Ride Like a Girl maintained a fair clip in its third weekend while two alternate content releases, Nt Live: Fleabag and Metallica & San Francisco Symphony: S&m drew sizable audiences.

The top 20 titles generated $19.2 million last weekend, 13 per cent down on the previous frame, according to Numero.

Starring Joaquin Phoenix as the twisted, disenfranchised clown-for-hire and stand-up comic in 1980s Gotham, Joker rang up $7.4 million, easing by just 24 per cent, hoisting its total to $22 million.

The Warner Bros/Village Roadshow/Bron Studios...

‘Joker’ (Photo credit: Warner Bros)

Is Todd Phillips’ Joker an enthralling masterpiece or a disturbing and deeply derivative incitement to commit violence? The comic book-inspired movie has polarised the critics but audiences in Australia and around the world have voted with their feet.

The action adventure starring Joaquin Phoenix as the twisted, disenfranchised clown-for-hire and stand-up comic in 1980s Gotham smashed industry opening records for October in Oz, the Us and internationally last weekend.

Meanwhile Rachel Griffiths’ Ride Like a Girl now ranks as the top-grossing Australian release of the year after racing through its second weekend. Ticket sales surged thanks to the school holidays and the new releases including Indian import War and Chinese dramas My People, My Country and The Captain.

The top 20 titles harvested $21.9 million from Thursday through Sunday, 80 per cent up on the previous weekend, according to Numero.

Joker punched up $9.7 million and $11.9 million including the Monday Labor Day holiday.

‘Ride Like a Girl’.

Rachel Griffiths’ Ride Like a Girl will take the crown of highest grossing Australian film on home soil this year.

Meanwhile the low visibility and modest returns from limited releases including Kim Farrant’s Angel of Mine, Sophie Hyde’s Animals and Rodd Rathjen’s Buoyancy have prompted renewed calls from exhibitors to address the challenges facing most Aussie films in the crowded theatrical market.

Griffiths’ biopic starring Teresa Palmer as ground-breaking jockey Michelle Payne pocketed nearly $4 million in its first eight days, including $317,000 on Thursday.

So the Transmission Films release co-starring Sam Neill as Payne’s father Paddy and her brother Stevie Payne as himself will overtake Palm Beach’s $4.4 million this weekend and will zoom past Top End Wedding’s $5.2 million and Storm Boy’s $5 million.

Exhibitors are confident the film is heading for upwards of $10 million and could reach Ladies in Black’s $12 million.

‘Ride Like A Girl’.

Transmission Films’ Ride Like a Girl, the directorial debut from Rachel Griffiths, has surpassed expectations, topping the Australian box office on its opening weekend.

The biopic covering the rise of Australian female jockey Michelle Payne opened at first place on Thursday and after an opening weekend performance across 269 screens, is hurtling towards becoming the highest grossing Australian film of the year.

According to the Motion Picture Distributors Association of Australian (Mpdaa) the weekend takings were $1.7 million, with a cumulative total of $2.4 million.

The feature produced by Richard Keddie stars Teresa Palmer as Payne, Sam Neill as her father Paddy, while brother Stevie Payne plays himself.

Transmission Films MD Andrew Mackie tells If the opening result exceeded the distributor’s already high expectations.

“The audience knows what they want. This is an authentic, heartfelt true story, and the audience seems to have recognised that,” he says.

“One...

‘Ride Like A Girl’

Watching the 2015 Melbourne Cup, Rachel Griffiths didn’t initially know there was a female jockey in the race.

When the commentator first mentioned Michelle Payne’s name, her ears pricked up. When Payne then crossed the line – the first female jockey to ever win the Cup – the room full of women she was in erupted in cheers.

Griffiths continued to be captivated as Michelle’s brother and strapper Stevie Payne ran out to put the sash on horse Prince of Penzance, and the jockey told her naysayers to “get stuffed” in her first interview after dismounting.

She jumped on Google straight away to find out more about her, and within minutes she knew Michelle was the youngest of 10 children, eight of whom were jockeys. Her mother had died when she was six months old – “which officially makes her a Disney princess, because she has an unexpected...