MEL GIBSON - GIBSON SHUTS DOWN AUSTRALIAN PRODUCTION COMPANY

A movie production company launched by Mel Gibson and Australia's leading talent agency, Shanahan Management, to make movies in Australia featuring some of the country's top stars, including Nicole Kidman, Toni Collette and Geoffrey Rush, has shut down its operations without a single film being produced, the Sydney Morning Herald reported today (Thursday). The newspaper also noted that Gibson had twice previously attempted to launch production ventures in Australia with major partners only to see them fall apart, with their planned productions aborted. Mark Gooder who heads up Australian operations for Gibson's Icon Productions, told the Herald, "Everyone has good intentions to make as many films as they possibly can out of Australia. ... But when it comes down to it, what are those stories that will resonate and travel overseas? ... You talk to any producer and any studio in Australia. Are they all sitting on fantastic material that they're holding back from making? No. I think everyone finds it's a bit of a struggle to find strong material."


30/08/2007