Communication & Creativity Research Flagship - Projects
Spreading Fictions: Distributing Stories in the Online Age
Project Code: ARC LP100200656
Spreading Fictions is a three-year project that asks: ‘Where do Australians now get their audiovisual stories and how might they get them in the future?’. It will provide major public analyses of audiovisual distribution in Australia, bringing together two partner organisations―the ABC and Screen Australia―and academics at The Swinburne Institute for Social Research and UNSW’s Journalism and Media Research Centre with experience in economics, cultural and information policy, industry analysis, law and audience research.
Research Team
Chief Investigators: Prof Jock Given (Swinburne), Prof Gerard Goggin (UNSW)
Research Fellows: Marion McCutcheon, Catherine Griff
Publications and Other Research Outputs
Context
Successive governments in Australia and overseas have given a high priority to policies encouraging the making, promotion, screening and discussion of Australian audiovisual works, especially feature films, TV dramas, documentaries and children’s programs. Ranging from development and production subsidies and the funding of national broadcasters to TV program quotas, tax concessions and international co-production agreements, these policies are based on the high cost of cinema and TV entertainment relative to the revenue-earning capacity of national markets. While never stable, these underlying economics are being challenged from at least three related directions: technology, audiences tastes and practices, and business models.
Research Programme
Commencing in the second half of 2010 and running for three years, this project will focus on four entities: sectors, audiences, projects and commercial companies. A comprehensive picture of audiovisual distribution will be drawn from these four areas of analysis, together with policy implications to be considered by the partner organisations, industry and governments.
Project Outcomes
Industry reports and journal articles will be published throughout the three years of the project.