44-503: Mark Joffe (born 1956) is an Australian film and television director. He has directed feature films, telemovies, and drama series. Joffe "learned his trade at Crawford Productions ", working on Carson's Law , Special Squad and Neighbours . His first major directing job was the first episode of The Great Bookie Robbery (1986). He agreed to direct the Irish-American film The Matchmaker after gaining approval to have
88-461: A 13-week "escape clause", which he eventually invoked. All cited the worsening workload, which was best expressed by Teale as he announced his departure from the show: Late in the show's run – between episodes 470 and 480 – a feature-length episode was filmed. This film was entitled Stopover , with the title Homicide not used at all, and was shot entirely on film on new sets and on location at Melbourne Airport . Lawson, White, Deegan and Redford are
132-701: A Husband (GTV-9, 1958) and the drama play Seagulls Over Sorrento (HSV-7, 1960). They also produced segments of the Export Action documentary series, The Flying Dogtor cartoon series, and a local adaptation of the US game show Video Village (HSV-7, 1962–66). The company's production quality was known to be higher quality than that of their closest rival, the Reg Grundy Organisation , who specialized in quiz and game shows before transitioning to drama serials. Company co-founder Hector Crawford
176-539: A diversified entertainment group, Ariadne Australia, and there would going to be a link between Crawford Productions and De Laurentiis Entertainment Limited, a subsidiary of the De Laurentiis Entertainment Group in which Ariadne is the second-largest stockholder in the group, and Crawfords' series wanted to be a cash flow underpinning the then-under construction DEL studios to produce their own projects, each of these were filmed. The company
220-485: A highly popular police drama on each commercial network, the production company was booming. However, in 1975 and 1976, Homicide , Division 4 , and Matlock Police were all abruptly cancelled. It has been suggested that this was because Hector Crawford and several of the actors who featured in his shows figured prominently in the contemporary TV: Make It Australian campaign, agitating for stronger local content regulations to promote and protect local TV production. Though
264-514: A major ratings success and compete effectively with imported American programming. As video technology was still in its infancy in Australia at that time, Crawford Productions developed a highly efficient integrated production schedule to combine studio scenes recorded on videotape with location footage captured on film for each weekly episode. Encouraged by the success of Homicide (which continued in production until 1975) their next drama project
308-542: A meld of soap opera with the Crawfords staple of police drama, and the series emerged as a popular success. Cop Shop featured George Mallaby and former Bellbird star Terry Norris . Skyways (1979–81) replicated the soap opera-meets-weekly adult drama hybrid of Cop Shop in an airport setting, with less success. Later programmes included legal drama Carson's Law (1983–84), a vehicle for former The Sullivans star Lorraine Bayly , children's series Halfway Across
352-505: A radio production company in 1945, Crawford Productions then specialized in drama, light entertainment, and educational programs. When broadcast television was introduced to Australia in 1956, Crawford Productions was one of the few Australian radio production houses to successfully transition to the new medium. Early Crawford TV productions included Wedding Day (HSV-7, 1956), the first Australian-produced sitcom Take That! (HSV-7, 1957–59), The Peters Club (GTV-9, 1958), Raising
396-419: A return to police drama but with a new spin; however, the series was not a major success. Greater success came with The Sullivans (1976–83), a critically acclaimed and highly popular World War II family serial co-starring Lorraine Bayly and former Matlock lead Paul Cronin. Continuing the trend at that time for evening soap opera type shows on Australian television they later launched Cop Shop (1977–84),
440-401: A skill-base that grew out of Hollywood. The competitive advantage enjoyed by imported content was exacerbated by the fact that the once-thriving Australian film industry had been decimated by competition from the major American studios. Since the beginning of the 1960s, film production in Australia had come to a standstill. Only one locally produced and funded feature film was made in Australia in
484-547: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Crawford Productions Crawford Productions is an Australian media production company, focused on radio and television production . Founded in Melbourne by Hector Crawford and his sister, actress and voice artist Dorothy Crawford , the company, also known as Crawfords Australia , is now a subsidiary of the WIN Corporation . Founded exclusively as
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#1732801465608528-539: Is numbered 509, due to the pilot episode being numbered with an 'A' suffix, making a total of 510), for many years it also held the record for most episodes produced in an Australian weekly primetime drama. When Blue Heelers ended in 2006, the show equalled this record. However, Homicide ran on-air for longer than Blue Heelers , and had a greater cumulative running time due to the production of five feature-length episodes. Characters' ranks (except for Detective Inspector) changed in accordance with real-life changes in
572-742: The ITV companies in the UK. Not all regions screened the show, which was scheduled in a late-night slot (usually 10:30pm or later), but among those that did were Westward TV , Yorkshire TV , Channel TV , Border TV and Southern Television . In 2004, the all-film episodes "Flashpoint" (ep. 56) and "Stopover" (ep. 504) were screened cinematically by Melbourne Cinematheque . In August 2010, WIN Television , as part of their late night "Crawford's Classic Drama" series, began sequential repeats from episode 1, but ceased in March 2011 at episode 33 (the pilot "One Man Crime Wave"
616-523: The United States , and Crawford decided to co-finance with American network HBO in order to develop a second series of the long-running All the Rivers Run , which premiered on HBO in 1983. That year, Nick McMahon and Mike Lake, had ankle from the company to serve as consultant executive producers for the programs that were produced by Crawfords. In 1987, Crawfords themselves was sold off to
660-717: The Galaxy and Turn Left and the popular outback medical drama The Flying Doctors . The company started life in small premises located in Little Collins Street , Melbourne, moved to the now heritage listed Olderfleet Building in Collins Street , then in 1972 to Southampton Crescent, Abbotsford , and in 1982 to Middleborough Road, Box Hill . In the 1980s, they set up an international branch Crawford Productions International, which its main purpose that Crawfords would film series for foreign companies, namely
704-478: The UK. For these reasons, as well as for inspiring a series of popular cop dramas that followed, it remains one of the most important programmes in the history of television in Australia . In 1994, a special tribute to the series aired titled Homicide: 30 Years On , hosted by Blue Heelers stars John Wood and Lisa McCune , which included interviews with surviving cast members and guest stars (both Fegan and Teale had already died before then). In 2007, Homicide
748-749: The Victoria Police Force. For example, Detective Sergeant Mackay becomes Detective Senior Sergeant to reflect his role as the squad's number-two when this rank was introduced. Barnes becomes a Senior Detective after the rank of Detective was abolished. Homicide scripts explored a number of major social issues, such as: Many early episodes were introduced by chief of detectives John Fegan speaking directly to camera, to highlight their significance and, presumably, to indicate they may not be suitable for younger viewers. Stories were frequently based on real murder cases, including: The first episode aired on 20 October 1964. The debut episode ("The Stunt")
792-549: The company's earlier dramas. Note: Nine Network , Network 10 (NRN) and WIN Television have the free-to-air broadcast rights to those shows, not the other rival networks Homicide (Australian TV series) Homicide was a landmark Australian television police procedural drama series broadcast on the Seven Network and produced by Crawford Productions . It was the television successor to Crawfords' radio series D24 . The "Consummate Homicide cast" includes
836-564: The decade between 1959 and 1969. One of the major impacts of the suppression of the local film industry was a rapid erosion of skills and experience among local film-makers and an exodus of local talent to Britain and the USA. Crawford experienced mainstream success with its popular and long-running police drama Homicide , which premiered in October 1964 on the Seven Network . It became the first Australian TV drama series produced locally to become
880-622: The detectives in the film. The story involved an international rock band that was held at the airport following the fatal overdose of a band member. Guest stars included Jon English as the band's lead singer, and Tony Bonner as the band member who overdosed. The film, directed by Igor Auzins , never received a cinema release but was shown on television as a special telefilm in 1976. It is officially listed as episode 504, with episodes 502 and 503 also being feature-length. Homicide won multiple awards for its scripts, including three AWGIEs , two Logies , one Penguin and one Sammy Award: Homicide
924-564: The fictional homicide squad of the Victorian Police force and the various crimes and cases the detectives are called upon to investigate. Many episodes were based directly on real cases, although the characters (including the detectives) were fictional. 510 episodes were produced and aired from 20 October 1964 to January 1977, a total of 12 years and 6 months), making Homicide the longest-running Australian weekly primetime drama in history, with 510 episodes produced (the last episode
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#1732801465608968-529: The first scene ever turned for the pilot was of veteran vaudevillian Al Mack pantomiming a derelict under the Hoddle Bridge next to the Yarra River , possibly filmed as early as 1963/4. With occasional exceptions, the earliest filmed segments – which often focused on dramatic shots of cars pulling in, gun battles, arrests and fist fights – did not have synchronised sound. Dialogue for these scenes
1012-552: The four characters that are the best known: Det. Snr. Sgt. David "Mac" MacKay ( Leonard Teale ), Det. Sgt. Peter Barnes ( George Mallaby ), Inspector Colin Fox ( Alwyn Kurts ) and Sen. Det. Jim Patterson ( Norman Yemm ). After self-financing the pilot episode, Hector Crawford shopped it around commercial networks for nearly a year, before a series was commissioned in 1964 by Melbourne HSV7 station manager Keith Cairns, even if Sydney would not decide to come along. The series dealt with
1056-411: The interior of a car. Sound effects and library underscore music cues (many from KPM Music ) would be also dubbed onto the location-shot footage. Both pre-recorded sound effects recordings and the work of Crawford's foley artist would be used, particularly for gunshots and the title sequence's percussive car-door slams as the stars emerge. Episode 56, "Flashpoint", which first aired on 19 April 1966,
1100-438: The next day. The workload for the regular actors, especially for location work, was notoriously heavy. In 1967 the regular squad was increased from three to four to better share the load, which remained the standard team to the end. In 1972, when it was decided to transfer production entirely to film, the result was a massive increase in overtime demanded by the series. Teale and Kurts promptly quit, and Mallaby only re-signed with
1144-459: The other stars included former game show host and newsreader Chuck Faulkner , Terry Donovan , Frank Taylor and Ted Hamilton . Unlike Homicide , which concentrated on murder plots, Division 4 was set in a suburban Melbourne police station, and covered a broad range of police work, as well as occasionally featuring more light-hearted episodes. It too became an enduring popular success and earned Kennedy two Logie Awards . Crawford's next venture
1188-420: The ratings for The Box were significantly lower when compared to the figures from its first year, the show continued until 1976. The Box was cancelled in early 1977 and production ended on the series 1 April 1977. The company also created situation comedy series The Bluestone Boys (1976) which was set in a prison, and Bobby Dazzler , a vehicle for pop singer John Farnham , in 1977. Bluey (1976) saw
1232-484: The realm of soap opera with its sex-comedy serial The Box , which was set in a TV station, UCV channel 12. With the top-rating 0–10 Network serial Number 96 as its lead in The Box was an instant success. Homicide , Division 4 , and Matlock Police remained highly popular through the early 1970s, and The Box was a big hit in its premiere year, ranking as Australia's second highest-rated program for 1974. With
1276-952: The script rewritten by Irish writer Graham Linehan , one of the writers of Father Ted . In 1987 Joffe won the Australian Film Institute award for Best Direction in Television for The Great Bookie Robbery . In 1991 he won the Peace Prize at the Chicago International Children's Film Festival for More Winners: Boy Soldiers . In 1992 he was nominated for the Crystal Globe at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival for Spotswood . This article about an Australian film director
1320-492: The series switched from B&W to colour in 1973, it necessitated shooting entirely on film, as the HSV7 studios were yet to be converted to colour video production, and it was also beneficial for foreign market sales. If a script was amended, a Crawford Productions staff member who lived near the actor concerned would be required to deliver the new script to their house. Quite often this new dialogue had to be memorised for filming
1364-752: The time. As a result of this de facto free-trade agreement, most programs shown on Australian TV content were imported from America. At the time when Homicide premiered in late 1964, more than 80% of all content broadcast on Australian TV came from America, and American productions enjoyed a virtual monopoly over the TV drama field. The report of the 1963 Vincent Commission into the Australian media found that 97% of all drama shows broadcast in Australia between 1956 and 1963 were American productions. Australian producers competed against high-quality, high-budget imported programs that drew from an international talent pool and
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1408-507: The unique distinction of having a successful weekly drama series running simultaneously on each of the three major commercial networks. In 1973, Crawford Productions created the action-adventure series Ryan (1973), starring Rod Mullinar as a private investigator. This was an all-film colour production (at a time when Australian TV was still in black and white and transitioning to colour) made to target overseas sales, but it only lasted one series and 39 episodes. In 1974, Crawfords moved into
1452-543: Was 47 minutes. 134 of the episodes were filmed in colour. The opening and closing theme music for the entire series run was the library piece "Victory" written by American composer James Reichert, and intermittent narration from announcer John McMahon was used for the early B&W seasons. The first "victim" was Ian Turpie shot by Gordon Glenwright , with Susanne Haworth supplying the first pre-credits scream, while Graeme Blundell and Dorothy Crawford look on as uncredited crowd extras. According to The Homicide Story ,
1496-426: Was a market for home-grown dramatic programming and was highly successful from the start – its initial ratings were in the 30s, and regularly rated in the high 40s and even low 50s (modern cop show ratings tend to be in the 20s at best). In addition, the series was produced at a tenth of the cost of an overseas program and easily outrated them, despite stiff competition from hit US shows thrown up against it. In 1971, it
1540-609: Was a rural police series Matlock Police (1971), which was sold to the Network Ten . Like Crawford's other ventures it enjoyed success and popularity. It starred veteran Australian actor Michael Pate , who had spent many years in Hollywood in the 1950s and 1960s, and featured Paul Cronin , who was later given his own spinoff series: Solo One . With the success of Matlock Police , Crawford Productions cemented its position as Australia's leading drama production house and gained
1584-581: Was not included). The pilot is significant in that one of the actors in the show was Rona Newton-John, elder sister of Olivia Newton-John . Early episodes were in black and white (B&W) with the bulk of material recorded on videotape in the Dorcas street studios of HSV7 using a multicamera setup , with many video directors, the most prolific being Alex Emanuel. Each episode also featured about ten minutes of location footage shot on 16 mm film, predominantly by Ian Jones or David Lee. Total time per episode
1628-405: Was not the first to be produced, with the pilot ("One Man Crime Wave") airing as episode 24A just prior to the departure of Lex Mitchell. Regular daytime repeat screenings began in the early 1970s running until the early 1980s, as strip programming . Additionally, seven episodes were screened as specials, or part of specials: In the 1960s, the series was picked up, on a regional basis, by some of
1672-417: Was recorded "post sync". This means that the dialogue was recorded on location but, due to the often low quality of audio recorded in this manner, the actor was required to lip sync the dialogue in a sound-proof studio in the standard filmmaking process known as Additional Dialogue Recording . Location recordings were used infrequently, and usually limited to brief dialogue snatches in enclosed spaces, such as
1716-421: Was shot as an experiment entirely on film in mountainous locations around Buxton, Victoria and most of the dialogue for this episode was post-synched. Over the years the ratio of film to videotape was increased, and synchronised sound between a Nagra magnetic tape recorder and a maneuverable Arriflex camera became the location norm by the late 1960s leading to more efficiency and documentary authenticity. When
1760-592: Was sold to WIN Corporation in 1989. Subsequent Crawfords drama productions included State Coroner , The Saddle Club , and Guinevere Jones . The Crawford studios in Box Hill were demolished in March 2006 and a Bunnings opened on the site on 30 June 2006. In 2009, Crawfords Australia had an eight-acre studio complex in Melbourne. While the company is still in existence, it currently does not produce television, concentrating instead on marketing DVD releases of
1804-530: Was the ambitious espionage drama Hunter (1967), which was purchased by the Nine Network . It starred Tony Ward and also made a star out of the actor who played its villain, Gerard Kennedy . After Hunter ended in 1969, a new police drama, Division 4 (1969) was conceived as a vehicle for Kennedy's talents and he became a dual Gold Logie winner, the series also screened on the Nine Network;
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1848-764: Was the first major dramatic television series to be produced in Australia, the domestic television market having been previously dominated by American and British imports. In 1964, most Australian-made product tended to be quiz shows, children's series, music/variety series and one-off plays, with local drama production sporadic at best, with only a handful of typically short-lived series, rarely running more than 13 episodes, on commercial television such as Autumn Affair , Emergency and The Story of Peter Grey , along with several mini-series on ABC such as Stormy Petrel . Foreign imports were preferred because they were cheaper, slicker and (especially for US series) more plentiful than local productions. Homicide proved that there
1892-696: Was the top-rated show in the country. Another Crawfords police drama, Division 4 , was second. The series also proved itself to be a virtual training ground for Australian television and film production. During its 12-year run, almost everyone in the industry – actors, directors, scriptwriters, producers, camera crew, stunt performers etc. – got their start or worked on the series at some point in their careers, and guest roles were filled by many notable actors, both established and emerging. Steady roles in long-running Crawford series helped convince successful expatriate actors like Charles Tingwell and Michael Pate to return to their homeland after decades in Hollywood or
1936-581: Was well known as an orchestral conductor and as a prominent figure in the ongoing campaign for local content regulations on Australian television. During the 1960s and the first half of the 1970s, Crawford Productions dominated Australian drama series. They gained an early foothold with their first major TV series, Consider Your Verdict (1961–64), which presented dramatizations of court cases. Like other local producers, they faced heightened competition from imported overseas programming, as there were no local content regulations governing Australian television at
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