MEDIA RELEASE | The Contract: PROJECT: Waterman [season 1] – Landmark Australian Achievement Released For International Audiences

Melbourne, Australia – Monday 7th June 2021

The Contract: PROJECT: Waterman [season 1]

A landmark Australian achievement is released for international audiences around the globe by Wise Words Media and Callumny Films.

get the inside view from the industry outsider

When the safety of local kids in WATERMAN’s community is put at risk by train & public transport sector works around a local football oval, the infrastructure consultant must choose between his job and his own moral code.

Australia’s future – now more than ever – needs public transport infrastructure

Web Series | 2021 PG | Season 1 | 17 Episodes Runtime: 11 x 0hr10m, 6 x 0hr11m | IMDB

PG Documentary, Drama, Miscellaneous 180 Minutes

documentary, mockumentary, docufiction

Callumny Films – seller profile | content buyers

Wise Words Media and Callumny Films are pleased and proud to make available to international audiences Australia’s newest webseries: The Contract: PROJECT: Waterman [season 1]. All 17 Episodes are now available immediately at Callumny Films TV – the webseries release also heralds the debut of this new content aggregagtion distribution outlet.

Currently enduring Lockdown 4.0, timing of the series release is made in solidarity with the good residents of Melbourne, Australia firmly front-of-mind.

The commercial decision to simultaneously release the entire run of [Season 1] is aimed squarely at giving content buyers and online consumers a choice according to their individual preferences: episodic or binge viewing.

Surging, evolving demand from Global Audiences and Global Partners in the OTT / VOD / SVOD / AOD online content streaming and marketplaces is also a critical consideration behind today’s announcement.

“19% of UK consumers are spending the equivalent of 2 working days per week streaming content despite an increasing reluctance to pay for services.”

Viewers’ appetite for advertising is growing in line with their hunger for content. Could AVOD be the new way forward?” [1]

With total runtime of 11 episodes x 0hr 10m and 6 episodes x 0hr 11m each, Wise Words Media and Callumny Films are making good on a business model and strategy first announced in 2020. [2]

Added to the recent launch of a new, highly innovative digital series ‘this life’, Wise Words Media and Callumny Films continue to make an impact statement on the undeniable economic importance of skills and capabilities in Australia’s digital and infrastructure sectors.

A uniquely original concept, The Contract: PROJECT: Waterman [season 1] – a mockumentary webseries – specifically references an original, publicly tested script (A Fistful of Scripts) by SEAN McINTYRE – ‘The Contract‘. [3]

Watch now – FREE

All 17 Episodes are available immediately at Callumny Films TV.

The Contract: PROJECT: Waterman [season 1] marks the third international release in just five years for Wise Words Media and Callumny Films. Previous successful international title releases include:

Sacrifice (2016) | Drama / Mockumentary – Official Selection (2016) & (2017) On Vous Mont Mockumentary Film Festival (Lyon, France)
Leatherdaddy (2019) | Drama / Coming-of-Age / Comedy – A micro-budget indie feature in English & French, filmed on location Paris, France. Inspired by Aussie classic ‘Wake in Fright’, as well as Kevin Smith’s ‘Clerks’ and Richard Linklater’s ‘Dazed and Confused’.

ABOUT

Episode List | The Contract: PROJECT: Waterman [season 1] | all 17 episodes – includes Plot Outlines and Plot Summaries
Official Site | The Contract: PROJECT: Waterman [season 1]
Wise Words Media
Callumny Films | SHOWREEL | As filmmakers, our style/outlook borrows heavily from:

Clint Eastwood’s ‘El Paso’ productions, Lars Von Trier’s ‘Dogma’ collective, Blue-Tongue Films (Joel Edgerton, Nash Edgerton, David Michod, Kieran Darcey-Smith), Rolf de Heer, Peter Jackson and David Lynch.

Consulting, content licensing and distribution queries welcome.

DIRECTOR / PRODUCER STATEMENT

The Contract: PROJECT: Waterman [season 1] is a uniquely original concept.

Filmed thoughout 16 weeks during autumn and winter 2016 in Melbourne, Australia, pre-production and location scouting commenced November 2014.

The storyline is firmly anchored in a publicly tested script (A Fistful of Scripts): ‘The Contract‘, written in 2010 as a 10 minute TV pilot (in-development).

The Contract: PROJECT: Waterman [season 1] has been created specifically by Wise Words Media & Callumny Films for global distribution partners in online content marketplace spaces for VOD, SVOD, AOD and OTT markets.

This approach is designed to meet acclerated global demand and consumption for content by online audiences due to the COVid-19 pandemic.

“As the amount of content multiplies exponentially for viewers, in both what and where they can watch, video services and content distributors have an even more pressing need to manage the evolving global content licensing business”. [4]

TECH SPECS | TRIVIA

EQUIPMENT / CREW

While not ideal, the Olympus VG 160 afforded flexibility and quick set-up.

It was employed with director/producer/writer Nicholas Myer in mind (Star Trek II & III). In 2011 Myer implored filmakers at a Melbourne screenwriting conference to produce and distribute their own work by any means available.

“In a few clicks, viewers have more video choice than ever before, and the precise location of the viewer has serious implications”. [4]

FILMING

Raw footage approx 40 to 45 hours worth stored for publication and distribution. Total raw footage material on hand:

stills: location scouting: approx 4000 to 6000
footage: 1724 files approx 10 mins each
plus: footage shot around Melbourne CBD and other local area

FILMING LOCATIONS

Around 62 locations used, many on multiple, consecutive days.

Although the primary location was Blackburn Level Crossing Removal Project, locations also included: Melbourne CBD, Melbourne inner suburbs and surrounding areas such as Box Hill, Laburnum, Heatherdale and Ringwood.

“Where previously geo-gating might have been enough, now customers have many more locations and methods to view content”. [4]

EDITING

Attention to detail in post-production was crucial to craft and refine the story’s visual and verbal elements, marrying both so that the storyline(s) could be as succinct and compact as possible within an episodic 10 minute format.

footage: SD processed to HDR: H.264, 1920 x 1080p, 10Mbs, 60 fps
sound: sound sample rate 48kHz, audio quality 320kbps

ACTING STYLE

Although referencing a completed, original and publicly tested script (A Fistful of Scripts), the performance was heavily improvised. Monologues and other pieces were always filmed in a single take – bar one or two rare exceptions.

Directing / acting working style adheres to that of UK’s Mike Leigh (‘Vera Drake’ – Eddie Marsan, Imelda Staunton and Daniel Mays).

“Buying or renting? Mobile, desktop, or connected TV? Streaming or downloadable? SD or HD? AVOD, TVOD, or SVOD? Are there content blackout rights? Subtitles or dubbed?

Was a promotional offer used?” [4]

SCRIPT

Prior to and during filming, much research into the public transport infrastructure sector was undertaken. This continued throughout filming.

As it evolved to become a crucial bedrock of the series, the ‘risk to local kids’ was carefully plotted as a storyline in a pre-production format/approach at the start and end of each day’s filming.

Careful planning throughout the last 3 to 4 days of filming was required to make best use of locations, sunlight (magic hour) and evolving circumstances favourable to the finished product. All done with an eye towards how it would be shaped and refined in the edit process.

Several sub-plots also made the final cut thanks to this careful pre-planning.

The character was therefore imbued with an arc that where the story started as a means for ‘WATERMAN’ to introduce the project to ‘overseas investors’, by the final four episodes this is now clearly in the background.

‘WATERMAN’ became deeply and hopelessly mired in personal and professional conflict.

“UK broadcasters are finding success in catch-up TV as almost half of consumers (49%) watch both SVoD and catch-up services.

Will broadcasters from the big 5 European markets learn from the UK’s catch-up success?” [5]

[1] SOURCE: VOD Professional and ‘Research: Brits streaming 2 working days a week‘, Advanced Television Ltd, May 12, 2021

[2] Digital + infrastructure | Why Wise Words Media is CoVid-19 content friendly, Sean McIntyre, Wise Words Media, September 30, 2020

Added to the recent launch of a new, highly innovative digital series ‘this life’, Wise Words Media and Callumny Films are making an impact statement on the undeniable economic importance of Australia’s digital and infrastructure sectors.

[3] A Fistful of Scripts is an innovative script development incubator produced by Wise Words Media in association with Callumny Films.

Essentially, The Contract: PROJECT Waterman is a ‘spin-off’ of ‘The Contract‘ – which had its public debut at A Fistful of Scripts, a script reading series, in April, 2011 (Theatre Works, St Kilda Melbourne Australia).

[4] SOURCE: ‘Content Licensing Gets Complicated: Who’s Minding the Store?’, Nadine Krefetz, Contributing Editor, Streaming Media, June 18, 2018

[5] SOURCE: VOD Professional and ‘Competing with the SVoD giants: UK broadcasters find catch-up success’, Annabel Yeomans, Ampere Analysis Ltd, Apr 4, 2021

[6] SOURCE: ‘Kayo’d: cheap streaming, complex ticketing keeps fans away from the footy‘: Jake Niall and Jon Pierik , The Age, May 17, 2021

On the quiet evolution of streaming habits of AFL supporters here in Melbourne, Australia:

‘Tigers fan Kevin Passmore used to go to every Richmond home game but he’s among those now choosing to watch games from their living rooms’. [6]

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:

Sean McIntyre

Wise Words Media

creative arts production house

ABN 60 363 406 503

M: +61 0413 397 441

e: sean.mcintyre AT wisewords.com.au

skype: sean.wise.words.media

W: www.wisewords.com.au

WISE WORDS MEDIA | about

creative industries production house

CALLUMNY FILMS | about

storytellers

Commercial in their outlook, our stories are: authentic, engaging, unique, relatable, sustainable.

We have extensive experience as as producers and collaborators at national and international level, bringing to life/supporting vision of writers, directors, producers, clients.

Produces and distributes content, short and feature films for distribution to Australian and global audiences.

A FISTFUL OF SCRIPTS | About

We write ‘em. They read ‘em. You hear ‘em.

Writers rode into town with A Fistful of Scripts and went lookin’ for actors and directors. When they got together all hell broke loose. Now they’ve formed a posse. When they find The Audience – Anything could happen.

Starring Writers that write ‘em, Actors that read ‘em and Directors that direct ‘em. Special guest appearance by The Audience that hears ‘em.

The driving philosophy and rationale behind ‘A Fistful of Scripts’ is to take the work out to the audience.

Held since Aug 2010 at Theatre Works in St Kilda, ‘A Fistful of Scripts’ is a script reading event for both screen and stage designed to bring life to the written word. A 100% non-profit production, ‘A Fistful of Scripts’ acknowledges the kind assistance of Theatre Works, St Kilda.

Entry via GOLD COINS DONATION. A Wise Words Media Production.

IMAGE CREDITS

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