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An upcoming drama series produced by NBCUniversal called La Brea will be made in Melbourne, making it the latest international production to be drawn to Australia.
La Brea, a new series about a family that tries to survive after they are separated by a massive sinkhole that mysteriously opens in Los Angeles, was granted $9.66 million by the Federal Government as part of the $540 million Location Incentive program.
Principal photography on the series, starring Nicholas Gonzales, Eoin Macken, Natalie Zea, John Seda and Rohan Mirchandaney, has already commenced in Melbourne. Post-production and visual effects will also take place in the Victorian capital.
Federal Minister for the Arts Paul Fletcher says the production is expected to inject more than $71 million into the economy and create 290 jobs for Australian cast and crew.
"The filming of La Brea in Victoria will allow us to accelerate upskilling the next generation of screen industry professionals," says Fletcher.
To date, more than $226 million has been distributed under the Location Incentive to attract 23 international productions to Australia, generating $1.7 billion in private investment and providing 13,000 employment opportunities for local cast and crew.
The objective of the Location Incentive is to ensure that Australia remains competitive in attracting large budget footloose international film and television productions, thereby providing opportunities for Australian cast, crew, post-production companies and other screen production service providers to participate in production.
Victoria's Minister for Creative Industries Danny Pearson says securing La Brea strengthens the state's reputation as a film and television hub.
"After a challenging year, our screen industry is well and truly back with a strong pipeline of projects now shooting across the state with more projects on the way, supporting Victorian jobs and talent," says Pearson.
"We have a long-standing relationship with NBCUniversal and we warmly welcome them back to Melbourne with their series La Bera."
La Brea is just the latest international production to be attracted to Australian shores; a prequel to Dr George Miller's Academy Award-winning movie Mad Max: Fury Roadfound a home in NSW, Amazon's dystopian drama The Wilds started filming on the Gold Coast in April, and George Clooney and Julia Roberts are set to make their way to Queensland to star in an upcoming rom-com called Ticket to Paradise.
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