Australia

     As most of us are well aware, director Baz Lurhmann has been working on his latest feature film, "Australia," set to be released November 26th.  The film is highly anticipated, and is already getting a lot of oscar buzz.  This will be Luhrmann's first feature since 2001's "Moulin Rouge!".

     The film is a period epic set in Australia during World War II, starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman.  It follows an English aristocrat (Kidman) who, left in control of a cattle selling station in northern Australia, sets off on a journey across the country with her romantic interest, a rough-hewn drover (Jackman), due to threats of the bombing of Darwin.

     Principle photography took place in Australian cities - Sydney, Darwin, Kununurra, and Bowen from April 2007 to December 2007.  It was originally set to have Russell Crowe star alongside Kidman, but Crowe backed out stating that he didn't want to work in an environment that was influenced by budgetary needs.  To replace Crowe, Lurhmann sought Heath Ledger, but Ledger declined, opting instead to work on "The Dark Knight" as the Joker.  Ultimately, Hugh Jackman was brought onboard.

     Throughout this project, Lurhmann worked with Apple to put together a "Set to Screen" series.  Every few weekes since April, itunes has released a podcast featuring Baz and his production team introducing different aspects of filmmaking. Through examples from the "Australia" set, Baz details what goes into set photography costume design, cinematography, sound design, etc. (I've been watching these all summer and they are really interesting.  The podcast on "movie scoring" was just released yesterday.)  These podcasts are great becasue they give you insights from the artists at work on "Australia," allowing you to watch them in action, view footage the rest of the world hasn't seen yet, and follow along as the movie comes together.

- Matt Colbert