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Grace Beside Me
Grace Beside Me is an Australian fantasy drama television series for children which premiered on NITV on 16 February 2018 and later aired on ABC Me. The series is based on the novel Grace Beside Me, by Sue McPherson, and was filmed in the Scenic Rim Region in South East Queensland. The television adaptation was produced by a team composed entirely of women, including Aboriginal screenwriters.
Set in the fictional country town of Laurel Dale, the series follows an Indigenous Australian teenager named Fuzzy Mac, who navigates her way through the social and personal issues of adolescence, while also being faced with the power of being able to communicate with spirits. Overriding themes include the focus on identity and belonging, while family and kinship is also explored. Australian Aboriginal culture is prominently featured, with the series produced in association with Screen Australia's Indigenous Department and the Australian Children's Television Foundation.
Grace Beside Me has received a positive reception for its Australian Aboriginal representation. It was nominated for an AACTA Award for Best Children's Program in 2018, and nominated twice at the Logie Awards for Most Outstanding Children's Program. The program won the First Nations Media Award for Best Drama or Comedy in 2018, and an Australian Directors' Guild Award for the episode "Sorry" in 2019.
Fuzzy Mac is a 13-year-old Indigenous Australian girl who discovers that she can communicate with spirits. She lives in the small regional community of Laurel Dale with her eccentric grandparents, Nan and Pop, who strive to teach her about tradition and their ancestors. Her family represents a mix of Aboriginal, Irish, and South Sea Islander traditions. Fuzzy's father, Sonny (Lasarus Ratuere), is a FIFO worker in the mines and her mother, died at the age of 19, when Fuzzy was a baby. The pair moved in with Sonny's parents when Fuzzy was born.
Episodes depict Fuzzy's transition into adolescence as she begins high school along with her best friends Tui and Yar. On her 13th birthday, Fuzzy discovers that she can see ghosts and communicate with spirits. Her grandmother guides her as she begins her journey as a seer, and encourages her to fulfill her role of looking after Lola's Forest, a sacred site in Laurel Dale, and all of the spirits living within. Fuzzy comes to terms with her gift and learns how to use it responsibly, as she assists the spirits she encounters in carrying out their incomplete business. Other stories detail the friends' rivalry with their classmates, Cat and Emmy.
Writer of the 2012 novel Grace Beside Me, Sue McPherson, and producers Lois Randall and Dena Curtis previously adapted the book into a short film, Nan and a Whole Lot of Trouble (2014), supported by the First Nations departments of Screen Australia and the ABC, after Randall's company Magpie Pictures had optioned the book. During post-production, they discussed the idea of expanding it into a series with head of First Nations at Screen Australia Penny Smallacombe. They spoke to Mary-Ellen Mullane at NITV, who were just looking into commissioning children's content for the first time. NITV did not have a big enough funding budget, but Head of Children's and Education at the ABC, Michael Carrington, initiated the possibility of NITV and the ABC co-commissioning titles. This financing structure later served to fund productions such as Little J & Big Cuz and Thalu. Funding support came from Screen Australia, Screen Queensland, and pre-sale to Disney.
In January 2017, Australian television network NITV commissioned Grace Beside Me, its first scripted local drama series. The series, aimed at 8–12 year olds, was described as a combination of 21st-century issues and the inclusion of Aboriginal culture, as the protagonist, Fuzzy Mac, learns to find her place in the two different worlds. The series takes the form of a fantasy drama. The initial series order was for 13 episodes, to be produced by Magpie Pictures, and to premiere on NITV. The series was announced in association with Screen Australias Indigenous Department, who stated their focus in creating Indigenous and culturally diverse content for young Australians. Production was revealed to be led by an all-female team of producers, including Aboriginal producers and screenwriters. The episodes were co-commissioned by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation to playout on ABC Me, with an additional presale license by pay-TV network Disney Channel for broadcast in Australia and New Zealand.
Production of the series was led by producers Lois Randall and Dena Curtis, but it was a highly collaborative project. Shari Sebbens participated in the first workshop for Grace Beside Me, and there was collaboration with traditional owners of Mununjali country, after the decision was taken to move the location of the story to Queensland. Writers representing Aboriginal, South Sea Islander, and Māori peoples were engaged.
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Grace Beside Me
Grace Beside Me is an Australian fantasy drama television series for children which premiered on NITV on 16 February 2018 and later aired on ABC Me. The series is based on the novel Grace Beside Me, by Sue McPherson, and was filmed in the Scenic Rim Region in South East Queensland. The television adaptation was produced by a team composed entirely of women, including Aboriginal screenwriters.
Set in the fictional country town of Laurel Dale, the series follows an Indigenous Australian teenager named Fuzzy Mac, who navigates her way through the social and personal issues of adolescence, while also being faced with the power of being able to communicate with spirits. Overriding themes include the focus on identity and belonging, while family and kinship is also explored. Australian Aboriginal culture is prominently featured, with the series produced in association with Screen Australia's Indigenous Department and the Australian Children's Television Foundation.
Grace Beside Me has received a positive reception for its Australian Aboriginal representation. It was nominated for an AACTA Award for Best Children's Program in 2018, and nominated twice at the Logie Awards for Most Outstanding Children's Program. The program won the First Nations Media Award for Best Drama or Comedy in 2018, and an Australian Directors' Guild Award for the episode "Sorry" in 2019.
Fuzzy Mac is a 13-year-old Indigenous Australian girl who discovers that she can communicate with spirits. She lives in the small regional community of Laurel Dale with her eccentric grandparents, Nan and Pop, who strive to teach her about tradition and their ancestors. Her family represents a mix of Aboriginal, Irish, and South Sea Islander traditions. Fuzzy's father, Sonny (Lasarus Ratuere), is a FIFO worker in the mines and her mother, died at the age of 19, when Fuzzy was a baby. The pair moved in with Sonny's parents when Fuzzy was born.
Episodes depict Fuzzy's transition into adolescence as she begins high school along with her best friends Tui and Yar. On her 13th birthday, Fuzzy discovers that she can see ghosts and communicate with spirits. Her grandmother guides her as she begins her journey as a seer, and encourages her to fulfill her role of looking after Lola's Forest, a sacred site in Laurel Dale, and all of the spirits living within. Fuzzy comes to terms with her gift and learns how to use it responsibly, as she assists the spirits she encounters in carrying out their incomplete business. Other stories detail the friends' rivalry with their classmates, Cat and Emmy.
Writer of the 2012 novel Grace Beside Me, Sue McPherson, and producers Lois Randall and Dena Curtis previously adapted the book into a short film, Nan and a Whole Lot of Trouble (2014), supported by the First Nations departments of Screen Australia and the ABC, after Randall's company Magpie Pictures had optioned the book. During post-production, they discussed the idea of expanding it into a series with head of First Nations at Screen Australia Penny Smallacombe. They spoke to Mary-Ellen Mullane at NITV, who were just looking into commissioning children's content for the first time. NITV did not have a big enough funding budget, but Head of Children's and Education at the ABC, Michael Carrington, initiated the possibility of NITV and the ABC co-commissioning titles. This financing structure later served to fund productions such as Little J & Big Cuz and Thalu. Funding support came from Screen Australia, Screen Queensland, and pre-sale to Disney.
In January 2017, Australian television network NITV commissioned Grace Beside Me, its first scripted local drama series. The series, aimed at 8–12 year olds, was described as a combination of 21st-century issues and the inclusion of Aboriginal culture, as the protagonist, Fuzzy Mac, learns to find her place in the two different worlds. The series takes the form of a fantasy drama. The initial series order was for 13 episodes, to be produced by Magpie Pictures, and to premiere on NITV. The series was announced in association with Screen Australias Indigenous Department, who stated their focus in creating Indigenous and culturally diverse content for young Australians. Production was revealed to be led by an all-female team of producers, including Aboriginal producers and screenwriters. The episodes were co-commissioned by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation to playout on ABC Me, with an additional presale license by pay-TV network Disney Channel for broadcast in Australia and New Zealand.
Production of the series was led by producers Lois Randall and Dena Curtis, but it was a highly collaborative project. Shari Sebbens participated in the first workshop for Grace Beside Me, and there was collaboration with traditional owners of Mununjali country, after the decision was taken to move the location of the story to Queensland. Writers representing Aboriginal, South Sea Islander, and Māori peoples were engaged.