Ducks on the Pond
A podcast for rural women... by rural women. Hosted by Kirsten Diprose and Jackie Elliott, they seek expert advice and the stories of other rural women on issues such as succession planning, motherhood, starting a business...running for politics and much more!
Ducks on the Pond
Two Smart Blondes - for Lovers of Film, TV, News and Pop Culture! Feat. Leila McDougall and Kate Atkinson (Sea Change, Wentworth)
New podcast alert! If you're into film, TV, pop culture, the media, and what it actually means for us, then you'll love Two Smart Blondes. Kirsten Diprose (who you know from Ducks on the Pond!) is hosting with film-maker Leila McDougall. Each week they also bring on a special guest, who has insight into the media/film world.
The first episode has just dropped and we get the inside goss on the AACTA awards, how the new Bridget Jones movie will translate to a modern audience and chat about the new Netflix series, Apple Cider Vinegar. Is it glorifying scammers?
This is just a taste of our first episode of Two Smart Blondes, which we release basically unedited.... and that's going to become clear right away.
Hey, kirsten here, I'm just dropping into your feed to tell you about a new podcast that I think you'll love. If you're into film, tv, pop culture, the media and what it actually means for us, then you'll love Two Smart Blondes. I'm doing it with Leela McDougall, as well as a different special guest each week. The first episode has just dropped and we get the inside goss on the Actor Awards, how the new Bridget Jones movie will translate to a modern audience, and we chat about the new Netflix series. Apple Cider Vinegar Is it glorifying scammers? So plug in to Smart Blondes it's T-W-O into Apple, spotify or wherever you're listening right now and hit follow into Apple Spotify or wherever you're listening right now and hit follow. Here's a bit of a taste of our first episode, which we release nearly unedited, and that's going to become clear right away. Hi, welcome to Two Smart Blondes. Kirsten Diffrose here and Leona McDougall is our other smart blonde. Welcome to our first episode.
Speaker 2:Oh, am I meant to say something? Girl do the dart, you're welcome.
Speaker 1:And the way this show works is that we have a special guest as well. We talk about film, tv, culture, whatever you're talking about. So are we, and it's a big, warm welcome to Kate Atkinson, who is an actor. You might know her from Sea Change, you might know her from Wentworth and you're based in country Victoria as well. Welcome, kate, I am. Thank you so much for having me. It's a pleasure. We were just talking, before we hit record, about your love of horses.
Speaker 3:It's principally the reason I moved to the country, to be honest. So I'm not I am not a legit farmer. I have about 12 acres for the full purpose of having horses and I have my first and I am besotted. I am completely besotted. I'm 53 years old and I finally got my first horse. I've been riding my life, but so, look, there's other odds and sods going on and I'm got my first horse. I've been riding my life, so, look, there's other odds and sods going on and I'm loving being out here, but I finally did what I came to do, which was, yeah, live my life with some horses and it's working out very well.
Speaker 2:Oh good, and they're good for the soul.
Speaker 3:Oh, she's a cracker. She's everything I wasn't looking for. I was like I need myself a nine-year-old tried and true gelding. I got myself a four-year-old mare Clever, but she's special. She's special. I sound like one of those annoying parents.
Speaker 2:Are you just a crazy horse lady? Now, that's a joint welcome to the club.
Speaker 3:Yeah, just so we know what level of eccentricity we're dealing with right off other than your beautiful horse.
Speaker 1:What are you up to at the moment?
Speaker 3:work-wise oh, leila, I just I want to pick your brains. I am in the. I haven't got a project that I'm working on as an actor at the moment. What I am attempting to do is get financing for a project.
Speaker 2:Yeah, don't mention the war.
Speaker 3:No, it's the hardest part, I think yeah, well, to be fair, and again, I'd love to talk to you about this, leila, but it's almost like I've been in the industry for 30 years and it's almost like you want to go back to the beginning and not know all the stuff that you know. Now I'm in a slightly different position. This project's being written for me and another actor from Wentworth, a dear friend from Wentworth and we have a producer and he is in the trenches, really, but it can be years to get that stuff going. Thank God for horses because it's safe.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:I can't imagine horses are going to help you with your finances for a film, though, like just quietly, very true, but for your sanity.
Speaker 3:So, no, look, all I can do is point people in the direction of my back catalogue. But yeah, I am, yeah, in the process of moving on to the next thing. Yeah, awesome.
Speaker 1:So let's start with the Actor Awards, because they've just finished up and we've got our own inside knowledge here with Leela. You were actually there and I have to say you looked beautiful. You had this amazing dress, which also made a statement. It was yellow and it looked like. If you remember Beauty and the Beast, you looked like not the beast, don't worry, you looked like Belle. You had no farmers, no food written across your midsection, so that was pretty cool and we'll talk about that in a little bit. But I also couldn't help but notice, when I looked at who won, that it was Better man, the Robbie Williams biopic and, to a slightly lesser extent, boy Swallows Universe. They really cleaned up, which is an absolute credit to them both, but there really wasn't much room for much else. Was there, leela? What was your sense? You were there.
Speaker 2:No, I don't. Once we got there, because it's like a festival more so it's over a week and there's two awards ceremonies and it was quite interesting On the Wednesday night was like all the people that actually make the films, the people that they really need. And then I was just saying Friday night was like the performers awards. And yeah, they were saying Wednesday night Like it was really funny. Stephen Curry was the emcee and he was a hoot. He's so funny and it wasn't televised so some of the speeches were a bit loose, as you can imagine.
Speaker 2:But, as he said, it was, the engine room was for Wednesday night, the people that really make the films, and without them we wouldn't have the films. And Wednesday night was more for the performers, as you would say, because to be televised, the people watching at home need to know who they are and they never really know who the producers are or the directors or the costume designers or the editors. They're like the silent people. And now, after making a film, I realise, wow, actors' jobs are like this big in comparison to everyone else's jobs. But yeah, on the Friday night there was no one else really even there, it was only sort of everyone from the Better man cast, mad Max was nominated and Runt and a few other films, but no one was there. Chris Hemsworth wasn't there, anya wasn't there, so it's oh, if they're not here, does that mean it's not going?
Speaker 1:to win.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and to have Robbie Williams there as well, and they flew him in at midnight the night before. All sorts of crazy stuff. And then the Boy Swallows Universe yeah, it was an amazing show and it was very clever to make a TV series out of Boy Swallows Universe. Yeah, it was an amazing show and it was very clever to make a TV series out of Boy Swallows Universe because we all studied it at school. It was a school tech, so we're all so eager to know what it looked like as a visual concept because we all had it in our heads of what we thought it was after studying it at school. Very clever, but yeah, it was really sweet because I'm friends with Zach, who plays Eli, the older Eli in Boy Swallows Universe, so it was so sweet to see him up on stage getting things, because he's just a little country boy too that's just been thrown into this crazy world of entertainment.
Speaker 1:So is there a difference between, like your big stars and everyone else? Is there the haves and the have-nots when you go to the actors, because you hear about that with the BAFTAs and the other big awards, that the actors is basically the Aussie version of.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so it was so funny. Wednesday night was really chill and like nice because it was just everyone there and everyone mingled with everyone. But Friday night, wow no, if you weren't what they thought was a somebody, you were over on the. There was like two completely separate red carpets and if you were in the blue lane you were a nobody and you had to go down the nobody red carpet. There wasn't even a person taking a photo on the side and then on the other side was the pink red carpet and they even got like a different drop off section and I went in with my agent and a few girls and my husband.
Speaker 2:We went on the nobody red carpet and then I said to my husband oh fuck, sorry, screw this. I was like we're people, what the hell are we doing over here? So I said we're going to go around and sneak onto the other red carpet. And so we did. We went back and we like went through this like black wall and all these barricades to get on the other red carpet, just stood in line like we were supposed to be. So you walked down it. Yeah, yeah, we talked to Richard Wilkinson. No one had any idea, they just pretended they knew who we were. It was hilarious.
Speaker 1:That's brilliant. That's what you've got to do. Kate, you've been to the Actors. I know you didn't go this year, but what's your experience, you, but what's your experience.
Speaker 3:I'm listening to Leila's stories and it's yeah, it's triggering. Except in my case I would be on the apparently the important red carpet, except with a publicity person like pushing you in front of cameras, because it's just humiliating. But yeah, I'm so glad you raised what they call the technical awards. It's such a weird, it's such a weird phenomenon to me that. But basically the awards night is a marketing night and I also think I've been many times and you reunite with friends and I don't want to poo awards because you are celebrating people's excellence and their talents and their stamina and their all kinds of things. I think that's great, but then once you get to actually like singling a winner out, I just find it all a bit. I just find it really weird. And the other thing I just because now that I realise that you've studied Boys Follows Universe at school, layla, I realise how young you are. That's true.
Speaker 3:You may not remember that before the Actors, the awards, the Film Awards, were called the AFI, the Australian Film Institute Awards, and what I find really tricky about the actors now is that they involve all of those television categories as well and we used to have the Logies for that and we had the AFIs for celebrating film and again, I'm not an economics brain. I don't know why they are maneuvering this way, but I really miss the night of film celebration and for someone who's a new filmmaker, I think there should be a place for celebrating people who have honed their craft for 30 years and celebrate them, and people who have got international attention. That's fantastic. But I just wondered if we still had a night just for Australian film, without all of these other categories. Then the new filmmakers might get a little bit more space as well. So I'm a little conflicted about the actors now because I feel like maybe the industry is too small. We can't have a night just for filmmaking.
Speaker 2:Oh, do you want me to tell you what award they had there this year? That's very controversial. Just annoy the hell out of me, leila, do it Best. Content creator. Yeah, and the other and again, no slight.
Speaker 3:The other controversy for me was among my friends who are voiceover artists and Sarah Snoke, who is an amazing actress and we all love her.
Speaker 2:One best actor for a voiceover yeah, I had a few people commenting on that. Hold on, not at the moment.
Speaker 1:So I'm not the theatre actor person here. So why is there a difference between a voiceover actor and a non-voiceover actor? Can't you do both? Absolutely, yes, absolutely. So what's the controversy with Sarah Snook then? I don't understand.
Speaker 2:It's an animation. So it was an animation and she was the voice of the snail and she's not real.
Speaker 3:No, so she wasn't on screen. She's not on screen, so absolutely have an award for voice acting, but make that its own award. She won for the acting category.
Speaker 2:Oh Animation and Jackie Weaver did as well. She got Best Supporting Actress for voice work.
Speaker 3:Sometimes it feels to me like the big awards nights are a bit. They spend a lot of time rewarding the people who've already been rewarded to elevate some other people, which is not to say these people don't do great work, but I don't want to poo them because they're fun nights. But I'm also interested, kirsten, that who among the general public watches these awards? Yeah, exactly, who watches?
Speaker 1:them. Yeah, look, to be honest, I didn't. I just had my social media there just waiting to see how Leela was going and then I.
Speaker 1:Googled it because I was just Googling the winners because I wanted to see if Just a Farmer won anything and how it went. But no, I didn't watch it, I have to say, and the Logies I still watch, but it's lost a little bit of its shine too, and I think the actors is actually it's got more of the credibility and it's got more of the seriousness about it. And I think it's interesting that you want to focus more on film, kate and a place for that, because I think the world's changed and we have these episodic dramas on Netflix that are like films they're just longer and so how do you draw a distinction? Now? Everything in media is blurred, and the same with the content creator. I know that you don't need the same sort of film skill if you're a content creator, but it's the world in which we live and I reckon we have to sort of embrace that.
Speaker 3:That's a very good point made, but I'm still the old dinosaur going. Guys, go to your local cinema, yeah, and yet I will also watch films on my television. So I absolutely get it. I guess what I'm saying is that if we want a bigger, better film industry, then maybe we need to give it its own space. But Leah will say to get financing, to get something up even in the television space, to compete with those massive international budgets, yeah, you've got to move with the times. I get it.
Speaker 2:I'm just but even that is a debate in itself. The two biggest films that have had the most money spent on them in the last what is it five years have been about international stars. So you think, elvis, okay, it's not an Australian film, but it was made with Australian taxpayers' money. And Robbie Williams, again, is another big film made with Australian taxpayers' money and they're not even about Australians. They were made in Australia majority of it because it's part of the stipulation but it doesn't showcase the Australian landscape, the Australian way of life. We're not showcasing Australia in any way in these films Like why are they getting all the money?
Speaker 3:Yeah, I know, leila, I don't know what to tell you I mean really hard.
Speaker 2:We know what to tell you.
Speaker 3:I think it's really hard to get people to go and see Australian films, which is why I think all credit to Boy Swallows Universe because again, it was on our small screens, not our big screens, but a lot of people watched that and it was a great reminder of what Australians can do on actually quite modest budgets. Yeah, so I don't want to be a naysayer, but I just remember when the AFI celebrated a lot of Australian content and it didn't have to be a Mad Max budget and there were all Australian technicians and Australian actors and, as you say, leila, you bring that international money, but then you bring a big A-list star with you, which is no good for our practice. Do you know what I mean? So it's interesting times. What I would say is that you're out on the land doing real work.
Speaker 3:I've been in the art industry. It does need more government support and more subsidy and more quotas and more restrictions on international platforms so that we can fairly compete. A lot of people might say that's an indulgence, but I don't think it is. I don't think making cultural content is an indulgence.
Speaker 1:Storytelling is so important, but I have to say I just wanted to ask you, leela it's like my one question on the paper did you meet Robbie Williams? I'm leaving you with a cliffhanger Head over to Two Smart Blondes, as in T-W-O for two. Search for it in your podcast app and give the first episode a listen. We drop a new episode every Wednesday. I can't wait to meet you over there too.
Speaker 1:Leela and I bring a little rural flair to pop culture, so help us build this thing by listening, by sharing, telling your friends and reviewing. We are also on the lookout for guests with insight into the media or the film and TV world, so if that's you, then let us know. Check out the show notes for how to get in touch. The underlying aim for this podcast is really to mix rural and country with pop culture, because for some reason, people don't think that we like that stuff or know about it or even work in that world. In fact, some people don't even think we can access streaming services like Netflix or would want to anyway. There's actual research on that. So this is my little subtle social impact message with this podcast, but also it's just a lot of fun. So I look forward to seeing you over at Two Smart Blondes as well as here on Ducks. Of course, we aren't going anywhere.
