A handful of Australian kids films and series have locked down fresh funding from Screen Australia, including new seasons of Little J & Big Cuz (pictured) and Flower & Flour. 

The funding that the projects received was part of roughly US$14 million (AUD$20.4 million) distributed by the government funding body for development and production. The amount is being split between 91 projects—most of which are for adults. 

This funding could play a critical role in getting these projects off the ground. It’s also arriving as the country’s screen industry is starting to show signs of bouncing back from a few financially challenging years. With streamers operating in the country now expected to invest in local content, and Australia’s social media ban having the potential to nudge kids back to TV, the projects that receive this funding are primed to build more success in the country’s shifting landscape. 

A couple existing kids projects received a cut of the funding. Old Dog Pictures’ 2D-animated Little J & Big Cuz, which the Australian Children’s Television Foundation (ACTF) distributes and ABC and NITV broadcast, got funding for season five. And season two of Sinking Ship Entertainment and Cheeky Little Media’s CG-animated co-pro Flower & Flour also got financing (and has been commissioned by a collection of broadcasters, including ABC in Australia and Canada’s TVO, SRC and Knowledge Network).

Meanwhile, new kids & family projects that got production financing include: 

• Werner Film Productions’ (Knee High Spies, Surviving Summer) 90-minute film Silver Beach, which ACTF is selling internationally
• an untitled series from Wooden Horse about kids who discover the power of dance
• the 90-minute film Smooch and Rose from Enjoy Entertainment, about a kid who tries to stop the development of a highway to save a koala’s home
• the 80-minute animated film Scram from Moody Street Kids (Big Words, Small Stories), about a stray dog that disguises herself as a cat to join a cat-only competition show
• speaking of dogs, Firelight Projects’ Fur Child (95 minutes), about a punk 13-year-old who swaps bodies with a happy puppy
• Lucy Durack Productions’ 90-minute film The Silver Witch, which revolves around two kids, a witch and a monster who fight to keep their friendship alive in a town where witches and monsters can’t mix

The full list of projects is available on the Screen Australia website.