Justice League of America has Been Delayed!

[jmc]

Too bad our Government consists of a bunch of idiots.

Bit early yet to say whether that's true or not.

 

[Jake Cassidy]

Bit early yet to say whether that's true or not.

Not really. They're all the bloody same.

 

[JP]

So.. Justice League Mortal, heh?

 

[Webhead2006]

Well even if Hugh Keays-Byrne was the martian we dont know if he would be physically playing him in makeup/postesthics (like ron pearlman in hellboy) or just be voice of martian and have him totally be cgi. There was that rumor months ago mm would just be a cg character like silver surfer was in FF2.

 

[bunk]

So.. Justice League Mortal, heh?

Terrible if it's true... Should be Justice League Migrane

 

[JP]

That does sound appropriate.

 

[The Major]

They should just fire Miller & hire a yes man who will do everything the WB tells him to do

And end up with X-3 or FF type films? I'll pass.

 

[KBX]

Hugh Keays-Byrne? *sigh* another inspired casting decision... hopefully it's not true.

MM won't be too featured in this movie, most of the time he will be shape-shifting, so whoever plays him won't really matter. I guess is you got to get the voice right...

Terrible if it's true... Should be Justice League Migrane

Justice League: Mortal? Why Mortal? Mortal what? Mortal Kombat?

And end up with X-3 or FF type films? I'll pass.

Actually having the WB have the final say is not a bad thing. MAybe they would be a little bit more concerned about getting the little details right, that a specific director won't look much into. Like Wally has red hair, or he eats a lot. Something like that...

 

[KBX]

If this movie does movie to Canada, I don't know if Miller is going to be back or not. Its a coin-flip, but I do expect the cast to shake up a bit, with only Gale and Common still as their expected roles...

 

[dnno1]

I don't see them getting any more than a 16% offset in Canada. Sorry folks, but the best deal is in Australia. You can at least get 15% and salvage what you already sunk in set costs and, if you can figure out a way to make the film(s) look like it cost $70 million to make, you can get as much as a 40% offset.

 

[biolumen]

I don't see them getting any more than a 16% offset in Canada. Sorry folks, but the best deal is in Australia. You can at least get 15% and salvage what you already sunk in set costs and, if you can figure out a way to make the film(s) look like the cost $70 million, you can get as much as a 40% offset.

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117979808.html?categoryid=1279&cs=1

And one must take into account that $1CAN = $1US and $1AUS = $.93US, a difference of 7 cents. Given all the other variables mentioned, it's almost a wash.

 

[Black Zodak]

I hope they film this one in Canada. All the best superhero films get made there (with the exception of the Fantastic Four films!)

 

[jmc]

If this movie does movie to Canada, I don't know if Miller is going to be back or not. Its a coin-flip, but I do expect the cast to shake up a bit, with only Gale and Common still as their expected roles...

I get the feeling if Miller goes, the entire cast will as well, new director might not feel Miller's choices were good enough.

 

[Gotham]

I get the feeling if Miller goes, the entire cast will as well, new director might not feel Miller's choices were good enough.

I'm sure they've planned for that.

 

[echostation]

look this movie is totally happening now which just ****ing sucks... even AICN has said that WB is pushing this film now full steam ahead...

 

[Antonello Blueberry]

This looks more like a calculated threat (a bluff) to pressure the Australian government to give them the 40% offset while still carrying the $200 million budget.

That's my same idea. How much money will they waste leaving Australia where they reportedly already built most of the sets?

 

[dnno1]

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117979808.html?categoryid=1279&cs=1

And one must take into account that $1CAN = $1US and $1AUS = $.93US, a difference of 7 cents. Given all the other variables mentioned, it's almost a wash.

Here is where I'm getting my numbers from:

http://www.canadafilmcapital.com/taxcredit/cftip.pdf

The catch is if you want to film in provinces like British Columbia, which could offer 16-25%, you have to be a Canadian owned company with ownership of more than 50% of the copyright. If the Aussies already own the copyright, I don't see how they could qualify for the offset in BC.

 

[Showtime]

That's my same idea. How much money will they waste leaving Australia where they reportedly already built most of the sets?

I am wondering how much it will cost to move the supposed sets that were being built.

 

[Showtime]

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,23281169-15803,00.html

Almost a year after the Australian Screen Production Incentive was announced, the film and television industry is still arguing whether the package is a business or a cultural initiative. Most crucially, what kind of film will be eligible for the most generous incentive in global filmmaking: a 40 per cent refundable tax offset?

The ASPI was established to attract international investment, create a self-sustaining local industry and encourage internationally successful directors, actors and crew to return home. But no one anticipated the intense Hollywood interest in retooling studio projects to take advantage of the rebate by shooting in Australia.

Rumours of an American pillage are swirling. One bureaucrat was recently asked how a proposed Wild Hogs sequel could get the rebate. Two Hollywood studios contacted by The Australian were unwilling to discuss their plans, although one of them, Warner Bros, recently postponed Justice League Mortal, citing uncertainty about the incentive.

"I'm getting an enormous amount of calls and scripts, some Australian, some not," says Greg Coote, the Australian chairman and chief executive of Los Angeles-based Dune Entertainment. "And there's an enormous amount of confusion about what's eligible."

Caught in the middle is the director of Justice League and Happy Feet, George Miller. His comic-book adaptation about American superheroes is seen by some as a cynical play for the rebate. The project was generated in the US but will be financed by Australia's Roadshow Pictures.

"The legislation basically comes down to Australian creative and financial control, so I would say that as a minimum you need Australian directors and creative control," says Miller, who has threatened to take Justice League Mortal and Happy Feet2 offshore if they don't qualify for the rebate.

The threats have been seen by some as inflammatory and as placing pressure on the Government, but Miller says the legislation is not about local content. "Of course we all are looking for great Australian stories but we would have no film industry if that's all we had," he says. "For instance, The Lord of the Rings is not a New Zealand story and yet it basically transformed the New Zealand industry economically."

Says Coote: "I thought (the incentive) was a business decision, not a cultural decision. If it's business, it's really smart; if it's cultural, you need a test."

The desire for a cultural test has become central to the debate.

"The controversy that has arisen in respect of Justice League is not about the size of the film's budget but whether the project should receive the 15 per cent rebate for foreign films such as Superman Returns, or the 40 per cent rebate for Australian films," says Ian Robertson, managing partner of media lawyers Holding Redlich.

While Miller stands by his production company Kennedy Miller Mitchell's record of making films locally - only Lorenzo's Oil was made outside Australia - two other high-profile projects contrast with Miller's film. Baz Luhrmann's Australia will be the first recipient of the rebate, with the total liability to the Government expected to approach $60 million. No one doubts Australia's bona fides as local content. But Miller, the key Australian creative on Justice League, will not even get a writing credit, although he claims final creative control.

Hugh Jackman's production company, Seed, has applied only for the 15 per cent location offset and possibly the post-production, digital and visual effects offset for its X-Men Origins: Wolverine, which is being filmed in Sydney.

"Why would we waste our time applying (for the 40 per cent rebate)?" asks Wolverine producer John Palermo. "We know the criteria and we don't fit them."

The legislation allows discretion in determining Australian content. There are five criteria: subject matter (it doesn't specify whether an Australian subject is mandatory); where the film is made; the number of Australian creatives working on the film; where the main expenditure occurs; and a catch-all phrase that allows the Film Finance Corporation to look at any other aspects.

Whether a film is considered Australian will ultimately rest with the Federal Court, if FFC decisions are appealed. "I think a mistake has been made in not specifying a clear checklist for what qualifies as an Australian project for the purposes of the producer offset," says Robertson, a key advocate of the new package.

"This has created considerable uncertainty and, because of the high levels of risk involved, film producers and financiers don't like any uncertainty in film projects."

He proposes the legislation urgently be amended to provide a checklist of the type used for determining Australian content on TV or a points system similar to the one used by the British Film Council. The idea was raised when the legislation was drafted but nobody could agree on the specifics. Now the local industry is galvanised on the issue.

FFC chief executive Brian Rosen and Miller are against the idea. "I believe we've had 30years of a cultural test and I'm still looking to see the success of that," Rosen says.

The Screen Producers Association of Australia is unwilling to see taxpayers' money sent to Hollywood studios and fears local producers will be lost in the rush.

The Australian Writers Guild is cautiously optimistic, says its industry and policy manager Alastair McKinnon. "It is producer-focused, but putting the power in the hands of producers doesn't necessarily mean Australian creatives will be supported."

The SPAA also proposes a cap on the sum a film can receive, although this proposal is less likely to appeal to the Government, which probably wants to see the 40 per cent rebate in operation for two years before reassessing it. Besides, the industry's inability to support more than four big international films simultaneously would cap the scheme.

"Putting a cap on is driving us back into a cottage industry mentality," Rosen says.

The debate is unlikely to be resolved soon by the Government, which leaves judgment on "significant Australian content" to the FFC. "It's premature to have an inflated debate about the producer offset when no decision has yet been taken," says a spokeswoman for Garrett. "The clear intent of the 40 per cent producer offset is to support films where Australians have key creative responsibility and there is strong Australian involvement in all levels of production.

"Don't forget that large-budget projects (that) do not meet this test may be eligible (for) the 15 per cent location offset, which itself is a very competitive incentive."

Miller says that, contrary to industry rumour, Justice League Mortal would not be viable in Australia if it attracts only the 15per cent rebate. "I had to convince Warner Bros that we shoot the film here," he says. "This film is being made for only one reason and that's because of me. The main reason I wanted to do it here was to get the talent to stay here and (expand the visual effects) companies. The film was not going to be made at the 12.5per cent (location rebate level)."

 

[Super_Ludacris]

I think it will change from JL Mortal. That title dont stick.

 

[Showtime]

What is interesting is that Miller is saying that the movie was basically going forward because of him and it won't be viable in Australia with out the 40% tax break. That will mean even more delays at the least.

 

[Antonello Blueberry]

What is interesting is that Miller is saying that the movie was basically going forward because of him and it won't be viable in Australia with out the 40% tax break. That will mean even more delays at the least.

I still think it's just a threat. If doesn't get the 40% rebate, he will be forced to cut his budget for the movie.

 

[JohnRico]

I still think it's just a threat. If doesn't get the 40% rebate, he will be forced to cut his budget for the movie.

Or the WB can just fire Miller & get a yes man director & move the production to Canada while giving Miller the finger

 

[Showtime]

I still think it's just a threat. If doesn't get the 40% rebate, he will be forced to cut his budget for the movie.

Most likely a threat. I think the WB should be working on cutting budget and that was part of the problem with the script.

Or the WB can just fire Miller & get a yes man director & move the production to Canada while giving Miller the finger

If it's not shot in Australia, I bet that Miller will not be involved.

 

[JohnRico]

If it's not shot in Australia, I bet that Miller will not be involved.

& while they are at it they can take away Happy Feet 2 from Miller