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Homegrown talent is rubbing shoulders with international celebrities this week at Australia's premier destination film festival, CinefestOZ.

Set against the stunning backdrop of Western Australia's South West, CinefestOZ is in its 17th year promoting the Australian film industry, providing skills development and networking opportunities for local filmmakers, building international audiences, and strengthening Western Australia's regional communities.

Every year tens of thousands of people flock to Busselton and the Margaret River wine region to attend more than 200 film-related events. School students can also access XR immersive technology through an interactive and inspiring environment with filmmakers sharing the latest techniques. Making this technology accessible for local students expands their understanding of creative industries and allows them to consider alternative career pathways.

CinefestOZ highlights this year include the WA production of award-winning novel, Runt, by WA author Craig Silvey and WA producer Jamie Hilton from See Pictures being nominated for the Jury Prize — at $100,000, the richest film prize in Australia.

Supported by the State Government through the Western Australian Regional Screen Fund (WASRF), Runt is one of many projects supported to date. It is estimated that projects supported through the WARSF have generated more than $88 million for WA, with more than $28 million of that being spent directly in the regions. More than 1700 jobs have been created, with more than 800 of those in the regions.

It has been a significant year for the WA screen industry. The WA Production Attraction Incentive helped bring the international project The Surfer to Western Australia for filming by a predominantly Australian crew. Premiering at the Festival de Cannes, starring Nicolas Cage and set against the magnificent backdrop of Yallingup, The Surfer received a six-minute standing ovation.

This year the State Government also released its first Screen Industry Strategy, setting the scene for a 10-year period of growth in screen production in WA. Supported by a $31.9 million investment over 4 years, the strategy includes building workforce capacity to support an increased level of screen production.

Investment in infrastructure continues to be significant, with construction on the new Perth Film Studios progressing well. The facility will complement existing location-based production and draw a great range of national and international larger-scale productions.