by FilmInk Staff
Melbourne-based ‘Indie-as-hell’ fi lmmaking duo, CINEMA VISCERA is entering a new era – thanks to a little BOOST from Creative Australia and the Australian Cultural Fund.
With several self-funded, award-winning short fi lms and two micro-budget feature fi lms under their belt, Cinema Viscera turns 16 this month and its founders, Perri Cummings and Paul Anthony Nelson, believe it’s time for them to “grow up” (cinematically speaking)! Ready to take on bolder, more ambitious projects, Cinema Viscera’s selection into the Australian Cultural Fund’s BOOST Program for 2025/26 presented the perfect opportunity to take their work to a new level.
Starting from now until the 30th of April, the duo will be running a crowdfunding campaign on the ACF website to raise funds to cover production of Release, a short psychological thriller fi lm which will be used as a proof-of concept to entice interest in their next feature fi lm, which builds on similar themes.
Release is about Hope, a woman in her 50s forced out of an institution into an unfamiliar world, where she fi nds the promise of a future in a friend, and disturbing echoes of the past in a bully. Inspired by the forced closures of psychiatric institutions in Victoria in the late 1990s and our current crisis in poverty among women over 50, Release aims to portray an immersive experience of the way Hope sees and feels the world, and connect with audiences on a deeper level.
Being selected into the competitively run Australian Cultural Fund Boost program means that every donation over $2 is not only tax-deductible for the donor, but will be matched dollar-for-dollar (up to a maximum of $5,000) by Creative Australia. So if the team can raise $5k, they’ll actually receive $10k. You can read more about, and donate to, the Release ACF campaign here: artists.australianculturalfund.org.au/s/project/a2EMn00000Fk9sT/release-short-film-proof-of-concept
Financial support will not only help Cinema Viscera create a polished proof of concept to encourage funding for their next feature fi lm, it will help them develop a more distinctive visual style, test new techniques, pay modest fees to their wonderful collaborators, and hire more advanced equipment.
The BOOST program has selected an incredibly diverse and amazing list of creative projects, including by some well-known names and artists; This year’s recipients are here: https://australianculturalfund.org.au/blog/introducing-the-2025-boost-cohort/
