Just saw the new Baz Luhrmann movie Australia...wow! An epic story of epic scale. The cast includes Australians Nicole Kidman, Hugh Jackman, David Wenham and Bryan Brown and was filmed in its entirety Down Under in various locations including Sydney, Darwin, Kununurra and Bowen. Baz Luhrmann, who previously directed the blockbuster hits, Moulin Rouge and Romeo + Juliet, has another stunning visual masterpiece on his hands; so much that the Tourism Board of Australia is banking on the movie to increase travel and awareness, especially to the Outback and the Northern Territories.
The Australian Tourism Board has hired Luhrmann to direct 30 second and 45-second commercials that are running on television and in movie theatres, and has backed the campaign with US$40 million. They expect to mimic the same success New Zealand had as a destination with the release of Lord Of The Rings.
I really expect this campaign to be huge, with a lot of people building their trips around some of the breathtaking locations featured in the film. Please take a look at the many Australia vacations included on our website that feature Darwin, Sydney and the Whitsunday Islands.
Interesting facts regarding the movie:
Over 700 cattle and 33 horses took part in the movie
Both Russell Crowe and Heath Ledger were tapped to do the movie before Hugh Jackman.
Since Darwin has morphed into a modern city with tall skyscrapers and a population over 120,000, many of the shots were filmed in the town of Bowen on the Whitsunday Coast in Queensland to more mimic the size of WWII Darwin (population of both around 7,000)
Budget of the film ballooned to over $130 million once shooting was delayed due to a record breaking wet season in the Northern Territories and Western Australia.
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