This project is part of the ScreenWest/Pozible 3-1 funding initiative. The target fund of $5000 will be increased to $20,000 total once the funding target is reached. This funding will allow us to make the first two of the five part series.

In the event of our reaching the Pozible target but all $250K of the 3-1 funds are spent our rewards will be honoured and we plan to make the first episode only with a simple website and a self-managed social media campaign.

Hogs Head Stew is an online series about an eleven year old boy and his desperation to make the inline hockey A team. It has been adapted and extended over the years and now forms the basis for a five part web series. 

The origins of the idea 

I wrote the book version some years ago and have adapted and extended parts of the original work to form a five part series.  

I originally wrote the content as a children's book, not for inline hockey players but because I was being exposed to endless clouds of eleven year old boys through my son and his friends. They made me laugh (they also made me cringe and want to slaughter myself or them but that’s by the by). So I wrote about a boy who was a composite of all the best and worst features of this collection. I noticed the things they worried about (the cool guys, bag and shoe brand, their cricket stance) and the things they didn’t worry about (homework, parental advice, personal safety). However outdoor sports like cricket didn’t match with the contained arena I wanted to create for their lives. So I looked around for a “contained” sport. As soon as I heard about inline hockey (or roller hockey as I mistakenly thought it was called in Australia) I knew it was perfect. Ten pre-pubescent boys racing around in close proximity wielding sticks was the ideal platform for my over-competitive protagonist.

Where it's been and where we hope it's going. 

We have road tested the story in a limited way by making a trailer for the Margaret & David at the Movies anniversary competition. This was a no-budget, filmed in the local primary school with the lead auditions conducted on the morning of the shoot (ie Who wants to be Billy?). We achieved a top 25 place from 167 entries –imagine what we can achieve with financial input. (http://vimeo.com/54756274)

Through the ScreenWest 3-1 initiative we can turn our $5000 raised into $20,000 which will enable us to make two of the five episodes and to set up a website for junior inline hockey fans. (currently landing page www.hogsheadstew.com.au)

It is a great opportunity to not only have the fun of making a further part of the Hogs Head Stew story but is a fantastic chance to expose the idea to the inline and allied skating worlds. This gives us the opportunity to gauge reaction and check that the enthusiasm and commitment we have found in the inline community in Western Australia is also present in the rest of Australia and further afield.

Our thanks 

Many thanks to the ILHA in Western Australia and to the administration of Skate Australia (WA). Each phone call or email has resulted in a can-do response which has made finalising this application a hundred times easier. I look forward to an ongoing relationship between us.

Who we are 

Janeen Bradley, Writer, Co-producer and chocolatier. It's a charmed life. When not writing or producing work for children I turn to chocolatiering. Hence many of the rewards on our project are chocolate based.

Experienced Director, Murray Christian, brings a unique approach to the project and shares the vision and farcical humour of the series. We worked together (Murray on post production) of the Margaret and David trailer where it was clear he viewed the world and the project from a similarly off beat angle. 

Co-producer, Kate Vyvyan, came onto the team as the voice of reason (it's a facade, behind it all she's as off- centre as the rest of us). But her practical, down-to-earth approach is having its effect. Kate has numerous credits for children's tv ( her down-to-earth approach is an invaluable lesson and keeps the project on an even keel).

Summary

I believe that between us we have the makings of an online series popular with both inline the skating world and the wider community.  

Janeen Bradley

Writer/Co-producer Hogs Head Stew