Stan gears up for coast-to-coast productions in Queensland and WA

Nine Entertainment Co’s video streaming service Stan is gearing up for a coast-to-coast production program in Australia this year with filming set to start on two productions - Good Cop/Bad Cop in Queensland and Scrublands in Western Australia.

Good Cop/Bad Cop is a new production while Scrublands will be filming season two after the first season of the crime thriller was filmed in Victoria’s goldfields region last year.

Cameras will roll for the new Stan Original production of Good Cop/Bad Cop from late March in Southeast Queensland with the series to be produced by Sydney’s Jungle Entertainment and US-based Future Shack Entertainment.

The eight-part comedic drama series stars Leighton Meester (Gossip Girl), Luke Cook (Chilling Adventures of Sabrina) and Clancy Brown (Dexter: New Blood, Billions) with Queensland doubling for the US state of Washington.

The story follows a sister-and-brother detective team in a small Pacific Northwest police force who must contend with colourful residents, a serious lack of resources and their very complicated dynamic with each other and the local police chief, who happens to be their father.

The production will use the Village Roadshow Studios on the Gold Coast and is expected to deliver more than $14 million for the Queensland economy while creating 200 jobs.

“We are delighted that Good Cop/Bad Cop will be made here in the sunshine state with our world-renowned crews, creatives and studios, as well as utilising stunning locations around Southeast Queensland and post-production services from Cutting Edge,” says Screen Queensland CEO Jacqui Feeney.

“This international production features many Queensland practitioners in key creative roles across directing, writing, cinematography, production design, editing and more, and will create vital career pathways for emerging crew through our Attachment program.”

Chloe Rickard, executive producer from Jungle Entertainment, describes the Scenic Rim region in the state’s southeast as ‘the perfect idyllic small town look for our story - and somewhere we hope to return to for many seasons’.

“These lush natural environments have drawn us to the state,” says Richards. “We’re delighted to have found studio partners in Gold Coast-based Village Roadshow Studios and a rich pool of highly talented Queensland cast and crew.” 

Stan’s chief content officer Cailah Scobie describes Good Cop/Bad Cop as a ‘highly anticipated addition to our Originals slate’.

"Stan continues to be the Australian partner of choice for the international market and we are delighted to collaborate with global content leaders The CW and Roku to deliver more world-class original content for our audience,” says Scobie.

Meanwhile, Screenwest has revealed that Scrublands is heading to Western Australia for its second season, following a bumper year of scripted film and TV production in the state including The Surfer, Population 11, Invisible Boys, Runt, The Twelve, Birthright and We Bury the Dead as well as the upcoming Red Rock Run.
In this adaptation of Chris Hammer’s best-selling second novel Silver, Martin Scarsden has returned to his coastal hometown, Port Silver, to set up a new life with partner Mandy Bond.

When he arrives to find his childhood friend Jasper brutally murdered and Bond the prime suspect, Scarsden makes it his duty to find the real murderer and absolve Bond. In the process, he confronts hidden truths about Port Silver and his own long-buried past.

After producing the first season in Victoria, producers Ian Collie and Rob Gibson of award-winning production company Easy Tiger (The Twelve, Colin from Accounts) have joined forces with new WA production company Third Act Stories, which was founded by WA producer Martha Coleman (Diary of an Uber Driver, Praise) to produce the second season in WA. It will be the debut project for Third Act Stories.

The new season will be written by Felicity Packard, Jock Serong and Fiona Kelly and directed by WA’s Ben Young (Clickbait, Hounds of Love).

The series has drawn funding from Screenwest, Lotterywest and the WA Regional Screen Fund.

“Following on from a record level of production in WA, and our partnership with Stan on Population 11 and Invisible Boys, Screenwest is delighted to announce another series going into production in WA this year,” says Screenwest CEO Rikki Lea Bestall.

“We are excited to see Easy Tiger collaborate with Western Australian producer Martha Coleman to bring this series to life and showcase Western Australia on screen.”

The second season of Scrublands will enter production in Western Australia in 2024.