The ABC, Playmaker, Screen Australia, and Screen NSW are delighted to announce that production is underway in Sydney on the special event drama The Easybeats. The two-part mini-series tells the story of five young newly-arrived immigrants who met in a Sydney migrant hostel in the swinging 1960s and went on to take Australian rock’n’roll to the world.
Written by Christopher Lee (Howzat, Paper Giants, Gallipoli) and directed by Matthew Saville (Seven Types of Ambiguity, Please Like Me, The Slap), The Easybeats will star AACTA award winner Ashley Zukerman (The Code, Manhattan) as Australian music industry pioneer and record producer, Ted Albert. He is joined by an exciting line-up of talented newcomers, Christian Byers as Stevie Wright, Will Rush as George Young, Mackenzie Fearnley as Harry Vanda, Du Toit Bredenkamp as Dick Diamonde and Arthur McBain as Snowy Fleet.
The Easybeats is a story of identity, re-invention and belonging, touching on themes of celebrity and redemption, with a powerful contemporary relevance and a killer soundtrack. While the members of the band each confronted their own sense of self and the loss of identity in pursuit of their success, they came to understand that though they were all from different countries, the sum of the musical parts was quintessentially Australian.
Sally Riley, ABC’s Head of Scripted Production and Executive Producer, says, “The Easybeats are truly iconic and hold such a special place in our Australia’s musical history. The ABC is proud to team up with Playmaker, Screen Australia and Screen NSW to bring audiences this incredible home grown story which will no doubt be just as upbeat as the band’s biggest hits.”
Playmaker Producers David Taylor and David Maher say: “We’re massive Easybeats fans so to be involved in bringing this incredible story to life is a real honour, and something we’re both proud and excited to be producing for the ABC”.”
The Easybeats will screen on ABC and ABC iview later this year.
Production Credits: ABC Executive Producers: Sally Riley and Kym Goldsworthy, Producers: Diane Haddon, David Maher and David Taylor Director: Matthew Saville, Screenwriter: Christopher Lee.