The Australian Children’s Television Foundation (ACTF) is joining forces with Screen Australia to fund an upcoming live-action film called Whale Shark Jack from Cottesloe Films in Perth and Southern Light Films in Sydney.

The pic is about an 11-year-old girl who sets out on a rescue mission after her whale shark best friend fails to return from his annual migration.

While ACTF declined to comment on the amount of funding being channeled into the project, it’s notably the first feature-length movie the org has backed financially since Dance Academy: The Movie (2017). 

“This project just stood out to us as something we really wanted to support from our first read, so ACTF came on-board and funded development of the next draft script, and then we got further involved with production investment,” says ACTF head of content and executive producer Bernadette O’Mahony. “It has real heart and warmth, and kids are at the center of the story on every level.” 

Whale Shark Jack also claimed a portion of US$5 million in Screen Australia funding that became available in February. Filming starts later this year on the Ningaloo Reef in Western Australia. Kathryn Lefroy (Library of Love) is on board as a writer, with brother-sister duo Miranda Edmonds and Khrob Edmonds directing.

Screenwest, Lotterywest, the Western Australian Regional Screen Fund and Filmology Finance are also funding the project, alongside Wade Brothers Films, Minderoo Pictures and Ulladulla Films.

The ACTF also has a film in development with Australian streamer Stan as part of a joint film initiative that was established in 2021.