A proposed $259 million film and entertainment precinct on the Central Coast has cleared a significant regulatory hurdle, but its backers warn the project’s survival hinges on securing a substantial slice of a $100 million state government investment fund.
The Central Coast Studios (CCS) proposal, slated for a 20.5-hectare site at Calga, north of Hornsby, was awarded “state significant development” status by the NSW Department of Planning on Christmas Eve.
The designation triggers an environmental assessment process that essentially bypasses local council as the final consent authority.
However, the project’s future remains unclear with the proponents locked in a competition for a $100 million capital fund promised by the Minns government to establish the state’s second major film hub.
At least three other projects are also in the running for the market fund: private venture at Eveleigh Rail yards underwritten by apartments, affordable housing and student accommodation and with a major studio said to be attached; Sydney Olympic Park where special legislation will be required to excise crown land; and Oran Park, privately owned and strategically located near the new Western Sydney Airport.
Screen NSW is committed to a site on government-owned land within 35 kilometres of the Sydney CBD where industry titans like George Miller believes the studio should be based.
At 72 kilometres from the CBD, the Calga site sits outside that radius at a distance that offers freedom from aircraft noise and urban congestion, but makes the project high risk without significant government backing.
A Screen NSW spokesperson said several government-owned sites meeting the requirements of a global film studio have been considered.
“Submissions will be evaluated against the government’s objectives to strengthen capacity, attract international blockbusters, create local jobs, and ensure NSW remains the nation’s screen powerhouse, with development supported by a co-investment from the $100 million capital fund,” they said.
But were “the money to be awarded to a competitor, it would be difficult for us to compete”, Central Coast Studios founder Craig Giles said. “It will be very hard if they don’t reconsider and widen their net. If the fund was split between Oran Park and ourselves, we could establish the facilities needed in these major employment centres.”
The Calga precinct – currently a horse training facility near to the Australian Reptile Park – aims to be a “one-stop shop” for global production. The master plan includes 10 studios, a dedicated backlot and Australia’s largest exterior water tank for aquatic filming. In addition, it calls for a 180-room hotel and 1000-seat auditorium, an entertainment quarter featuring retail, dining, and an adventure park.
Opposition spokesperson for the region, Jacqui Munro, said the government had called “cut before the scene has started” by imposing restrictive funding guidelines.
“They are standing in the way of a project that is practically shovel-ready, backed by private finance, and would create hundreds of jobs for the Central Coast,” Munro said.
Giles says preliminary economic modelling indicates the CCS precinct could create approximately 2500 direct and indirect jobs, and generate $750 million in annual economic activity. The region was already a magnet for industry talent fleeing Sydney’s cost of living squeeze.
“We’ve been researching this for six years now and talking to various people in the film and game development industry about what they need. We’ve been in discussions with directors, producers to come to this final place of 10 studios and workshops and water tanks.
“Our vision doesn’t only encompass film, it’s unscripted and scripted television and game production for which NSW has fallen well behind Queensland,” Giles said.
In defence of its location, Giles said the site was almost as close to Sydney CBD as Queensland’s film hub at the Gold Coast is to Brisbane. “Goldywood” began with a financial model of co-locating studios with theme parks.
“Door to door from the edge of Sydney we are 15 minutes, and from the airport we are 60 minutes. We are a few minutes off the freeway, we will have the highest quality in sound proofing and a large backlot without the concerns about planes flying overhead or the noise and congestion of being located in metro Sydney.”
Expressions of interest for the state’s capital fund are expected to be called in late March.
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