Docklands Studios Melbourne

Australian film and television production studio

Docklands Studios Melbourne

General information
Status| Completed
Type| Film and television studios complex
Location| Docklands, Victoria, Australia
Completed| 2004; 21 years ago (2004)
Owner| State of Victoria
Website
www.dsmelbourne.com

Docklands Studios Melbourne is a major film and television production complex located in Melbourne’s redeveloped Docklands precinct. The site is approximately two kilometres (1.2 mi) from Melbourne’s Central Business District. The complex opened in 2004 and its primary function is to support Victoria's film and television industry and attract international and Australian productions to Melbourne.

It is one of three major studios in Australia, the others being Village Roadshow Studios on the Gold Coast and Disney Studios Australia in Sydney. The facility has recently expanded, with completion in early 2022 of a new super stage (Stage 6) that is one of the largest in the Southern Hemisphere.[1]

## Background

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Aerial perspective of the Docklands: Melbourne Flyer, the District and Docklands film studio

The push for Melbourne to build a major studio complex arose in the late 1990s amid concern that it was "losing some of its media city position to arch-rival Sydney and to the Gold Coast".[2] The strategic objectives were that construction of a major studio complex would represent Melbourne's maturity and global ambitions, develop production capacity to its next stage, and service the needs of the local film and television industry.[2] At the time, Melbourne had a number of smaller facilities with sound stages, but did not have a large state-of-the-art complex.[2]

## History

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### Construction and early years

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Construction began in 2003 on a parcel of land provided by the Victorian Government in the Docklands precinct.[2] The studios were a partnership between the Victorian Government and a private consortium, Central City Studio Holdings. The complex opened in April 2004 under the name Melbourne Central City Studios and that year hosted the Australian feature film production, Hating Alison Ashley.

In 2005, the American-backed Ghost Rider became the first international production at the studios and, with a budget of around A$120 million, was the biggest feature film ever to be made in Victoria.[3] However, the number of international productions in the first few years of operation did not live up to expectations, partly because of the fluctuating Australian dollar.[4]

### 2008 upgrade

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In 2008 the private consortium withdrew and the Victorian Government took control of the facility,[4] later financially supporting a A$10 million infrastructure upgrade.[5] Shortly afterwards, the complex changed its name to Docklands Studios Melbourne, formally adopting the name by which the studios were commonly known.[6]

### 2020s expansion

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In October 2019, the Victorian government unveiled plans for construction of a $46 million super stage to enable the studio to host large international productions. The 3,700-square-metre (40,000 sq ft) building was officially opened on 26 March 2022 and was immediately hired for production of Better Man,[7] a biopic about Robbie Williams released in late 2024.[8]

In April 2022, it was announced that the studio would host Victoria’s biggest ever screen production, a TV series remake of Fritz Lang’s 1927  Metropolis for NBC Universal’s Universal Studio Group.[9] On June 18, 2023 news site Deadline reported that production of Metropolis had permanently shut down as a result of push costs and uncertainty related to the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike.[10]

In 2024, the studio hosted a number of major productions including Netflix’ The Survivors, [11] Sony Pictures’ Beneath the Storm, [12] Netflix' War Machine, [13] and Peacock’s All Her Fault. [14]

Smaller productions filmed at the studio in 2024 include Together [15] and Saccharine. [16]

Since 2022 the CEO of the complex has been film industry executive Antony Tulloch.[17]

## Facilities

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The studio complex consists of six sound stages with a total area of close to 10,000 m2 (110,000 sq ft), various production offices, a workshop divided into bays of different sizes and parking for more than 650 vehicles.[18] The sound stages vary in size from 2,323 to 743 m2 (25,000 to 8,000 sq ft). They are hired for production of feature films, drama series and audience-based television programs as well as television commercials, music videos and corporate events. Two of the stages are equipped with large-scale LED volume screens operated by NantStudios.[19]

## Productions

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### Feature films and TV dramas

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by year of release or broadcast

* Hating Alison Ashley (2005)
* The Extra (2005)
* Last Man Standing (Seven Network, 2005)
* Charlotte's Web (2006)
* Nightmares and Dreamscapes: From the Stories of Stephen King (2006)
* Ghost Rider (2007)
* Chak De! India (2007)
* Storm Warning (2007)
* Satisfaction (2007–2009)
* As the Bell Rings (Disney
* Where the Wild Things Are (2009)
* Knowing (2009)
* The Pacific (miniseries) (2010)
* Tomorrow, When the War Began (2010)
* Don't Be Afraid of the Dark (2010)
* The Eye of the Storm (2011 – production base only)
* Winners and Losers (2011–2016)
* Killer Elite (2011)
* Jack Irish (2012/2016/2020)
* Crawlspace (2012)
* Patrick (2013)
* INXS: Never Tear Us Apart (2014)
* I, Frankenstein (2014)
* Predestination (2014)
* The Dressmaker (2015)
* Oddball (2015)
* Childhood's End (2015)
* The Menkoff Method (2016)
* Restoration (2016)
* Lion (2016 – production base only)
* The Legend of Ben Hall (2016)
* The Leftovers (2017)
* Berlin Syndrome (2017)
* Guilty (2017)
* Brothers' Nest (2018)
* Winchester (2018)
* Upgrade (2018)
* Bad Mothers (2019)
* The Wheel (2019)
* Choir Girl (2019)
* The Whistleblower (2019)
* Preacher (2019)
* Shantaram (2021)
* Clickbait (2021)
* La Brea (2021–2023)
* The King's Daughter (2022)
* Foe (2022)
* Late Night with the Devil (2023)
* Better Man (2024)
* Together (2025)
* The Ice Road 2: Road to the Sky (2025)
* The Survivors (2025)
* Beneath the Storm (2025)
* All Her Fault (2025)
* War Machine (2025)
* Saccharine (2025)

### Audience-based and reality TV

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#### Current

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* The 1% Club (Seven Network, 2023–present)
* Deal or No Deal (Network 10, 2024–present)
* Tipping Point Australia (Nine Network, 2024–present)
* Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? (Nine Network, 2010, 2021, Network 10, 2025)

#### Ongoing

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* Racing.com

#### Past

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* The Rich List (Seven Network, 2007)
* 1 vs. 100 (Nine Network, 2007–2008)
* Hole in the Wall (Nine Network, 2008)
* Project Runway Australia (Foxtel, 2008)
* Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? (Network 10, 2008–2009)
* Talkin' 'Bout Your Generation (Network 10 and Nine Network, 2009–2012, 2018–2019)
* Beat the Star (Seven Network, 2010)
* Iron Chef Australia (Seven Network, 2010)
* Australia's Got Talent (Seven Network, 2010–2012)
* Ben Elton Live from Planet Earth (Nine Network, 2011)
* The Million Dollar Drop (Nine Network, 2011)
* Millionaire Hot Seat (Nine Network, 2011–2023)
* The AFL Footy Show (Nine Network, 2011–2019)
* Everybody Dance Now (Network 10, 2012)
* SlideShow (Seven Network, 2013)
* MasterChef Australia (Network 10, 2014)
* Q&A, Melbourne episodes (ABC TV, 2016–2017)
* The Big Music Quiz (Seven Network 2016)
* Dancing With the Stars (Network 10, 2020)
* The Masked Singer (Australian season 2) (Network 10, 2020)
* Come Dance with Me (TV series) (CBS, 2022)
* Would I Lie to You? (Network 10, 2022–2023)
* Aunty Donna's Coffee Cafe (ABC TV, 2023)
* Taskmaster Australia (Network 10, 2023)
* Blow Up (Australian TV series) (Seven Network, 2023)
* The Quiz with Balls (Fox, 2024)

## References

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1. ^ "Ausfilm news article". Ausfilm. 22 March 2022. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
2. ^ a b c d Goldsmith, Ben (September 2003). O'Regan, Tom (ed.). Cinema Cities, Media Cities: The Contemporary International Studio Complex. Australian Film Commission. pp. 40–42\. ISBN 0958015279. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
3. ^ Ziffer, Daniel (15 February 2007). "Melbourne in frame gives filmmakers flaming headache". The Age. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
4. ^ a b Bodey, Michael (16 April 2014). "Docklands studios makes it to 10 years". The Australian. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
5. ^ Quinn, Karl (24 February 2013). "Film studio attracts more lights, camera, action". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
6. ^ Chai, Paul (12 October 2010). "Melbourne studio gets name change". Variety. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
7. ^ McMillan, Ashleigh (26 March 2022). "Melbourne's Home of Film Production Gets new 46m Studio". The Age. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
8. ^ Kay, Jeremy (29 February 2024). "Paramount sets December holiday release for Robbie Williams biopic 'Better Man'". Screen Daily. Retrieved 16 April 2024.
9. ^ "Metropolis comes Down Under: Cinema's most famous robot in $188 million reboot"", The Sydney Morning Herald, 14 April 2022, retrieved 8 November 2022
10. ^ "'Metropolis' TV Series Not Going Forward Amid Writers Strike & Mounting Pre-Production Costs", Deadline, 18 June 2023, retrieved 25 July 2023
11. ^ "Netflix Drama Series The Survivors to be Produced in Victoria and Tasmania", vicscreen.vic.gov.au, 19 December 2023, retrieved 17 March 2025
12. ^ "New Sony Pictures Film Gives Victoria A Starring Role", premier.vic.gov.au, 31 May 2024, retrieved 9 July 2024
13. ^ "Major Feature Film War Machine Jets into Melbourne", premier.vic.gov.au, 28 October 2024, retrieved 17 March 2025
14. ^ "Sarah Snook Films All Her Fault at Melbourne's Cutting Edge Virtual Production Stage", vicscreen.vic.gov.au, 11 November 2024, retrieved 17 March 2025
15. ^ "Sundance Calling", vicscreen.vic.gov.au, 28 January 2025, retrieved 17 March 2025
16. ^ "Psychological Horror Saccharine Filming in Victoria", vicscreen.vic.gov.au, 17 December 2024, retrieved 17 March 2025
17. ^ "Antony Tulloch named Docklands Studios Melbourne CEO", If.com.au, 24 February 2022, retrieved 16 April 2024
18. ^ "Docklands Studios website". Docklands Studios Melbourne. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
19. ^ "Docklands Studios website". Docklands Studios Melbourne. Retrieved 24 March 2025.

## External links

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Official website

37°48′54″S 144°56′14″E﻿ / ﻿37.814902°S 144.937113°E﻿ / -37.814902; 144.937113