Bay of Fires

Tassie-noir drama series Bay of Fires greenlit for ABC

ABC and Screen Australia, along with investment partners Screen Tasmania, Film Victoria and Fremantle, are thrilled to announce the eight-part crime/thriller drama series Bay of Fires has been commissioned to be filmed in Tasmania in 2022.

Created by Andrew Knight ( Seachange , Jack Irish, Rake, Hacksaw Ridge), Marta Dusseldorp ( Janet King, Jack Irish, A Place to Call Home ) and Max Dann ( Siam Sunset, Dance Academy, Spotswood ), Bay of Fires will be produced by Marta Dusseldorp’s production company Archipelago Productions and Fremantle. The series will be written by Andrew Knight, Max Dann and Sarah Bassiuoni.

The award-winning creative team will bring to life a drama series that is bold and surprising, often shocking, laced with dark humour and always unique.

Set in the wilds of Tasmania, Marta will play lead character Stella Heikkinen whose fall from grace is as spectacular as it is life threatening.

Betrayed by her own company and in immediate danger – single mother of two Stella has no option but to move her young family to the last place on earth anyone would expect. This town isn’t the kind of place they put on postcards, this is a tiny community rife with simmering feuds, crime and sometimes, murder.

ABC Head of Drama, Entertainment and Indigenous Sally Riley said, Marta has long been a favourite of ABC audiences so we are delighted to have the opportunity to support her in taking the leap into producing. Bay of Fires is a drama with heart, dark humour and unique characters that will take audiences into a world full of intrigue, truffle pigs and oh yeah, murder of necessity.”

Marta Dusseldorp, Co-creator, Producer and starring as Stella Heikkinen said: "The opportunity to collaborate and create an original Australian drama with the extraordinary Andrew Knight and Max Dann has been an amazing journey. Executive Producer Greg Sitch and Producer Yvonne Collins, along with Sally Riley, Louise Smith and the entire team at the ABC have been paramount to bringing Bay of Fires into being. My company Archipelago Productions partnering with Chris Oliver-Taylor at Fremantle is a natural fit and with Screen Tasmania, Screen Australia and Film Victoria’s belief and investment we are now preparing for production on the beautifully rugged West Coast of Tasmania in 2022.”

Chris Oliver-Taylor, CEO Asia Pacific Fremantle and Executive Producer, said: “Fremantle are delighted to partner with the amazing Marta Dusseldorp to bring Bay of Fires to ABC viewers. Marta, Andrew Knight and Max Dann’s vision to tell such a compelling, yet grounded story will no doubt resonate with local audiences here and internationally. I am thrilled that Fremantle are part of this world class series.”

Screen Australia’s Head of Content Sally Caplan said, “ Bay of Fires is a distinctive drama that is set to reshape the Tassie-noir genre with its dark humour and complex characters, zinging with sharp tongues. Along with a talented creative team, we’re also thrilled to support Marta Dusseldorp as she moves into producing, as well as starring in the series. This show will be one to look out for in 2023.”

Alex Sangston, Executive Manager Screen Tasmania said, “The Tasmanian Government through Screen Tasmania is thrilled to be supporting this landmark new series from Marta and her team. The series will also showcase Tasmania’s extraordinary West Coast landscape around the world, enabled by a generous regional and remote production grant. In addition, the Government’s investment will provide invaluable expenditure into regional Tasmania and jobs for our creatives, actors and crews.”

Film Victoria Chief Executive Officer Caroline Pitcher said, “We are always looking to back gripping and compelling drama to feed our audience’s hunger for great content. The delightfully dark crime thriller Bay of Fires will do exactly that, and we can’t wait to see local and global audiences alike devour this addictive new series.”

Filming will commence in Tasmania in mid-2022 and the series will air on ABC TV and ABC iview in 2023. Bay of Fires will be distributed by Fremantle International.

Production credit: Bay of Fires is an Archipelago Productions and Fremantle production for the ABC. Major production investment from Screen

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Cameras set to light up Tasmania on ABC drama Bay of Fires

Award-winning actress Marta Dusseldorp leads an impressive line-up of established and emerging stars, when filming starts next week in Tasmania, on ABC’s eight-part darkly comedic crime series Bay of Fires , produced by Archipelago Productions and Fremantle Australia.

Starring alongside Marta is acclaimed actress Kerry Fox ( Conversations with Friends) , Toby Leonard Moore ( Billions ), Rachel House ( Stateless ), Yael Stone ( Orange is the New Black ), Tony Barry ( Harrow ), Heather Mitchell ( Love Me ), Oscar Redding ( The Twelve ), Bob Franklin ( Please Like Me ) Kim Ko ( Wentworth ) and Rhys Muldoon ( Les Norton ). Rounding out the cast are rising stars Imi Mbedla ( Australia’s Got Talent ), Ava Caryofyllis ( Dirt Music ), Ilai Swindells ( Retrograde ), Mackenzie Grant (The Next Step ) and newcomer Mitchem Everett.

ABC’ s Head of Drama, Entertainment and Indigenous Sally Riley says, “Featuring a brilliant cast led by the multi-talented Marta Dusseldorp and the off-kilter humour of Andrew Knight, riveting storylines and filmed against the stunningly beautiful backdrop of Tasmania’s west coast, ABC audiences will be captivated by Bay of Fires .”

Showcasing Tasmania’s rugged west coast, Bay of Fires , tells the story of Stella Heikkinen (Marta Dusseldorp), a single mother of two, who finds herself in a small, remote community. But it’s not the kind of place they put on postcards – it is instead rife with simmering feuds, crime and sometimes, murder.

Co-creator and producer Marta Dusseldorp says, “I’m beyond thrilled to be bringing this series to life in my home state of Tasmania, the cast and creative team we have assembled are extraordinary and I look forward to producing a captivating and an original Tassie noir series.”

The award-winning creative team includes co-creator/writers Andrew Knight ( Jack Irish ) and Max Dann ( Spotswood ) with writer Sarah Bassiuoni. Directors Natalie Bailey ( Retrograde, The Unusual Suspects ) and Wayne Blair ( Total Control ).

Production credit: Bay of Fires is an Archipelago Productions and Fremantle Australia production for the ABC. Major production investment from Screen Australia in association with the ABC and Screen Tasmania, with support from VicScreen. Producers Marta Dusseldorp and Yvonne Collins. Executive Producers Greg Sitch, Andrew Knight and Brett Popplewell. ABC Executive Producers Sally Riley and Louise Smith. Fremantle will distribute the series internationally.

Coming to 2023

Showcasing Tasmania’s rugged west coast, Bay of Fires, tells the story of Stella (Marta Dusseldorp), who is unexpectedly dropped into a small community with her children. But it’s not the kind of place they put on postcards – it is instead rife with simmering feuds, crime and sometimes, murder.

An Archipelago Productions and Fremantle Australia production for the ABC. Major production investment from Screen Australia in association with the ABC and Screen Tasmania, with support from VicScreen. Producers Marta Dusseldorp and Yvonne Collins. Executive Producers Greg Sitch, Andrew Knight and Brett Popplewell. ABC Executive Producers Sally Riley, Alex Baldwin and Louise Smith. Fremantle will distribute the series internationally.

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Darkly comedic crime thriller Bay of Fires lights up the screen this July.

The highly anticipated Tassie-noir thriller Bay of Fires premieres on Sunday, 16 July, 8.30pm on ABC TV and ABC iview.

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Star, co-creator and producer of the eight-part series, Marta Dusseldorp (Jack Irish, Janet King, Stateless, A Place to Call Home) leads an all-star cast including Kerry Fox (Conversations with Friends), Toby Leonard Moore (Billions), Imi Mbedla (Australia’s Got Talent), Ava Caryofyllis (Dirt Music), Rachel House (Heartbreak High), Yael Stone (Orange is the New Black), Pamela Rabe (Wentworth), Ilai Swindells (Retrograde), Roz Hammond (Shaun Micallef’s Mad As Hell), Tony Barry (Harrow), Bob Franklin (Please Like Me), Stephen Curry (June Again), Nicholas Bell (The Newsreader), Matt Nable ( Mr Inbetween), Nikolai Nikolaeff (Stranger Things) and newcomer Mitchem Everett.

Anika Van Cleef (Marta Dusseldorp), the Queen of her family’s business empire is the last person who ever wanted to live in a remote community in the wilds of western Tasmania but multiple attempts on her life suggest a change of address may be advisable. In a nightmare blur a stranger who claims to be on her side, provides her with a new name she hates (Stella Heikkinen), a house of sorts and she and her two kids are whipped off to Mystery Bay — a town so remote it eludes any mention on GPS. The town is not the kind of place they put on postcards. There are no street side tapas bars, urban murals, or floral clocks, only the isolation of and often frightening beauty of this primordial wilderness. The newly named Heikkinens are to find Mystery Bay unlike anything life has prepared them for – a place where locals hide more secrets than they do, and outsiders are viewed with suspicion bordering on the murderous.

Filmed on Tasmania’s rugged west coast, the multi-award-winning co-creative team of Dusseldorp, Andrew Knight (Jack Irish, Rake, SeaChange), Max Dann (Spotswood) with directors Natalie Bailey (Retrograde, The Unusual Suspects) and Wayne Blair (Total Control) bring to life a bold and often shocking story laced with dark humour and curve-ball twists.

Production credits: Bay of Fires is an Archipelago Productions and Fremantle Australia production for the ABC. Major production investment from Screen Australia in association with the ABC and Screen Tasmania. Financed with support from VicScreen. Producers Marta Dusseldorp and Yvonne Collins. Executive Producers Greg Sitch, Andrew Knight and Brett Popplewell. ABC Executive Producers Sally Riley, Alex Baldwin and Louise Smith. Fremantle International will distribute the series internationally.

We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians and Traditional Custodians of the lands where we live, learn and work.

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I hope this is better than the recent “dark” comedies that ABC has been showing. Promo looks promising.

Hallelujah, finally a good quality ABC “dark” comedy. After, so many unoriginal duds lately I was beginning to despair for ABC’s creativity or selection process. But the preview episode of this is brilliant; original, shocking, dramatice, surprising and gorey and at the same time being humorous as well.

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I’m liking this more and more with each episode; some great acting and storytelling with plot twists and a dark comedic elements plus nice scenery. Interesting that ABC didn’t release all episodes for iView like that have for other recent dramas - too many spoilers?

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Completely agree.

Really enjoying this series. I think it’s good that they didn’t drop all the episodes at once and viewers have to tune in every week.

Good to see that season 2 is already in the works:
https://www.premier.tas.gov.au/site_resources_2015/additional_releases/second-season-on-the-way-for-bay-of-fires

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Great final episode. Lots of cliffhangers and loose ends. Will be interesting to see how it continues with all these great characters.

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I am a big Marta Dusseldorp fan but this “mess” must be the worst show she has ever been in!

Why did you think it was a mess? Did you watch the whole thing?

I did watch it all hoping it would improve. As I said before, I’m a big Marta fan. All that being said if Season 2 comes along I’ll probably watch that too. I just didn’t think it all “gelled” together and was a bit all over the place. I usually like quirky shows as a rule.

ABC, Screen Australia, Screen Tasmania and VicScreen are pleased to announce the hit ABC drama Bay of Fires has been commissioned for a new series

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ABC, Screen Australia, Screen Tasmania and VicScreen are pleased to announce that the hit ABC drama Bay of Fires has been commissioned for a new series.

Produced by Archipelago Productions and Fremantle Australia, award-winning actress Marta Dusseldorp returns as Stella Heikkinen, the single mother of two, forced into witness protection and relocated to Mystery Bay – a remote Tasmanian town filled with suspicious, criminally inclined individuals. As we delve into season two, Stella sees a glimmer of hope on the horizon. No one has tried to kill her for some months, and she finds herself in a position of power, juggling an array of new problems to combat. Some old. Some new. Most, entirely her fault.

ABC Head of Scripted Rachel Okine says “Garnering a legion of fans, in 2023 Bay of Fires was ABC’s number one Australian drama series. Featuring an array of quirky characters, twisty plotlines and the stunning backdrop of the Tasmanian wilderness, we’re thrilled to be partnering once again with Marta and the teams at Archipelago and Fremantle. I can’t wait to share this new season with our audiences next year on ABC.”

Screen Australia’s Director of Content Grainne Brunsdon says, “We’re delighted to be diving back into the fiery brilliance of Bay of Fires and supporting a second season of this hugely popular series. With a stellar cast and crew at the helm, all set against the stunning scenery of north-west Tasmania — season two promises even more entertaining twists, turns and hilarious plot developments."

Alex Sangston, Executive Manager of Screen Tasmania, says” Bay of Fires is a landmark Tasmanian series and Screen Tasmania, on behalf of the Tasmanian Government, is proud to support the production of season 2. The West Coast of Tasmania is a spectacular part of the world, and we’re delighted to be able to showcase it around the globe. We’re equally thrilled that this production will contribute so much to the Tasmanian economy and make a real impact to the community in regional Tasmania.”

VicScreen CEO Caroline Pitcher, says “We’re proud to support the return of AACTA nominated series Bay of Fires. The second season will continue to work with Victorian talent, both behind and in front of the camera, with over 120 Victorians working on the production. We can’t wait for audiences across the country to devour this new season.”

Joining Andrew Knight (The Artful Dodger, Rake, Jack Irish) and Max Dann (Siam Sunset, Spotswood, Dance Academy) on the writing team are Romina Accurso (The Heights, Wellmania), Josephine Dee Barrett (Love Child, Wonderland) and Hannah Samuel (The PM’s Daughter).

Season two of Bay of Fires will air on ABC TV and ABC iview in 2025.

Production credit: An Archipelago Productions and Fremantle Australia production for the ABC. Major production investment from the ABC and Screen Australia in association with Screen Tasmania and VicScreen. International sales by Fremantle. Producers: Fiona McConaghy and Marta Dusseldorp. Executive Producers: Brett Popplewell, Greg Sitch and Andrew Knight. ABC Executive Producers: Rachel Okine and Louise Smith.

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