The Australian Natural Wine Film

This is a fundraiser for a documentary film showcasing the history of Australian grown organic wine and how far it has come, from its small beginnings in the Adelaide hills to its poliforation into wine bars and bottle shops all over the country.  

The video linked in the title shows interviews with french winemaker Jeff Coutelou and wine merchant and author Fleur Godart, followed by Frank Cornelissen in Sicily and finally Spike of Fellow Wines in Victoria’s Yarra Valley. All filmed by Director Thomas Russell.

It has been a revolution in the Australian wine industry initiated by a group of three wine makers in the Adelaide hills, and their influence has caused a Cambrian Explosion of organic wines on to the shelves of our wine stores. But not everyone welcomes the revolution, change is not for everyone, this has upset some in this industry who hold steadfast to their chemical traditions, and the financial risk required to go organic in the vinyard! But with the telling of this story to a general audience, maybe we can bring more wine drinkers to natural wines, and help make it more and more viable!

Our story centres around James Erskin, Tom Shobbrook and Anton van Klopper, how and why they set out to make organic wines in Australia for the people, in the face of much opposition. This conversation is expansive and invites perspectives from all over the wine industry, from sommeliers and restauranteurs to journalism, but most importantly hearing from the vine growers themselfs. This film will attempt to lift the veil of natural wine in Australia so that we can better understand it for the great potential it really holds. 

These passionate winemakers are deeply connected to the balance of nature in their vineyards, they are workers of the land, from biodiversity of trees, insects, to micro biome in the soils and in the air, and on into the cellar where they accompany natural processes of vinification. It’s hard yakka toil and a joyful spirt that make a seductive juice that brings family and freinds together. It is an artful expression of place and season through fermentation of grapes- the balance of nature in the vineyard and the mental clarity and vision of the winemaker. 

But in order to inform the broader audience who have had no formal education in viticulture, such as myself, we will ask some fundamental questions as well... 

- What the bloody hell is natural wine? How is it different to conventional wines?

- Why is farming without chemicals a good thing? 

- Why is non mono-cultured fruit growing better?

- What role does soil biome play? Bacteria and fungi?

- What are the potential flavour palats, how fun vs serious is the potential for these wines.

- What is our attitude towards so called flaws in wine? 

- What is the future of this industry? Will we ever see organic wines dominating the industry in Aus, or will it remain a delicious niche for those in the know?

I would like to acknowledge the traditional custodians of this lands of Australia, and their true and deep understanding of its echo-systems and flora and fauna. Indigenous peoples all over the world bring deep traditional knowledge that can help the modern world understand our relationships to natural systems, and the respect required to support them.

To acheive this we need your help to raise some of the nessasery funds hire film crew where needed, hire extra camera equipment to raise the sound and visual quality of the film, and to cover the costs of travel interstate. Roughly three weeks of filming required over a span of a couple of months, traveling to vinyards throughout Victoria, Adelaide Hills, around NSW to interview wine makers, sommilers, and restauranteurs who were the first to embrace this movement and see the potential in Australian made natural wine. 

This fund raising is of course supplimental to what money Director/ Producer Thomas Russell will be putting into the project. 

Camera equipment hire $3000

• STEADY CAMERA RIG
• AERIAL VIDEOGRAPHY DRONE HIRE
• SOUND RECORDING EQUIPTMENT UPGRADE

Crew assistants and travel costs $1000 

Post Produciton 

• EDITOR 
• COLOUR GRADE 
• ORGINAL SCORE 
• SOUND MIX
• ANIMATIONS
• This may require more funding and distrobution funds to finalise

We are asking for a total of $5000 Aussie dollaroos towards this production to see it succeed. 

The more people that understand natural wine making and come to drinking natural wines, the more viable the industry becomes. The less risky it is to convert a vinyard away from synthetic chemical interventions.
I want to see a thriving natural wine making scene in Australia! Lets make it happen together! Thank you.