AMC Studios and See-Saw Films to shoot vampire series ‘Firebite' in Australia

AMC Studios is set to co-produce an Australian vampire TV series, Firebite, with the UK’s See-Saw Films, which will shoot in South Australia this summer.

Created, written, and directed by Australia’s Indigenous auteur Warwick Thornton (Samson and Delilah) and Brendan Fletcher (Mad Bastards), the series will feature eight, hour-long episodes, and is set to premiere on AMC+ later this year.

Firebite is a high-octane fantasy series that follows two Indigenous Australian hunters, Tyson and Shanika, on their quest to battle the last colony of vampires in the middle of the South Australian desert. The series is set in a remote desert mining town, a hive for the last vampire stronghold shipped from Britain to Australia in 1788 by the colonial superpower to eradicate the Indigenous populations.

The filming locations for the shoot include the traditional Country of the Antakirinja Matu-Yankunytjatjara, the regional town of Coober Pedy, and in Adelaide Studios in South Australia. The team will also work with people of the Western Desert and the Kaurna People of the Adelaide Plains in and around Adelaide.

The South Australian Film Corporation (SAFC) has provided major funding for the production, and the project is expected to bring employment opportunities for the local Indigenous populations.

Alongside Thornton and Fletcher, See-Saw Films’ Rachel Gardner, Emile Sherman and Iain Canning are set to executive produce. See-Saw’s Simon Gillis will serve as co-executive producer.

Paul Ranford will produce the series with Indigenous co-producer Dena Curtis. The writing team includes Kodie Bedford, Devi Telfer and Josh Sambono. 

Dan McDermott, president of original programming for AMC Networks and co-head of AMC Studios said: “This is an original and highly entertaining series we can’t wait to bring to AMC+, and one that expands our already fruitful creative partnership with See-Saw Films after very successful collaborations on the wildly original State of the Union and the rare gem that was Top of the Lake. We are excited to tell this story authentically, in Australia with Indigenous storytellers, cast and crew and on Indigenous lands.”

See-Saw Films’ head of drama Australia and executive producer Rachel Gardner added: “It's incredibly exciting to be bringing Warwick and Brendan’s unique vision to the screen with a high-octane explosive story that draws on the complex themes of colonisation and racial prejudice, driven by Indigenous storytellers.”

This not the first collaboration between AMC Studios and See-Saw. The companies previously partnered on the shows “State of the Union” and “Top of the Lake.”