It Took Pages: Adapting Books to TV

What do M*A*S*H, Game of Thrones, House of Cards, The Slap and The Family Law have in common? They’re all TV series that started their lives as books.
In this discussion, we’ll explore the unique challenges and rewards of adapting books to TV, with three people who have first-hand experience of the process. Our speakers will share their own stories and discuss some other famous and favourite examples.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of an established audience or fanbase? What happens when an author’s imaginative world must be conjured within the constraints of a production budget? And what are the special challenges of adapting a work of memoir, with actors cast to play real-life people? Join us for an inside peek into a very delicate creative process.
Featuring
Featuring

Julie is a creative producer with over 20 years experience in the industry. She originally trained as an actress and has worked nationally and internationally on stage and screen, winning numerous awards. Julie currently works as a producer at Matchbox Pictures. She has produced documentary series A... Read more

Benjamin Law writes books, TV screenplays, columns, essays and feature journalism. He’s the author of the memoir The Family Law (2010), the travel book Gaysia: Adventures in the Queer East (2012) – both nominated for Australian Book Industry Awards – and the Quarterly Essay on Safe Schools... Read more

Clem’s writing appears regularly in The Guardian, and she has written extensively for The Saturday Paper, The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald and The Big Issue. She co-wrote and co-presented the 2017 ABC podcast Behind The Belt, a documentary “deep dive” into professional wrestling, and in 2018... Read more