Should a British TV producer be in charge of a landmark TV series on Australian history – to be financed by a $7.5 million special Federal Government grant handed out in the 2004 election campaign? Would the BBC or a similar body appoint an Australian to head up a series on British history? Of course not.

This is not cultural snobbishness or an attack on producer Alex West, whose CV is impressive. It’s more an attack on the cultural cringe at Film Australia where the chief executive, Daryl Karp.

Karp is a former ABC executive in charge of general factual programming who jumped last year to head up Film Australia just as the most ambitious program she had in her portfolio, History Detectives, was foundering. Part of the problem with History Detectives was the original executive producer appointed by Karp was an American with considerable experience (at CBS and other places) named Stefan Moore, who proved to be indecisive and an editing obsessive. So much so that after $1.83 million (the original start up and development budget) was spent, History Detectives missed its planned debut in February last year.

Karp departed the ABC for the top job at Film Australia, where she hit gold-dust when the Federal Government, in the election campaign policy avalanche, said it would give $7.5 million towards the cost of a new landmark 10 part series on Australian history. The most important decision was the appointment of an executive producer for the series.

You’d think that after her experience with History Detectives that she’s go for a local with local knowledge and an appreciation of Australia. But no, she and the Film Australia board chose an Englishman to be EP. West arrived at Film Australia in June and has been running workshops with other Film Australia executives about the series and how it will run.

Here’s part of what Film Australia says on its website about West’s appointment:

On 27 June 2005, Film Australia announced the appointment of internationally renowned executive producer Alex West to the role of Executive Producer, History, commencing 4 July 2005.

Mr West said, “The history project is a fantastic opportunity to raise the bar in Australian factual filmmaking while producing a legacy of films that show audiences at home and overseas just how powerful and fascinating the Australian story is.”

What the website doesn’t mention is his desire, expressed in briefings with producers, to “drill down” into the story behind the Eureka Stockade and Ned Kelly.