Does Kyle Sandilands have a future as a comic actor? The broadcaster plays up to his bad boy image – appearing a foul-mouthed, drunken derro who gets into a fist fight – in the Australian comedy Fat Pizza vs Housos, which opens in cinemas in two weeks. And director and star Paul Fenech believes Sandilands, who appears in a brief scene alongside girlfriend Imogen Anthony, can act. "He has a lot of potential for comedy acting," he says. "He's really easy to work with, unlike many others." The role came about after Sandilands interviewed Fenech about one of his TV series. "I was doing some publicity for Bogan Hunters and I went on his radio show and he told me he liked Housos," Fenech says. "I said 'do you want to be in the next film?' and he said 'yep' and he kept his word." The film, an anarchic mash-up of two TV comedies that have previously spun off into the films Fat Pizza and Housos vs Authority, also features cameos from fellow broadcaster Brendan Jones, Angry Anderson, Maria Venuti, Nick Giannopoulos and John Mangos.

The Water Diviner joins Unbroken with Sydney world premiere

It's a busy time for world premieres of two of this year's big Boxing Day releases. Next Monday director Angelina Jolie and stars Jack O'Connell and Miyavi will be at Sydney's State Theatre to launch Unbroken, the Hollywood drama about Olympic track star turned war hero Louis Zamperini that was shot in Queensland and NSW. Sight unseen, it has long been considered a contender for a best picture Oscar nomination. On December 2, Russell Crowe's The Water Diviner will premier at the same theatre. The drama, which has Crowe playing a father who heads to Turkey after World War I to search for his missing sons, has been picked up for US distribution for Warner Bros and will open there on April 24.

Vetting your film investors

Creative ways to finance a film # 274. Director Gillian Leahy has placed flyers in vets offices seeking backers for a feature-length documentary, Baxter & Me, which centres on her dog. She is hoping to find investors "who see the value in a dog-loving film that shows the positive, intimate relationship one can have with a dog". Leahy, whose previous films include My Life Without Steve and Our Park, is aiming to top up Screen Australia funding for the $395,000 film.

Charity screening for Afghan film

The Australian documentary Love Marriage In Kabul will have a special charity screening at Melbourne's Cinema Nova on Thursday night. Directed by Amin Palangi, it centres on an Afghan-Australian who wants to get married, The screening is in aid of Mahboba's Promise, which helps women and children in Afghanistan. It was founded by Mahboba Rawi, who appears in the documentary, which won the audience award at the Sydney Film Festival this year.

Solid opening for Interstellar

How stellar was Interstellar in Australian cinemas on the weekend? Christopher Nolan's epic sci-fi movie dominated the box office, taking $4.192 million. It's average haul per cinema was solid – $7600 – but nothing to send a video message through a worm hole back home about. That other recent journey into space, the more comedic Guardians of the Galaxy, opened with $6.553 million – for a much sleeker screen average of $11,200 – in August.

Producers award for Monaghan

Screen Producers Australia will recognise executive producer Des Monaghan, formerly executive chair of Screentime, with a lifetime achievement award during the Screen Forever conference next week. With longtime partner Bob Campbell, Monaghan's credits include the Underbelly franchise, Cloudstreet and Anzac Girls. The award will be presented at a ceremony that will also announce the production business of the year on November 18. The finalists are Hoodlum (Secrets & Lies, Dance Academy), Playmaker Media (Love Child, The Code, House Husbands), Princess Pictures (Ja'mie: Private Schoolgirl, Jonah From Tonga, It's A Date), Screentime (Anzac Girls, Janet King, Fat Tony & Co) and See-Saw Films (Tracks, Macbeth, Top of the Lake).

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