Last Chance to Save a Life

In a world threatened by deadly antibiotic-resistant infections, new hope emerges from the unlikeliest of sources: viruses. In Australia, patients are being injected with trillions of viruses to survive. We follow the patients, doctors, and scientists in nail-biting real time to discover the extraordinary power and challenges of ‘phage therapy’; a strange and elusive 100-year old treatment that promises to not only save patients’ lives but give hope to the world.

From the Emmy award-winning team at Genepool Productions, this intimate and unforgettable film bears witness to the global renaissance in phage therapy— an ancient weapon in the battle against superbugs and, perhaps, humanity's last chance to save countless lives.

SBS Australia and Screen Australia in association with VicScreen present a Genepool Production.

Duration: 55 minutes
Release Date: February 2024
Broadcast Partners: SBS Australia
Broadcast Sales: Abacus Media Rights

Writer & Director Emma Watts
Producers Anna Mantzoros & Sonya Pemberton
Executive Producer Sonya Pemberton
Narrator Faustina Agolley
Co-Producer Harry Panagiotidis
Editor Wayne Hyett A.S.E.
DOPs Aaron Smith & Dale Cochrane
Music Dr Ruth Lee Martin
Animation And Visual Effects Dom Bartolo, 21-19

CREDITS

SBS and Screen Australia

in association with

VICSCREEN

present

a GENEPOOL PRODUCTION

WRITER/DIRECTOR

Emma Watts

PRODUCERS

Anna Mantzoros & Sonya Pemberton

EDITOR

Wayne Hyett ASC

DIRECTORS OF PHOTOGRAPHY

Aaron Smith, ACS

Dale Cochrane

Stu Heppell

Dan Gallagher

PRINCIPAL DRONE OPERATOR

Luke Armstrong

LEAD SOUND RECORDISTS

Luke Armstrong & Martin Kier

BEST BOY

Milo Macesic

NARRATED BY

Faustina Agolley

CO PRODUCER

Harry Panagiotidis

DIRECTOR’S ATTACHMENT

Josef Gatti

ADDITIONAL CAMERA OPERATORS

Geoff Blee, Jose Alkon, Marden Dean, Miles Bence, Nick McInerney,

Richard Kickbush, Dave May, Scott Morris, Tim O’Keefe, Hernan Saclcedo

ADDITIONAL SOUND RECORDISTS

Ben Bomitali, David Ross, Philip Meyers, Richard Boxhall, Rafael Castillo Q

DEVELOPMENT PRODUCER

Marie Maroun

EXPERT ADVISORS

Prof. Martha Clokie

Prof. Deborah Williamson

Dr Drew Smith

Dr Nenad Macesic

SCIENTIFIC ADVISOR

Calvin Lee

DOCUMENTARY ADVISOR

Sacha Ettinger Epstein

SCRIPT EDITOR

Andrew Masterson

PRODUCTION ACCOUNT

Trish Mulhall

LEGALS

Stephen Boyle

POST PRODUCTION FACILITY

City Post

POST SUPERVISOR

Nadia Diggins

ADDITIONAL EDITING

Steven Robinson & Joelle Baudet

EDIT ASSISTANT

Nick Prior

ONLINE EDITOR

Marcus Mason

COLOURIST

Dan Molony

COMPOSER

Ruth Lee Martin

ADDITIONAL MUSIC

Beat for Emma
Composed by Ilario Franco

My Best Dress
Composed by Ann Palumbo
Performed by Ann Palumbo & Paul Laszlo

MUSIC MIX BY

Richard Stolz

RE RECORDING MIXERS

Dale Warren & Paul Shanahan

DESIGN, ANIMATION & VFX

Dom Bartolo & Chris Moore, 21-19

ELECTRON MICROSCOPY IMAGES

Dr Jason A. Roberts
Victorian Infectious Diseases Reference Laboratory,
Royal Melbourne Hospital, at the
Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity

ADDITIONAL SCIENTIFIC IMAGES

Josef Gatti

ARCHIVE MATERIAL

Pond 5, Getty Images, Institut Pasteur

STILLS PHOTOGRAPHY

Ben King, Aaron Smith, Dave May, Emma Watts

WITH THANKS TO

David Dixon, Corey Nassau & Tate Papworth & the staff at The Alfred Melbourne, Sarah Mason & Sia Takchi and the staff at Westmead Hospital and Western Institute for Medical Research, Western Water Treatment, Dinesh Subedi, Lea Macesic, Maxine Trump, John Tabbagh, Dora Weekley, Kathryn Lefroy, Khrob Edmond, Joshua Vaile, Simon Martin, Tajo Tatuador, Margaret Knox and Documentary Australia.

FOR SBS

HEAD OF UNSCRIPTED

Joseph Maxwell

SENIOR COMMISSIONING EDITOR

Bernadine Lim

PRODUCTION SUPERVISOR
Heather Oxenham

PRODUCTION COORDINATOR

Belinda Rickerby

Produced in co-operation with the Alfred Health, Melbourne, Australia
and Western Sydney Local Health District, Australia

Principal production and development funding from
Australian Government and Screen Australia

Produced with the assistance of
Victorian State Government and VICSCREEN

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER – Sonya Pemberton
Genepool Productions

INTERNATIONAL DISTRIBUTION
abacus media rights
an Amcomri Entertainment company

SBS acknowledges the traditional custodians
of the land in Australia on which this program was filmed.

Developed and produced in association with
Special Broadcasting Service.
SBS Australia