“I get in and write what I think is true,” Bevan Lee,creator ofBack to the Raftersand its predecessorPacked to the Rafters,says. “My shows have always dealt with tough topics in a,I don’t want to say wacky,but light and optimistic way.”
Lee’s light touch offers a stark contrast to the prestige dramas,including HBO’s latestScenes from a Marriage,which often attract the most attention on streaming services. Lee says a more pared-back approach can also serve to reflect emotional truths on screen.
“I think there has been a certain snobbishness in Australia,and this fascination with prestige TV is just a manifestation of our own insecurities,” Lee says.
“I have a popularist way of writing,but that doesn’t make the material any worse or any better than anything else;that’s just who I am as a writer.”
The six-part series,released on Friday,begins with Julie and Dave Rafter happily ensconced in the country town Burradeena. Dave is settled into semi-retirement but Julie faces an identity crisis:Dave is enough for her but Burradeena isn’t.
She looks for answers in self-help books,or as Dave calls them,“those new agey things,” but ultimately realises that to move forward,she must go back,back to her family,back to the city. It’s a decision that eventually drives a wedge between her and Dave. Lee says it was a plot point grounded in personal experience.