The federal government has commissioned a $4.1m telemovie designed to dissuade asylum seekers from coming to Australia by boat.

The telemovie, set to be broadcast in refugee hotspots including Syria, Afghanistan and Iran, would include storylines about asylum seekers drowning at sea and feature the Australian navy, the ABC has reported.

The Nick Xenophon Team is poised to be the protest vote party this year. Credit:Christopher Pearce

The drama, scheduled for release later this year, will push the Australian government's message to would-be asylum seekers that they should shun people smugglers and wait to be processed.

The program "will realistically portray the journeys of people … and the challenges they face," a spokesperson for the department of Immigration and Border Protection told Lateline on Thursday night.