The audience was there to see the UK horror-thriller picture Mum & Dad (2008) and my local short film was playing as a bonus beforehand.

The lights dimmed, the curtains closed in (they had to mask the majority of the windscreen as the short is 4:3, if you can believe that) and away we went. Living With Benjamin was on the big screen.

While sitting in the darkness watching Benjamin stir his coffee and wash his mug, three hings became very apparent to me during those seven nervous minutes:

1. Kerry was holding my hand. She told me she was equally nervous — and she held my hand for every second it was up there. I appreciated that gesture.
2. In the final act, building up to the big finish, I could feel my heart pounding throughout my whole body. It felt like my chair was shaking. But I wasn’t panicked or worried anymore (the hardest parts were over) — it must have just been adrenaline.
3. The respect from the audience was first rate. Sometimes a screening like this is treated more like a trailer and there’s still occasional chitter-chatter and movement. In this case, the whole cinema went dead silent and watched Benjamin play out. A bonus of screening at an international film festival, I guess– you know the people attending are mostly film enthusiasts.

And so the credits rolled and the audience applauded. Just like that, it was over. The transfer looked fantastic on the big screen and the sound was magic. I’ve never heard it sound or look so good. Taking it from my PC monitor and TV screens up onto the cinema screen was definitely a wonderful experience and one I will always remember.  Best of all I got to enjoy it with my wife Kerry (thanks to ‘awesome’ Uncle Danny for watching the kids!!), Benjamin himself Clint West, and industry colleges including sound designer and co-editor Warren Money, Gemma Gittins and Sara Horvat.

I look forward to seeing more of our projects on the big screen in the near future.

I’m compiling the special features and menu for the Living with Benjamin DVD, which will be available soon.
Watch Living With Benjamin online now

The film now runs a comfy seven minutes as apposed to the original 12. Five whole minutes removed and it still feels like the exact same film. I’ve learned a great deal from shooting and cutting this — it will always remain dear to me.

This is the version that will be screening at the Perth Night of Horror Film Festival in October. I will be part of the audience and look forward to seeing it with a sizable crowd. That’s both a scary and exciting prospect!

This cut will also appear on the long-awaited DVD, accompanied by some beefy bonus material.

The task of directing a film in any format is always a challenging journey. This shoot ran for three solid days and pushed the boundaries of every emotion I could possibly muster. From sheer frustration to overwhelming exhilaration — not forgetting tiredness, anger, joy, and jealousy.
Jealousy because I have given the cinematography role a shot before (during film school) and here was Danny Clark, a good mate of mine, producing pure gold in every shot without a paycheque. I’m very happy with how good this film looks.

I got to work with an acceptional team on this independent project. Assembled by producer Sara Horvat, people were dedicated to their roles and delivered fantastic results at every level. Thanks to everyone who donated their time and be part of a wonderful filmmaking family.

Personally, That Year They Were Bridesmaids was all about exploring my abilities to direct some honesty to the screen.  The film deals with topics I’m close to and I felt confident I could tell the story accurately. I cannot wait to see the final product, scoop up everything I learned and muscle it into the next project.

What’s important for me now is to turn the film around in a timely manner.  A post production schedule is in place and some upcoming festival deadlines will keep us in check. Even before That Year They Were Bridesmaids hits screens, I’m already working hard on planning what to do next.  What do I need to practice? What do I need to learn? And how can we go about these things in an entertaining way?

Someone should write a book about this stuff…

The Exorcist Fansite

Auditions.

I have found auditions to be a tiresome process. Especially when the material — like my current short production That Year They Were Bridesmaids — is so close to home. There are lines of dialogue and certain beats within that screenplay that scream emotional truths to me. And to go through them every half hour over the period of several days starts to wear me down.

What makes it drag out worse is when the magical person I am looking for fails to emerge. Some look the part but can’t handle the material. Others can manage the material just fine but do not look the part (and seemed to have failed in reading the casting requirements, but booked a place anyway).

The film is being independently backed, and while I’m sending talent out the door with a polite handshake and a well-tempered “thanks for your time, we’ll be in touch…”, I’m continually turning to my Producer and getting reassurance that I’m not being too pedantic or picky. Because I really don’t want to settle. Not this time. Far too often I’ve ‘just settled’ on many varying aspects of my productions, and I have sworn that it is time to move forward properly and take it seriously. No longer do I want to say ‘that’ll do’.

There should be no reason why great planning of great ideas can’t deliver a great film. All of that can be tainted if you settle for second-hand options simply for the sake of progressing the film in increments that become incidental once you get the damn thing into post production. I need to remain honest with it. If I do that, I can do no wrong.

I always harboured a daydream that it would get easier. That, once was a paid gig was on offer (which Bridesmaids is) then the talent would come flooding through the door and it would be a struggle to choose who fits. Right now we’re a month from production, I need to start rehearsals in about a week and I still don’t have a main cast.

Wish me luck, won’t you?

I enjoy the feeling of finally being able to put a project to rest. The HOMECOMING DVD is absolutely complete has started distribution to those involved in the project (contact me here to request your copy). I’ve also handed a copy to FTI to keep amongst the stacks of student films they have produced. Hopefully the DVD artwork and disc menu helps it stand out a little against the masses.

So, that’s it for HOMECOMING. Watch it here (if you haven’t already) and also view some behind-the-scenes material!

I’m now putting the final touches on the DVD for HER PARTY, LIVING WITH BENJAMIN & HAIR DYE while also preparing the production of our next short film THAT YEAR THEY WERE BRIDESMAIDS.

The King of Pop died today. My wife told me the news while I was  getting ready to lecture for the first time at the Film & Television Institute. I took the train and cued a bunch of Michael Jackson tunes on my iPod, listening to them and reminiscing while wintry thunderclouds rolled it overhead.

I remember being fascinated by the Thriller video as a very young child. My Father bought the videotape ‘Making Michael Jackson’s Thriller’ when I was just five years old, and I watched that tape almost every day. And so began my intrigue into the world of fiilmmaking.

At 14, I would force my family to spend weekends helping me reenact Michael Jackson music videos, playing a host of characters for me. I, of course, always played the role of  MJ. Filming and editing these home videos influenced my passion for filmmaking a great deal.

I taught my sister to moonwalk when she was 3. She turns 18 tomorrow.

My wall used to be covered top to bottom with Michael Jackson posters and paraphernalia. I hoarded CDs, videotapes, magazines. I even kept a scrapbook.

Lord knows where all this stuff is now. I stopped being so obsessed during the nineties. Though I still enjoy listening to classic Michael Jackson tunes every so often. I always will.

And I still have that original Thriller VHS my Father bought all those years ago.

Rest in eace, Michael Jackson. And thank you!

Last week I sat with a group of talented and enthusiastic people as we enjoyed some drinks and dip, discussing a short film production that is about to get underway. It’s a screenplay I wrote called That Year They Were Bridesmaids and I will be directing it in August.

Like any idea for a story, this has been swimming around my head for a while. This is evidenced in the numerous files saved in my ’screenplays’ directory containing all kinds of drafts and notes.

While the story itself began to grow from my mind the day after my first son was born, the screenplay didn’t begin to grow until I began studying at FTI the following year. Needing a screenplay to hand in during the course, I chose to flesh out this story ahead of many others I had drafted. I guess, at the time, it seemed like the safest choice.

That Year They Were Bridesmaids tells the story two middle-aged brothers who come together to begin cleaning their family home in preparation for it being sold. They recall old memories stored in the depths of their minds while coming across objects they haven’t seen in years.

I’m enthusiastic about the dedicated group we have on board for this film. They signed on with the knowledge that the screenplay was up for a government grant, and when that fell through (more on that later…) they stayed on. They turned up at this meeting rearing to go, excited to be apart of filmmaking and eager to be involved in every way.

Danny (Cinematographer) and I have started the shotlisting and storyboarding process, while our Producer, Sara, is busy lining up our departments and getting casting ready for auditions next week.

This is the first film Danny and I will have made together since becoming FTI graduates, and our first since Hair Dye in 2006.  Amazing to think we are about to shoot this under private investment, in Perth, with a full crew dedicated to delivering professional results with us. ‘Tis a long way from our small country town beginnings.

(My shotlist notes. I keep a different copy of the screenplay for every different set of notes. Always red pen.)

Earlier this year I invited viewers of Her Party – a short student film I directed in 2008 – to provide me with solid, honest (constructive) feedback. I always knew there were issues with the first cut of the film, which was hurried to meet graduation screening. Now, with festival submissions and a DVD looming, I wanted to ensure I turned in a film I was (more) proud of and happy to be shown to wider audiences.

I personally called the project Party Redux (geddit?) and set about making sensible changes; using the razor tool to improve pacing and the paintbrush to improve grading.

The results are wholeheartedly satisfying. Her Party now runs just over five minutes (instead of the original, painful painful 10) and looks fantastic:

Click here for more information and media for Her Party.