Well, geeks our guy/gal reporting team from the Southern Hemisphere (Norman and Tamsin) have rejoined ol' Father Geek here to post another (AICN-Downunder #2) great column from Australia/New Zealand for your enrichment.
TAMSIN'S DOWNUNDER REPORT #2
BAD NEWS
BAD NEWS
AALIYAH
It was extremely sad to hear about the death of Aaliyah. A friend of mine, who worked with her on QUEEN OF THE DAMNED, said she was completely down-to-earth and a really sweet girl who will be sadly missed by all who knew her.
GOOD NEWS
LORD OF THE RINGS - The latest from Australian Cinematographer Andrew Lesnie A.C.S. is that working on LORD OF THE RINGS "was a hoot. The cast were great, the crews were terrific, the sceneries were sensational..." Lesnie has shot many films including BABE, DOING TIME FOR PATSY CLINE and TWO IF BY SEA, and is also known for leaving MISSION IMPOSSIBLE 2 due to "stylistic differences". Smart guy! Lesnie won the 1997 Australian Film Institute Award and a 1997 A.C.S Gold Award for best cinematography for DOING TIME FOR PATSY CLINE. He won 1996 ACS Golden Tripod Award for best photographed cinema feature BABE and the 1995 ACS Golden Tripod Award for Clara Law's TEMPTATION OF A MONK. He's shot features, short films, television, news, current affairs and documentaries including the THE MAKING OF THE ROAD WARRIOR and THE COMEBACK (starring Arnold Schwarzenegger). The footage of LOTR so far looks spectacular and, as Andrew is one of the best, I'm sure the film's brilliance is truly represented by the teasers we're seeing.
RABBIT PROOF FENCE - The new one from Philip Noyce (CLEAR AND PRESENT DANGER), is rumoured to be released at the end of the year. At the recent Australian International Film Convention, Noyce spoke of this confronting story which stars Kenneth Branagh. It's about 3 "Stolen Generation" aboriginal girls (removed from their families) who travel 3000 km along a rabbit proof fence in order to return home. There was a rough-cut screened, and the word is, " it is truly beautiful". The RABBIT PROOF FENCE is currently in post-production as is Noyce's other film, THE QUIET AMERICAN starring Brendan Fraser.
MAD MAX/ THE ROAD WARRIOR - There is a new feature-length documentary about making of MAD MAX/ THE ROAD WARRIOR, set to premiere on September 25th in Melbourne called, WELCOME TO WHEREVER YOU ARE. Apparently the documentary follows a group of Mad Max devotees who travel across the desert in a replica interceptor, through many of the locations which were featured in the movie.
You can check out the site at: This Location
WORLD FILM FESTIVAL SCREENINGS
LANTANA - It has just been announced that the new film starring Geoffrey Rush, Anthony LaPaglia, Barbara Hershey, and Glenn Robbins, LANTANA (directed by Ray Lawrence whose last film was BLISS in 1985), will have its international premiere as the Closing Night Film at the 2001 Toronto Film Festival. It has also been invited to screen at the Telluride Film Festival and will have its European Premiere in the Official Competition of the San Sebastian International Film Festival and is set to open the New York Cultural Film Festival on the 5th of October. ,p.Though I haven't yet seen this film, it did receive the Most Popular Film at The Melbourne International Film Festival but Norman wasn't entirely impressed. I will catch this when it is released and post a review then.
Other films which will be appearing at International Film Festivals include, HE DIED WITH A FELAFEL IN HIS HAND by Richard Lowenstein which will play at Montreal World Film Festival, alongside shorts films HARVEY, directed by Peter McDonald and THE WATCHERS, by Steve McGregor. MULLET and SILENT PARTNER which will also be appearing at Toronto and Athens Film Festival.
NIJINSKY, the new one by Paul Cox (INNOCENCE, LONELY HEARTS), has been also selected to appear Toronto Film Fest, in the Masters' section.
LA SPAGNOLA and THE BANK, which both screened at MIFF, will also screen at the Toronto Film Fest.
Three Australian directors premiering their new ones films at Toronto: Gregor Jordan (TWO HANDS) with BUFFALO SOLDIERS, Scott Hicks (SHINE) wiith ATLANTIS and Fred Schepisi (ROXANNE, SIX DEGREES OF SEPARATION) with LAST ORDERS starring Michael Caine and Bob Hoskins.
UNDER-RATED AUSTRALIAN FILM OF THE WEEK
YOLNGU BOY
Directed by Stephen Johnson, YOLNGU BOY is the story of best friends, Lorrpu, Botj and Milika, three Aboriginal Boys who grew up together in Arnhem Land dreaming of becoming great hunters and remaining friends forever. They are now at the age where they are ready for initiation, ready for the Elders to challenge them and see whether they are indeed hunter-material. However, now they are older, the childhood friendship which binds them is no longer strong enough to sustain them. Botji can't keep out of trouble, Milika is more interested in his football career leaving Lorrpu as the only one still carrying their dream. Part of the 'Official Selection', for the Telluride Film Festival 2000, YOLNGU BOY is beautifully shot, (by DOP Brad Shields), with absolutely gorgeous vision of the Northern parts of Australia. The writer, Chris Anastassiades and director, Stephen Johnson, specifically wanted to tell a story of the friendship between three boys first, so any political and social analysis never feels laboured or like a lesson. YOLNGU BOY is a lush visual feast, with a deeper message of friendship and the maintenance of tradition in a forever-changing influential modern world.
UNDER-RATED FILM INDUSTRY PERSON/COMPANY OF THE WEEK CHRIS ANDERSON and NEW GENERATION STUNTS
Often relegated to the background, stuntmen and women live a crazy life juggling physical danger, the harsh elements and dodgy craft services. One of Australia's largest and most highly respected companies, New Generation Stunts was established in 1978 by stunt veteran Chris Anderson and represents most of Australia's top stunt men and women. Some of the films they've worked on, both in Australia and Internationally, are: Jackie Chan's A NICE GUY, BABE 2, BACK OF BEYOND, CROCODILE DUNDEE, DARK CITY, DEAD CALM, GALLIPOLI, THE THIN RED LINE, YOLNGU BOY and hundreds more.
COOL AUSSIE SITE OF THE WEEK
Animal Logic Special Effects Company - http://www.animallogic.com/ Animal Logic, the special effect company who created the effects in THE MATRIX, MOULIN ROUGE, and THE THIN RED LINE has a spectacular web site showing off not only their talents in film but also as web site designers. The opening page has a Chemistry Box which, once pressed, opens to reveal a multitude of surprises. This is why they're one of the best!!! You have to check this one out!!!
TAMSIN out...
Father Geek back again to herald the coming of NORMAN...
A bitty report this week as Norman recovers from a horrible cold.
OZ STATES COMPETE FOR "GADGET" SEQUEL
A bitty report this week as Norman recovers from a horrible cold.
OZ STATES COMPETE FOR "GADGET" SEQUEL
* Disney execs recently scouted locations for a planned INSPECTOR GADGET sequel. Usual suspects Sydney and Brisbane were visited, but look for strong competition from Melbourne - lately looking to establish itself as a major player in luring Hollywood productions out Oz way.
MELBOURNE ANNOUNCES PLANS FOR "HIGH-TECH STUDIO COMPLEX"
* Round Melbourne way talk of a major studio is about as long in the tooth as Carlton footballing legend Craig Bradley. Now it looks like it's really gonna happen... (Victorian) Premier Steve Bracks announced a $40 million commitment to the complex, and sealed the deal by announcing the package at a gathering in LA! On a two-day jaunt round Tinseltown, Bracks talked up the studio to execs at Paramount/Disney/Warner Bros/Universal to "extremely positive" response. Wonder what those execs thought about the recent weakening of the Australian dollar...
"MEMENTO" STAR PEARCE GETS BUSY WITH LOCAL FLICKS
* Nice to see Guy Pearce still plying his trade with local-made films. TILL HUMAN VOICES WAKE US, filmed in rural Victoria and co-starring Helena Bonham Carter, is set for release later this year. Pearce is currently back in Victoria filming BLOOD AND GUTS with Rachel Griffiths in and around Pentridge prison (where much of the early scenes in CHOPPER were also done). BLOOD AND GUTS, a black comedy, is reported to have started principal photography in July.
MATRIX 2 & 3 A WRAP?
* Not quite a total wrap, but apparently the recently wrapped MATRIX San Francisco shoot encompassed material for both MATRIX RELOADED *and* MATRIX REVISITED. Could be worth bearing in mind when speculating on the plot - maybe those silver dreadlocked blokes and their super duper cars are going to be turning up in the third movie of the trilogy rather than the second...
AUSTRALIAN INTERNATIONAL MOVIE CONVENTION - HIGHLIGHTS
* Recently held, this distributor's convention had a few bite-sized morsels regarding local product... Production newbie Newvision Films have announced an involvement with feature BLACK AND WHITE, which is to star Robert Carlyle... Mel Gibson's Icon Films made a splash of an entry into the local market a little while back, announcing they'd read any and all spec feature submissions. CEO Mark Gooder said they were "slowly trawling through a number of projects" and hope to have an Oz film out (or being made?) by the end of the year. Meanwhile they're looking to Mel's film WE WERE SOLDIERS ONCE... to brand Icon as a maker of quality product... Columbia Tri-Star insist that they're reading local product and according to local MD Stephen Basil-Jones "You never know, Columbia Tri-Star just might pop up with a couple of local films in the near future and we're obviously keen to support those".
UNDERRATED DOWNUNDER FILM IDENTITY
Bruce Spence - Actor
New Zealender Spence was born in 1945 and has appeared in over 40 films since. His gaunt, boggle-eyed features have in the main denied him leading roles but perhaps because of his slightly unreal appearance, filmmakers have often turned to Spence to provide visual sparks to their flights of fantasies. George Miller cast him as Jebediah the Gyro Pilot in MAD MAX 2 & 3 - a memorable turn - he was a trench-coated alien offsider in DARK CITY, the eerie Charlie in Peter Weir's early feature THE CARS THAT ATE PARIS, and from the one early pic I've seen is sure to be a chilling presence as the Mouth of Sauron in LORD OF THE RINGS. He's not a one-trick pony, though. Spence has shined in warmer roles, Tim Burstall's seminal feature STORK (Spence's first film and one of his only leads), and the underrated John Duigan features DIMBOOLA and THE YEAR MY VOICE BROKE. And - ACE VENTURA: WHEN NATURE CALLS. But let's not go there.
