The Ballad Of Wallis Island is like a fable, says director
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ABC News
a day ago
- ABC News
Together is a horrifying look at co-dependency. It's based on the director's relationship
Australian director and writer Michael Shanks has the disembodied torso of Hollywood A-lister Dave Franco hanging on his study wall. It's a prosthetic, of course, from Shanks's upcoming film, Together, which stars Franco and his real-life wife, Alison Brie, as a couple whose relationship is on the rocks. "I found it in storage after the film wrapped," Shanks says. "He was wrapped in plastic, like Laura Palmer. I was like, 'No, he's got to be on my wall.'" In part, that could be because Together has proven to be a breakout moment for the Melbourne local. Shanks has spent more than a decade building a profile as a writer, director and special effects artist. He's racked up millions of YouTube views on his cinematic parodies, landed a script on the coveted Black List (Hollywood's list of best unproduced screenplays), and his award-winning short film, Rebooted, is adorned with more laurel leaves than a forest. But Together has surpassed all of that. When his body-horror/romance/comedy premiered at Sundance Film Festival in January, it ignited a bidding war that even Shanks — who wrote, directed and created most of the film's jaw-dropping special effects — didn't see coming. "We had been in this room, just myself and an editor and the editing assistant, and we made this little movie, and we thought it was pretty good," he says. "Then suddenly I'm in Utah for some reason, at Sundance, and I have to introduce a film in front of an audience of 2,000 people. "At the afterparty, different studio people were saying, 'Hi, we'd like to buy the film.' That was really special." Together eventually sold to Neon, the US distributor behind Oscars Best Picture winners Anora and Parasite, for $US17 million ($26 million). It was one of the richest deals in the festival's history. But for Shanks, the marvel is in the fact that his fusion film was made at all. Together could masquerade as a regular romantic dramedy, if not for the evocative promotional materials featuring fused body parts, hinting at a much more sinister story. The film opens on aspiring, but aging musician Tim (Franco) and his dedicated long-term partner Millie (Brie) moving out of the city so she can take up a new teaching position. There's still flickering love between the pair but it's struggling to breathe underneath the tense weight of shared history. Things take a turn for the horrific after a bushwalk sees Tim and Millie tumble into a mysterious cave with an ominously alluring water source. From this point the film transforms into shriek-inducing terror, where hypothetical fears about co-dependant relationships become sickeningly real. And it's all based on Shanks's relationship with his partner of 16 years, Louie. "When I first told her the idea, she was a little wary," Shanks laughs. "She said something like, 'I'm a little upset that you're writing it but you should write it.'" She quickly became Shanks's sounding board, conceptualising some of the film's most evocative scenes (one of which involves a giant, prosthetic penis) during the writing process. "I would sometimes knock on our home office and ask, 'Hey, you know, that argument we had a couple of years ago where you called me a piece of shit? What did I call you back?'" he says. While Shanks says his relationship has a firm foundation, he's prepared for his film to potentially break up those on rockier ones. In fact, it might have, already. "So many people have told me this reminded them of a previous relationship, or current relationship. There's a universality to it," Shanks says. "It's scary to share a life with somebody, and hopefully you can push through and find something lovely, or you are brave enough to recognise that splitting apart is an OK thing to do." There's a strong family feel to Together. Shanks cast his partner and friends as extras in party scenes, as well as weaving references to his siblings' names into the film. "All these people have been supporting me to chase this impossible filmmaking dream for over a decade, so it's been really lovely to bring them along for the ride," Shanks says. And despite the American-accented leads, Together was filmed in Melbourne, about 15 minutes from Shanks's home. The local crew rallied around Franco and Brie, who not only supplied brilliant dramatic performances, but put their bodies on the line to pull off the script's extreme physical demands. "A stunt performer was doing something of Alison's, and [Alison] was like, 'That's not hard enough. I'll do it.' Dave was climbing ropes that we didn't ask him to do because it was better for the performance," Shanks says. "They have a bruise journal from the film. We tortured them every day, and they still showed up for work the next day with a smile." Shanks has long dreamed of seeing his work on billboards, but becoming an international name has brought both positives and negatives. Back in May, while still riding the Sundance high, Together was hit with a US copyright lawsuit from production studio StudioFest which claimed the film ripped off ideas from Patrick Phelan's 2023 black comedy, Better Half. In response, Shanks released a public statement asserting not only how painfully personal Together is to him, but also that he registered his script to the Writers Guild of America in 2019 — three years before Shanks was connected with Franco, and a year before StudioFest's filings claim Phelan's script was sent to Franco and Brie's representatives. "To now be accused of stealing this story — one based on my own lived experience, one I've developed over the course of several years — is devastating and has taken a heavy toll," his statement read. Shanks told ABC Entertainment that being a public figure has taken some adjustment. "Since the film has made headlines for all sorts of reasons, I have become somebody that is being commented on," he says. "I've been so lucky to travel with this film. I went to a film festival in Mexico, and people were telling me how much they love the movie. That's been so sweet. Together is riding high on a wave of internationally successful Australian horror productions from Colin and Cameron Cairnes's Late Night With The Devil, to Michael and Danny Philippou's latest screamer, Bring Her Back. However, these productions — as well as Shanks's — had to venture outside the country to secure the support needed to bring them to life. Shanks says it's essential the local industry invests in young, upcoming talent. "Me and Michael and Danny [Philippou], we came from a time where we had to prove our storytelling abilities to an international audience to get opportunities in the local industry," he says. "I'd love for there to be pathways for younger filmmakers to tell stories they're passionate about, rather than the generation above, that are still kind of locked in some of those positions. "Hearing stories from younger people and from people of more economically diverse backgrounds, that's the stuff that I'd be really keen to see." Together is in cinemas now.
ABC News
2 days ago
- ABC News
Storytelling, beats and soundscapes on Warlpiri Country, and Gordon Kerry's new Requiem
Lajamanu is one of the most remote places in Central Australia, and it's where we meet Wanta Jampijinpa Pawu-Kurlpurlurnu, his father Jerry Jangala Patrick OAM, and the music producer Marc 'Monkey' Peckham. Crown & Country is a new album and film that's come out of more than a decade of friendship and collaboration between Wanta, Jerry and Monkey. Blending Warlpiri Jukurrpa (Dreaming) songs, cultural stories, soundscapes from the desert, and electronic beats, it's a compelling and immersive way of sharing Warlpiri culture with new audiences. Gordon Kerry is one of Australia's most frequently commissioned composers with works in every musical genre. From his home on a hill in north-east Victoria, he has recently completed a new work for clarinet, cello and piano and a Requiem for a cappella choir. He discusses both these pieces and the traditions to which they belong on today's show. Performance details: Crown and Country is being launched at Darwin Festival on the 9th and 10th August, in Lajamanu on the 16th August and in Melbourne at Now or Never Festival on 29th August. Gordon Kerry's Requiem is being performed by the Australian Chamber Choir on the 9th August in Macedon, 10th August in Geelong and 17th August at Middle Park. Find more details here. And the premiere of Gordon Kerry's Trio Sonata for clarinet, cello and piano is on 15th August in Brunswick. Music details: Title: Yuuwu (Welcome) Artist: Crown and Country Composer: Marc Peckham, Steven Patrick Album: Crown and Country Label: ABC Music Title: Wantarri (Gift) Artist: Crown and Country Composer: Marc Peckham, Steven Patrick, Jerry Patrick Album: Crown and Country Label: ABC Music Title: Ngurra Kurlu (Home) Artist: Crown and Country Composer: Marc Peckham, Steven Patrick, Jerry Patrick Album: Crown and Country Label: ABC Music Title: Jardiwarnpa (Reconciliation) Artist: Crown and Country Composer: Marc Peckham, Steven Patrick Album: Crown and Country Label: ABC Music Title: Dies irae from Requiem Mass Artist: Chicago Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Riccardo Muti Composer: Giuseppe Verdi Album: Verdi: Messa da Requiem Label: CSO Resound Title: Missa Pro defunctis I, for 4 voices; Introitus Artist: Ensemble Plus Ultra, conducted by Michael Noone Composer: Tomás Luis de Victoria Album: Victoria: Sacred Works Label: Archiv Produktion Title: Alchemy Artist: Australian Chamber Choir, directed by Douglas Lawrence Composer: Gordon Kerry, words by William Shakespeare Album: Gold Label: Move Records Title: Clarinet Quintet Artist: Jason Noble, Australian String Quartet Composer: Gordon Kerry Recorded live at Adelaide Festival 2021, courtesy ABC Classic Title: Poisoning Pigeons in the Park Artist: Tom Lehrer Composer: Tom Lehrer Album: The Remains of Tom Lehrer Label: Rhino Records The Music Show was made on Gadigal, Bindal and Wulgurukaba Land.
News.com.au
3 days ago
- News.com.au
Zac Efron's Ricky Stanicky movie house in Surrey Hills hits market
It's lights, camera, auction at a Surrey Hills home that hosted Zac Efron, John Cena and William H Macy as it was used as the backdrop to comedy flick Ricky Stanicky. If 14 Norfolk Rd looks a little familiar, it's because it features in about 20 minutes of the 2024 film directed by Peter Farrelly. The owners have revealed they owe the surprise film appearance to the cancellation of Neighbours, who asked to use it for filming before being axed. When the production crew that made the silver-screen arrangements for the gorgeous, five-bedroom house went looking for work, they connected with the team working for Farrelly — and soon after had a note in their mailbox. 'I thought it was all a hoax at first, when I got the card I just left it on the bench until they gave me a follow up call,' the owner said. 'But we were there when they were shooting in our kitchen with Zac Efron doing a scene with John Cena and Jeff Ross and Andrew Santino. 'At one stage they were having an issue with the airconditioning and they got me to come in and help them to fix it, and as I was doing that I was watching Zac and William H Macy walking around our house and I was thinking: this is surreal.' Meeting Cena, the owner said while his handshake had been a 'big mit', the former pro-wrestler turned Hollywood star had been very friendly and thanked them so much for 'letting us use your crib'. And with the production crew repairing a wall damaged when Cena accidentally knocked a mirror off of it, as well as a rear glass window that cracked under the heat of some of the filming lights, the family said they would absolutely do it again. 'It was a huge production. But they took a photo of everything in the house, including the pantry, and if your tomato sauce was on the third shelf on the left, that's where you found it at the end.' Aside from furnishings, the only major change the about $80m-budget film made to the home was to cover over the pool so they could make it a garden space. But it might be the next owners who get that chance. 'The film company now have us on their books,' they said. 'And they usually use a house a few times for different films, so it's probable they could come back for this home.' Eagle-eyed buyers might notice a photo collage on one of the walls showing scenes of the home in the movie as well as pictures taken during filming. But there's a lot to see around the 2016-built house, with an impressive flowing floorplan that has close to 650sq m of space under its roofline. Features include three ground-floor living areas, a study and a main bedroom. Upstairs there are four more bedrooms, two bathrooms and a home theatre. Outside the pool is neighboured by a gym space, with a basketball court at the rear of the hedge-lined block. For the next owners, the scope to entertain will be a major drawcard — especially in warmer weather when the bi-fold doors in the living room can be opened up to connect the inside with the outside. As the family prepares to sell, Kay & Burton's Scott Patterson is taking inquiries for the $5.5m-$5.9m listing and said beyond its phenomenal entertainment spaces and expansive family accommodation, it clearly came with 'star power'. 'There's very few homes of this size and quality that have been offered to the market in the past few years,' Mr Patterson said. 'It's been a few years since I've walked into a similar home. It's an upper end of Surrey Hills and a bit of a rare offering. 'And the movie people have identified it as a really picturesque home.' The agent added that with September starting barely a week after the home's auction date, the sale could set the tone for what was to come in spring — and the prospect of a rate cut before then could mean good news for sellers. No. 14 Norfolk Rd, Surrey Hills, will go to auction at 2pm on August 23.
