That's Not Me

Last night I saw a lovely Aussie indie film That's Not Me at Kino Cinemas. I highly recommend it for anyone who is working in the film and television industry (because there are so many characters that I recognised from my day to day life) but I also recommend it if you love going to the movies. It's so heartfelt and beautiful. I even had the luck of meeting writer/actor  Alice Foulcher  when we came out of the cinema. 

There's something in the zeitgeist at the moment in Australian film and tv - there are a few things I've seen where the premise is someone struggling in the industry. I was even apart of the process of making a webseries HActresses  (which launched on Monday) which deals with two women trying to get a big break. There was another web series launched at Melbourne WebFest  which dealt with similar themes. I even wrote a few short webisodes about two housemates struggling as writers and directors (yet to be produced as other projects got in the way).

But what I find that is incredible about the Australian industry, is that even though we are small and very interconnected, when similar ideas pop up - there are hundreds of things that also make them unique.

That's Not Me  got me thinking about why I want to act, why I want to write and why I want to direct films. At first I thought it was because my Aunty gifted me this little star when I was three years old...

My little Hollywood star - so I don't need a real one ;)

... but delving deeper it's because the process of  making a film or episode is like being a cog in a big machine. No matter how long or short your stay on set, everyone has an important role to play and when the machine is up and running, it's a fantastic thing to be apart of. You spend so much time together and there is always something to learn from someone, even if it's not something you thought you'd be interested in.

The team behind HActresses  - photo by Sarah Walker 

Every set, every project, every director, actor, writer, gaffer, soundie, cinematographer, set designer, makeup artist, extra, set, continuity, producer, art designer, manger  has something different and new to bring to the table. No set is the same and gosh, that's why I love it so much.  You are constantly prepared for and expecting the unexpected. I've learnt so much on big productions that I was able to bring that experience to smaller productions, and then in turn, bring the experience of smaller productions to bigger ones again.

Little old me, chatting with my DP Nick Kerr on the set of No Matter What,  a short I wrote and directed.   Photo by Stephen Loats.

I can't wait to get into the editing process for my short film No Matter What,  it will be another new experience for me.  

This blog post unintentionally turned into a love letter to the industry, rather than a short and sweet analysis of it. Whoops. Back to the usual stoic responses to life soon... 

xxmk 

Double checking the footage with the cast and crew of No Matter What. Photo by Stephen Loats 

When it rains, it pours

It is a bit of an old saying, but it's the most accurate description of my life at the moment. For a long time, I had too much free time on my hands, I was desperate to get my hands dirty but could only find short term projects. 

I've taken up work at Channel 31 interviewing some great musicians for their new show SHUFFLE; Melbourne. This included sitting down and having a chat with the chill king, Pete Murray. I'm too excited about this new venture, it's something I've always wanted to do, just sit down and chat with creatives, and maybe pick their brains a bit.

You can watch my interview with Pete here. 

So that was one huge venture. The what also came to pass was that my new book, Postcard Poetry,  has arrived in all its glory. Stay tuned, because there will be a launch and a poetry reading for it coming soon.

Then bam, alam, slam, ding dong - I've fallen heart first into Melbourne's slam poetry community and I am in love. I took part in the Australian Poetry Slam Victorian heat in Frankston on Tuesday. It was a great night of sharing and was followed by bonding over some cheeky Nandos later on. I headed over to the Melba Spiegletent for Slamalamadingdong's opening round for the National Poetry Slam. This was a very emotional night of sharing, especially as Gabriella Georges  was the featured artist for the night and her poignantly beautiful performance was centred on grief and loss.

Just when I needed a moment to lie down and breathe, I was sacrificing my Saturday morning sleep in. I made my directorial debut for a short film I've written, No Matter What. This film is going to be entered in the Village Cinemas  and Open Channel  UnScene Competition.  I'm so excited, it's a highly stylised film and set in the future, in keeping with the competitions theme of "the future of film". We have one more day of production and then we're gonna have a long stint in post-production with some cheeky visual effects.

I'm so glad that I've got all these creatives that surround me in my life. It's encouraging and inspiring me to keep creating, keep dreaming and the points don't matter. 

xxmk 

The weeks ahead...

At the moment I'm in preproduction for a short film, called No Matter What, which will be entered into Open Channel and Village Cinemas' UnScene Short Film Competition. 

It's film I've written myself, and it will be my directorial debut. While talking to other members of the crew I've come to realise that I've also subconsciously taken on art department, costume and producer - mainly because the film is so heavily stylised. Phew.

It's been a hell of a lot of activities and planning and spending to get this film ready - and we're almost there. This past weekend we had a crew meeting to make sure we were all on the same page with what needs to be done on day one of our shoot as we have minimal time at our location. Planning and planning and planning and communication has been integral to this project, and I'm so thankful for my incredible crew who've been nothing but supportive.

I'm so excited for the two shoot days ahead and the early mornings. Stay tuned for behind the scenes photographs and where to vote for the film when the competition is underway. 

xxmk