17/11/2024
The Canary Feature Film.
A note from the director:
Only 4 crew, 3 years of hundreds of hours of work, 2 canary stunt doubles, 1 vintage life boat, countless WA locations and a heck of a lot of effort.
Finally, after all this time, our period survival drama feature is complete. A 2 hour and 15 minute film, made on a very shoe string budget: filmed by only 4 people and post production by only 3, this was our most ambitious project to date.
When I first began making The Canary at 21, still studying screen writing at University and working in a toy store, I felt rather underestimated by the industry. I wanted a challenge, something to work hard on and really call my own.
So, I picked a period film, shot on the open ocean and in the Australian outback, with live animals and extremely minimal help, through a pandemic and one of the hottest summers on record. I got the challenge I was after!
For this film I wrote, acted, directed, partially DoPed, art directed, edited, colour graded - so it's safe to say I had bitten off a lot. But in these three years I have grown so much as a person and a performer, and looking back on what we have created I learnt so much in the process. I am so grateful to those who helped bring this project to life, who saw my vision from my horribly scribbled shot-lists and my dyslexic-written screenplay.
WA really showcased what it has to offer, in terms of locations, imagery and the passion of its people.
The very small group who helped create this film have my absolute respect, for it's their persistence and dedication which made it a reality.
I love film. I love watching it, acting in it, writing it. Now with The Canary moving into the festival circuit and having its first cast and crew cinema screening, after years of work and stress and challenge - I love it even more. I can't wait to show you all what we have managed to create when The Canary has its full cinema release. And I am so thankful for those who stood by me, and helped for this project to really take flight!
