Australian filmmakers are producing some of the best film and TV in the world, and we have the pleasure of hosting local cast and crew from a number of exciting productions at Supanova on the Gold Coast.
We caught up with the local film and TV talent appearing in Q&A panels for some insight into their work; here are six panels you do not want to miss this weekend!
HOUSE OF INEQUITY
“House of Inequity is an indie horror film shot entirely on the Gold Coast with local cast and crew. However, I refer to it as a gorier film rather than horror, as we pressed heavily on the gore. Once we teamed up with Stingray Sushi Studios (Hostel, Sin City, 13 Ghosts, The Hills Have Eyes, Planet Terror) to handle our special effects and kill scenes, the film really jumped off the page to a reality that was closer to my original idea than I could have ever imagined.
“We wanted to take a practical approach to our effects and keep as much of it in the camera as possible, rather than in post-production. Keep it old school like the horror films I grew up watching. With our amazing US-based executive producer, Robert Sadeghi from 550 Studios, we had the freedom to have a lot of fun on our purpose-built set creating this film, and using a LOT of stage blood in the process.”
– Josh Hale (Writer/Director/Producer)
PANEL DETAILS: Sunday 18th April at 4pm on the Supanova Seminar’s Stage
STRANGEVILLE
“Strangeville is an unlikely story of friendship and fighting against unknown forces. This quirky sci-fi drama/comedy was shot on the Gold Coast and Stanthorpe which features a local cast and crew. Shot on an incredibly small budget, this Guerrilla-made film has gained so much attention from industry professionals, film festivals and audiences with the general consensus, enjoying the film.
“Since its completion, the film has been invited into two well respected Australian film festivals, Sydney Sci-Fi Film Festival (world premiere) and the Gold Coast Film Festival (QLD premiere) with a list of nominations from Best Australian Independent to all three of the lead cast being nominated for Best Actor/Actress.”
– Stephen Osborne (Writer/Director/Producer)
PANEL DETAILS: Saturday 17th April at 12.30pm on the Supanova Seminar’s Stage
DEADHOUSE DARK
“Deadhouse Dark is a collection of loosely interlinked dark tales from a modern world – viewers can expect a variety of story styles within the horror genre told by some of the most interesting voices in Australian film today. With something to suit any taste, Deadhouse Dark is like a big mystery box of chocolates – and who doesn’t love chocolate?”
– Enzo Tedeschi (Showrunner/Produce/Writer/Director)
PANEL DETAILS: Sunday 18th April at 2pm on the Supanova Seminar’s Stage
GREAT WHITE
“Someone recently described Great White as Jaws meets Hitchcock’s Lifeboat. Like Jaws, the film is an action-adventure, a survival thriller with a lurking monster seemingly about to strike at any moment. But with our minimal characters stranded on a life raft, the film becomes an intense character study. A gripping exploration of human nature. As food and water supplies dwindle, as the raft loses air, with no rescue in sight, and a relentless shark on their tail, we see human beings coming to terms with the immediate reality of pain and death. They are tested to the extreme, a nightmare where your worst primal fears have become very real. It’s this tension that draws you into the film, and asks you the question yourself: what would you do if placed in that situation?
“Shot in vibrant cinematic scope, Great White showcases the northern tropical waters of Australia as vast, beautiful and beguiling, yet what unfolds on the raft is a taut, claustrophobic affair. The fear of the unknown can do strange things to one’s psyche, the menace in our own imaginations heightens the tension and making the shark’s threat and reveal all that more riveting which was a key part of Jaws success. Great White is unique in the pantheon of shark films as there are long periods of the film set at night. With the inky black waters closing in from all corners, our heroes stranded on a sinking raft face fears of the unknown that are magnified tenfold. The strange, spooky sounds of the ocean take on another level of terror in the pitch-black night in the middle of the endless sea.
“Great White has characters that we care about, that we are invested in and root for their survival at every turn. That they are complex, layered and indelible characters that stay with you long after the film ends.”
– Martin Wilson (Director)
PANEL DETAILS: Saturday 17th April at 4.30pm on the Supanova Seminar’s Stage, followed by a screening of the film!
THE POSSESSED
“The Possessed is a new and original take on the exorcism genre based on actual clearings/exorcisms by an Australian exorcist named Charlie X, better known as the “Accidental Exorcist”. Writer/director/producer Chris Sun takes us on a journey through some of the actual clearings that Charlie X has performed over the last 20 years bringing his love of practical FX alive creating some amazing demons for the audience to see. The Possessed has everything from scary scenes, comedy, violence and much, much more.”
PANEL DETAILS: Saturday 17th April at 11:30am on the Supanova Seminar’s Stage
GARRISON 7 (AUDIOBOOK)
“When Tom Garrison, elite special forces commander, uncovers an insidious military conspiracy, his family are brutally murdered. Now a vengeance-fuelled outlaw, he is being hunted by the same ruling system he once swore to protect. They will stop at nothing to silence him, but if it’s war they want, then it’s war they’ll get! The year is 2037. It’s been 15 years since humanity learned they are not alone in the Universe. The Earth has been conquered by the Imperium, an alliance of ancient Varkarian houses that controls a gate system allowing travel between the seven solar systems.”
– Official synopsis
PANEL DETAILS: Garrison7 Audio Book Exclusive Imagineer’s & Gaming Stage 11.30am Saturday 17th April
