The Cleveland Film Company, Redlands’ first dramatic film company, has gone live, blasting off its website at The Bench on July 19.
Producer Bradford Walton has launched the company with a start-off project Five Moons of Pluto to be made as a short film, with a view for a feature film and/or series. The film has already been nominated for the Monte Miller Award best unproduced film script by the Australian Writers Guild.
The eight-minute film is shot through the ears of Piper, an 11-year-old girl wearing headphones under her beanie and who hears conversation around her amid earth whispers and the sounds of the cosmos.
“It is kitchen sink drama with no language barrier. Through the film, we aim to gain recognition and momentum for the company and showcase the Redlands as a feature film production player of the future,” producer Mr Walton said.
The film showcases the best of the Redlands with a casting day at Cleveland High School’s performance space from 1pm to 4pm on Sunday, September 9. Children’s extra roles have been shortlisted and the company is casting for the lead’s father. Other local interest includes a film sound track written by Redland Sinfonia conductor Graeme Dennis and sound artist Josh (Smuffy) Smith.
“Our motto is to film local and to screen global. Film is about the art of story telling and the Redlands is a hub of story telling. It has also been noted as one of the top three film hotspots in the last 10 years. Everytime we shoot a world class film and show it at international festivals, we gain recognition as a company and recognition for the Redlands as a player in the industry,” Mr Waltson said.
Mr Walton said the company was ready to go with a host of scripts, written over the past eight years.
“I first started as a runner at a film studio in England, but I quickly realised I wanted to create content rather than making films of oher people’s scripts.”
To his credit are a number of short films including Inconvenience, screened with Love and Other Catastophes at the Metro in 1996, Last Laugh and Excitable Boy. After meeting his wife and now business partner associate producer Diana Petrovich, Mr Walton put his efforts into script writing and developing alliances with film professionals both in Australia and in Los Angeles.
“I have pitched them some mateiral and the doors are still open, so that’s a big first step,” he said.
The company has a catalogue of feature film and television series productions, to be shot locally. In the pipeline is a nature and environmental series in the Redlands and scripts for two other series including Getting Wise which has sufficient material for up to five seasons with 22 episodes per season. Another role for the company will be to mentor workshops and internships on production and directing and offer industry experience in sound stage, production and post production. The first will be staged at Redlands College on August 21.
Currently the company is seeking crowd funding/corporate sponsorship to raise $50,000 to shoot Five Moons of Pluto and deliver it to film festivals.
More on clevelandfilmcompany.com.au
