Written and directed by Finnegan Boyle, Muduppy is a film about Pip and Mullet; a young couple in love and living rough on the banks of the Hawkesbury River. We meet them at a point of dissonance, triggered by the discovery of a strange creature they call “the Mudpuppy.” The Mudpuppy disrupts Pip and Mullet’s world, and sparks Pip’s desire to leave their river life behind. In essence, this is a film about youth, freedom and the fragility of existence.
Stylistically, Mudpuppy is heavily influenced by Finnegan’s childhood growing up on the Hawkesbury. The river has always attracted a community of social misfits, those escaping from city life, and the film is a homage to the colourful and varied characters that Finnegan met there.
Mudpuppy draws on a wide range of inspiration — from Harmony Korine’s Gummo, Larry Clarke’s Kids, and Terrence Malick’s Badlands, to Jim Jarmusch’s Down by Law and Permanent Vacation.
Writer & Director, Finnegan Boyle
Finnegan is an AFTRS graduate working as a photographer and director in Sydney. He has directed numerous short films and co-directed Cosmo’s Midnight’s music video, Walk With Me (Sony Music Australia). He also worked as the EPK camera on Michael Petroni’s Backtrack and as the camera operator on the Deadliest Place on Earth (Discovery Channel). Finnegan is currently completing a Bachelor of Film and Digital Art at Sydney College of the Arts. Finn is interested in stories that explore the ambiguity of human emotion, the strangeness at the heart of things. You can find more of his work here:http://www.finneganboyle.com/
Producer, Sarah Christie
Sarah is an independent producer and is working in entertainment law. She draws on four years experience in the Australian film and television industry, having worked at several leading independent production houses including at Goalpost Pictures Australia as the development co-ordinator. Sarah has worked on such productions as, Cleverman (ABC TV), Neil Armfield’s Holding the Man (2015), Matthew Saville’s Felony (2014), Bushwhacked! (ABC TV), Cricket Superstar (Fox8) and Code of Silence (ABC 1). She has also produced music videos for the Sydney electronic duo, Cosmo’s Midnight (Sony Music Australia). With Madeleine Gottlieb, she most recently produced a short political art film, Carne, for TEDxSydney (2016).
Co-Producer, Madeleine Gottlieb
Madeleine is a filmmaker working as a Production Executive at Goalpost Pictures Australia. Whilst there, Madeleine has worked in numerous capacities on several high-profile productions including Eddie Perfect’s The Future is Expensive (2016), Neil Armfield’s Holding the Man (2015), Matthew Saville’sFelony (2014) as well as a slew of projects in development. In 2015/16, she was principally committed toCleverman Season 1 (ABC TV) and was involved across the entire production. She is now Associate Producer on Cleverman Season 2. With Sarah Christie, she has also independently produced Carne, a short political art film for TEDxSydney (2016).
DOP, Grégoire Lière
Grégoire is a French born, Sydney based cinematographer with experience in narrative, commercial, documentary and music video production with the drive and confidence to engage, inspire and entertain an audience. In 2010, Grégoire began his education at TAFE in Screen & Media where he developed his passion for cinematography. He further developed his skills at AFTRS completing a Graduate Certificate in Cinematography. He later spent a year on exchange in Paris, France where he studied at ENS Louis Lumière. During this time, he turned his attention to writing Australian stories including Summer Nights, his directorial debut. Grégoire is constantly pursuing new ways of telling stories and thrives on collaboration. You can find more info on his work here: http://www.gregoireliere.com/
Production Designer, Alice Joel
Alice graduated from AFTRS in 2011 with a Graduate Diploma in Screen Design. Since then she has worked in the capacity as costume and production designer for feature films, TV series, theatre, music videos and live performance, as well as creatively directing and curating content for music festivals and events around Sydney.
Costume Designer, Cian Lyons
Cian is a Sydney-based costume designer. He has worked on a range of music videos including Cosmo’s Midnight’s Walk With Me, Basenji’s Petals, and LDRU’s Next to You. Cian was also the costume designer for Pirlo (dir. Jordan ‘XingerXanger’ Kirk), and an extra in Summer Nights (dir. Grégoire Lière).
Mullet, Michael McStay
Michael McStay is an actor, writer, director and musician. Before studying at NIDA, Michael acted in his hometown of Melbourne. Since his arrival in Sydney, Michael has appeared in Lachlan Philpott’sColder (dir. Kevin Jackson), William Shakespeare’s Othello (dir. Jennifer Hagan), Ben Ellis’ The Story Of The Red Mountains (dir. Tim Roseman), Sam Shepard’s A Lie Of The Mind (dir. Rodney Risher), Enda Walsh’s Sucking Dublin (dir. James Dalton), Fregmento Stokes’ Kill The PM (dir. James Dalton), George Bernard Shaw’s The Shewing Up Of Blanco Posnet (dir. Con Costi), Belvoir St Theatre’s production of Bertolt Brecht’s Mother Courage and Her Children (dir. Eamon Flack) and Sport For Jove’s production ofThree Sisters (dir. Kevin Jackson). Michael appeared in the 2015 docu-drama The Power Of Ten, and was the narrator for the Australian Premiere of M. F. William’s orchestral work Letters From The Front for the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, both in commemoration of the Anzac Day centenary. Michael’s original productions include Threnody (to be staged at The Old Fitz in September 2016) and Bright Those Claws That Mar The Flesh (staged at The Old Fitz in June 2016). As a musician, Michael has achieved his AMEB Grade Eight Certificate in Piano and AMEB Grade Five Certificate in Music Theory. He also plays guitar, sings and composes.
Pip, Georgia Wilde
Georgia Wilde is an actor based in Sydney, Australia. Since graduating from the National Institute of Dramatic Arts in 2014 Georgia has worked on developments with Sydney Theatre Company, Griffin Theatre and Playwrighting Australia. Her screen credits include Cleverman, Angelfish, Wasted on the Young and Terror Australis.
Camera Package
We’re investing a huge bite of our budget in top of the range equipment to capture our striking river locations. We are shooting on an ARRI Alexa, which is industry standard, along with vintage Canon K35 prime lenses to add character, texture and to soften the digital image. As Mudpuppy is set on water, we will also be hiring specialised underwater housing equipment.
Boat Hire
We need boats – boats for our actors, boats for our crew, and a punt {punt (noun): a long, narrow flat-bottomed boat, square at both ends and propelled with a long pole, used on inland waters chiefly for recreation}, for our camera department.
Sound Equipment
We want you to experience the aural beauty of our river locations and will be investing in high-quality sound equipment and crew. Some of you may know Sam Freeman. He is our sound recordist and is a high-quality person.
Travel & Catering
We’re filming in locations in the greater Sydney area and need to cover travel costs, as well as keep our hungry cast & crew happy and energised.
Props & Costumes
The world of Mudpuppy is highly stylised and requires detailed costuming and nuanced set design. We also need to build our very own, realistic mudpuppy. But prosthetics ain’t cheap!
Location Permits
A substantial chunk of our film is located on private property, and just because we’d be fine with strangers waltzing into our homes and shooting long strange dancing scenes in our bedrooms for free, doesn’t mean other people will – y’feel?
Post-production
Any money that we raise above this goal will be used for post production. The life of our film will not stop after the shoot and will need further funds to cover things like a schmick-as colour grade, sound mix, composition and festival distribution.
***Please note that our final budget exceeds our Pozible aim and we are comitted to financing a significant portion of the project ourselves!***
One of the more difficult elements of the Mudpuppy production process will be negotiating the environment. Boats, water and cameras don’t mix, so we’re ultilising specialised equipment and a flat-bottomed punt to counter these challenges.
Our main obstacle however, is financial, and that’s where you come in. We’ve brought together an amazing crew, and are deep in pre-production, but we are relying on your generosity to make this ambitious project a reality.
Your donation, small or large, will literally make this project sink or swim.
(Photo credit: Grégoire Lière)