by Abhi Parasher
When was the last great Australian comedy film made?
“The last great Australian comedy I saw in cinemas was Kenny, and that was in 2006,” shares director Matt Mirams. “I wanted to make that type of comedy that has been missing from cinemas. The team and I spent a lot of the time talking about that. We wanted to make sure that this film was FUN.”
Mirams recently wrapped production on his debut feature film, Residence, which chronicles the story of an enigmatic hero, a speechless child and a ragtag motley crew journey through a zombie-filled apocalyptic landscape to seek shelter in a medieval fun park whilst being pursued by a deranged lunatic.
“I remember I was going to make a feature around 2001, but I got some great advice from John Orcsik,” recalls Mirams, referencing the legendary Australian actor. “He advised me to not make a feature and told me to hone my craft and find my voice. He was absolutely right. So, over the years I’ve just made a bunch of shorts and with each, I’ve tried experimenting with a different genre.”
Mirams’ love of cinema tracks back to a classic that ignited the imagination of many future filmmakers.
“I watched the first Star Wars in the cinema. I was four and I remember just sitting in the cinema thinking, ‘What is this? Is this a documentary?’ I learnt about films through that and Raiders of the Lost Ark,” says Mirams. “Back then, it was a lot harder to get into the film industry. People would always tell me that 94% of actors are out of work, and my response would always be ‘Well I want to be in that 6%’. I had a lot of arty friends in school, and we would just grab a camera, write a script, and just go shoot. You can’t just wait for the money to come together.”
For Mirams, Residence required that same tenacity.
“During development for Residence, we went through every film finance company in Australia and reached out to every investor, but at the end of the day, we can’t promise their money back,” says Mirams. “I just thought, fuck it. I work as a tradie, so I would just pick up any job, get that money and put it into the film. We’d take that money, build a set, shoot the scene and then I’d be broke again. We just kept repeating that process. Throughout this journey, we’ve had fundraisers, a campaign on Kickstarter and then we got lucky with a few people actually investing in it.”
Knowing the amount of blood, sweat and tears that Residence was going to take, Mirams made sure to factor in the commercial appeal, ensuring that he was making a film that audiences would love and one that would return on investment.
“The art form definitely comes first. But we do want this film to be seen, so I had to think about all the appeal beforehand. I went in knowing that the horror and comedy genres have that built-in loyal audience that we could speak to,” says Mirams. “We also made sure to cast specifically, with both known faces and newcomers.”
Residence stars newcomers Jeanette Coppolino, Ellie Stewart and Ruby James in key roles, along with Australian icons Ian Smith and Kym Valentine of Neighbours fame.
“I would have meetings and go on walks with the actors, and then re-write for them. I would change the script based on their personality and what they brought to the project,” shares Mirams. “I’ve also done theatre for a while, so a lot of the actors in the film I have actually shared the stage with.”
Residence has completed production and is currently looking for post-production funding, which presents its own challenges.
“We’ve put together the promo teaser and trailer, but we have to wait until we get post-production funding, which is a process in and of itself,” says Mirams. “If that doesn’t work out, we’ll do it ourselves. One way or another this film is getting made.”
Stay up to date with Residence on its official website and Instagram
