What About Sal is a heart-warming story about a young man in his thirties with Down syndrome who lives with his mother and discovers she is dying from lung cancer with only months to live. What follows is a journey to find his estranged rock musician father whom his mother has vague memories of after a one-night stand that resulted in Sal. The dramedy was inspired by a chance encounter at a Rabbitohs versus Manly rugby game.
“I was at the footy and I noticed this young exuberant Down syndrome man in front of us. Every time we scored; it was like he’d found mecca,” said John Jarratt, Writer, and Director. “Later I said to my mate, ‘I wonder what would happen if his mother passed away and he had nobody’ and I immediately knew I had a film and knew just the actor to be in it”.
Gerard O’Dwyer is an award-winning actor having won Best Actor at Tropfest for Be My Brother (2009) and The Interviewer (2013) at RealHeART International Film Festival. Jarratt worked closely with Gerard to ensure they captured the nuances of the Down syndrome world. Kaarin Fairfax who plays Sal’s mother was in Jarratt’s debut feature film StalkHer (2015) and is known for TV roles.
John Jarratt has been one of Australia’s best-known and respected film, television, and theatre stars since 1974 with more than 99 professional film and television credits including the internationally acclaimed Wolf Creek (2005). What About Sal has been executive produced by Jarratt and the highly regarded Anne Bruning whose professional credits include working alongside award-winning directors Baz Luhrmann, Sir Peter Jackson, Bruce Beresford and now John Jarratt. The film is distributed by Verdict Film Group. What About Sal will be entered into the festival circuit with a cinema release to follow in late April 2023.
