PRESS RELEASE
The City of Busselton will be buzzing with excitement from next week when new independent short film Inheritance kicks off production from Sunday 26 March and brings Australian television and movie screen legends Matt Nable, Travis Jeffery and Chris Haywood to town.
The West Australian-set drama centres around the power of understanding, acceptance, persistence, resilience and forgiveness and is directed by South West actor and filmmaker Myles Pollard.
Pollard is best known for his role as Nick Ryan in the long running television hit McLeod’s Daughters and has appeared in feature films Wolverine, Drift, The Turning, Looking For Grace, Jasper Jones, The Gateway, Danger Close, How To Please a Woman, Before Dawn and the upcoming indie film Frank and Frank which was shot in Albany.
“Inheritance is a celebration of the human condition, its ability to endure all kinds of adversity and the power of positivity in determining a better outcome,” says Pollard.
Pollard co-wrote the screenplay with fellow West Australian actor and McLeod’s Daughters co-star Ben Mortley over the last five years. The story is loosely based on Pollard’s convict ancestor Wilson Barker who was transported to Perth from England in 1866 for stealing cloth. After being incarcerated for 10 years, he spent the rest of his life in the South West and is buried in the Busselton Cemetery.
Pollard, who is also producing Inheritance with Perth producer Jasmine Leivers, says the screenplay is complete and the cast and crew are locked and loaded for what’s sure to be a truly incredible shoot.
“This extremely ambitious film will be a mix of live action and animation to tell the historical part of the story, so I am excited to be working with South West visual effects artist Mike Dunn to bring this element to life,” Pollard said.
Inheritance is about John Barker (Jeffery) who is released on parole. He moves to the country to live with his ailing grandfather (Haywood) and begins a new job as a labourer. Bullied and provoked by his antagonistic boss (Nable), John finds a way to escape his aimless life by delving into his family history and restoring an old wooden sailboat gifted to him by his grandfather. It is through this journey of self-discovery that he soon realises he must find a way to break the chain of inherited rage before the cycle of violence and tragedy continues.
Matt Nable is an Australian actor, writer and director. He wrote and starred in The Final Winter, played the lead in The Killer Elite, acted in 33 Postcards, The Turning, Riddick, Fell, Around the Block, Son of a Gun, Hacksaw Ridge, Incarnate, Jasper Jones, 1% (which he also wrote), The Dry and Poker Face. On the small screen, Nable appeared in East West 101, Underbelly: Badness, Bikie Wars: Brothers in Arms, Winter, Gallipoli, Quarry, Arrow Season 4, Legends of Tomorrow, Barracuda, Hyde & Seek, Blue Murder: Killer Cop, Mr Inbetween (Series 1 and 2), Wakefield, The Sounds, Mr Inbetween (Series 3), The Twelve and will soon be seen in the Year Of and Bay of Fires. Nable also stars in the recently released Transfusion, a feature that he also wrote and directed.
Travis Jeffery is best known for his roles in the TV series Gallipoli, Heartbreak High, Preacher and Frayed. His film credits include, Unbroken, Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, Top End Wedding, Danger Close: The Battle Of Long Tan, Bloody Hell and Before Dawn. Travis has just finished filming 20th Century’s The Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes – which hits cinemas on 24 May 2024.
Chris Haywood’s extensive film credits include The Cars That Ate Paris, Newsfront, In Search of Anna, Kostas, Breaker Morant, The Navigator: A Medieval Odyssey, Razorback, Running on Empty, Man of Flowers, Quigley Down Under, The Clinic, Freedom, Lonely Hearts, The Man From Snowy River, Strikebound, Malcolm, The Bit Part, Golden Braid, A Woman’s Tale, The First Kangaroos, Muriel’s Wedding, Shine, Beneath Hill 60, Sleeping Beauty, Nim’s Island 2, Love is Now, Truth, Boar, Australia Day and Dirt Music. His TV credits include, Homicide, Essington, Against the Wind, Five Mile Creek, Return to Eden, Waterfront, A Good Thing Going, Boys From The Bush, Water Rats, Farscape, McLeod’s Daughters, All Saints, Stingers, Backberner, Grass Roots, Blackjack, Starter Wife, Home and Away, My Place, The Pacific, Dangerous Remedy, Neighbours, Top of the Lake, Redfern Now, Rake (Series 2, 3 and 5), Secret City, Harrow and Reef Break.
This exciting project is supported by the City of Busselton with significant investment by local business owners and Executive Producers – John, Suellen and Ben Triplett – of The Vasse Tavern and The Deck Bar and Bistro.
“This film has a message that resonates with us, as we are often at the coalface of seeing young people make mistakes when under the influence of alcohol,” says John.
“We are proud to be able to support Myles in bringing this story to life in the South West.”
The film has also been supported by many incredible local businesses including Solitaire Homestead, The Batch, Mandalay Holiday Resort, Toby Home, La Forêt Enchantée, South West Taxis, Tas’s Bakery, Coles Dunsborough, Naturaliste Health – Coffee & Eats – Health Food Shop, Dunsborough Country Club and Wise Wines just to name a few.
The Inheritance filmmakers are currently fundraising to cover post production costs on their Australian Cultural Fund page which offers donors a tax deduction on all donations over $2.
