A film by Ray Lawrence Laura Linney Gabriel Byrne j i n d a b y n e Canadian Distribution Mongrel Media 1028 Queen Street West Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M6J 1H6 Tel: 416-516-9775 Fax: 416-516-0651 E-mail: [email protected] www.mongrelmedia.com Canadian Publicity Bonne Smith Star PR Tel: 416-488-4436 Fax: 416-488-8438 E-mail: [email protected] Press Book April Films Design & Artwork Halcyon Pratt Stills Photography Anthony Browell, Matt Nettheim, John Tsiavis On Set at Jindabyne Catherine Mckinnon © April Films (Jindabyne) Pty Ltd 2006 j i n d a b y n e A film by Ray Lawrence 4 SYNOPSIS Synopsis On an annual fishing trip, in isolated all of this which disturbs her deeply. high country, Stewart, Carl, Rocco and Stewart is not convinced that he has Billy (‘the Kid’) find a girl’s body in the done anything wrong. Claire’s faith in river. It’s too late in the day for them to her relationship with her husband is hike back to the road and report their shaken to the core. tragic find. Next morning, instead of making the long trek back, they spend The fishermen, their wives and their the day fishing. Their decision to stay on children are suddenly haunted by their at the river is a little mysterious—almost own bad spirits. As public opinion builds as if the place itself is exerting some against the actions of the men, their kind of magic over them. certainty about themselves and the deci- sion they made at the river is challenged. When the men finally return home to They cannot undo what they have done. Jindabyne, and report finding the body, all hell breaks loose. Their wives can’t Only Claire understands that some- understand how they could have gone thing fundamental is not being fishing with the dead girl right there in addressed. She wants to understand the water—she needed their help. The and tries to make things right. In her men are confused—the girl was already determination Claire sets herself not dead, there was nothing they could do only against her own family and friends for her. but also those of the dead girl. Her marriage is taken to the brink and her Stewart’s wife Claire is the last to know. peaceful life with Stewart and their As details filter out, and Stewart resists young son hangs in the balance. talking about what has happened, she is unnerved. There is a callousness about SYNOPSIS 5 6 PRODUCTION INFORMATION Production Information Film Colour 35mm Aspect Ratio Super 35mm 2.35 Sound Dolby 5.1 SR/SD Location Jindabyne New South Wales Australia Shoot duration 8 weeks Running time 123 mins. Country of origin Australia PRODUCTION INFORMATION 7 8 PRODUCTION CREDITS Production Credits April Films presents An April Films Production with Film Finance Corporation Australia and Babcock & Brown in association with Redchair Films of a film Directed by Ray Lawrence Written by Beatrix Christian based on the story So Much Water So Close to Home by Raymond Carver Produced by Catherine Jarman Executive Producer Philippa Bateman Executive Producer Garry Charny Director of Photography David Williamson Production & Costume Designer Margot Wilson Art Director Deborah Riley Editor Karl Sodersten ASE Line Producer Tony Tvrdeich Original Music Score Paul Kelly & Dan Luscombe featuring Soteria Bell Sound Designer Andrew Plain Casting Director Susie Maizels PRODUCTION CREDITS 9 10 THE CAST Cast Laura Linney Claire Gabriel Byrne Stewart Deborra-lee Furness Jude John Howard Carl Leah Purcell Carmel Stelios Yiakmis Rocco Alice Garner Elissa Simon Stone Billy (‘the Kid’) Betty Lucas Vanessa Chris Haywood Gregory Eva Lazzaro Caylin-Calandria Sean Rees-Wemyss Tom Tatea Reilly Susan THE CAST 11 Ray Lawrence Director Ray Lawrence is one of Australia’s 2001 and launched the international most highly regarded directors. The careers of Vince Colosimo and Andrew award-winning Lantana was released Bovell. in Australia in 2001–2 and went on to critical acclaim and commercial success Lawrence made his feature debut with in Australia, the US, UK and Europe. Bliss (based on the best selling novel by The film’s ensemble cast includes Peter Carey) which screened in main Anthony LaPaglia, Geoffrey Rush, Vince competition at Cannes in 1985 along- Colosimo, Barbara Hershey and Kerry side the films of Peter Weir, Alan Parker Armstrong. In 2001, Lantana won seven and Paul Schrader. In Australia Bliss AFI (Australian Film Institute) Awards, received AFI Awards for Best Screenplay including Best Picture, Best Director, (Lawrence co-wrote with Carey), Best Best Actor for LaPaglia, Best Actress for Director and Best Film. Armstrong, and Best Adapted Screenplay for Andrew Bovell who based the script Jindabyne is Ray Lawrence’s third on his play Speaking In Tongues. It was feature. released by Lions Gate in the US in late THE DIRECTOR 13 14 INTERVIEW WITH THE DIRECTOR Interview with Ray Lawrence Talk to us about the very beginnings of it was, but somebody said there are only working with a ten-hour day. Having this story. three stories: man, woman and God— daylight-saving just meant I didn’t have whichever God that may be. I’m fasci- to get up so early. Our head grip [Dave After I finished Bliss, I was reading nated by how people stay together, why Nichols] has done all sorts of big films purely for pleasure and there was a story they break up and when they choose and he said Yarrangobilly is probably I thought would make a good film. I ran to or not, why some people have kids. the hardest location he’s ever worked in. into Paul Kelly. We had common inter- There doesn’t seem to be much else. You can drive to the area but then you’ve ests. We didn’t become fast friends then, basically got to walk in and it’s quite just interested in similar things. I started Can you talk about the first visits dangerous. It took forever to get the to tell him about the story, and he intro- to the Jindabyne area, to the Snowy stuff and the people in. And we had to duced me to the writings of Raymond Mountains… get them out before dark, so we had to Carver. One of these stories was So Much light the path. It was about two or three Water, So Close to Home, which had at its I used to go there all the time to fish, fly- kilometres in on a winding track. heart the most fantastic moral dilemma. fish, so I knew the area. That was part I thought maybe that would be better of the fascination with the story, the Shooting there was really beautiful, and than the one I was planning. That was outdoors. I really wanted to do a film the beauty of the place made the logis- almost 20 years ago. outside. So when Beatrix [Christian] tical problems facing us all seem a lot and I decided we were going ahead I easier. It was slow walking in the water, What was it about the story that made said, ‘Let’s do what Raymond Carver a lot like fishing except I didn’t have you stick with it? did. Let’s go where we want to set it and a rod. We spent all day in the water. I see what happens.’ There’s a story about think everyone really enjoyed it. It was I tried to do other things. It sort of came the lake. It was starting with a germ, the desire to embrace the landscape. and went. It was the same with Lantana. like a short story writer. We just walked The challenge for me was the beauty— There’s just one little thing in a story you around, saw a river and wrote about the there’s so much of it, and there are so like and sometimes you forget everything river. Years later when we brought the many meanings in this landscape that I else. It’s just that one little piece, like a key crew to the location they said, ‘It’s was always tense about whether I could hook, it catches you. With So Much Water, very similar to the script isn’t it?’ So, that capture it. So Close to Home, it was the difference of was the script. We knew where we were opinion that promoted very strong dis- going. Can you talk about why you use natural cussion between men and women. light? Tell us about the first week of filming There was a time when it wasn’t down at Yarrangobilly, in the river… It radiates out of my desire and hope to politically correct to talk about men get as natural a performance as possible. and women being different. Whereas The logistical problem of the film was I think it’s easier to get good perform- now, especially with this film… that everything was at least 45 min- ances without lights. Lights introduce utes away. So, 45 minutes there and a style to the film, they impose. The They’re really the only dynamics there 45 minutes back—it cuts down on your cinematographer has a style. Things are. Politics, the sexes, even if they’re shooting time. When we started we he likes, even if they’re subconscious, the same sex, it’s still somebody playing were shooting in daylight-saving time get imposed onto a film. On this film, a male or female role. I don’t know who so that was good, but we were still only except for the night sequences, where INTERVIEW WITH THE DIRECTOR 15 16 INTERVIEW WITH THE DIRECTOR it’s pitch black, we haven’t used one film they’re all working basically the same all the people that I work with, in the light.