PRODUCERS/DIRECTOR NOTES

DIRECTORS STATEMENT - By Mark Fitzpatrick

The 10-year journey of THE NOTHING MEN has been one of patience and destiny. I believe the universe delayed the filming for several reasons: to allow the script to attract the quality of actors it has along the way; to give me time to gain the experience to direct, as I now know I was meant to; and, primarily, because the script was, I believe, written before its time.

The story has become much more prevalent in contemporary times than when it was first written. We are living in an era of insecurities, where big business and industry face upheaval under the forces of a troubled world economy. Retrenchments abound and the breadwinners in struggling families, particularly middle-aged men, are left with the fear of uncertain futures and financial distress.

This story is about such people. They are trapped in a reality of killing time in a factory while awaiting their redundancy payouts with nothing to do but feed off each other’s fears and anxieties.

But there had to be more than just making each character different from the other while sharing the same fears. They each needed a secret; something so personal that only attrition would pries it out. Still it needed more, so I heightened their fears by bringing in a company spy out to cheat them of their money.

Still it needed more. That was achieved by connecting the spy to one of the workers through parallel pasts – something so horrific that, when it is revealed, it turns the story on its ear, leaving the innocent men oblivious in their ignorance but headed for a catastrophic climax.

The story is as much about human frailties as it is about humanity itself and how far desperate men can descend – or be pushed. COLIN FRIELS, who plays Jack, read the script five years ago and brought so much to the production. It was a great experience as a director for me to witness Colin’s close friend DAVID FIELD play his nemesis. David also read the script years before and was delighted when he and Colin were cast together.

Rehearsing on set a week before principal photography was amazingly beneficial. It gave me a great opportunity to block the action within my camera set-ups, giving the actors freedom to explore, which helped in economizing shots. This process also helped me ditch superfluous dialogue and action.

I’m so thankful to MARTIN DINGLE WALL and ANDREW WINDSOR, who knocked on my door in May 2007 wanting to produce the film. I was even more thankful that they insisted I direct.

PRODUCERS REPORT - By ANDREW WINDSOR

THE NOTHING MEN was a story I was immediately attracted to for a myriad of reasons. The story was compelling and its central themes are being played out in many societies across the world today. I envisaged the story appealing to a large international audience that I felt could relate to the characters and situations in the film.

The dialogue really jumped out at me. There are very few screenplays that have such natural rhythms. The twists and unexpected turns would, I knew, keep an audience wondering. Mark Fitzpatrick was the only choice to direct it. He had the vision within him and just required assistance in getting it out. With my fellow producer Martin Dingle Wall, I endeavored to support him in doing exactly that.

To me, a good producer is one who gets the right script, teams that with the right director and adds the correct cast and crew to the mix, supporting them and their creative decisions as best as possible. We did our best to support Mark – who also wrote the script – with the appropriate tools and people, locations, sets and costumes to uplift the vision he was creating.

Mark’s passion was exhilarating and his commitment unquestionable. I knew, as well as one can, we were going to make something special.

THE NOTHING MEN is also the first feature film in the Southern Hemisphere to be shot with the groundbreaking Red One Digital Cinema technology, allowing us to be among the pioneers of a new era in film making. What a great privilege!

PRODUCERS REPORT - By Martin Dingle Wall

 The story of THE NOTHING MEN spoke to me as an artist whose future is, by definition, uncertain. To look inside such a brutally hardened world and see such vulnerability, presented a dichotomy I found utterly engaging.

The unforgiving dialogue, delivered with such honesty, provides a rare insight into “secret men’s business” and the gravity that resides within the hearts of men living in the dark realms of seemingly everyday society.

The screenplay’s explosive nature has inevitably provoked disquiet among elements of the mainstream film industry but has received overwhelmingly positive responses from some of its finest talents.

The Alchemy team was built on passion and embarked together on a journey that began with an idea of universal relevance and developed into an electrifying tale that has come together just as it was envisaged.

In an industry first, shooting on the groundbreaking Red One Digital Cinema Technology, championed by Stephen Soderbergh and Peter Jackson, gives the film its range of superior depth of field, selective focus and remarkably enhanced colours.

THE NOTHING MEN has pioneered this evolutionary technology in Australia and being only the second Feature Film in the world to do, has invigorated the mood of the Australian Film Industry itself!

ALCHEMY Film Productions now begins its journey, drawing attention to issues that engage us, via stories that inspire us. We commence pre production on our next film DESCENDANCE in September 2008.

www.martindinglewall.com