UNDEAD

Synopsis:
Peaceful, rustic Berkeley is a charming fishing community where life is sweet and the people friendly. All that is about to change.

After losing her childhood farm to the bank, local beauty Rene decides to leave town and head for the big city. Suddenly, an avalanche of meteorites races through the sky, bombarding the town and bringing an otherworldly infection. Departing is going to be much more difficult than she had planned.

The living dead are awakened and Rene is now caught in a nightmare of zombies hungry for human flesh. She manages to find salvation in a small isolated farm house owned by the town loony, Marion. There she is met with four other desperate survivors. Together they battle their way through a plague of walking dead and discover that there is more transpiring than just an infection.

UNDEAD is a horror film in the vein of 'Night of the Living Dead' and 'The Evil Dead' and features an overflow of gore and visual effects to make any horror fan squirm with delight.

Rated R

THE CAST

Rene………………………………….……………………..FELICITY MASON
Marion……………………………………………………...MUNGO McKAY
Wayne………………………………………………………ROB JENKINS
Sallyanne…………………………………………………...LISA CUNNINGHAM
Harrison…………………………………………………….DIRK HUNTER
Molly……………………………………………………….EMMA RANDALL

THE FILMMAKERS

Written, produced, edited and directed by…...........PETER and MICHAEL SPIERIG
Director of Photography…………………………..ANDREW STRAHORN
Special Make-up Effects…………………………..STEVEN BOYLE
Production Designer………………………………MATTHEW PUTLAND
Costume Designer…………………………….......CHINTAMANI AKED
Composer…………………………………………CLIFF BRADLEY

Official Website - http://www.undeadthemovie.com/

Undead Soundboard for some soon to be classic sound bites:
http://d13network.com/unDEAD/redesign/soundboard.html

ABOUT THE PRODUCTION

UNDEAD has been a two and a half year project for Directors Michael and Peter Spierig. Pre-production began almost eight months before principal photography. The film’s complex visual effects meant the directors had to spend an enormous amount of time planning and testing ideas. Due to the budget constraints every aspect of the film had to be planned carefully. A detailed 15 minute animatic of the film’s climax was created in order for the production team to grasp the complexity of the effects and live action requirement.

Principal photography began on August 6th 2001 and would continue for 41 days. The film was shot entirely in Queensland, Australia. The Directors wanted to create a film that had a timeless quality about it. This would mean stylising the look of the production, an ambitious task considering the low budget nature of the project. Production Designer Matthew Putland and Costume Designer Chintamani Aked along with Director of Photography Andrew Strahorn collaborated extremely closely to achieve this look. All interior locations were built from scratch, many created for practical purposes such as the staging of the many action and gore set pieces.

Hundreds of make-up effects appliances were created by Steven Boyle (Arc Effects). The task would prove very daunting for the small effects crew. The team worked almost non-stop for 10 weeks to create the hoards of zombies and unique creature designs.

This is the first feature film for the majority of the principal cast. The film showcases a number of up and coming Australian talent including Felicity Mason who plays the film’s lead Rene. The cast and crew braved freezing cold condition shooting at night in the rain during winter. The cast’s firm belief in the project and commitment to their parts gives the film a number of unique and memorable Aussie characters.

After principal photography wrapped, a smaller second unit would continue shooting for an additional 19 days. With the reduced crew, shooting became long and extremely difficult. A number of complex action sequences still had to be shot including a car crash at night. The cast and crew’s enthusiasm and dedication for the project made these very difficult days and nights possible. However, the most difficult obstacle was still ahead… the visual effects.

Over 305 visual effects were created for the film taking over eight months of around the clock work. Many of the effects were created on Peter’s and Michael’s laptop. The process was slow and at times extremely frustrating. During this time Michael and Peter were also the editors and sound designers, meaning very little sleep for the brothers.

The end result is a film that redefines the low budget horror genre.

ABOUT THE CAST

Rene… FELICITY MASON
Born in Sydney, Felicity's interests led to acting when she first performed at Pymble Theatre at the age of 10. After studying Fine Art at Griffith University, Felicity took on a career as a Fine Artist, painting and exhibiting her work in various Brisbane cafes, restaurants and galleries. To further fund her career as an artist, Felicity joined an agency and soon found herself appearing in numerous TVC's. This led to several short drama courses and in 1999 Felicity joined The Actors’ Workshop from where she graduated and continues to study periodically today. To date she has starred in numerous short films, documentaries, music videos and finally landed her first lead role in the Feature film UNDEAD. Felicity has recently worked on her second Feature film, an Indian Production titled Hollywood, where she plays the lead role.

Marion… MUNGO McKAY
Mungo McKay worked for 13 years as a cinema projectionist before deciding his passion was to be on the screen. He has been training for the past six years at Brisbane's The Actors' Workshop and during this time has appeared in over 60 short films. His credits also extend to a variety of live stage performances, television work and feature films including Inspector Gadget 2, Waste, and now UNDEAD. His vast body of work has established him as one of Brisbane's most versatile and respected actors.

Wayne… ROB JENKINS
After completing his acting training in 1997 Rob has gone on to become one of Brisbane’s most sought after actors. He has appeared in over 25 short films, TV shows and several National Ads which are currently airing around Australia. His hard work and diligence paid off when he won the "Warner Roadshow – Best Actor Award" at the 2001 Queensland New Filmmakers Awards, before landing the role of Wayne in UNDEAD.

Sallyanne… LISA CUNNINGHAM
Lisa's interest in acting began at a young age, when she was encouraged to join a local drama school and went on to teach there ten years later. However, her real passion for acting was nurtured when she met her tutor Lyn Kidd in 1999. Since then she has been a part of many short films. UNDEAD is her first feature film, which hopefully is only the beginning. Since UNDEAD, Lisa has performed with the Nash theatre.

Harrison… DIRK HUNTER
After completing a 3-year Diploma of Creative Arts (theatre major) at one of Australia's most well respected drama institutes, Dirk has worked professionally in the Australian Film, Television and Theatre industry for the past ten years. During this time he has appeared in over twenty productions for the State Theatre Company (Queensland), Her Majesty's (Adelaide), His Majesty's (Perth), and the majority of local high profile theatre and film companies.. His desire to maintain a continued relationship with film has seen him appear in over 15 short films. Dirk is delighted to be involved with UNDEAD and is looking forward to a continued relationship with Spierigfilm.

Molly… EMMA RANDALL
Since graduating from Queensland University of Technology with her BA in 1997, Emma Randall spent 3 years dividing her time between working as a cinema projectionist and making models for stop-motion animated short films for an Animation Studio in Brisbane. Wanting to pursue her interest in acting, she began training at The Actors’ Workshop in August 2000 and continues her study there. She has been involved in short films and theatre. UNDEAD is her first feature film.

ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS

Directors / Producers / Writers / Editors… PETER & MICHAEL SPIERIG
Peter and Michael Spierig first became interested in film making back in the mid 1980s and at the age of 10 began making short films. While in High School Peter produced and directed a number of short films that won him five major awards at the Queensland New Filmmakers Awards including "Most Promising New Filmmaker".

In 1997 Peter and Michael Spierig graduated from the Queensland College of Art in Brisbane Australia. Peter graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Film and Television while Michael graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Graphic Design. While at university, Peter and Michael jointly produced a number of short films. These films included a science fiction action adventure film entitled "The Garden", which Peter directed and Michael production designed. The film won three major Queensland New Filmmaker Awards including "Best Producer" as well as the "Bronze Student Award" at the Houston International Film Festival. Michael gained a taste for the film making process while working on several productions with brother Peter. After designing "The Garden", he wrote and directed his own short film "Happy Hour", an action noir. Michael shared the "Best Producer" award with Peter at the Queensland New Filmmakers Awards along with winning "Best Production Design" for his work on the short film. While they were both studying at college, the brothers also directed and produced a trilogy of horror short films entitled "The Undead Trilogy", which their feature is based on..

"The Garden" and "Happy Hour" were also the films that caught the attention of Queensland's foremost commercial director Dick Marks, who has since sub-contracted Peter and Michael to direct television commercials and the occasional music video. During that time Michael and Peter established their own production company called Spierigfilm. As well as directing television commercials Peter and Michael also continued to direct short films. "Sunday Morning", a short comedy about a couple who wake up together with the events of the previous night being a complete blur was selected for screening at the St. Kilda Film Festival in Melbourne, as well as the Flagstaff International Film Festival and most recently at the "Down Under Wonder" American Cinemateque Film Festival in LA where it was discovered and bought by a US distributor.

Michael's and Peter's most recent short film entitled "The Big Picture" was the brothers' first attempt at not only continuing to write, direct and produce but also to take on the role as Directors of Photography. "The Big Picture" is a story about a young woman who watches her life flash before her on a television screen. The film has been the most successful short film to date for the brothers. The film won three major awards at the Queensland New Filmmakers Awards including "Best Film and Best Producers". Michael and Peter also won the "Fictional Drama Short Film Silver Award" at the Queensland Australian Cinematographers Society Awards. The film also went on to screen at the prestigious Rotterdam International Film Festival at which it was purchased by a US Distributor. After making over fifteen short films, dozens of television commercials and numerous music videos, the Spierig Brothers decided to take the leap into feature film production in early 2000.

COPYRIGHT 2002 SPIERIGFILM PTY. LTD.
All Rights Reserved.

THE CHARACTERS AND EVENTS DEPICTED IN THIS PHOTOPLAY ARE FICTITIOUS. ANY SIMILARITY TO ACTUAL PERSONS, LIVING OR LIVING DEAD,IS PURELY COINCIDENTAL.