Presents WHITELEY. Directed by JAMES BOGLE / Release Date 11 May 2017

Transcription

1 Presents WHITELEY Directed by JAMES BOGLE / Release Date 11 May 2017 Featuring BRETT WHITELEY, WENDY WHITELEY, FRANNIE HOPKIRK PUBLICITY REQUESTS: Transmission Films / Amy Burgess / / amy@transmissionfilms.com.au IMAGES High res images and poster available to download via the DOWNLOAD MEDIA tab at: Distributed in Australia by Transmission Films

2 WHITELEY PRODUCTIONNOTES ANORTHERNPICTURESPRODUCTION Presentedby ScreenAustralia,ScreenWestandLotterywest,ScreenNSW PAGE 1

3 WHITELEY Logline WHITELEY is a portrait that looks intimately at the artist Brett Whiteley's incredible life and legacy. ShortSynopsis A visual journey into the life and legacy of one of Australia s most celebrated artists, Brett Whiteley.Through archive, drama and visual effects, this raw and intimate film shows Whiteley sdrivingpassiontoexpresshimselfthroughhisart. Synopsis BrettWhiteleyisanAustralianculturalicon.Nearlyaquartercenturyafterhisdeath,therehas neverbeenanyonelikewhiteleyinthehistoryofaustralianart. WHITELEY is a visual journey into the life and legacy of one of Australia s most celebrated artists.thestory,toldinbrett sownvoice,opensararewindowintoanartist smind. The film records Whiteley s life and artistic process and gives us an insight into Australia s culturalandartistichistory. Whilehisbrief,dazzlinglifewaserratic,combustibleandtragic,Whiteleyalsocreatedahighly productive and brilliant artistic vortex around which much of our 70s and 80s sense of selfm worthasanaggressivelycreativenationemerged. Inhispersonallife,headoredhiswifeWendybutwouldalsohaveaffairs.Manyofhismost successful paintings were odes to Wendy and were in no small part successful due to her uninhibitedexpressivenessbeforebrett sdevouringgaze. When tackling the life of Brett Whiteley, it s almost impossible not to categorize his public personaintosomeverydistincttypes:thepureartistwhoknewhisarthistorybackwardsbut wouldcrywhenoneofhisownfavouritepaintingswassoldtoastranger;thevolatileegotist who could be destroyed by the smallest criticism but who was fearless in paintingmlarge the mostintimateofhisinadequacies;andtheshowmanentrepreneurwhowouldputonfullmtilt glitz and tinsel openings even as he complained about his work not being taken seriously. Whiteleywasfullofsuchincongruitiesandcontradictions. Despitethetabloidheadlines,Whiteley slifeasanartistwasdefinedbyavigorousworkethic, anexhaustivecommitmenttostudyoftheworkofothers,andawillingnesstotakerisksinhis ownwork. Intheendanddespitehisingloriousdemise,Whiteleywasabletomanifestanoutstandingbody ofworkthatelevatedhimbeyondhisnotorietyintotheinternationalechelonsofpreeminent modernartists. PAGE 2

4 Director sstatement JamesBogle It was my intention with this film M my mission if you like M to collect, collate, and create an intenselyinterpretive,penetratingandemotionalexperienceofwhiteley slife. BrettWhiteleywasalwaysdestinedtopainthislifelargeingreatbigredlettersacrosstheart worldandheonlyknewonewaytodothat.hebelievedthatallgreatartistswerelargerthan life.hebelievedinthefantasticalromanceoftowering characters likevangoghanddaliand believedthatheneededastorytoequalthat stature. In many ways, this film is the story of Brettforeverreachingoutforthis.Themanyimagesofhismusewereimportantinhismaking Mbuthervoiceasthesilentpartner,wasperhapsmoreso.Wendywashisfirstandforemost critic and would became his wife, the carrier of his only child and then later, in dramatic circumstances,hisexmwifeandfinallytheguardianofhislegacy.theymetwhenshewas15,he, 17. WiththeirrepressibleWendyasBrett smuseandlover,thepairblazedanarcoticpaththrough theartmworld.whiteleyisdrivenbybrettandwendy svoicesmhisvoiceatthecauseofhis story, her voice at the effect. Wendy has been a generous collaborator; sharing her private archivewhichincludesneverbeforeseennotebooksandpersonaleffects. Everypieceofthedialogueinthefilmisauthentic eithercapturedonthearchivalfootageour researchersdiscoveredinallkindsofplaces,orrecreatedfromnotebooksandinterviewsbyour actorswhoplaybrettandwendywithsuchperception.theprivateperspectiveissoimportant tothisfilm:themomentsoftriumph,confusion,achievementanddestruction;theintimacyof familymoments,thenotebookentriesaboutpersonalissueslikefear,drugs,anger,rejection, paranoia. Ourarchivalfootagespansoverfourdecades.We vebecomesousedtotheimagesofamiddlem agedbrettwithhishaloofredcurlsandcreased face,thatitisstartlingtoseeandhearthe shortmhairedandintense20yearoldbrett,alreadyonafasttracktoartacclamation.amongst the discoveries in the rushes tins from a 60 Minutes profile from the 1983 is a moving and intimatemomentwhenbrett sarthero,lloydrees,speakstohimabouttechnique.thereis anotherunforgettablemomentonfilmwiththeyoungwhiteleyfamily,includingbabydaughter Arkie,lazinginthesunatWhaleBeachaftertheirreturnfromLondon,Wendy sbikinimedbum soinstantlyrecognisablefromsomanyofbrett spaintings. Throughout the film I ve chosen paintings to represent different periods in Brett s life. For example,the$american$dreamwhichcametosymbolizebrett stimelivingatthechelseahotel innewyork,andalchemy,adifficultandchallengingpieceon18panelswhichhepaintedonhis returntoaustraliaafterlivingintheusandfiji. Paintings,stills,archive,drama thesearewoventhroughoutthestorytobuildaportraitofthis complex genius. Like every artist, Whiteley wanted to be great and be recognized for that greatness.asaman,hewasrivenwithcontradictions.hewasbothpublicandprivate;hewas outrageous,introspective,absurd,witty,dark,exhilaratingandhewasbrilliant.thefilmtakes audiencesonanexhilaratingjourneydeepinsidebrettwhiteley sworldand,ihope,willremind usallofbrett sextraordinarytalent,hiscontributiontoaustralianartand,importantly,toour country ssenseofitself. PAGE 3

5 Producer sstatement SueClothier ThelasttimetherewasastoryofanysignificancetoldaboutBrettWhiteleywasinthe1988 documentarydifficult$pleasure.brettwasstillaliveanditwassomefiveyearspriortodeath.i wasalwaysattractedtobrettwhiteley sstorybutdidn tknowverymuchabouthimorhislife, otherthanthenewsitemandofcoursethathehaddiedinatragicandseeminglylonelyway. AboutfiveyearsagoIstartedresearchingBrett slifeandwork,andibecameconvincedthatit wastimetotakeafreshlookatoneofaustralia smostculturallysignificantartistsofthe60,70s and80 s. IstartedexchangingideaswithDirector/WriterJamesBogle,someoneIhaveknownforyears, andwantedtoworkwith,buthadneverfoundtherightprojectforustocollaborate.jamesisa featuredirectorbutwithhisearlycareerrootsindocumentary. Brett was a larger than life character and taking a traditional biopic documentary approach didn tfeelright.brett smajorworkslikealchemyandamericandreamneededabiggerscreen, so James and I started thinking about framing Whiteley as a theatrical documentary. I d producedunfolding$florencein2006andknewthattoattractacinemaaudiencewasnoeasy thing to achieve so we set about digging deeply into Brett s life and what emerged is a rich, layered story that is, fragile, sad, exhilarating, exotic, funny, emotional and dramatic. The resultingstorytranscendsanythinganaudiencewillhaveseenbeforeaboutbrettwhiteley,his life,hisloveandhisart. PAGE 4

6 THEFILMMAKERS WRITER/DIRECTORJAMESBOGLE James Bogle has comwritten and directed four feature films, Closed$ For$ Winter$ 2009), In$ the$ Winter$ Dark$ 1999), Mad$ Bomber$ in$ Love$ 1993) and Stones$ of$ Death$ 1989) and is in development on his fifth, based on the awardmwinning novel Strange$ Objects$ by Australian writer Gary Crew. He has directed more than 50 episodes of television drama including The$ Circuit$II$hisepisodenominatedforBestDirectionofaTVDramabyAustralianDirectorsGuild, 2011),and14episodesofLockie$Leonard$I&II,Winner,BestChildren sdramaserieslogie2008, WinnerBestChildren sdramaseries,afiawards2007).morerecentlyhedirectedanepisode ofjamescompletedworkonafourmhourdocumentaryseriesforabctv,the$war$that$changed$ Us,$whichwasnominatedforLogieAwardforMostOutstandingFactualProgram. JamesservedasaboardmemberatWesternAustralia sstatefilmfundingbody,screenwest from2001m4,andasanexecutivecommitteememberforthewesternaustralianbranchofthe Australian Directors Guild from 2010M12. James also directs television commercials, teaches tertiaryfilmstudiesandworksasanindustryconsultantandscripteditorwithaspecialinterest inthedevelopmentofyoungandindigenousfilmmakers. COOWRITERVICTORGENTILE SincegraduatingfromAFTRSin1986,VictorGentilehasworkedasaproducer,writerandscript developeronprojectsrangingfromshortfilmstodocumentaries,children sdrama,telemovies andfeaturefilms. As an independent producer and overseen some dozen television documentary projects includingtheabc'sfaces$of$war$series,megansimpsonhuberman'swar$of$distance,cenotaph$ bychristuckfield,davidcaesar sconvictions,andthe$golden$pig$forsbs.hecreatedapilottv series Conspiracy$ director, Brendan Young) for Network Ten with Alex Proyas and Andrew Masonasproducers.Alongtheway,hehasalsoproducedtheshortfilmsUrn,$bydirectorMiro Bilbrough,andPeterRasmussen sthe$picture$woman$amongstothers. He was a founding director of the film production company, Oracle Pictures, and the sound postmproduction studio, Counterpoint Sound, and was Project Development Manager at WesternAustralia'sscreenfundinganddevelopmentagency,ScreenWest. In recent years, Victor has written on children s TV series such as Streetsmartz, Parallax$ and Stormworld$ for Western Australian producer Paul Barron as well as for Electric Pictures developing, researching and writing various TV documentary projects from concept to production.he has worked as a freelance writer, researcher, developer and consultant for companies as varied as PerthMbased Taylor Media and Andrew Mason s SydneyMbased City ProductionsforwhomhehasrecentlywrittenafeaturefilmSpike)soontobeshotinBeijingin Mandarin. PAGE 5

7 PRODUCERSUECLOTHIER Sue Clothier is recognised as one of Australia s leading factual production executives and creativeproducers.inacareerspanningmorethantwodecadesintheentertainmentindustry, Sue has produced or overseen the production of more than 120 hours of original broadcast programming. SueisManagingDirectorofNorthernPicturesPtyLtd,aspecialistfactualproductioncompany sheestablishedin2010.sheisalsomanagingdirectoroftheracatstableofmarketmleading independent television production companies: Northern Pictures based out of Sydney Australia), NHNZ based out of the Washington USA), Dunedin NZ) and Beijing China), and BeachHousePicturesinSingapore. Previously,SuewasGeneralManager,ScreenWorldPtyLtdandHeadofTVFactualProduction atbeckerentertainmentnowscreenworldptyltd)andworkedonestablishingthecompanyas a leading global producer of highmend documentary programs. She oversaw the initial developmentandproductionofthepopularglobalscienceseriesone$step$beyondfordiscovery NetworksInternational.BeforejoiningBeckerEntertainmentin1999),SuewastheProduction SupervisoroftheIndigenousUnitatpublicbroadcasterSBS. Sue smanycareerhighlightsasaproducerincludethecriticallyacclaimedfeaturedocumdrama directed by Gillian Armstrong,Unfolding$ Florence:$ The$ Many$ Lives$ of$ Florence$ Broadhurst; Australia s only official selection at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival, the LogieMnominated dramamdocseriesdarwin s$brave$new$world,thesbsseriesfood$investigatorsandtheatom AwardwinningBestDocumentaryScience,Technology&theEnvironment),The$Silent$Epidemic. AccoladesforprogramsSuehasproducedincludeaSilverWorldMedalNewYorkFilmFestival), Special Jury Award The Explorers Club Documentary Film Festival), Silver Award Omni IntermediaAwards),BronzeWorldMedalNewYorkFestival2003)andtheSpecialJuryAward TheExplorersClubDocumentaryFilmFestival). Her Executive Producer credits include the recent series Life$ on$ the$ Reef, Changing$ Minds,$ Cronulla$Riots:$The$Day$That$Shocked$A$National,$Kakadu,$Once$Upon$a$Time$in$Cabramattaand Once$Upon$a$Time$in$Punchbowl.$ $ $ $ PAGE 6

8 CREDITS TheFilmmakers: Director JAMESBOGLE Producer SUECLOTHIER Writers JAMESBOGLE VICTORGENTILE ExecutiveProducers SUECLOTHIER ANDREWMACKIE RICHARDPAYTEN MEGANYOUNG CoMproducers PETAAYERS JAMESBOGLE Editor LAWRIESILVESTRINASE Composer ASHGIBSONGREIG DirectoryofPhotography JIMFRATERACS ProductionDesigner EMMAFLETCHER CostumeDesigner GAILPETHER HairandMakeUpSupervisor KARENSIMS FeaturingtheVoicesof: Brett Whiteley, Wendy Whiteley, Frannie Hopkirk, Barry Pearce, Kathie Sutherland, Phillip Adams,AndrewOlle WithadditionalVoicesby: BrettWhiteley ALANDUKES ClemWhiteley MICHAELLONEY ArkieWhiteley VIVIENNEHOLUB MichaelDriscoll KINGSLEYJUDD BryanRobertson MICHAELLONEY PAGE 7

9 MaryColes JANETPETTIGREW ItalianArtExpert JAMESHAGEN Newsreaders DONSMITH MICHAELLONEY ANDYKING JamesGleeson MICHAELLONEY LaurieThomas KINGSLEYJUDD DanielThomas ANDYKING RodneyMilgate MIKEDJUKIC LenoreNicklin JANETPETTIGREW ElwynLynn KINGSLEYJUDD Cast: BrettWhiteley Older ANDYBLAIKIE BrettWhiteley Younger CAMPBELLGREENOCK WendyWhiteley JESSICAWHITE ArkieWhiteley OLIVIJASTRAUTINS BrettWhiteley Child JACKBARNS ItalianCableMan SEBASTIANCRAIG MarlboroughMan KINGSLEYJUDD Receptionist JESSICAHEGARTY PAGE 8