ANOTHER major screen production has landed in Victoria, creating jobs, boosting the economy and showcasing our world-class facilities and technology.
And it is being partly filmed right here in South Gippsland.
State Minister for Creative Industries Colin Brooks announced on Monday this week that the World War II survival thriller ‘Play Dead’ by Spanish-American film director and producer Jaume Collet-Serra is now filming at the cutting-edge virtual production stages at Docklands Studios Melbourne.
Play Dead, attracted by the Labor Government’s Victorian Screen Rebate, will create more than 300 jobs for Victorian screen workers, including 160 crew, 40 cast and extras and deliver 100 post-production and digital effects roles.
The film is expected to inject more than $24 million into the Victorian economy and will engage around 100 local businesses—from armourers and special effects technicians to prosthetics artists, LED engineers, visual effects specialists and production crews.
Docklands Studios Melbourne boasts the world’s largest permanent volume screens, operated by leading screen technology company NantStudios. The production will utilise the screens to recreate the 1940s Belgian countryside. Filming has also taken place in South Gippsland.
“This latest production shows that screen is a serious business for our state, one that creates jobs, builds our skilled workforce, generates millions for our economy and showcases Victorian innovation to the world,” said Minister for Creative Industries Colin Brooks.
“Our investment in cutting-edge screen technology is paying dividends, and when combined with our stunning locations, expert crews and screen talent, it is a winning combination that keeps productions from across the globe coming to Victoria.”
VicScreen CEO Caroline Pitcher has welcomed the arrival of another film production.
“Play Dead’ is yet another screen production to utilise Melbourne’s LED in-camera volume screens at Docklands Studios Melbourne, engaging our world-class technicians and demonstrating Victoria’s capability for high end virtual production,” said Ms Pitcher.
The screens were built in 2023 thanks to a $12.5 million Labor Government investment giving the state a competitive edge to attract local and international screen productions by enabling filmmakers to project and animate landscapes and backdrops live so actors can interact with the scenery in real time.
Ensuring that this high-tech production delivers a long-lasting impact on the local screen industry, the production will also host 10 paid skills development opportunities for emerging screen practitioners working in stunts and virtual production
Directed by Jaume Collet-Serra (Carry-On, Black Adam), Play Dead stars rising British actor Noah Jupe (A Quiet Place, Franklin) and an international cast including German actor and filmmaker Matthias Schweighöfer (Army of Thieves, Oppenheimer), Patrick Gibson (Dexter: Original Sin), Andreas Pietschmann (1899), Juliette Gariepy (Red Rooms) and Sebastian Griegel (Young Woman and the Sea).
Australian actors Joel Jackson (Ms Fisher’s Modern Murder Mysteries), Sean Keenan (Barons), Harrison Quast (Ten Pound Poms) and Don Hany (Ali’s Wedding) have also been cast.
A Nocturnal Entertainment production, Play Dead is produced by Akiva Nemetsky and Keaton Heinrichs, alongside Sam Raimi (Spider-Man, Crawl) and Rob Tapert (Evil Dead Rise) for Ghost House Pictures, JD Lifshitz and Raphael Margules (Barbarian) for BoulderLight, and Dane Eckerle (Last Straw) for Bad Grey. The screenplay is by Peter Stanley-Ward and Natalie Conway.
Play Dead follows a raft of major projects filming in the state this year secured by the Labor Government, including the TV series The Dispatcher, currently shooting in Warrnambool, gridiron movie The Untitled John Tuggle Project, sci-fi action film War Machine and Liam Neeson action feature The Mongoose.
