ROAD TO SATURN

Roles: Director of Photography, Rushes Colourist

TBC 2024

Short Film

After the world falls to a mysterious form of contagious dementia, a couple in rural Australia must decide whether to leave their sick friend behind or risk their lives to save her.

Road to Saturn was a project designed to allow us as filmmakers to return to the ambition we felt in film school. We travelled into the Victorian High Country with a tiny crew, a small amount of gear, and a pretty lengthy shotlist and schedule, and made it happen.

With a lot to do, without enough time and a large crew, the cinematography needed to lean into natural and practical light, and stay mobile in a way which allowed a dynamic set to move efficiently, while still feeling personal and telling an intimate story about human beings in a dark time.

Note: These stills have been graded by me. The film shown in festivals and at final release will be graded by Blair Stellato.

Road to Saturn set out to depict the Victorian High Country, and the Australian bush in general, as a vast environment with a singular and vivid aesthetic which could serve as a backdrop for an engaging mystery narrative.

In the film, the scenery is used to show our characters surviving in stark isolation. They are far enough away from the danger taking place in the city at the cost of having nowhere else to go.

When considering the approach to the cinematography, I knew that staying largely handheld would enable us to keep moving and get everything we needed, but I endeavoured to not let that get in the way of telling a story with both frantic, fast-paced moments, and slower, more intimate moods.

Starring Serena Meltzer, Maria England, Matilda Simmons, Mat Dwyer

Writer and Director: Callum Thomas

Producers: Nicholas Kehaidis, George Michael, Callum Thomas

Director of Photography: James McVitty

Editor: Blair Stellato

Original Score by: Felix Bridie

First Assistant Director: Nicholas Kehaidis

First Assistant Camera: Teagan Harris

Second Assistant Camera & Grip/Electric: Sophie Bonollo

Sound Recordist: Blair Stellato

Sound Design and Mixing: Callum Thomas

A Savvas Production

I would like to acknowledge the people of Taungurung, who are the Traditional Owners of the land on which this project was filmed, and to pay my respects to their Elders past, present, and emerging. This was, and always will be, Aboriginal land.

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