Many productions have leveraged Melbourne’s bustling metropolitan city and world-class sporting venues to double as international locations. However, it’s the city’s regions, featuring vast wetlands, spooky rainforests, mystical quarries and moody lakes, that have been reimagined as other worldly places.
THE DYSTOPIAN EERINESS OF WETLANDS
Located almost 2.5 hours away, northeast of Melbourne, Victoria’s eerily sparse Winton Wetlands is a unique landscape that covers more than 20,000 acres of scorched earth with tens of thousands of petrified trees. Historically, the wetlands are the home of the Yorta Yorta people.
The landscapes provided the perfect dystopic setting for the feature film Foe, staring Saoirse Ronan and Paul Mescal as young couple Hen and Junior whose marital discord escalates when Junior is called to serve on a space station.
The location was reenvisioned by Victorian director Garth Davis, best known for Academy Award-nominated film Lion, along with his crew.
Location Manager Eben Olson also believed the Winton Wetlands set the perfect tone for the film. The red gums, also known as eucalyptus, are native to Australia, and without their leaves and branches, resembled maple trees which married up to the Canadian context of the film.
“When you’re in amongst them, you can turn around 360 degrees and the environment doesn’t change. You have these perfect skeletons of giant trees in any direction you look. You’re not locked into one frame or one screen direction,” says Olsen.
SPOOKY SUPERNATURAL FORESTS
Nestled within the Dandenong Ranges, close to Melbourne, is small town Olinda. With its looming trees, the sights and sounds of the Victorian countryside provides the perfect scary setting.
The nearby Mount Dandenong Arboretum, with lush deciduous trees and conifers possesses a naturally eery tone.
Olinda was recently used as the setting for horror film Together, starring real-life Hollywood couple Alison Brie and Dave Franco.
The township’s urban and natural landscape was the perfect mix to bring Melbourne-born indie filmmaker Michael Shanks’ fantastical vision for his body horror feature to life.
From the outset, Shanks and his producer Mike Cowap from Princess Pictures were committed to making the film in Melbourne.
“We always wanted Together to be an Australian production. There are financial reasons for that, but I also really liked the idea of making this film in my hometown,” he explains.
QUARRIES OF A SUPERNATURAL KIND
The sandy, rocky landscapes of Guildford Quarry provide the perfect setting for mystical activity. With mountains of minerals and textured mounds, the location can double for a desolate desert or planetary crater.
The quarry was used in season 4 episode 6 of supernatural series Preacher, starring Dominic Cooper. Showrunner Sam Catlin (Breaking Bad) quickly familiarised himself with Melbourne and incorporated many iconic locations into scenes.
The main build for scenes featuring the entryway to ‘Masada’, the fictional command centre of a secret religious military organisation, were filmed in the Guildford quarry.
“Melbourne has a lot of different looks. It was a very versatile city in terms of all the different things that we needed for Preacher. We didn’t know all the story parts before we got here, but pretty much everything we could think of Melbourne provided,” said showrunner Sam Catlin.
WEIRD WACKY WATERS
Melbourne and its surrounds are home to moody lakes and reserves, including Lake Buffalo and Delatite Arm Reserve. Situated at the base of Mount Buffalo, Lake Buffalo’s pristine waters reflect the surrounding mountains, making the idyllic spot seem like an optical illusion. The Delatite Arm Reserve, flanked by spiky pines, provides the perfect harsh environment for a melancholic scene
With extraordinary locations, highly skilled crews, generous incentives, and a proven track record of international success, why not make Victoria the next choice destination for your production?
To learn more about VicScreen’s leading incentives contact VicScreen’s Head of Incentives, Joe Brinkmann.
