"Supported by Stephen Warbeck's creative and inventive score, with its occasional echoes of Irish motifs and neat guitar chords, Oyster Farmer is a superbly made film, showing Anna Reeves natural cinematic talents. It also boasts possibly the best directed sex scene in an Australian film." Andrew L Urban URBANCINEFILE "Oyster Farmer, the first feature from award-winning short film maker Anna Reeves, was co-financed by a UK production company but is a distinctly Australian production. Reeves, who also penned the film's enchanting screenplay, embraces a marketable concept -- fundamentally an occupation and a location -- and shapes it into a thing of beauty and naturalness, doing so without a trace of caricature or derelict vernacular." Luke Buckmaster IN FILM AUST "‘Oyster Farmer’ is a revelation. It is warm, humorous, engaging and most of all, totally believable and very rewarding." Christina Bruce SEARCH SA "Perhaps the most impressive and haunting element of Oyster Farmer is its perfectly captured mood of an Australian ethos no longer found in any city. From the economically written but complex characters who live and work on the Hawksbury River, physically up the road from Sydney but socially in a different world, to Alun Bollinger's wonderful cinematography, the film reminds us of how the Australian character is forged.." Andrew L Urban URBANCINEFILE

"Unlike many Aussie films that have an artless narrative structure, Oyster Farmer is successful for the sum of its parts. Each scene plays out like a singular snapshot of a character, a moment in time or a whimsical anecdote. There are dog races in the river, dead animals shoved under rugs and fridges wired up to gum trees. Together, these scenes fuse brilliantly to create a spirited, interchangeable story about life, love and lies." Monica Higging THREEWORLD.COM "I loved the texture that the film has, that makes you sort of smell those timber piers, and feel the tinnie. I'm giving it 3.5 stars." Margaret Pomeranz ABC AT THE MOVIES "There's a robbery, a dog race, an oyster show and a dog-napping. And that's just for starters. There's sex on a rickety pier, and the rekindling of a relationship that's foundering involving an old bathtub and a bundle of marbles. Renovations and relatives are the two reasons for marriage breakdowns, says Trish. And there's a new definition for love - 'it's a wretched business: like pissing against an electric fence.' Oyster Farmer is the best Australian film of the year." Louise Keller URBANCINEFILE "Anna Reeves's great virtue as writer-director is that she doesn't push these characters at you as creatures of irresistible charm and inexhaustible entertainment value. They amble in and out of the frame, competing with the river for your attention. It's a great place to be - and Reeves's picture is a seductive and affectionate look at the people who make their home there." Sandra Hall SYDNEY MORNING HERALD

The Inside Story

"Field and Norton are at the comical heart of the piece - one anxious and laconic, the other garrulous and irrepressible." Sandra Hall SYDNEY MORNING HERALD

I must admit that, prior to the release of "Peaches" and now the distinctly entertaining "Oyster Farmer", I was dreading the thought that another extremely mundane, highly over-rated film, "Three Dollars" was going to be the 'big' thing at this years AFI and IF Awards. All I can say is thank goodness, or as our coalition friends in the land of the free would say thank 'GUD' that it will now not be so. I must also join the growing band of those who write on film for a living, by echoing the thoughts of many, that "Oyster Farmer" is the best 'all-round' Australian film to be released this year if not in a long while. It really has been a dismal run at the Box Office for locally produced but it appears there may be a little light at the end of the tunnel. If only we could produce a whole lot more films such as this cheeky little piece which marks the feature film debut for writer and director Anna Reeves. Reeves, who made a name for herself with short films, "describes Oyster Farmer as her love letter to Australia." Reeves, who studies at the Australian Film Television & Radio School and the French National Film School had moved to London where she began to write the film. Like many ex-pats abroad Reeves started to feel the pull from her homeland. "I was supposed to be writing something else," Reeves recalls, " but I was really missing Australia and so my husband said ‘why don’t you write that thing on the river you’ve said you are going to write’. I’d taken a whole lot of photographs of the river, so I put them up on the wall and began to write a really positive film about all the things I absolutely love about Australia - the zany sense of humour, the full-throated strong sexy women and the wonderful landscapes." Reeves says she "had fallen in love with the landscape of the Hawkesbury River when a friend started to build a ‘weekender’ on the shores of the upper river. She began spending weekends in the area and for four years researched a film based on the river, getting to know and gaining the trust of the small communities of oyster farmers and assorted eccentric and loners who choose to live there in virtual isolation." Those are characteristics feature heavily in her film. The opening scenes which reveal the glory of the Hawkesbury River are scenes Anna Reeves is very familiar with. "It was so exhilarating to get into those little ‘tinnies’ and whiz up the river, experiencing that whole feeling of escapism which is also so cinematic," she said. "I knew it was something that would work well in a film." Reeves was also smart enough to realize that an hour and a half on the screen would be the right amount of time to convey her story. "In making a decision to write a film, there have to be a few key elements that inspire me to continue. The story has to have enough legs to be entertaining for an hour and a half and the idea has to be very cinematic. When I went up the river I kept seeing a movie, it has such an epic landscape." The Hawkesbury is certainly a star in her film with memorable views captured thanks to the cinematography skills of New Zealand's Alun Bollinger. Having lived and worked in New South Wales I am familiar with the Hawkesbury but the view from water level pales into insignificance when you see the magnificent aerial shots in "Oyster Farmer". They are quite breath-taking views which will provide added appeal for international audiences. "I knew so many people in the film industry who’d worked with Alun or trained under him, that I always hoped I’d have the opportunity to work with the Real McCoy, a man who had inspired so many other wonderful cinematographers," Reeves notes. "I thought it would be very interesting to have an outsider look at the Australian landscape and see if he could see something fresh in it." Actor Jim Norton who provides many magic moments in the film as Brownie's father Mumbles sees the river as a real star and part of the attraction which brought him to the film. "Oyster Farmer is an incredible story and there aren’t many of those around! It has adventure, it’s a romance, it’s about loss and redemption, but of course for me the real attraction was working in Australia and working on The Hawkesbury," he says, adding "It could well be the real star of the movie, it’s beautiful". Two of the films leading actors, David Field and Alex O'Lachlan spent time on the river prior to the start of production. "We hired a boat, found a little beach somewhere up the river and rolled out our swags. We went fishing, ate fresh fish, talked about the script," says O'Lachlan. "It was great. It is so peaceful on the river, the air is clean, there’s wildlife and trees. It has its own little sub-climate and that has an interesting effect on you." The opportunity to work with some of the Australian film industries biggest names wasn't missed by O'Lachlan, who makes his big screen debut in this film. "When I looked around the set at the amazing actors I was working with; Jack Thompson, Kerry Armstrong, Jim Norton, David Field, it sometimes didn’t’ feel quite real," O'Lachlan recalls. "I feel very fortunate to have had the experience, every moment I listened intently and watched what they were doing. I had so much to learn and they were all so willing to teach." And how did he feel? "I felt blessed,” he says. So did he find anything in his character he could identify with? "The script looks at what it is like to be a man in this society. Jack is an Aussie bloke, he’s a little bit ostentatious, a little bit obnoxious, a little bit cheeky, but he’s sensitive as well," he notes. "Jack is really a city kid who ends up in the scrub for the first time in his life and, unexpectedly, finds a community and love." The films love interest [and a sizzling sex scene] is between O'Lachlan's character Jack and Pearl, played by another newcomer to a lead role, Diana Glenn. "She’s a lovely character because she dares to dream to be something a little bit more," Glenn said. "She’s been waiting for something extraordinary to happen her whole life and when Jack comes along, it is the love affair and excitement that every girl ever wishes for." There are three other stars in the film I'd like to mention. The first two are, David Field and Kerry Armstrong, who made history when she became the first actress in Australian history to win the Best Performance by an Actress Award in both the feature film and television categories at the AFI Awards in the same year. The third is the inimitable icon of 'aussie' films, Jack Thompson. These three are all familiar faces. They have received accolades in the past for their performances in film productions. They are great to watch, especially Field who is in fine form. And while Thompson doesn't have a lot of time on the screen, when he does appear as the Veitnam Veteran Skippy, it is powerful stuff to watch. "There are Vietnam vets in Australia and all over America who live in isolated communities; having taken a decision that they’d rather live with people who know how awful it was rather than integrate into society," Jack says. "Even in the world of Oyster Farmers, which feels a long way from urban life, these guys are on the edge of it. Skippy is a man who’s chosen to deal with an intolerable past in that way." But while there's so much good in this film, the acid test will come at the Box Office. Let's hope this film gets a fair go from cinema fans. It's a bloody good film! It's a film many will have no qualms about recommending. And neither do I. Crew Bytes "OYSTER FARMER" was .......
directed by Anna Reeves ["La Vie En Rose ", "The Imploding Self " and "Warbling Matilda"]; screenplay by Toronto Film Festival GOLDEN PLAQUE Award winner and New Zealand Drama Award winner Anna Reeves; costume design by Emily Serensin ["Damage", "The Secret Garden", "Priscilla, Queen Of The Desert", "Danny Deckchair" and "The Night We Called It A Day"]; production design by 2003 AFI Award Winner Steven Jones-Evans ["Ned Kelly", "Buffalo Soliders", "Two Hands", "Siam Sunset" and "Romper Stomper"]; edited by Peter Beston ["Butch Minds the Baby", "Don't Go Breaking My Heart", "Once Upon a Time in the Midlands" and "Bugs!"] and Jamie Trevill ["Punch", "The Tichborne Claimant", "Another Life" and "Conspiracy of Silence"]; cinematography by Alun Bollinger ["Heavenly Creatures", "Perfect Stranger", "Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" and "Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King"]; original music by Stephen Warbeck ["Shakespeare In Love", "Captain Corelli’s Mandolin", "Quills", "Birthday Girl" and "Billy Elliot"] produced by Anthony Buckley A.M. ["Caddie", "The Irishman", "The Killing of Angel Street" and "Bliss"] and Piers Tempest ["Quills", "American Cousins", "Tabloid TV" and "Two Men Went To War"]. Casting About "OYSTER FARMER" stars .......
1984 AFI Award winner Alex O'Lachlan ["White Collar Blue" and "Love Bytes"]; Two Time AFI Award winner Kerry Armstrong ["The Getting of Wisdom", "Amy", "One Perfect Day" and "Lantana"]; 2001 AFI Award for Best Actor in a Telefeature or Mini-series David Field ["Silent Partner", "Two Hands", "Chopper", "The Night We Called It A Day" and "Gettin Square"]; Jim Norton ["Straw Dogs", "Hidden Agenda", "Into The West" and "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets"]; Claudia Harrison ["The Cat’s Meow"]; Cannes International Film Festival Award winner and AFI Award winner Jack Thompson ["Sunday Too Far Away", "The Club", "Broken Arrow" and "The Assassination of Richard Nixon"]; Diana Glenn ["Hating Alison Ashley" and TV'S "White Collar Blue", "Pizza" and Neighbours"] and Alan Cinnis ["Peter Pan" and TV'S "White Collar Blue", "Water Rats" and "Changi"] as Slug. What It's All About

"While we have cinematographer Akun Bollinger to thank for bringing the Hawkesbury to life, we have writer/director Anna Reeves to thank for bringing this world to life. This is perhaps the most exciting debut in some time and thanks to her, Australia cinema has produced another pearl." Kerry Bashford NINEMSN REVIEWS

Jack has taken a job in a small Oyster Farming community on the Hawkesbury River so that he can be near to his sister who is undergoing rehabilitation after a being seriously injured in a car crash. Driven by guilt he decides to rob the Fish Market in Sydney on the next trip he makes with Brownie and his father Mumbles. Jack scores $150,000 in the holdup and sends it to himself in a prepaid parcel post pack. The money goes missing when the parcel ends up in the river after the local 'postie' has a heart attack while doing his deliveries. Every one is a suspect and every one is waiting to see who suddenly starts spending big. Then Jack meets Pearl, daughter of the local waste management contractor Slug. Through her and Brownie's dad Mumbles, Jack starts to get a different perspective on life, the river and Oyster farming, until he discovers where his money has gone. The Verdict "A ray of sunshine. A breath of fresh air. The best Australian film of the year so far and the best in a long while. Sure to do extremely well at this years AFI Awards, the "Oyster Farmer" features a likeable cast, good hearted humour, a sizzling sex scene, a damn fine performance by the highly under-rated David Field and some magnificent cinematography by Alun Bollinger. Thank goodness something has come along to erase the horrible memories of "Three Dollars" from the minds of us cinemagoers. Very Recommended. PS: Thankyou Jack. Fine work mate!" The Cast

David Field Alex O'Lachlan Diana Glenn Jim Norton Kerry Armstrong Jack Thompson Alan Cinis Claudia Harrison Brady Kitchingham Paul J Mailath Bob Yearley

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Brownie Jack Pearl Mumbles Trish Skippy Slug Nikki Heath Farmer Bruce

The Crew Directed by Anna Reeves Screenplay written by Anna Reeves Produced by Anthony Buckley & Piers Tempest Original Music by Stephen Warbeck Cinematography by Alun Bollinger Film Editing by Peter Beston & Jamie Trevill Production Design by Steven Jones-Evans Costume Design by Emily Serensin Art Direction by Lucinda Thomson Run Time 91 minutes Rated MA15+ [AUST] Copyright ©2005 - Ocean Pictures/Dendy Films/Beyond International Films - All Rights Reserved Copyright Protected © 2005 - Impact Internet Services - All Rights Reserved