Who Plays Who?

Tony Hill Jacqueline Cook Austin Hill Caitlin Moon Rosie Denny Michaela Cantwell Nicole Dickmann Alirio Zavarce Michael Allen Fahad Farooque Gary Ferguson Nikki Fort Patrick Frost Fiona Fulwood Peta Astbury Jeff Lang Tamara Lee Tony Loizos Checc Musolino Roger Newcombe David O'Brien Chrissie Page Elton Rosas

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Fig Sherree Harley Krystal Melody Rosine Nurse Stefan Heath Dr Shiv Fat Larry Mum Dad Penelope Video Show Bride Sommelier Veronica Motorbike Salesman Maitre'D Concert Manager Cop Mrs Mills Elton

What Do The Critics Say

"It's the genuine heart and quirky juxtapositions that make this dinky-dye, upside down romantic comedy as delightful as it is unexpected. In his feature debut, writer director and cinematographer Chris Moon has constructed an endearing, upbeat, funny and original film that captures a particular slant on our Australian culture. It has that true blue feel about it, yet nothing is overdone with the humour coming from great characterisations instead of caricatures. The charm of the film comes from the way Moon has grounded his characters and all the performances are excellent. Getting hitched has never been like this before: don't miss your fair-dinkum chance to catch the bouquet." Louise Keller URBAN CINEFILE

"Fresh, funny and endearing, The Marriage of Figaro has one other big thing going for it: it's unique. We see characters hardly glimpsed on Australian screens. The film owes much of its energy and appeal to a marvellously diverse and yet apt sound track, which ranges from excerpts of Mozart's opera of the title to contemporary cues and nifty work from composer Timothy Sexton. Warm hearted and without a mean bone in its filmic body, The Marriage of Figaro is entertainment in a major chord." Andrew L Urban URBAN CINEFILE

The Inside Story If the laughter and spontaneous applause of 100 invited guests who attended to premiere on Wednesday September 9th 2009 is any guide then cinema goers are in for a treat: but the success of the film will rest on their shoulders of cinemagoers who will be urged to give "The Marriage of Figaro" their support by attending screenings scheduled at two cinemas: Wallis Mitcham and Wallis Mt Barker. In light of the fact that aussie cinemagoers have been deserting local productions in their droves, you'd expect that it may be a hard ask to get this family/comedy off to a good start. Fact is, this small local production has plenty going for it, including a brilliant musical score by renowned composer Timothy Sexton, an enthusiastic Producer Peta Astbury and a very funny storyline written and directed by Chris Moon . It centres on biker Reginald 'Fig' Figaro and is refreshingly full of traditional family values and most certainly breaks the stereotypical biker mould for the audience. "I wanted to make a fun film, one that makes you smile. I think Aussie films are in danger of being perceived as too serious and depressing," Moon says. "I want the audience to come out of the cinema feeling better about the world than when they went in." "This film was a fantastic opportunity to combine orchestral and chamber music and motorbikes, and make the music part of the comedy. With such a great script and storyline, it was a dream to be able to create a unique blend of classics and carburetors!," says says composer Timothy Sexton. Where did the inspiration for the film come from? Through local biker Tony Hill, and from there the story evolved. The film is not about Tony but there are enough similarities that when it came to casting who better to play the lead role than Tony himself. Ultimately other members of his family came along for the ride, including his son Austin. And yes, the bike featured in the film is Tony's prized Harley Davidson. The down to earth real life biker, with I must point out, no affiliation to any of those disreputable biker gangs notes: "to be given such an opportunity and to be involved and embraced by many talented people has to rate as one of the highlights of my most enjoyable and colourful life to date." "The Marriage of Figaro" is a completely independent production. A feature film comedy about an Australian biker called Reginald Figaro (Fig for short), who lives with the mother of his two children. She wants to get married. The film follows all of the ups and downs in the lead up to the wedding. The association with the opera "The Marriage of Figaro" is only very loose. It is a comedy too and because Fig is a piano tuner he gets put in a lot of different social situations; like Figaro in the opera who is a barber by trade and working for a Count. Trivia film buffs will love the story behind and facts about how this production got off the ground. Chris Moon first thought about writing a film in 2006 and spoke to Peta Astbury about it as a project they could work on together. The project was intended initially to showcase the talent of South Australia and to test another model of film production. The team thought that while bigger budgets have their place, that there was another method of low-cost film making that could be achieved with good results using new technologies and looking at the whole process a little differently. Low cost equals less risk and easier profits. The script was written specifically for budget and for audience. The script was honed over a period of time, including a couple of read throughs where the actors that were cast at that stage had a chance to help develop their characters. Chris submitted the film to virtual studio Zoetrope for feedback. Tony Hill was the 'inspiration' for Fig. Producer Peta Astbury completed an MBA in order to have the business credentials, in order to give them an edge (the film was approached like a business). The production cost of the film started at a mear sixty thousand dollars. Until extras such as PR and Marketing costs were added. Chris and Peta scouted locations at least six months before shooting, trying to find the perfect locations, that would fit within the small budget. Casting came together very easily. Jacqueline Cook (Sheree), Nikki Fort (Mum) & Rosie Denny (Melody) all look like they could be related. Not one person turned a role down. Everyone who worked on the film did so because they thought the script was great. Because of budget constraints the cast & crew were on deferred payment. We got the support of many companies around South Australia & Australia (Fosters) & even overseas (Steinway & Co). Basically we wouldn't have been able to do what we did without the support of many South Australian's. Because of the deferred nature of the contract (and lots of films being shot at the same time) and a relatively inexperienced crew of around 10 to 12 people, a lot of people had dual roles; included Moon (writer, director, cinematographer) and Astbury (producer & 1st AD). Writer and Director Chris Moon, Producer Peta Astbury (she appears in the film as a Video Bride) and sound recordist Dean Heneker mentored the production team along the way while in the lead up and shooting. Some of those people have gone on to paid features, such as Scott Hicks new film "Boys are Back in Town" and on Rachel Ward's feature directing debut, "Beautiful Kate." Shooting was over a five week period at the end of November through December 2007 using a Panasonic P2 camera to film (a digital card based system). This is Tony's first foray into acting. This is Chris' first foray into script writing and feature film direction. Moon is an award winning cinematographer and worked on the ABC TV series "The Cook and the Chef". Peta undertook an MBA to get ready for business side of the film. We negotiated with Steinway & Sons New York to use their trademark. We had to explain to them that 'bastard of a steinway' (Fig's line) as being colloquial Australian for a 'really great steinway!' Hill's son Austin played the son Harley and Moon's daughter Caitlin plays Figs daughter, Krystal. The film score (composed & conducted by Timothy Sexton) included a twenty piece orchestra. Chris & Peta discussed approaching Sexton to compose the score. Peta coincidentally ran into Timothy (who she had worked with when she was fourteen) the very next day. Peta sent the script and he was signed up that next day. The film has over 100 music cues. All extras were either friends, family or ring ins: including all of the bikers. Six different pianos were used. They had access to a motorbike mechanic and a professional piano tuner during the production. The cast and crew were from SA. Chris, Tony, Peta, Victor, Bob and Elton all have 'day jobs' at the ABC. Locations include Festival Theatre; Ayers House; Jetty Road Glenelg; historic Cummins House and, Chez Jewels (pronounced: shay) at Burnside. Synopsis

Fig is a biker, a good dad, a piano tuner, and, secretly, a talented pianist. He’s not married, but he loves his 'missus'. His partner, Sherree, longs to get hitched but Fig's never felt the need to pop the question. He's more interested in drinking beer in the shed with his mates, Heath and Elton, than marriage. But, when Sherree’s mum wins lotto and offers to pay for the wedding, Fig decides it might be the right time to propose and set a wedding date. The proposal is a failure because Fig forgets to buy Sherree a ring. Then fate steps in. Wealthy Stefan and his equally wealthy fiance Rosine stop near the creek where Fig and his son are fishing. Defiant over a pre-nuptial agreement, Rosine throws her engagement ring off the bridge. Fig finds it, takes Sherree to the fanciest restaurant in town where he finally proposes marriage. Everyone is happy, until Sherree discovers where the ring came from.

The Verdict "A recent article in the Saturday Edition of the Adelaide Advertisers 'Weekend Magazine' by Andrew Fenton echoed what I have been hammering on about for years: Australian cinemagoers are turning their backs on local productions because they are sick to death of seeing dark films that leave them feeling totally gutted and, dare I say it, as depressed as some of the characters they've been watching onscreen. The local film industries preoccupation with suicide, drugs, depression and mentally challenged characters isn't what cinemagoers want constantly shoved down their throats in exchange for the hard earned bucks they hand over at the box-office. Sure, even I can see some merit in these 'art-house' style wannabe 'popcorn and coke' productions, but the constant barrage has become wearisome. In the end it all boils down to two important factors: cinemagoers want value and entertainment, while cinema-operators want bums on seats. Every failure makes it harder for the next cab off the rank. Take the case of "The Marriage Of Figaro". This small budget film, made in South Australia by an enthusiastic bunch of people, has been thrown a lifeline by local cinema chain, Wallis Cinemas. It will screen at their Mitcham and Mt Barker multiplexes. It will live or die by the boxoffice result. I for one hope it does well enough to get a guernsey nationally. You can tell from watching "The Marriage Of Figaro" that so many people have put their heart and soul into every aspect of the film. What really stands out is, the cast. Led by debut actor Tony Hill, they will grow on you. I suspect that if this film had been made by a big budget production company with full-time big-name actors, it may not have worked so well. "The Marriage Of Figaro" is a fair dinkum gem. With a noteworthy soundtrack; sparkling wit; ecelectic down to earth characters (some of whom are rough diamonds) and a very funny storyline, it sounds good eh? It is! 4 STARS." The Production Team

Director Written by Producer Original Music Cinematography Film Editor Production Designer

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Chris Moon Chris Moon Peta Astbury Timothy A Sexton Chris Moon Bob Lawrence James Mellor

Run Time 97 minutes Rated M [AUST] Copyright ©2009 - Figaro Films & For Pete's Sake productions - All Rights Reserved ©1999-2009 All Rights Reserved The Movie Pages & Impact Internet Services - Protected by Australian & International Copyright. Trademark Laws Apply.