What Do The Critics Say?

"If Wasted on the Young is anything to go by, our high schools are overrun with murderous cretins and Machiavellian monsters. Teen angst shifts gears into adolescent rage, in a kind of Australian Rules of Attraction for the Facebook generation. Wasted on the Young is a very ambitious film." Dan Gear CUT PRINT REVIEW "Updating the socially networked nature of teen gangs for the wealthy elite variety, writer/director Lucas drives his revenge story hard, fast and supremely stylishly, creating such a strong visual aesthetic that at times the cinematography leaves you breathless. A disturbing insight into the behaviours that drive teens who have none of the boundaries that come with concerned parents, lack of money or strong school values. A strong ensemble cast. A breathtaking debut and a powerful piece of cinema." Simon Weaving SCREENWIZE "A crueller version of Gossip Girl, Ben C. Lucas’ debut feature is less a cautionary tale then a high school horror movie in which the monsters are your fellow students and friends." Sarah Gopaul TORONTO FILM SCENE 2010. "The three leads are stunning, and their performances have real subtlety. Wasted On The Young is also visually appealing, with debut writer/director Ben C. Lucas performing a sort of miracle: crafting a film that, in other hands; could have come off as contrived. It's a film for the mind, the eyes, and the heart." Annette Basile FILMINK

"Ackland and Clemens are truly great as the doomed leads, and Lucas shows off some flair behind the camera; perhaps too much flair. He should also be commended for the sense of dread that pervades every frame. It inspires the kind of stomach-churning anxiety few films can muster." Simon Miraudo QUICKFLIX "Whether you loved it or loathed it, high school definitely left its mark. From the hormones to the house parties, everyone is guaranteed to have a horror story or two, which makes you wonder just how filmmaker Ben C. Lucas fared on the playground, for his striking debut "Wasted on the Young" sure doesn’t pull any punches. This stylishly provocative film will get you talking. Impressive performances." Alice Tynan CONCRETE PLAYGROUND "A most accomplished debut by Ben Lucas. The film looks extraordinary. Freene's cinematographyis terrific, giving the film a slightly surreal look that perfectly suits this world without any adults at all. I love the way it's shot. As Xandrie says at one point, 'I don't know whether you've noticed but this place isn't real: it's like a parallel universe'. And the use of sound adds to that feeling of unreality. The young performers, whom I hadn't seen before, were just stunning. Adelaide Clemens is heading for stardom." Margaret Pomeranz ABC AT THE MOVIES

The Inside Story In 2006, Aidan O’Bryan (who founded creative production COMPANY WBMC in 2000) had an idea for a low budget film. The premise included two brothers, something horrible happening to a girl at a party and then one of the brothers avenging her at another party in the same house. The goal was to use a non-linear narrative and a cast of exciting young actors to make the most of a film contained in one location. Writer-Director Ben C Lucas had been working with Janelle Landers on a short film and was approached by Aidan and Janelle to write the first draft of a screenplay. Intrigued by the idea and the storytelling possibilities, as well as the likelihood of the producers attracting funding for the film, Ben accepted. The deadline approached for ScreenWest’s West Coast Visions fund and the team used that date as the goal for the first draft and for developing the production model. To some surprise among the filmmakers, the application was successful and they were faced with the prospect of a greenlit film. The next year was spent completing other projects and Ben working with the producers to re-draft the script. "Where Ben took the story is far grander and more satisfying than my idea, which was essentially for a cool take on a slasher film with a high tech edge. Expanding the story and establishing the world of the school society adds an important layer and turned my idea into a film that we could all be really excited about working on," Aidan O’Bryan (a current boardmember of ScreenWest) recalls. The remaining finance for the film was sought in a way that guaranteed the independence of the production and ensured that the filmmakers would have complete creative control. "Even though it was a debut feature for all of us, we were confident that we would bring a film to the screen that would be better than most people expected of us so we thought we’d be in a much better position to attach a distributor to the film once it was finished," Janelle Landers, who has a background in visual arts and degrees in Law and Media Arts Production, explained. A major component of the film, even from the earliest idea stage, was the digital world. Texting and social networking are ubiquitous in the lives of young people and so these were a very deliberate element in the script and ultimately major considerations for the shoot and the edit. The roles played by text messages, websites, cell phones and surveillance cameras allow the characters and the audience a privileged insight into the full goings on of the story and offer creative opportunities in the storytelling. It was important to the team that everything possible be done to make sure that the film didn’t feel like a low budget film. Every detail of the film was meticulously planned to maximise the cinematic experience and to make sure that the film could stand alongside far better resourced productions. "The film has to look as good as anything anyone has a chance to see in the cinema otherwise why would they go and see it?," O’Bryan asks. The filmmakers did extensive testing of different digital formats before deciding to shoot on HDCamSR using the Panavision Genesis. Ben had worked as a First AD on a film with Cinematographer Dan Freene (who began his career as a stills assistant in Adelaide in 1993) and they jumped at the chance to work together again. "Ben has an amazing way of looking at the world and a real understanding of all the elements of filmmaking so, as a DoP, he’s a real exciting guy to work with," says Dan Freene, who by the way, in 2008, shot the Tropfest Winning Film "Marry Me". Pre-production was an intensive period as more crew members came on board and the producers did everything they could to give Ben and his team the best opportunity to make the film as he saw it. Close collaborations with production designer Sam Hobbs (who worked on the popular television miniseries "The Circuit"), Dan and First Assistant Director Brendan Campbell brought Ben’s vision to life. Ben’s visual aesthetic was always focused on advancing and adding to the story and creating the feeling of a distinct and consistent world within the film. "Our lighting aesthetic is based on blues and high contrast, it’s quite dark and moody" notes Lucas to which Freene added, "It’s a dark story and it needs to be handled that way." The rest of the crew came together from a depleted pool as a number of Western Australian productions were shooting at the same time but the filmmakers were extremely happy with the key crew and everyone quickly got together to achieve Ben’s clear vision. "Once the crew got together on set, everyone realised that we were striving very high and perhaps higher than they were used to. I think that a lot of people on the crew started our shoot thinking that we were just another film but by the end of it I’m entirely sure that the vast majority of people were really united about something that they really believed in," says O’Bryan. Casting was the first and most important building block for the film making team. The producers looked at the Australian films they liked and the same casting agent’s name kept turning up: Greg Apps. "The guy who put Russell Crowe into "Proof" (2005) and "Romper Stomper" (1992) and put Eric Bana into "Chopper" (2000), he was at the top of our list", Landers says, "so we started there and to our surprise he accepted." The team cast their net far and wide looking for unknown actors with the ability to bring real life, authenticity and presence to the characters, holding auditions in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne and Perth. The filmmakers were even prepared to look at screen tests from as far afield as New Zealand, Canada and the US. The most important thing to get right was the ensemble as a whole so actors were not cast in isolation but were tested and re-tested in different combinations to find the best fit. A number of the key cast came from the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts which counts 2006 ShoWest Convention USA Male Star of the Year Award winner Hugh Jackman among its alumni. Open workshops in Perth provided a great pool of young actors to draw on for the minor roles and even turned up a key cast member. "To have such a huge ensemble cast and to get every part as right as we have is just extraordinary" says Lucas, "it’s the heart and soul of it, they’re the reason why we are watching the film." Ben worked closely with the actors throughout a three week intensive rehearsal period before pre-production commenced, taking on their feedback and benefitting from the way they chose to inhabit and develop their roles. "As a director, you’ve got all the characters to think about, as well as everything else, but the actors spend all their time just thinking about their own character so they can come up with some really good ideas," he notes. Oliver Ackland (Darren) straight away responded to the character when he read the script, even from an early draft, relishing the opportunity to see an outsider take on the popular kids. "I didn’t want to make him an out and out nerd, he’s pretty introspective and a loner by choice. He’s chosen to remove himself and he had chosen to exist in his own little bubble." Oliver was encouraged by Lucas to think of Darren as a modern, reclusive Renaissance man and Oliver found connections for Darren in iconic figures like Nick Cave and Kurt Cobain. Adelaide Clemens was cast as Xandrie. "I think she’s pretty amazing, she goes this was something that happened to me and there’s no way I invited it, there’s no way I deserved it, I’m not going to let it beat me." Adelaide spent a lot of time trying to understand Xandrie's journey from a happy, confident girl, then going through a personal hell and ultimately seeking revenge. She spent time with counselors talking about the experiences of assault and drugs and drew great inspiration from a book of literary suicides when trying to understand Xandrie’s ultimate decision. Alex Russell was cast as school bully, Zack. "I was like Shay at school, Zack was the guy who picked on me so I think I really liked the idea of playing the bully." Alex is well known as an incredibly lovely and friendly guy so the role of Zack wasn’t as easy to inhabit as he’d hoped: "It was a big challenge to understand where he was coming from. The breakthrough came when Ben told me he’s the life of the party, that he’s a happy guy who just wants to have fun." Ben said: "You have to think of him as the hero in this film. He’s not the villain." Russell, who graduated from NIDA in 2008 recalls: "Suddenly I understood him." "Wasted On The Young" is Russell's first feature film. What's It All About?

In the 'always on' but disaffected society of an elite high school, step brothers Zack and Darren occupy opposite ends of the school’s social hierarchy. At one of Zack’s parties Xandrie, the only person with whom Darren ever connected, is drugged and assaulted before being left for dead in nearby sandhills. After Xandrie doesn’t show up at school Darren tries to find out what happened but no-one knows, says or does anything. No-one can or they just don’t care. When Xandrie finally does return to school it sets off a chain reaction. Even when she decides to take matters into her own hands Xandrie realises that nothing will be achieved. Darren, sick of being picked-on, used-up and beat-up, decides that if he doesn’t do something then no-one will. Darren’s plan plays out at another one of Zack’s parties and soon the brothers have their lives at the mercy of the popular opinion.

The Verdict "If there's one thing "Wasted On The Young" does confirm, it is this: there's a heck of a lot of young, creative, talent, in this country. Set in a digital age ruled by Facebook, mobile phone and computer communication, and where there is nary a parent/adult within coo-ee, "Wasted On The Young" defines every parents nightmare: what are our kids up to, when we are not there? The answer is simple: as they move through the teens years most parents wouldn't have a clue, because they too, are in a world of their own. The young people potrayed in "Wasted On The Young" come across as 'the young getting wasted'. They party hard, are bullied at school, take drugs and don't appear to take a stand against anything, until they are backed into the proverbial corner and forced to make a choice. One that can not be taken likely. To do so they must care about where their lives are heading. In the main, the cast perform well, withe standout performances from Oliver Ackland and Adelaide Clemens. It's a film every parent should see, is how one audience member described their experience to me. Hopefully parents will see it with their teen children. With a good storyline, terrific cinematography and, soundtrack, there's plenty of hooks to attract a wide audience. And don't write it off because it is an Australian production. Get through the first ten minutes and you'll definitely find yourself well and truly rewarded. Recommended. 3 1/2 STARS." The Production Team

Director Screenplay Producers Cinematography Film Editor Casting Production Design Production Manager

... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...

Ben C Lucas Ben C Lucas Janelle Landers & Aidan O'Bryan Dan Freene Leanne Cole Gregory Apps Sam Hobbs James Grandison

Who Is Playing Who?

Oliver Ackland Adelaide Clemens Alex Russell Patrick Cullen Georgina Haig Geraldine Hakewill T.J. Power Jessica Rawnsley Bradley Stevens Tom Stokes Kym Thorne Will Simpson Nathan Coenen

... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...

Darren Xandrie Zack Shay Simone Ella Brook Nikki Rosen Stug Jonathan Karen Party Goer Young Boy

Run Time 97 minutes Rated MA15+ [AUST] Copyright ©2011 - Paramount Pictures - All Rights Reserved ©1999-2011 - The Movie Pages & Impact Internet Services - All Rights Reserved. Protected by Australian & International Copyright, Trademark Laws & Intellectual Property Rights.