Last night the WA feature film WASTED ON THE YOUNG had its hometown premiere at the Luna Cinema in Leederville; cast, crew, local pollies and perthonalities strode the red carpet on Oxford Street. There had been considerable Internet buzz about the movie and the packed house was eager to see how accurate the international reviews had been. The film has already done an impressive circuit of festivals including Turin, Pusan and Toronto.
Minister for Culture and the Arts John Day launched the film on behalf of the WA government. Opening speeches were made by producers Aidan O’Bryan and Janelle Landers. Writer director Ben C.Lucas made only a few introductory remarks saving himself for the Q&A session that was scheduled after the screening. Lead actor Oliver Ackland was also at the podium.
The movie itself turned out to be an intense, driving and technically excellent film that made the most of its relatively small budget. The WA government’s film office ScreenWest partly funded the film out of its West Coast Visions Initiative. They must consider it money well spent as WASTED ON THE YOUNG has been picked up for distribution in Australia and New Zealand by Paramount. This is unusual for a small Australian movie. Especially as Lucas admitted in the Q&A afterwards, he made it with “his indie arthouse hat on”.
After the Q&A, there were plenty of positives flying around on the footpath outside the Luna. WASTED ON THE YOUNG opens in Australian Cinemas on Thursday March 3rd. Accessreel fans keep your eyes peeled because in the next few days we will post a review of the film and an interview with its director Ben C.Lucas
