Young Sydney actor and screen writing newcomer, Joshua
Longhurst,
is making his mark with his debut short drama script Ravage. The
story follows the last days of a complicated clandestine affair
between a young school teacher and her 17-year-old male student.
The screenplay focuses on the choices we make and the
uncertainty of the consequences. The powerful script looks at
the complexities that create the silences around sexual assault
and the often blurry area that surrounds ideas of consent and
duty of care. Not an easy subject matter to deal with,
especially for first time writer, but Josh felt it was a story
that he needed to find a way to be told with a bold truth and an
honest point of view.
"I always loved hearing people's opinions of the story as
everybody seemed to have something to say. The story polarizes
opinions. People who read it either love it or hate it and that
really excites me, it is evoking a strong response and no one
seems to be ambiguous about what they think of the story" says
Longhurst.
Early last year ArtStart NSW and Metro Screen funded a training
program for young writers which was aimed at finding and
developing young writers, giving them the tools to develop their
writing, as well as opportunities to meet and learn with and
from other established writers. Places in the program were
competitive and young writers had to submit work to be part of
it. Joshua was pretty stoked when he was selected. What followed
was an intensive 13 week mentorship with industry writing
professionals, Lachlan Philpott and Karel Segers. Joshua used
the program to continue to develop the story and learn how to
structure the script combining all the ideas in to the best
possible story.
"I was really drawn to the story as an actor. I just kept
thinking this was a role I would really love to explore. I had
never written anything that I showed to other people. It's
always been something I did locked away in my bedroom, just for
fun and as a bit of a creative outlet. I really only had a sense
of structure and what a polished script looked like from an
acting perspective but I never thought to really give it a go in
a professional sense," says Longhurst.
After finishing the script Joshua teamed up with his good friend
and young filmmaker, Jaime Lewis to come on board as director.
They paired up and applied for funding through Metro Screen's
First break Scheme, a film funding initiative aimed at first
time filmmakers supported by Screen NSW. They were over the moon
when they were told they were successful.
"Ravage is a piece about power and the abuse of it. The way we
can justify our actions, even when we know we maybe doing the
wrong thing, to get what we most desire. The film explores some
pretty dark and sensitive subject matter and I felt it was
important it be directed from a woman's point of view and after
speaking with Jaime I knew she understood where it was coming
from and how to handle it well," says Longhurst. "We feel so
lucky to have had the chance to make this film and now we are
just really excited about seeing the film go out to the world
and find its audience."
"We were genuinely provoked when Josh submitted Ravage to the
First Breaks program. Josh is a filmmaker unafraid to step
outside the square, he refuses to be boxed in by formula or
convention. Josh combines great writing with a passion for risk.
There aren't enough boundaries pushed in local shorts at the
moment and First Breaks is the perfect opportunity for talented
emerging filmmakers to rise above the crowd." Says David Opitz,
Metro Screen's Productions and Projects Manager
is making his mark with his debut short drama script Ravage. The
story follows the last days of a complicated clandestine affair
between a young school teacher and her 17-year-old male student.
The screenplay focuses on the choices we make and the
uncertainty of the consequences. The powerful script looks at
the complexities that create the silences around sexual assault
and the often blurry area that surrounds ideas of consent and
duty of care. Not an easy subject matter to deal with,
especially for first time writer, but Josh felt it was a story
that he needed to find a way to be told with a bold truth and an
honest point of view.
"I always loved hearing people's opinions of the story as
everybody seemed to have something to say. The story polarizes
opinions. People who read it either love it or hate it and that
really excites me, it is evoking a strong response and no one
seems to be ambiguous about what they think of the story" says
Longhurst.
Early last year ArtStart NSW and Metro Screen funded a training
program for young writers which was aimed at finding and
developing young writers, giving them the tools to develop their
writing, as well as opportunities to meet and learn with and
from other established writers. Places in the program were
competitive and young writers had to submit work to be part of
it. Joshua was pretty stoked when he was selected. What followed
was an intensive 13 week mentorship with industry writing
professionals, Lachlan Philpott and Karel Segers. Joshua used
the program to continue to develop the story and learn how to
structure the script combining all the ideas in to the best
possible story.
"I was really drawn to the story as an actor. I just kept
thinking this was a role I would really love to explore. I had
never written anything that I showed to other people. It's
always been something I did locked away in my bedroom, just for
fun and as a bit of a creative outlet. I really only had a sense
of structure and what a polished script looked like from an
acting perspective but I never thought to really give it a go in
a professional sense," says Longhurst.
After finishing the script Joshua teamed up with his good friend
and young filmmaker, Jaime Lewis to come on board as director.
They paired up and applied for funding through Metro Screen's
First break Scheme, a film funding initiative aimed at first
time filmmakers supported by Screen NSW. They were over the moon
when they were told they were successful.
"Ravage is a piece about power and the abuse of it. The way we
can justify our actions, even when we know we maybe doing the
wrong thing, to get what we most desire. The film explores some
pretty dark and sensitive subject matter and I felt it was
important it be directed from a woman's point of view and after
speaking with Jaime I knew she understood where it was coming
from and how to handle it well," says Longhurst. "We feel so
lucky to have had the chance to make this film and now we are
just really excited about seeing the film go out to the world
and find its audience."
"We were genuinely provoked when Josh submitted Ravage to the
First Breaks program. Josh is a filmmaker unafraid to step
outside the square, he refuses to be boxed in by formula or
convention. Josh combines great writing with a passion for risk.
There aren't enough boundaries pushed in local shorts at the
moment and First Breaks is the perfect opportunity for talented
emerging filmmakers to rise above the crowd." Says David Opitz,
Metro Screen's Productions and Projects Manager
"I am really inspired by artists who work across
different
platforms in the industry and as an actor you are always
thinking about story, so writing just seemed to compliment my
acting work really well. I was fortunate enough to be able to
create a story in which I could then work on as an actor as well
. As an actor you are always looking for a role that will push
the boundaries and challenge you, so it made sense to write
something I would want to play. So many times I have heard the
phrase "create your own work" and now I am beginning to
understand why," says Longhurst.
platforms in the industry and as an actor you are always
thinking about story, so writing just seemed to compliment my
acting work really well. I was fortunate enough to be able to
create a story in which I could then work on as an actor as well
. As an actor you are always looking for a role that will push
the boundaries and challenge you, so it made sense to write
something I would want to play. So many times I have heard the
phrase "create your own work" and now I am beginning to
understand why," says Longhurst.
Ravage is currently in production with Azure Productions.
For more information, high resolution images or interviews with
local Artists, please contact Tiani Chillemi - (02) 9356 1818 or
email [t.chillemi@metroscreen.org.au]
local Artists, please contact Tiani Chillemi - (02) 9356 1818 or
email [t.chillemi@metroscreen.org.au]
