Beneath Clouds

Beneath Clouds
DVD cover
Directed by	Ivan Sen
Written by	Ivan Sen
Produced by	Teresa-Jayne Hanlon
Starring	Dannielle Hall Damian Pitt
Cinematography	Allan Collins
Edited by	Karen Johnson
Music by	Ivan Sen Alister Spence
Release date	2002
Running time	90 minutes
Country	Australia
Language	English
Budget	A$2.5 million
Box office	A $548,416 (Australia)

Beneath Clouds is a 2002 film by Australian director Ivan Sen. It is the feature film debut by the two lead actors. Damian Pitt was approached by Sen on the streets of Moree, New South Wales, and had never acted before. Dannielle Hall was cast through a more traditional method, via an audition tape. Much of the support cast were local residents from Pitt's hometown of Moree.

Plot synopsis

Lena has an absent Irish father she longs to see and an Aboriginal mother she finds disgusting. When she breaks away, she meets up with petty criminal Vaughn who's just escaped from low security prison to reluctantly visit his dying mother. Blonde and light-skinned, Lena remains in denial about her Aboriginal heritage; Vaughn is an angry young man with a grudge against all whites. An uneasy relationship begins to form as they hit the road heading to Sydney, taking them on a journey that's as emotional as it is physical, as revealing as it is desperate.

Initially the two reluctant travelling companions are suspicious and wary of each other, but their journey, mostly by foot and the odd lift, builds an understanding between them. The film follows its creator's (Ivan Sen's) own experiences growing up in Inverell, NSW with an Aboriginal mother and a European father who was not around.

Production

The film was financed by the New South Wales Film Commission and the Australian Film Finance Corporation.

Reception

The Rotten Tomatoes Want-To-See score is currently 79%, but no official approval rating has been announced to this day. Only two film critics have posted reviews on the site, both positive. Urban Cinefile Critics commented "Displaying about equal amounts of naiveté, passion and talent, Beneath Clouds establishes Sen as a filmmaker of considerable potential". Andrew Howe of eCritic.com called it "One of the few feature films to canvass the issues facing the Aboriginal community from an adolescent perspective".

Accolades

Award	Category	Subject	Result
AACTA Awards (2003 AFI Awards)	Best Film	Teresa-Jayne Hanlon	Nominated
	Best Direction	Ivan Sen	Won
	Best Original Screenplay		Nominated
	Best Actress	Dannielle Hall	Nominated
	Best Cinematography	Allan Collins	Won
	Best Original Music Score	Alister Spence	Nominated
		Ivan Sen	Nominated
Berlin International Film Festival	First Movie Award		Won
	Golden Berlin Bear		Nominated
	New Talent Award	Dannielle Hall	Won
FCCA Awards	Best Female Actor		Nominated
	Best Director	Ivan Sen	Nominated
	Best Cinematography	Allan Collins	Nominated
	Best Music Score	Alister Spence	Nominated
		Ivan Sen	Nominated
Inside Film Awards	Best Direction		Won
	Best Actress	Dannielle Hall	Nominated
	Best Cinematography	Allan Collins	Won
	Best Editing	Karen Johnson	Nominated

Box office

Beneath Clouds grossed $548,416 at the box office in Australia.

See also

• List of Australian films
• Cinema of Australia

External links

Beneath Clouds at IMDb

Beneath Clouds at Anything Oz or New Zealand film and television web site.

• Beneath Clouds at the National Film and Sound Archive