The Office Picnic is a 1972 Australian comedy film directed by Tom Cowan. It was entered into the 8th Moscow International Film Festival.[2]
| The Office Picnic | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Tom Cowan |
| Written by | Tom Cowan |
| Produced by | Tom Cowan |
| Starring | John Wood Kate Fitzpatrick |
| Cinematography | Michael Edols |
| Edited by | Kit Guyatt |
Production company | Child's Play Moving Picture Company |
| Distributed by | Tom Cowan |
Release date |
|
Running time | 83 minutes |
| Country | Australia |
| Language | English |
| Budget | A$30,000[1] |
Plot summary edit
A group of public servants go on an annual picnic. Two of them, Peter and Elly, disappear.
Cast edit
- John Wood as Clyde
- Kate Fitzpatrick as Mara
- Philip Deamer as Peter
- Gaye Steele as Elly
- Ben Gabriel as Mr Johnson
- Max Cullen as Jim O'Casey
- Anne Tait
- Francis Flannigan
- Bryon Kennedy
- Graham Richards
- Elaine Smith
Production edit
Cowan got the idea to make the film while walking through the bush during shooting of a documentary in the Victorian countryside.[3] He says he was also influenced by the novels of Patrick White and the films of Antonioni.[4]
The film was shot on 35mm using a budget in part funded by the Experimental Film and Television Fund. It started in January 1972 but the money ran out during filming and there was a hiatus until filming resumed in April. The shoot took fifteen days in all.[3]
Release edit
The film was successfully previewed at Toorak and for a time it looked as though it would be distributed by British Empire Films but in the end most commercial screenings were arranged by the director.[1][3]
References edit
- ^ a b Andrew Pike and Ross Cooper, Australian Film 1900–1977: A Guide to Feature Film Production, Melbourne: Oxford University Press, 1998 p266
- ^ "8th Moscow International Film Festival (1973)". MIFF. Archived from the original on 16 January 2013. Retrieved 3 January 2013.
- ^ a b c David Stratton, The Last New Wave: The Australian Film Revival, Angus & Robertson, 1980 p184-185
- ^ Interview with Tom Cowan, 12 November 1998 Archived 14 November 2013 at the Wayback Machine accessed 11 Oct 2012
External links edit
- The Office Picnic at IMDb
- The Office Picnic at Oz Movies
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