Short film makes big splash

Film producer Bec Dakin’s film Glenn Owen Dodds screened last Saturday as part of the St George Bank Brisbane International Film Festival.

Claudia Baxter

EXPLORING the meaning of life in less than 20 minutes, a short film starring Australian actor David Wenham, has made a big splash.

The 16-minute film was among the 2010 finalists, which screened at the St George Bank Brisbane International Film Festival (BIFF), beating 35 other entries for the honour.

Producer Bec Dakin, a Camira resident, said Glenn Owen Dodds asked the big questions, in a comical way.

“It is a comedy about a guy who has a five-minute sit-down with a man who says he is God,” Ms Dakin said.

“It is not a religious film, it is about a young guy who is not a believer.

“God has five minutes to prove himself.”

Ms Dakin said she and director Frazer Bailey and scriptwriter Trent Dalton had been “doing the festival circuit since January”, with the film warmly received at festivals including the prestigious Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival in France and the Aspen Shortsfest, which is recognised as one of North America’s premier showcases for short film.

“To see a film screening in a theatre which seats 4000 and have it full of people is just phenomenal,” Ms Dakin said.

Shot around Brisbane, the 36-year-old said the film’s overall look had also helped it to garner fans.

“It was shot like a commercial feature and looks like a film which belongs in the cinema,” Ms Dakin said.

“It is like we have pulled 16 minutes out of a feature film.”

Ms Dakin who has made about 10 short films, as well as feature film The Horseman, said it was a thrill Glenn Own Dodds, had found such a wide audience.

“Everyone seems to love it,” she said.

“It is not designed to make people think too hard, it’s designed to give people a laugh.

“David Wenham is phenomenal and the script is brilliant.”