KIAH ROACHE-TURNER<\/strong><\/a> and his WWII film, BEAST OF WAR. \u00a0And I\u2019ll let you in on a little hint. \u00a0The \u201cbeast\u201d is a bloodthirsty shark. I always enjoy speaking with KIAH and watching his films. \u00a0So creative, so well done, so entertaining. \u00a0By the way, have you guys seen Kiah’s film \u201cSting\u201d? \u00a0If you haven\u2019t, check it out. \u00a0It\u2019s fantastic.<\/p>\nSpeaking of fantastic, that\u2019s exactly what BEAST OF WAR is, and that\u2019s due in large part to Kiah\u2019s use of practical in-camera effects and an animatronic shark. \u00a0No CGI here. \u00a0And thank goodness!\u00a0 You all know how particular I am when it comes to sharks and shark movies.<\/p>\n
Inspired by the real-life story of the HMS Armidale, which was sunk by Japanese zeroes in WWII while crossing the Timor Sea, along with some of the personal WWII experiences of Kiah\u2019s grandfather, BEAST OF WAR is the tale of a young troop of Australian soldiers who must find a way to survive the harsh seas on a quickly shrinking life raft which was nothing more than a small hunk of their ship that hadn’t been obliterated. Hundreds of miles from anywhere, they must confront interpersonal conflicts, enemy attacks, and the advances of one very large, very hungry great white shark.<\/p>\n
Written and directed by Kiah Roache-Turner, BEAST OF WAR stars Mark Coles Smith, Joel Nankervis, Sam Delich, Lee Tiger Halley, Sam Parsonson, Maximillian Johnson, Tristan McKinnon, and Aswan Reid.<\/p>\n
With a brief amount of time to dive into the making of BEAST OF WAR, Kiah highlights the challenges of working with practical shark effects, which interestingly, were inspired by some of Kiah\u2019s own work on \u00a0Matthew Holmes’ “Fear Below” – as you may recall, I interviewed Matthew about \u201cFear Below\u201d and his level of authenticity and practical effects and wouldn\u2019t you know it, Kiah also called on the expertise of production designer Esther Rosenberg and costumer\/vintage prop houser Tracy Rose Parks for BEAST OF WAR. \u00a0Here, Kiah emphasized the use of a 40-meter indoor water tank and innovative lighting techniques of his DP Mark Wareham to create a realistic and atmospheric setting. \u00a0In addition to lighting, Wareham\u2019s lensing and camera blocking and dutching are unreal! \u00a0Beyond the visual grammar and visual tonal bandwidth, the soundscape is critical, and Kiah turned to Folklore for the film\u2019s sound design. \u00a0The sound fuels suspense, and its layering is so realistic. \u00a0As you\u2019ll hear him discuss, Kiah wanted the shark to have a sound similar to what Spielberg did with the yellow barrels in \u201cJaws.\u201d \u00a0Folklore delivered by incorporating an air raid siren lodged in the shark’s side. \u00a0Superb production elements, amazing performances, particularly from Mark Coles Smith and Joel Nankervis, and a shark to die for, BEAST OF WAR delivers on every level.<\/p>\n
BEAST OF WAR is currently in theatres and streaming on digital platforms.<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n
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