The low-budget Aussie horror film make headlines overseas – NEWS.com.au (blog)

A couples camping trip turns into a frightening ordeal when they stumble across the scene of a horrific crime.

Australian actor Harriet Dyer in a scene from Killing Ground.

WHEN Tasmanian director Damien Power was a teenager sitting in a darkened Launceston cinema he never imagined one day hed be debuting his first feature to packed out crowds at the Sundance Film Festival.

He certainly didnt expect that this film- a low-budget suspense thriller shot in bushland an hour out of Sydney would be getting rave reviews on the other side of the world and would send him almost overnight from unknown Aussie to Hollywood Hot Property.

In fact, the only thing Power had in his mind when picturing his new film Killing Ground, was an image. A fleeting vision of an orange tent, abandoned in thick bushland in the heat of summer with three burning questions: Who found it, what happened to the owners and who is responsible for their disappearance?

Its been ten years since he first imagined that deserted tent. And now Power hasnt just been discovered, hes been applauded. Industry bible The Hollywood Reporter called Killing Ground A chilling debut, while Variety said that Power had made an impressive first feature, marking him one to watch.

The film-going public were just as enthusiastic.

We were in the midnight session and it was sold out! Power explains to news.com.au.

They had to schedule an extra screening! Midnight audiences were great I guess youve got be committed to go to the movies at midnight especially when youre walking through the driving snow to get there, but they loved it. They lapped it up!

A scene from Damien Powers film Killing Ground.Source:Supplied

What sets Killing Ground apart from other thrillers is its unconventional structure. The film intertwines three separate stories, seemingly in different times and spaces: Two lovers on a weekend getaway; a family in peril and a pair of redneck psychopaths baying for blood.

The structure is meant to make you feel unsettled. The thriller genre is usually incredibly linear so I think playing with the structure is something audiences and critics have really loved.

Powers journey to Hollywood was via Hobart (for uni), and then film school in Sydney, and a stint at the censorship board where he was the youngest person appointed to the Office of Film and Literature Classification.

Critics have been quick to praise the fact that the violence in Killing Ground (although brutal) is never exploitative, something Power attributes to his time as a censor. Ive definitely had a long professional interest in how we watch violence. I wanted to make sure it wasnt just a violent film but a film about violence and what violence does.

Power feels movie violence is often wrongly presented as a heroic option.

I wanted the film to ask the question What would happen in real life? What would actually happen if I was faced with this threat? Because the answer is often different to what happens in the movies. This violence feels very real and I think thats what people are responding to.

The redneck psychopaths in Killing Ground.Source:Supplied

As for why, as a nation, we like making and watching films that are bleak and terrifying, Power thinks its because Australia has a dark and disturbing history.

This film talks about that about cycles of violence violence happened 200 years ago, it happened yesterday and today and its going to happen tomorrow. But thats why the structure (of the film) is important: It creates this sense of timelessness, this idea that these cycles of violence just get repeated endlessly and no one is safe.

Powers next move is to head back home for some warmth, some time with his kids and a chance to enjoy his new-found success.

We sold the film at Sundance so its going to have a run in US theatres which is fantastic for such a small Aussie movie. Its also going to play a few more festivals around the world and therell be an Australia-wide release announced soon, which is really exciting.

Mostly, hes just really happy that his ten-year effort has been worth it. Its just been so gratifying to see the film so warmly embraced. Knowing its going to keep going even further? Thats even better.

He wont be resting on his laurels too long. Sundance has created some amazing opportunities so Im trying to make the most of it! But yeah, Ive got plenty in the pipeline.

In other words, watch this space.

The Killing Ground will screen on Friday, March 10 at Event Cinemas in Sydney as part of Monster Fests Travelling Sideshow complete with a Q & A.

Follow Jenna Martin on Twiter @msjennamartin

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The low-budget Aussie horror film make headlines overseas - NEWS.com.au (blog)