The ghost-themed independent feature Muirhouse, written and directed by first-time feature filmmaker Tanzeal Rahim from The Media Collective, is one of the Australian films that will be screening in the market at the upcoming Cannes Film Festival.
Muirhouse feels like a film made from "found-footage": shot on location by cinematographer Dan Freene (Wasted on the Young), the film actualizes the real-life horror themes of one of the most haunted — reportedly — homesteads in Australia, The Monte Cristo in Junee, NSW.
The history of the house is littered with stories of foul play, murder and painful death, all of which are explored with a hand-held camera style reminiscent of The Blair Witch Project.
The small cast and crew shot the entire film on-site over a two-year period beginning in May 2010.
“The feeling in the house is something else," said Muirhouse leading man Iain PF McDonald. "You immediately feel like you’re being watched when you enter. It’s creepy."
Rahim said the attention Muirhouse attracted from industry professionals prompted him to premiere the film at Cannes, where it will screen twice. No sales agent is attached.
“We are very confident in Muirhouse and feel it’s more a question of who, not if, in regards to distribution,” said Rahim.
McDonald, a Brisbane-bred Sydney actor, said his latest gig is on Australian writer/director Antony J Bowman's new film Almost Broadway, which is currently filming in Los Angeles. Bowman directed Hugh Jackman and Claudia Karvan in Paperback Hero back in the 90s. He has cast several Australians, including Cameron Daddo, in his new film.
McDonald has appeared in a number of short films and commercials including Rahim's The Piano Brothers for Advanced Medical Institute. Executive producer Aisha Deeb is also attending Cannes alongside the pair.