Aaron Pedersen and Mark Leonard Winter have been added to the cast of The Fear of Darkness, writer-director Chris Fitchett’s supernatural thriller which starts shooting on March 6 on the Gold Coast.
They join the already announced cast of Maeve Dermody, Penelope Mitchell and Damien Garvey.
Mitchell (Hemlock Grove, The Vampire Diaries) will play Skye Williams, a patient in a psychiatric clinic who is accused of a gruesome murder. Dermody (Serangoon Road, Griff the Invisible) is Dr Sarah Faithfull, an empathetic psychiatrist who believes there is more to the case.
Pedersen, who played the lead in Ivan Sen’s Mystery Road and is a regular in the ABC Jack Irish telemovies, will portray Dr Nicholas Trengrove, a criminal psychologist who tries desperately to ensure that those around him stay grounded and not surrender to any imagined horrors in the dark.
Winter, who appears in Craig Monahan’s upcoming drama Healing and in Nick Matthews’ thriller One-Eyed Girl, is cast as Matt Sorensen, a womanising university lecturer.
“Aaron will bring a level of quiet gravitas to the role,” said Fitchett. “ I’m confident Winter’s youthful persona will translate flawlessly into a morally ambiguous character who is equal parts charming and despicable.”
This is the third full-length feature from Fitchett, whose earlier films were Blood Money and Desolation Angels. The producer is Mark Overett (Iron Sky, Separation City, Unfinished Sky).
The film is supported by Screen Queensland, post house Cutting Edge and private investors and will be released worldwide by Arclight Films. Michael Wrenn’s Greenlight Releasing is the Australian distributor.
It will shoot at the Village Roadshow Studios and on the Bond University campus.