Marta Dusseldorp, Melina Vidler and Albert Mwangi will come together in Adelaide next week for Kelly Schilling’s With or Without You, a real-life inspired mother-daughter story of finding love and safety from tough beginnings.
To be produced by SixtyFourSixty and Carolyn Johnson Films, the film follows Chloe (Vidler), who sets out to remove her entertaining but alcoholic mother Sharon (Dusseldorp) from the claws of temptation to start new lives in an idyllic location, leading them to embark on a road trip with a mysterious West African refugee Dalu (Mwangi).
As they travel along in Chloe’s rundown wagon, misconceptions and misunderstandings soon make way for the realisation that facing your fears is the first step to freedom.
Schilling wrote the screenplay and also makes her feature directorial debut with the drama, working with producers Su Armstrong and Carolyn Johnson, as well as executive producer Brian Rosen.
The project is being made with principal production funding from Screen Australia and the South Australian Film Corporation (SAFC) via the SAFC Screen Production Fund and the SA PDV rebate.
The production will also receive investment from the Adelaide Film Festival, with CEO and creative director Mat Kesting announcing at the closing night of this year’s festival on Sunday that With or Without You would have its Australian premiere at the 2024 event. Local distribution will be handled by Icon Film Distribution, with LevelK looking after international sales
All production and post-production will be completed in South Australia.
Schilling, a South Australian native, was excited to bring the story to the screen in a familiar setting.
“It’s a dream coming true to be working on a story that connects to me in so many ways, with
such an amazing cast and crew, in the place I call home,” she said.
In a statement, Armstrong and Johnson described With or Without You as “such an honest, unique and personal story” that “has the power to move people in uplifting ways”.
“We’re thrilled to be making Kelly’s debut feature in and around Adelaide.”