[Press Release from TM Publicity]
Producers of the World War I film Beneath Hill 60 – to be shot in Townsville this year – are on a national search to identify the indigenous soldier in the attached photograph.
Producer Bill Leimbach said: ‘‘We are searching for the identity of the only Aboriginal miner among the 4850 miners from Australia who served as tunnellers who dug under the Western Front in WWI. One of the major characters in our film, Billy (Streaky) Bacon, is an Aboriginal tunneller and it would be invaluable to our writer to know the true story.”
Beneath Hill 60 is a WW1 feature film based on the incredible true-story of the miners from Queensland, led by Captain Oliver Woodward, from Townsville, played by Brendan Cowell (Love My Way, Noise), who fought a silent war in tunnels beneath the trenches on the Western Front. Unlike Gallipoli, it is a story of victory and not defeat, as the Australians helped to win World War I on the Western Front.
Leimbach hopes someone might know the Aboriginal soldier’s identity or help point them in the right direction. ‘‘We are looking for someone who can identify this fellow or perhaps recognise the other people in the photo. In fact any small clue could help the research for my scriptwriter David Roach,” he said.
“This incredible part of Australia’s history has never before been told on the big screen or on TV and is particularly resonant in the Townsville and North Queensland communities, as the film’s characters were from these areas.
“The town is really behind the project. As we intend to shoot the entire film on location in Townsville, it has the potential to broaden and develop tourism in the area. We hope to do for Townsville what Baz Luhrmann’s Australia did for Bowen. We will also be using many local actors, extras, crew members and tradesmen from Townsville, Cairns and North Queensland to boost employment levels,” Leimbach said.
Over the past few weeks finding the aboriginal miner has turned into just one of the productions growing obstacles – the global financial crisis being the number one.
“It’s so ironic that the downturn in Townsville is mainly in the mining sector, the sector that the film is all about,” Leimbach said.
Director of Beneath Hill 60 is highly regarded director, writer and actor Jeremy Sims (Last Train to Freo, Pork Chop Productions). Jeremy said: “Despite the downturn in the mining sector Townsville has embraced the film throughout its development and now we’re hoping the town will continue to support us with investment in the film’s production. We’re actively looking for companies and individuals willing to go on the Beneath Hill 60 journey with us as financial partners.”
Many notable professionals are on board with the project, including Jeremy Sims as director, David Roach as screenwriter, and actors Brendan Cowell, Hugo Weaving, Gyton Grantley and John Hannah who will play miners, along with the actor chosen to play Streaky.
Anyone with information about this aborignal miner is asked to go to the film’s website to send an email www.beneathhill60.com.au