The Indie film fest atmosphere was in full swing. As dusk fell the sky glowed orange, and the Botanic Gardens bats were swirling above. There was a sense of prescience in the air as David Wenham came to the stage. A random on something from Happy High Herbs broke the suspense shouting, “Will you buy my bus ticket home?” David Wenham was quick to give the hint, “No, I won’t buy your bus ticket for you.” In a Surry Hills cafe, Genevieve recalls the moment: “There was an eternity between when he (David Wenham) was saying that and when I realised that it was a line from my film… all I did was scream. It was a real relief.” The surprise was filled with UTS pride as our very own MAP student took the pineapple, and $100,000 dollars worth of prizes, smiling radiantly in an eye-catching red dress.
Meeting on a sunny Sunday, Genevieve hadn’t forgotten her university, leaving a gap in her Tropfest-winning schedule to talk with Vertigo. She arrived clad in a ‘50s-style dress patterned with popcorn kernels, hinting at her betrothal to cinema: “At seven I was determined to be an Oscar award-winning actress,” she reveals. Her modest Parisian elegance gives this impression. “Soon I learnt that I was better at making stories than being in them,” she muses as she briefly touches her coiffeur, short and reminiscent of Audrey Hepburn.
Raised by her grandmother and mother in South Cardiff, a small town near Newcastle, she was brought up with the altruistic values that inspire her filmmaking and her vision for how she wants to affect the industry. “It can be such a self-driven, self-motivated industry. People write stories for themselves. I wrote my ‘Be My Brother’ script for someone. I’m writing my next script for someone,” she reflects. “I think it’s definitely important to have a sense of servitude in your career; helping others who’ve helped you or helping others just because.”
Her approach to film is far more centred on the thrust of story telling and pursues a social justice mission. She wants to see a greater focus on writing in film; “a good script, no matter what you shoot it on, no matter what technical faults, will shine through… I think that it is vitally important for the Australian industry to focus on script development and finding, supporting and celebrating good writers,” she says, sipping a latte.
Some have criticised her film for not being as stylistic as the others, yet Genevieve sees film as much more than a cinematographic ego-stroke. “I was thinking if we just get best actor for Gerard then that’s my job done... That’s something that Gerard has been dreaming of for a long time, and it’s really great that it came to pass,” she says.
Gerard O’Dwyer, the down-syndrome thespian that touched the audience showcases his bard-like flare in the film. His character quotes lines from Shakespeare, The Lion King and a Frank Spencer comedy, and breaks down the prejudices of an estranged brother by charming a girl at a bus stop. Genevieve’s ability to see this spark of humanity in Gerard is evidence of her skill to write cinematic realities that hold true human value.
Her decision to explore the universal themes of rejection, prejudice and the healing power of love and her ability to construct a slice of life that warms hearts impressed judges. It doesn’t seem to be a show of philanthropy for Genevieve; it’s an important part of sharing her experience and without undue cliché, being true to herself: “… In high school, I was rejected a lot. I think you reject yourself internally a lot of the time too. I got to points where I thought ‘I’m no good,’ and you have to make the choice to overcome it,” she reflects.
It is this inner integrity that propels her, and her education at UTS helped to develop a voice and fostered her passion for film. “UTS definitely laid down the foundations and gave me a lot of support,” she says.
She provides this piece of advice for uni filmmakers who want to make it in the film industry: “The thing about studying film is that you’ve got to do it yourself, you’ve get outside the boundaries of your uni and find your own work experience; that is how you should use the course to your best advantage,” she muses. It wasn’t all self-driven. She lists Michel Gondry and Steve McQueen as auterist idols. When she first moved to Sydney she worked in a bar, which Baz Luhrmann often frequented. “I used to sit down with him and have a glass of champagne... He was really kind and very encouraging. He said that if you want to do this (be a professional filmmaker), all you’ve got to do is make as many films as you can. It was great having him there and having him to look up to,” she reflects.
Her vision for the future remains ambitious. She says she already has four projects on the backburner including a documentary series, a comedy, an Australian miniseries and a feature film in the works. When describing the underlying aspect that draws all her work together she muses: “No matter what you’ve done, what you go through, who you are… you can still achieve your dreams and have the life that you hope for… it [the message of my work] is all about hope.” Her other more audacious goal is to establish a production company with this message in mind.
She smiles at me with her pert affect. It seems in this grim global climate, Genevieve hasn’t lost any of her mettle: “I want to challenge and inspire people and uplift them with my stories.
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