Filming commenced in a little town called Berwick in Victoria and deals with Neal’s past and why he decided to take to the road to live the life of solitude. Brett Williams shot the first day sequences and then passed the torch to Ian Dart to conclude the remaining days of super 8 filming. Most of the first day shooting took place at the Batty residence with the entire Batty family filling in as Neal’s family. Even the neighbours got in on the action. A huge “thank you” goes to Bill and Wendy Batty for allowing us to use their home as a location - and this on a rainy day with loads of mud. Also appreciation goes to all the other extras who gave up their time and patience for the day. The morning went by without complications after which the production moved to Johnston Street, Brunswick where we concluded a few shots at the Bourbon Bar. We must thank Caroline Beney for giving us complete access. The little bar is a great venue and we utilised it to form the backdrop to a scene where Neal reflects on his disheartening situation and makes the definitive choice.

Day 2 of super 8mm sequences continued at the beautiful Earth Sanctuary in Geelong. Currently holding the leftover sets for Ned Kelly and was also the preferred location for Ghost Rider. It’s a spectacular location and well worth a visit just to see all the breeding marsupials and wildlife galore. Have a look at their website: www.esl.com.au (currently under construction due to management reshuffling). Unfortunately the wildlife had to settle for second place as we were there to cover Mary’s past. This was the first day Lana was present on set and had to drive a manual car, after being used to driving an automatic her whole life… but she had been practising and that gear stick was shown a thing or two. During one of the more serious takes where Lana (who plays Mary) had to make a defiant decision, and Lana pulled it off even while being attacked by a bee - what a trooper! Yet again it was a very relaxed day with enough time to even take in some local scenery.

The final day of Super 8 production was actually the final day of production. We saw Jamie clean shaven and short hair after keeping it rugged for the production. We saw a weary Ian Dart making his way to Albert Park, Melbourne and saw the introduction of Neal’s girlfriend, Patricia (played by Daisy Green). It did not feel like a normal production day, instead it was a moment that we could reflect on the past month and laugh at all the bizarre and funny moments as well as rate each crisis and revel in what we had accomplished. A good day!