Homage: Director Richard Gray, centre at back, at Torquay with cast members of Blinder.
ERIN PEARSON
BELLARINE Football League players will star in a new Australian movie to begin filming on the Surf Coast this month.
Director Richard Gray said Blinder would “pay homage” to on and off-field contributors to Australian Rules.
Bellarine league players would have opportunities to appear in the movie as the crew began filming in locations from Portarlington to Anglesea.
“Don’t worry, though, the footy players won’t get big heads. They’ll be kept in check with a few hip and shoulders on the footy field,” Mr Gray laughed.
He called the region an “ideal” location for his country football film.
The movie would tell the story of an Australian NFL punter who returns to his home team, Torquay Tigers, to confront a scandal from his past.
Mr Gray said football traditions ranging from utes with couches to local watering holes would feature in the film.
“The most important thing about football is the people that run these clubs, the women behind the players and the 50-year-old volunteers who work other jobs at the same time,” he said.
“At lot of films go and shoot in a place but don’t say where it is but we’re so openly going to be all about the Torquay Tigers and Bellarine league.
“They’re going to be the real players, the real families.”
Mr Gray said his experience directing movies Summer Coda and Mine Games taught him audiences wanted to see “prettier” parts of the world.
“I grew up having holidays with the family at Lorne, so the area was an obvious choice for me and we couldn’t be happier.”
