The filming

On 5.12.2009 I was up at 0530. I had a helluva day ahead, and was planning to use my wife's small car so she could come up later with my bigger car and the trailer, jammed with food for cast and crew, children, chef and various props. Loaded to the roof, I finally left Canberra at around nine. I carefully covered the two crossbow props, as I had found out they were illegal (yes, even replica's with no function) in all of Australia except.. Queensland! I drove straight through to Castle Cove, with near disastrous effects on my bladder. Got there at 1pm. In Castle Cove is Mal Green Sound studio, a basement recording studio in the home of Mal Green, who was drummer for Split Enz for ten years. He'd just returned from the UK, with a heavy cold! We laid down the tracks in double quick time, and I got out of there at 3.30pm. I wanted to get over the bridge before the traffic started getting bad.

Got to R and K's home in Tamarama and had a few drinks with them before R walked me to his favourite hole-in-the-wall Italian restaurant in Bondi beach. A pizza and a large bowl of mussels were washed down with a good red wine. I hardly slept that night and took off quite early to get back to Mal Green's, where he'd laid down the tracks onto 16-bit CD for me. From there I had to strike out across country to get to route 40 which was the road to Windsor and the Blue Mountains. The north shore's certainly got busier since I lived there more than a decade ago. I made it across to Lane Cove Road and then to route 40. Then I headed west, though no longer a young man.

Got to Madison's resort in the Blue Mountains quite early: a well-laid out series of cabins on long lawn, with a central common room and indoor pool. I found J the director in the cabin next door, frazzled from his busy job, and storyboarding like crazy into several large children's sketch pads. I left him to it, but not before showing him some props and playing the 2 songs to him. I checked out the alpaca herd and the rickety jetty into the dam. I phoned home: a dog had killed one of the chooks. I went round the cabins and met D the first AD, and C the DOP. We all went on a recce trip into the bush. The road was a 4WD track. I was sceptical: how much time were we going to take getting the big camera truck around these sites? It was nearly 40 degrees also - my mind was boggling thinking about the water needed to keep everyone hydrated. Spectacular country though. The film will look good.

Later we all went to the Kurrajong hotel. five of us: J, me, C, D and his partner N (script supervisor and continuity) all chose the Fisherman's Basket! A giant pile of batter and stuff that may once have come from the sea. Bed to a chorus of frogs and bright Orion overhead. Tomorrow things will really get going. Money's pouring out of my pockets like water. Not as if it's easy come, either! Still, 'the film's the thing, wherein to catch the conscience of the Yowie.' Take care of the art and the pennies will take wing of themselves. Note to self: stop mangling idioms.