Oyster Farmer

• Oyster Farmer was filmed in late 2003 during the spring/early summer and took 33 days to shoot.
• The filming locations along the Hawkesbury River were so remote, that only four of the 19 locations were accessible by road.
• The river’s tide moves rapidly between high and low, so shooting schedules and crew call times had to be planned with the help of a tide chart.
• In some locations the crew found themselves knee-deep in water at high tide and the entire production was stranded one night in the rain on mudflats.
• “The tide waits for no-one,” was a phrase the crew used a lot.
• Many local oyster farmers had speaking and non-speaking parts in the film.
• Scaffolder Gary Henderson (Oyster Farmer Barry) was found on a building site by Alex O’Loughlin, who recommended him to Anna Reeves.
• As writer/director Anna Reeves had written the role of Brownie’s wife, Trish, with Kerry Armstrong in mind, she was one of the first actors to be cast.
• Finding someone to play the lead role of Jack Flange was more challenging. “You go down to the beach and there’s all these gorgeous young men who could play Jack Flange but they probably couldn’t act their way out of a paper bag,” Anna says. “I had to find an actor who was convincing as a man oyster farmers would give a job to, he had to look like he’d done hard physical work. But I knew I would recognize the qualities when I found the right actor…….and Alex walked in. He was so keen and I knew he would have the courage to play the role and give it his all.”
• David Field (Brownie) and Alex O’Loughlin (Jack Flange) went camping on the banks of the Hawkesbury to immerse themselves in the river life and get acquainted with the locals prior to shooting the film. Alex recalls, “We hired a boat, found a little beach somewhere up the river and rolled out our swags. We went fishing, ate fresh fish, talked about the script… it was great. It’s so peaceful on the river, the air is clean, there’s wildlife and trees. It has its own little sub-climate and that has an interesting effect on you.”
• David Field says of Alex O’Loughlin and Diana Glenn (Pearl) that they are “wonderful discoveries, with great chemistry on screen.”
• Alex O’Loughlin bonded with Brady Kitchingham, the boy who played Heath Sweetwater.
• As Australia Post did not want to be associated with a robbery, even a fictitious one, the production had to create their own postal services for the film: Allied Post. As the local post office in Brooklyn, where Oyster Farmer was filmed, was privately owned, the customization was easily implemented.
• Producer Anthony Buckley states in the DVD commentary that the bathtub Mumbles renovated for Trish stands on his veranda. It’s “operational but I can tell you, it’s bloody uncomfortable.”
• Mature women would continually ask Anthony Buckley about Alex’s tattoos. “‘Are the tats real, Tony?’ ‘Yes they are, much to the make-up artist’s consternation.’ They seem to be quite intrigued with Alex’s tats, so I hope he realizes that if he’s interested in older women, there’s a mature market”.
• Alex O’Loughlin had to eat a lot of boysenberry fruit wrap for the robbery scene, which was inspired by Australian icon Edward “Ned” Kelly.
• Anna Reeves says that “you had to have a great sense of humor to be part of Oyster Farmer.” Two memorable occasions for her:
  • “… like the sex scene with what feels like the Spanish Armada parked off the end of the jetty.”
  • There was only one morning available to shoot the train sequence, with just seven minutes on the line between the two stops they wanted to shoot. They were allowed to get on the train going one way, but they weren’t permitted to go back as it was peak time going to Sydney. “We’d have to pack up and pile out at the station, make a mad dash across the tracks and leap into a boat with two massive motors — and we’d literally race the train back down the tracks, carry our gear across the overpass over the station, and wait on the platform for the next train to come. It was like making a documentary – guerilla style and highly entertaining as well.”

Sources: Oyster Farmer Production Notes, DVD commentary (Australian edition)

• “There is nothing intimate about a sex scene at all. You have got 30 people standing around and there is a camera between your legs and there are lights and make-up girls looking at your bum to make sure you haven’t got too much shine. If I never did another one, that would be just fine.” — AAP General News, Australia, June 16, 2005
• “If we didn’t laugh about it, we would have been crying. Now I’ve started worrying because Oyster Farmer is going out on 22 screens internationally in July, and there’ll be my naked bum again.” — The Courier Mail, June 23, 2005
• “It was very exposing, in more ways than one.” — The Canberra Times, June 28, 2005
• “When I read the script, I was drawn to Jack’s character and I really wanted to tell his story.” — Nationwide News, June 14, 2005
• “When I looked around the set at the amazing actors I was working with – Jack Thompson, Kerry Armstrong, Jim Norton, David Field – it sometimes didn’t feel quite real. I feel very fortunate to have had the experience, every moment I listened intently and watched what they were doing. I had so much to learn and they were all so willing to teach….I felt blessed.” — “Oyster Farmer” Production Notes, 2005
• “The script looks at what it is like to be a man in this society. Jack is an Aussie bloke, he’s a little bit ostentatious, a little bit obnoxious, a little bit cheeky, but he’s sensitive as well. Jack is really a city kid who ends up in the scrub for the first time in his life and, unexpectedly, finds a community and love.” — “Oyster Farmer” Production Notes, 2005
• “I opened up the script and started reading it, and I couldn’t put it down. It’s fantastic, the writing is so powerful and the characters are so strong and full, and it’s such a beautiful story and such an important story, I think, for us, because of the way things are in the world at the moment. It’s about love; it’s about hope; and it’s about family. I just went back to [my agent's] office and said, ‘I’ve got to do this; get me this job!’” — FilmStew.com, September 14, 2004
  
• “We hired a boat, found a little beach somewhere up the river and rolled out our swags. We went fishing, ate fresh fish, talked about the script…..it was great. It is so peaceful on the river, the air is clean, there’s wildlife and trees. It has its own little sub-climate and that has an interesting effect on you.” — “Oyster Farmer” Production Notes, 2005

• Brooklyn (Hawkesbury River), New South Wales, Australia
• Sydney Fish Market, Pyrmont, Sydney, News South Wales, Australia