I am NOT mental

Toni Collette as Shaz in Mental

Giles Hardie (with P.J. Hogan), The Sydney Morning Herald, reports

Meet the most Mental Australian, Shaz, a goddess of "mind blowin truths" answered your questions (with the help of the film's writer/director PJ Hogan).

Shaz was here and live!

The disgruntled, embittered and arguably mental character upon whom PJ Hogan's new film Mental is based, answered your questions for an hour in the comments section of the Sydney Morning Herald article.

But now, it's farewell Shaz.

"Australia, I bid you so long, farewell, aufedersein, good night." SHAZ.

The answers are still here for your enjoyment.

WARNING: Shaz is not a medical health professional, though she is willing to help identify what is mental.

Take a browse of Shaz's twitter profile @shazismental and it quickly becomes apparent that Shaz believes:

·         Perth is a fictional city

·         Justin Bieber is a ventriloquist's dummy

·         George Clooney should play Ted in the movie version of Play School

Is there anything that you won’t discuss with our readers? (why/why not?)

Me life’s an open book since that PJ Hogan hack made this film about me.

However there is sum things I think should remain private like me sexual preferences. For all me loyal lezzie fans out there, sadly me lezzie days are behind me (unless that’s you textin me little Dannii Minogue).

I also don’t wish to discuss me torrid affair with Kevin Rudd, or that regrettable drunken nite with Tony Abbott when I made Tony wear a bag over his head. Also that rash cougar-moment with young Sam Clark on the set of Mental should probably go unmentioned. And I definitely don’t want to talk about that nasty yeast infection I had last month. Apart from them secrets fire away readers.

How would you summarize your life philosophy?

I am a sagacious, all-knowing muse, yet humble and approachable. I am committed to collecting rare and unusual bongs, the care of me dog Ripper and JUSTICE. I am often called upon by world leaders and deep thinkers for me sage advice – for example the Dalai Lama just doesn’t get why he has 12 million followers on Twitter yet known slag and waste-of-space Kim Kardashian has over 15 million. Personally I don’t get why the Dalai Llama is ON Twitter in the first place – shouldn’t he be out Llama-ing sumwhere?

Kevin Rudd doesn’t get why I won’t return his calls (one word, Kev: stalker). I maintain sum mysteries should remain unsolved like why does anyone watch Big Brother in the first place.

Are you mental? (and what does that mean?)

I am not mental.

The title of the film refers to the state of mind of the director when he was makin it. And that Toni Collette’s a total nut job too, but I can’t say that in public cause she’s also litigious.

I wanted to call it Goddess of Mind Blowin Truths but they couldn’t fit it on the poster.

Look, I don’t think there’s no such thing as ‘normal,’ not in this country – I mean, Prime Minister Harold Holt drowns and they name an Aquatic Centre after him, they charge ya for the Internet which should be free cause when was the last time ya ever saw CYBERSPACE on sale by the yard at Spotlight, and will sumone pleeze explain to me the whole concept of Guy Sebastion cause I don’t get it.

Author's journey across desert to leave tracks on big screen

The epic journey of Robyn Davidson, who walked the Australian desert with four camels and a dog, is to be recreated in a film. Photo: Edwina Pickles

Linda Morris, The Sydney Morning Herald, reports

After 35 years and a failed attempt by actress Julia Roberts to bring it to the big screen, the story of solo adventuress Robyn Davidson and her nine-month trek across Australia's central desert is to be made into a film.

The ethereal Mia Wasikowska will play the intrepid Davidson, while Adam Driver, of the HBO series Girls, will take on the role of Rick Smolan, the brash former National Geographic photographer who documented Davidson's trek, in a $12 million production that will begin filming on October 8 in South Australia and the Northern Territory.

In 1977 Davidson, with four camels and her dog, Diggity, set out to cross Australia's heartland for no better reason than she had wanted to find herself. She was mystified when her personal odyssey became the stuff of international headlines. Incorrectly reported as missing, she was pursued by paparazzi and had to shoot her beloved Diggity when the dog took poison bait.

Tracks is being produced by Emile Sherman and Iain Canning of See-Saw Films, whose credits include The King's Speech, Shame, and Oranges and Sunshine. It is being co-produced by Julie Ryan, maker of Red Dog and Ten Canoes. The film is to be directed by John Curran, from The Painted Veil and Praise, who also wrote the screenplay with Marion Nelson.

Davidson's journey was one of the great Australian stories that begged to be adapted for the big screen, Sherman says.

''Robyn, played by Mia Wasikowska, undertakes such an epic journey, doing what I suspect many of us wish we had the courage to do: to cast off the shackles of our lives, going as far away as possible from the noise of civilisation, and to find out how we would manage truly alone.

''At the same time, it's her unique relationship with her camel companions and her dog, Diggity, that gives the story such warmth and intimacy.

''And of course there is her more complicated relationship with the charismatic National Geographic photographer … whose ongoing intrusions she's forced to accommodate.''

The character of Davidson first drew Roberts, then Helen Hunt to the role. Disney bought the film rights in 1994. Tracks, Davidson's account of her solo venture, was an international bestseller and has been re-released by Bloomsbury for the start of the film's production.

Davidson, who is based in Melbourne and has struggled with public representations of herself as a romantic figure of the desert, is pleased with the casting of Wasikowska. The film will not exactly mirror her journey, but memory is a contentious thing.

''You have all these triggers in the book that allow other people to imagine and, indeed, allow me to imagine the trip, which is probably different from actually how it was,'' she says. ''People will think the film will be a representation of what happened and, of course, it's much further removeIt's a funny, strange, slippery thing - memory - and you have to make your identity up in the middle of it all.''

Moonshine and vanity

 

Guy Pearce had some tonsorial ideas for his role in Lawless.

Philippa Hawker, The Sydney Morning Herald, reports

It’s the eyebrows you notice first. Or rather, their absence. Guy Pearce is one of the stars of Lawless, a period film from the team of director John Hillcoat (The Road, The Proposition) and Nick Cave, who has written the screenplay and co-written the score. Pearce has chosen to portray his character, a brutal deputy, as a man who has taken the notion of hair care to a whole new level. He is shaved and styled to within an inch of his life. Lawless is a rural gangster movie, set in Franklin County, Virginia, during the Depression. It focuses on a family of bootleggers plying their trade under the semi-tolerant eyes of the local authorities. But there's a new figure in the frame: Charlie Rakes (Pearce), a vicious and calculating special deputy who has arrived from Chicago and wants to hold the bootleggers to account, by any means he can.

The film is based on real events, although its original source is a best-selling novel, The Wettest Country in the World, by Matt Bondurant. His grandfather was one of three brothers who operated an illicit still, and he drew on archives and family stories for his account of a resilient family business with some very particular ways of doing things.

Pearce began to read the novel, then decided he didn't want to confuse details of book and film, and would focus completely on the script. In the book, Rakes was a local character, but Cave has made him a figure from the big city, a dandy and a violent man, as fastidious as he is ferocious.

''Nick said the reason he wanted to make me so judgmental and so vain and so disgusted by everything around him is that he wanted him to seem like an absolute outsider,'' Pearce says. ''He is entering a world he has no understanding of whatsoever.''

The Bondurant boys are stubborn men who barely seem interested in profit, and certainly don't care for conspicuous consumption. Tom Hardy plays the eldest, Forrest, a man who simply wants to continue bootlegging, without taking orders from anyone else, whether they are criminals or representatives of law and order. Convinced of his invincibility, he seems almost recklessly committed to doing things his way. Jason Clarke is Howard, the second brother; Shia LaBeouf is the youngest, Jack, who seems enthusiastic but ill-equipped for the challenges of the family business.

Pearce's notion about the shaved eyebrows was, he says, ''based on what Nick had said about the vanity of the character. The combination of vanity and disdain for the people he has come to deal with. It is an indication of his judgment of the world, and of his distaste for dirt and extraneous hair. I thought eyebrows were something he wanted to get rid of.''

Before shooting started, Pearce mentioned this idea to Hillcoat, who was slightly dubious. So he held back, until he arrived in the US, and started going through reference photographs of people from the period. Pearce was struck by the severity of some of the haircuts, in particular by the image of a man who had shaved an extra-wide parting into his hair. Opting for this, he pleaded the shaving case again. ''I said, if we take the eyebrows off, it's going to give this strange, nude creepiness, and John said, 'Yes, you're right.'''

There's also something about Charlie - his extreme dapperness, his sharp suits, his manicured, coiffed, controlled look - that proclaims who he is. It's a way of asserting himself, Pearce suggests: he is drawing attention to himself, in the same way a police siren proclaims the presence and actions of the law.

There were risks, Pearce acknowledges, that he could easily push the characterisation too far. ''Some people really hate the performance,'' he says, frankly. ''They go, 'It's so camp and over the top, what the hell were you thinking?' And other people say, 'This is brilliant, this is what happens in life, strange people end up in unusual places, and there's a total mismatch.''' For Pearce, the divided opinions are not an issue ''as long as I feel I am honouring what Nick and John believe is right''.

Thematically, there are some similarities between Lawless and The Proposition, Hillcoat and Cave's first movie collaboration, in which Pearce also starred. It is set in the Australian outback in the 19th century, but it is also the story of a group of outlaw brothers, and of a lawman determined to hold them to account (although on that occasion Pearce was one of the brothers). But there's not the bleak, visionary intensity of The Proposition in Lawless.

To Pearce, ''Nick has a fascinating view of the world. And doing The Proposition, I felt that I was inside a Nick Cave song. The script is the most extraordinarily written script I have ever seen. There's something so formal, and yet so free and limitless, about his work.''

He is also struck, he says, by the female figures in Lawless: Jessica Chastain, as a woman from Chicago, a cool and elegant refugee from the big city and the Mob, who becomes close to Forrest, and Mia Wasikowska, as a preacher's daughter who is wooed by the ardent Jack. They are strong characters, he says, but they are also the product of a deeply romantic vision: that's who Cave is, he says, ''even though there is this Prince of Darkness whirlwind that seems to surround him''.

The scenes of violence in the film are relatively straightforward for an actor, Pearce says. ''I'm pretty good at that stuff, and Shia was right into it. The great thing about working with someone like Shia is that he is prepared to fling himself around like mad, just like I was when I was younger. You can't have any limits on this stuff, although you've obviously got to be safe.''

The important thing, he adds, is that ''if you are ever going to do anything violent in a film, it has to be realistic, and it has to be original. And to be as scary as real violence is.'' If you happen to see it, you can't stop thinking about it. And that's something directors often forget.

What's notable about the violence in The Proposition, he says, was what came next: ''There was the short, sharp burst, and then the shock afterwards. That's what is really effective. In a lot of films, the focus is on the actual violence, and everyone seems to be quite flippant afterwards, as if it has just gone away.''

■Lawless opens on October 11.

Diana movie strikes pap deal to rid itself of pap problem

These paps are actors and are part of the scene. The real ones, though, are headache for the film's makers. Picture: Splash NewsSource: Supplied

News.com.au reports

As a profession, the paparazzi isn't one known for its irony.

But the paps have managed to take it to a new level with its coverage of the Princess Diana movie.

The makers of the film, which chronicles the last two years of the hounded princess's life, are sick of photographers invading their sets to get snaps of Naomi Watts as Diana.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, Ecosse Films has struck a deal with Splash News & Picture Agency to give it access to the best photo angles in order to head off further tabloid intrusions.

"We knew we would have to deal with the situation, so we got out in front of it," a publicist for the film told the Hollywood Reporter.

The paparazzi problem had become a particularly acute during filming of scenes that recreated Diana's yacht trip with her lover Dodi Fayed.

Diana will be released next year and is directed by Downfall director Oliver Hirschbiegel.

Watts has said of playing the princess: "This is a first, but I find myself dreaming about her.

"I felt like I was spending time with her. One particular time, I felt that permission was granted."

She said she was hesitant to take on the role of "one of the most famous, if not the most famous, women of my time".

"An awful lot of pressure comes with that, so you want to get it right," she said. "I was dreading people saying, 'she looks nothing like Diana', and 'why her and not somebody else?'. But I couldn't not do it."

Liam Hemsworth 'fed up' with Miley Cyrus's childish attitude

Liam Hemsworth and Miley Cyrus on the set of Paranoia. Picture: Splash News Source: Supplied

News.com.au reports

Is Liam Hemsworth hungering for a more adult relationship - one that doesn't involve social media?

Well, according to Star Magazine, via Mail Online, the Australian star is tired of his fiance Miley Cyrus's habit of taking to Twitter every time they have an argument.

A source told the magazine: "He think she's acting like an immature schoolgirl, and he wants her to get off Twitter completely."

The latest alleged blow-up between the pair centres on a tweet Cyrus posted after they had an argument.

"Why do I torture myself and what ps I love you. ahhhhhh. I have got to pull it together."

Cyrus caused a stir earlier this month when she told her fans: "Ever feel like you want just ... something more. Not sure what exactly ... passion perhaps?"

Soon after she tweeted: "No there is not trouble in paradise ... just thoughts."

A source told Star that Hemsworth had taken Cyrus's latest tweet as a "huge insult". "She tried to pass it off like it had nothing to do with him, but it totally affected him, no matter what she tries to say," the source said.

"She was trying to get his attention, but she just ended up making him pull away from her more."

Mind you, Cyrus is only 19 - isn't that kind of behaviour par for the course?

Bug drives Lee mental

Sophie Lee

The Daily Telegraph reports

It’s the new Australian film already generating buzz ahead of its release in cinemas next Thursday thanks to a big-name cast including Toni Collette, Rebecca Gibney and Anthony LaPaglia.

But for fans of Muriel's Wedding it will be another familiar face in Mental that elicits a chuckle when Sophie Lee makes an unexpected cameo appearance.

Having starred alongside Collette as a wronged bride in the black comedy 18 years ago, Lee was at home playing with her three children when she received a call from Muriel's director PJ Hogan offering her the part.

"I couldn't say not to him," she told Saturday Confidential.

"And as he said it was a bit of a Muriel's Wedding reunion."

Although Lee's focus has shifted from performing to writing ­ not to mention caring for her primary-school aged children ­ in recent years, she says the acting bug hasn't died.

Picture of the month: September '12

Fort Denison, Sydney Harbour – The Siege of Pinchgut

Romance leaves farmers in its dust

Sam and Jodie. Source: Supplied

Holly Byrnes, The Herald Sun, reports

The drought continues for four of the six bachelors who thought they'd found love on Channel 9 dating series The Farmer Wants A Wife.

The season final ended with five couplings, including one romance host Natalie Gruzlewski speculated would end in a wedding invitation.

But after the credits rolled and the TV circus left town, three of the new romances have since been scuttled.

West Australian farmer Tom cuddled up with Perth girl Fiona during the finale, but is now "just friends" with his chosen one and Shauna, the woman he overlooked.

Production sources said the tyranny of distance had also claimed the budding relationship between Bruny Island farmer Todd and the free-spirited Jenna he chose over surfer chick Leah.

"They dated for a while, but the distance proved too much," a TV insider said.

Potato farmer Matt, from Waubra in Victoria, had the help of his mother to choose his potential wife, Jasmine, but the attraction between the footy-loving pair has since cooled (with reports he is also still in touch with his second choice, Brittney).

Irish expat farmer Paul's search for love continues, after both his choices, Vanessa and Genevieve, walked out on him during the farm stays.

However, it's been a happier ending for farmer Nikko of Richmond, Queensland, and Sam of Kununurra, Western Australia, who are reportedly still dating their TV "wives", Jade and Jodie respectively.

Sam and Jodie are perhaps the season's best chance at a lasting romance, the Sydney-based travel agent said to be considering a more permanent move west for her TV suitor.

Mustering cattle in Kimberley in his day job, 32-year-old Sam admitted he had an instant attraction to his 27-year-old pole-dancing pick.

Staking her claim on the rough diamond bloke from the bush, Jodie told Gruzlewski: "I feel like I belong to him and he belongs to me."

LOVE BITES

Farmer Nikko from Richmond, Queensland chose Brisbane yoga teacher Jade: still dating.

Farmer Todd from Bruny Island, Tasmania chose Perth spirit Jenna: distance proved too much, just friends.

Farmer Paul from Gnaraloo Farm, Western Australia: still single after both ladies he chose walked out.

Farmer Tom from Beeac, Victoria chose Perth city girl Fiona: recently broke up.

Farmer Matt from Waubra, Victoria chose Melbourne city girl Jasmine: just friends.

Farmer Sam from Kunanurra, Western Australia chose Sydney travel agent Jodie: still dating.

Nikko and Jade.

Sacked but not boned

Still in the chair ... Joel Madden on The Voice

Joel Madden causes Twitter panic with a single word.

Good Charlotte frontman, The Voice judge and adopted Australian Joel Madden caused a minor panic among his fans - and confusion for his bosses at Nine - today by tweeting a single word: "Sacked".

Immediately, he started getting responses from his 710,000 followers asking if that meant Madden, who is in Sydney right now preparing to perform at the NRL grand final this weekend and the AFL footy Show this Thursday, had lost his job on the top-rating reality series which brought him to Australia this year.

As time passed and Madden neither responded to questions nor posted anything else, his single enigmatic word was retweeted dozens of times and speculation mounted.

But whatever he's been sacked from - or whatever he's talking about - Nine was quick to assure he hasn't been (to use that infamous Nine executive word) "boned".

"We're not sure what Joel was referring to, but it's not The Voice," A network spokesperson said.

"He's still very much in contract negotiations [to return as a judge on The Voice season two] right now."

Perhaps Madden, a notorious NFL fan, was just watching football?

If so, he might want to learn the word "tackled" before this weekend.

Update: Madden updated his Twitter account six hours after the initial tweet to confirm he had been referencing American Football, saying "I was talking about the NFL when I said sacked".

Auditioning Now! Sponsors for the 2013 AACTA Awards

AACTA President Geoffrey Rush was quoted saying he'd ''hate to see, for financial reasons, the whole thing (AACTA Awards) come to an unnecessary full stop''. Picture: Gary Ramage Source: PerthNow

Neala Johnson, News Limited Network, reports

The show will go on - even though Australia's answer to the Oscars has lost a major sponsor.

Australian Film Institute CEO Damian Trewhella remains upbeat after it was revealed the AACTA Awards had lost its naming-rights sponsor Samsung.

Industry magazine Encore reported AACTA President Geoffrey Rush as saying he'd ''hate to see, for financial reasons, the whole thing come to an unnecessary full stop''.

Trewhella said the situation is ''not that bad at all''.

''I wouldn't like to be seen to be contradicting Geoffrey too much, but ultimately I don’t think the risk on the scale is a fatal risk,'' Trewhella said.

''GR has been the most phenomenal leader as Pres, and if his remarks help mobilise the corporate sector to get behind us, that's great. It's a call to action.''

Trewhella expects the 2013 AACTA Awards to have great cut-through with the general public and media after a string of populist movie releases this year, including The Sapphires and Kath & Kimderella, and high-rating TV shows.

''There's always swings and roundabouts every year, and this year has been a great swing with The Sapphires, Mental, Howzat, The Voice - it's quite an incredible time. It's probably going to be the best Awards we’ve seen for a long time.''

Samsung had been a major sponsor of the former AFI Awards since 2006, taking over naming-rights in 2009.

It was the title sponsor of this year's inaugural AACTAs (Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts), which were revamped during 2011 to align Australia's awards season with those in Hollywood and Britain.

Trewhella quashed fears the AACTAs might collapse just a year after the relaunch.

''The show is going on and it will be going on at full speed. It could be going on at extra speed if we have that particular sponsorship category filled,'' he said.

''Fortunately, it isn't the sky falling. Sponsorship is always a difficult matter but it only makes up one portion of the overall support base. It's not ideal. But it's a great opportunity for another naming-rights partner now.

''Geoffrey, Rusty (Russell Crowe), Cate Blanchett - everybody's behind this. It's a really great event that went very well last year. We've got a few months left to go - if there's somebody out there looking to align their brand with the pinnacle of the Australian film and television industry, here’s the opportunity.''

The AACTAs are hoping to pin down potential replacements within the next six to seven weeks as they work towards announcing nominations for the 2013 Awards in late November.

The AACTA Awards will be handed out in late January in Sydney.

The big winners at the 2012 Awards were Red Dog, Snowtown, The Slap and East West 101.

Baz Luhrmann bursting with ideas - TV to the rescue

Baz Luhrmann says he has too many ideas to make as film. Picture: AP Source: AP

News.com.au reports

Baz Luhrmann's orgiastic future is assured.

If The Great Gatsby proves less than great (and the decision to shift its release from December to May next year has some worried), he can always move to the small screen.

Movie website Deadlines reports that Luhrmann has signed a two-year deal with Sony Pictures to develop ideas for TV.

"I make films very infrequently and yet I have so many ideas and stories to explore. The idea that I can be creative in between films is energising and exiting," he said.

"Television at the moment has such great freedom, giving writers the ability to explore any idea and to have maximum amount of freedom to do that."

Luhrmann, who will be acting as a "creative director, encouraging others" to think outside the box, said he was attracted by the creative freedom that had resulted in such shows as Breaking Bad.

Luhrmann's shift to the small screen follows a similar move by the Coen brothers.

According to Deadline, the film-makers are planning to bring their Oscar-winner Fargo to the small screen.

The show will feature the film's hero, police chief Marge Gunderson, and will be written by Noah Hawley, the creator of The Unusuals and My Generation.

Joel and Ethan Coen will serve as executive producers.

Quentin's Aussie film set

Quentin Tarantino. Pic: AFP Source: AFP

The Daily Telegraph reports

He has long championed his love for Australian film. Now cult director Quentin Tarantino is eyeing an all-Aussie project to be shot here and starring only Australians.

Famed Australian actor John Jarratt let it slip during a chat with Confidential this week having just wrapped a role in Tarantino's upcoming splatter-fest Django Unchained starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Jamie Foxx.

Jarratt plays a brutal slave trader in the anticipated Western, having brokered a friendship with the director a decade ago while Tarantino was Down Under promoting Kill Bill Vol.1.

"He wants to make this Australian film and I'll keep kicking him until he does," said Jarratt, who said the Oscar-winner had an almost encyclopedic knowledge of Australian film history."He has literally seen every Australian film ever made . ... he knows every Australian director.

"If you want to know anything about Aussie films, you ask him.

"He's told me he likes tough grittiness ... the kicking and scratching kind of movies we make that I think helped inspire movies like Reservoir Dogs and Inglourious Basterds.

"He likes the way we make movies and likes the way we make low-budget movies that look a trillion dollars and stand up next to the Bruce Willis movie next door." Indeed, Tarantino helped finance the documentary Not Quite Hollywood: The Wild, Untold Story of Ozploitation about low-budget Aussie cinema of the '70s and '80s.

Jarratt, meanwhile, is set to reprise one of his best-known Aussie film characters - psycho serial killer Mick Taylor - with cameras to start rolling on Wolf Creek 2 in January.

That's a lot of veins: First look at Hugh Jackman in The Wolverine

Warrior soul: Jackman heads to Japan for The Wolverine. Picture: 20th Century Fox

News.com.au reports

The man with the claws is back.

The first official photo of The Wolverine made its debut today, with Hugh Jackman's ripped physique and pulsing veins front and centre.

The Wolverine is based on the celebrated Chris Claremont-Frank Miller comic series from 1980s and, according to the official synopsis, finds "Logan, the eternal warrior and outsider, in Japan. There, samurai steel will clash with adamantium claw, as Logan confronts a mysterious figure from his past in an epic battle that will leave him forever changed."

Beyond showing fans that Jackman's commitment to the role is total - the exercise regime behind that body must be frightening - the picture doesn't reveal any plot details.

What it does do is give the flagging Wolverine franchise a shot in the arm.

Reaction to Jackman's last outing as the clawed mutant, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, was mostly negative, and the film's box office was down on previous entries in the X-Men saga.

The Wolverine is set to be a stand-alone film and won't feature other characters from the X-Men films.

The photo is all attitude and has a real Bruce Lee/Enter the Dragon feel about it.

Jackman is a fan the Claremont-Miller comic series, which is widely praised for giving the character real depth.

"I love the idea of this kind of anarchic character, the outsider, being in this world full of honour and tradition and customs," Jackman said earlier this year.

"The idea of the samurai too, and the tradition there - it's really great. In the comic book he gets his ass kicked by a couple of samurai - not even mutants."

Claremont said that his comic series envisaged Wolverine as a failed samurai. "Frank (Miller) didn't want to do four issues of punching and hitting and neither did I," he told The Times when X-Men: Origins came out.

"I wanted to get into who he was. My idea of Wolverine was that if you walked into his room half of it would be a total trash heap, a sloppy couch and more beer cans than you can imagine, and half would be the quintessence of economy and grace - a stand for his sword and maybe a picture on a table. Wolverine is essentially at war with himself. There’s a part of him that wants to be this pure, pristine man of honour and there’s a part of him that wants to say, ‘F*** this’ and hit the bars."

Shooting on the superhero film is taking place at Sydney's Fox Studio.

The plan had been to film The Wolverine in Japan last year but the devastation from the tsunami and quake put those plans on hold, pushing back the production schedule.

The film also lost its original director, Darren Aronofsky, who pulled out because he didn't want to be away from his family for a long period of time.

The new director James Mangold, although not as creative as Aronofsky, is a safe set of hands. 20th Century Fox, which is producing the film, had major problems with the director of X-Men Origins.

Production on that film lagged behind schedule because of director Gavin Hood's inexperience with big budget movies and the producers had to bring in Superman director Richard Donner to help finish the movie.

The Wolverine comes out next year.

Spot the similarities: Bruce Lee in Enter the Dragon. Picture: 20th Century Fox

There's some new Pink ink in town as Carey Hart hits the beach

Carey Hart hits the northern beaches in Sydney. Picture: Splash Media Source: Supplied

Amy Harris and Joel Christie, The Daily Telegraph, report

The tattooed tyros of the NRL may want to watch their backs - there's some new ink in town.

Motocross superstar (and husband of visiting pop star Pink) Carey Hart gave northern beaches locals an eyeful of his personal tattoo gallery yesterday.

The 36-year-old has more than just a passing interest in body art, with a chain of tattoo parlours throughout the US and his own show Inked which airs on Foxtel's A&E channel.

Among his personal collection (which begin at his neck and end at his toes) are two cars, several flowers, dice, flames, clouds, triple sevens, star, castle, sacred heart of Jesus, evil smile with flames, roulette wheel, torch, skull, horseshoe, heart, Welcome to Las Vegas, Viva Las Vegas, bird, luck and heart on knuckles.

Take that Todd Carney.

Animated films a hit at the box office, but Gold Coast-made Bait slow to lure audiences

Lincoln Lewis stars as a shark-averter in Bait 3D. Picture: Courtesy of Arclight Films Source: news.com.au

Neala Johnson, The Daily Telegraph, reports

Sharks in a supermarket thriller Bait has put a dampener on Australia's run of locally-made, widely-released movie hits.

After The Sapphires enjoyed a bonzer $2.3 million opening weekend off 279 screens nationwide in August, Kath & Kimderella followed up earlier this month by topping the box office chart with $2 million off 285 screens.

Bait’s opening weekend has landed it at No.10 with $365,187 off 283 screens, at a lacklustre average of $1290 per screen. (In comparison, new release kids’ title Diary of a Wimpy Kid – Dog Days took an average of $4132 off 236 screens for a total gross of $975,087.)

Bait, shot in 3D on the Gold Coast, stars rising young Aussies Xavier Samuel, Sharni Vinson, Lincoln Lewis and Phoebe Tonkin, all of whom have career heat in Hollywood.

The high-concept movie had some heat of its own, being selected to premiere at the prestigious Venice Film Festival.

Queenslander Lewis was on ground to promote Bait at several pre-release Q&A screenings, but leading man Samuel was unavailable to local distributor Paramount for promotion, busy on set in the US filming Plush with Twilight director Catherine Hardwicke.

The next Aussie film to open wide will be Mental on October 4.

The comedy, which reunites Muriel’s Wedding writer-director PJ Hogan with star Toni Collette, is expected to open on nearly 230 screens.

School holiday flicks ruled this past weekend at the cinemas, with Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted holding on to top spot with $2.6 million and Adam Sandler’s animated comedy Hotel Transylvania opening at No.2 with $1.3 million.

The Sapphires is finally falling after seven weeks of release, down to No.8 with a $441,029 weekend. It has grossed $12.7 million.

Kath & Kimderella also fell, down 49 per cent to take $558,184 on its third weekend, for a total of $4.8 million.

Gaining weight for dream role in Mental led to a terrifying health scare for Rebecca Gibney

Rebecca Gibney put on 14 kilos for the role of Shirley in Mental before she was found to be a step away from developing diabetes. Picture: Damien Shaw amien Shaw Source: Supplied

The Daily Telegraph reports

Evergreen actress Rebecca Gibney came within an inch of being a diabetic after suffering a health scare while making the Aussie comedy Mental.

Gibney admits now her "at all costs'' attitude when she auditioned for the role of Shirley Moochmore in the PJ Hogan-written and directed film, almost had a dire consequence.

The 47-year-old says she made it clear to Hogan that she wanted the part, knowing it it would be the biggest role she has ever had - despite her lengthy acting career.

"When I auditioned for the role, I said that I would stand on my head, I would do whatever it takes, put on weight, because I wanted this role so much I would do whatever to get it,'' Gibney tells AAP.

"I've done small roles in features before but this is certainly the biggest feature film role I have had.''

After being cast as the slightly nutty mother Shirley, Gibney set about gorging herself and doing next to no exercise to pile on the kilos to her fit frame.

Within two months Gibney was fast approaching her goal weight of an additional 20 kilograms, but then she noticed something was dreadfully wrong, health wise.

After a visit to the doctor she was told to immediately stop stacking on kilos.

"I was hoping for 20 kilos or as much as I could," she says.

"I put on 14 kilos in eight or nine weeks and I found out towards the end of gaining the weight that I was insulin resistant and pre-diabetic.

"I was one step away from diabetes so if I had put on more weight I would get diabetes. So I stopped and we decided to employ the use of a fat suit.''

Gibney stopped her aggressive eating habits following the health scare but she didn't immediately trim down.

She maintained her overweight figure for as long as she could during the shooting of the feature movie without further putting her health in jeopardy.

"The double chin is all mine,'' Gibney jokes.

"PJ doesn't like tricks - he wants the characters to be real and likes actors to put on the weight.

Gibney has rarely been out of work in her acting career, mainly for TV roles, but since being cast in Mental she has become intoxicated with the idea of appearing in another feature movie.

She says one is on the horizon for early next year, but cannot name it for confidentiality reasons.

Gibney says television, such as Packed To The Rafters in which she appears as Julie Rafter, is an insatiable beast with little time to perfect a scene because of the chaotic shooting schedules.

It's one of the reasons she enjoyed shooting Mental because of the time spent filming and perfecting the scenes and performances of the actors.

"In television you get so little time to do anything, you are doing things on the run and maybe get an hour to do a scene.

"In film you get a whole day to a scene if you need it.

"I'm not under any illusion I am going to have a film career and if this is the last feature I ever do, I am going out on a high because it's such a wonderful movie and to be part of an incredible cast and working with PJ Hogan.

"If I never do another movie, I'd be happy.''

Mental opens in Australian cinemas on October 4.

A Stellar Young Cast

George Palathingal, The Sydney Morning Herald, reports

Expect great things from these 10 up-and-coming Aussie thespians.

Australia might have given the world the likes of Cate Blanchett, Hugh Jackman, Nicole Kidman and Chris Hemsworth, but that doesn't mean Hollywood's appetite for world-beating actors from Down Under is abating. Here are 10 newcomers brimming with star quality who are poised to join such illustrious company.

Alex Russell

1. ALEX RUSSELL

From Rockhampton, Queensland.

Where you've seen him Flying around in Chronicle as one of the film's teens with super powers.

Where you should look out for him Bait 3D; a remake of Stephen King's Carrie. As far back as he can remember, Alex Russell wanted to be an actor. And not just any actor.

''When I was six years old I wanted to be like Jean-Claude Van Damme in Street Fighter,'' he says, with a sheepish laugh.

''Pre-theatre appreciation, it was all about wanting to have big muscles and have someone that looked like Kylie Minogue sort of hanging off me.'

'Having been further influenced by classier films such as Braveheart when he was older, Russell's big break in this year's smart, inventive take on the superhero genre, Chronicle, meant he was able to experience the best of both worlds.

''No ride at Disney World could possibly ever beat the things that I got to do,'' he says.''It sort of satisfied two sides of me - the grown-up artist and the little kid that wants to have fun and be exhilarated.''

Amber Clayton

2. AMBER CLAYTON

From Ivanhoe, Victoria.

Where you've seen her Three Rivers, currently screening late on Ten.

Where you should look out for her TV movie Fatal Honeymoon, Aussie sci-fi flick Crawlspace.

When a rising actor finds themselves working opposite a bona fide legend in the field, it can be hard to know how to address them.

Clayton experienced this when playing Harvey Keitel's screen daughter Tina in Fatal Honeymoon - and ended up with a surreal solution.

''He's a method actor to the bone, so … in rehearsals, Harvey asked if he could start calling me 'Tina' and if I would start calling him 'dad', so we would get used to the sound and feeling of it,'' Clayton says.

She hasn't just been learning from screen icons. Scoring a role on US medical drama Three Rivers a couple of years ago, she thought her career was off to a flier - only for the show to be cancelled after its first season.

''It is a constant roller-coaster … I have chosen a career that has no guarantees; it's all about picking yourself up and dusting yourself off.''

Brenton Thwaites

3. BRENTON THWAITES

From Cairns, Queensland.

Where you've seen him Home & Away, Foxtel's SLiDE and in the lead role of TV movie Blue Lagoon: The Awakening.

Where you should look out for him Taking on Angelina Jolie's eponymous evil sorceress as Prince Charming in Maleficent.

Brenton Thwaites's life has been a bit of a fairytale of late - on screen and off, given he's filming the Sleeping Beauty update Maleficent opposite Angelina Jolie.

''For my first day on set I was like a little boy on the first day of school: scared, nervous and intimidated. But it did become a place of excitement and learning.''

It wasn't so long ago that Thwaites was 16 and, he says, ''way too cool to do drama''. Then an actor friend encouraged him to audition for the lead in a stage production of Romeo and Juliet. ''I got the role and that was it - hooked!'' he says.

As he's the latest in a long line of successful Home & Away alumni, we have to ask: is there something in the water in Summer Bay? ''Yes,'' Thwaites says. ''They put leading-man syrup all throughout the bay. Haha!''

Anna Lise Phillips

4. ANNA LISE PHILLIPS

From Darwin, Northern Territory.

Where you've seen her On the Australian stage and screen, most notably recently in Animal Kingdom and TV series Crownies.

Where you should look out for her In one of the year's most keenly anticipated TV shows, Revolution.

You say you want a Revolution? Anna Lise Phillips certainly did - well, at least a role in the hot new series - but never expected it, even after an audition recorded in Sydney resulted in her flying to Los Angeles to ''test'' for pilot-episode director Jon Favreau.

''About three weeks later I was in Atlanta, Georgia, shooting the new J.J. Abrams pilot with the director of Iron Man [Favreau].''

It's an exciting new phase after a successful career in her native country but not something Phillips always wanted to do. ''I had a little dalliance with LA about 11 years ago and after the 100th Botoxed freak informed me that I had to go to the right parties to get a job, I kissed my boyfriend goodbye and flew home to happiness.

''Over the last few years I have been craving something more - a deeper experience, a chance to become a better actor. My visions included adventures in the US.''

Alex Williams

5. ALEX WILLIAMS

From Perth, Western Australia.

Where you've seen him Channel Ten adverts for the TV movie on Julian Assange's early years, Underground.

Where you should look out for him That very film because he is playing the role of a lifetime: the WikiLeaks founder himself.

Many actors don't seem to have to work as hard at their craft when they're younger - some get to coast a little on the back of their charisma and good looks as they learn.

No such luck for Alex Williams. He's in at the deep end with his first major screen role, as Julian Assange in Underground.

''If you are ever given a character with an IQ of 180, it's always going to present a challenge,'' Williams says. ''Luckily for me, I had people like [co-stars] Rachel Griffiths, Anthony LaPaglia, as well as [director] Rob Connolly, to keep me in check.''

Did he learn anything special from his glamorous co-stars? Or even from Assange himself?

''Of course … Countless times I'd get back from shooting, turn on the news and there was the real guy.

''As for my co-stars, it's a pretty similar situation: if you're working with people of their calibre every day, you just sit there and pray some of it rubs off on you.''

Michelle Vergara Moore

6. MICHELLE VERGARA MOORE

From Sunbury, Victoria.

Where you've seen her Most likely on the Australian stage, in exciting productions such as Red Stitch's The Motherf---er with the Hat.

Where you should look out for her Steven Soderbergh's The Bitter Pill. ABC series Time of Our Lives.

When someone as powerful as the prolific, Oscar-winning director Steven Soderbergh casts you in one of his movies, you know you must be doing something right.

''I filmed The Bitter Pill in New York and because it was my first US project, with scenes alongside Rooney Mara and Jude Law, I was super nervous,'' Moore says. ''But Steven embodies a certain ease and friendliness that made the experience really effortless and enjoyable.''

It's a long way from the nightly workout of playing ''a ballsy, no-holds-barred drug-addict who says some of the filthiest language I've ever come across'' in the confronting play The Motherf---er with the Hat. But then, so is one of Moore's other actorly ambitions.

''I do have a passion for Shakespeare,'' she says. ''I would love the opportunity to do Lady Macbeth or Cleopatra.''

Stephen Peacocke

7. STEPHEN PEACOCKE

From Dubbo, NSW.

Where you've seen him Playing one of those tattooed surfies (alongside Brenton Thwaites) in Home & Away.

Where you should look out for him Everywhere in a couple of years, if the buzz around him proves to be true.

We've heard so many rumours lately about Stephen Peacocke. Apparently, not only did he recently audition for Steven Spielberg, he is also being thought of, in certain powerful circles, as potentially the next Chris ''Thor'' Hemsworth. Like a seasoned professional, however, Peacocke is playing his cards close to his chest.

''At this stage of my career, my closest encounter with Steven Spielberg comes every time his name fades into the credits of Saving Private Ryan,'' he says. ''My agents seem to think I have something that might translate to an American audience one day down the track – which is really encouraging for me to know – but that's a while away yet.

''I'm keen to stay with Home & Away for as long as they'll have me ... [but] if someone's willing to give me a shot beyond this show, I'll work bloody hard for them.''

Penelope Mitchell

8. PENELOPE MITCHELL

From Prahran, Victoria.

Where you've seen her Short films such as Green Eyed; guest spots on TV shows Rush and Offspring.

Where you should look out for her American werewolf series Hemlock Grove; Aussie thriller 6Plots.

For someone whose career in Australia involved, in her words, ''a couple of independent features and a few bit parts in television'', Penelope Mitchell has found the transition to her current job, as Dougray Scott's screen daughter on big-budget Hollywood TV show Hemlock Grove, ''slightly overwhelming''.

''For example, I picked up my chair the other day out of simple convenience and was swiftly reprimanded by 'the chair guy' on account of stealing his job,'' she says.

''Sometimes I really can't help giggling to myself at the sheer absurdity of it all.''

It certainly beats studying law, as she found out on her first day of orientation week at the University of Melbourne a few years back.

''I ended up enrolling in every theatre group I could find ... My body was yearning so badly for catharsis, or freedom, or whatever it was burning inside of me, that I desperately sought any means possible to get back into my body and start feeling again.'' 

 

Lachlan Buchanan

9. LACHLAN BUCHANAN

From Maleny, Queensland.

Where you've seen him Regularly in Aussie show Blue Water High; occasionally in American series Hung and No Ordinary Family.

Where you should look out for him In big-screen comedy Feed the Dog opposite tween superstar Selena Gomez and horror flick Muck.

Lachlan Buchanan had to think on hisfeet when he was signed to his American agency during a trip to NewYork's Tribeca Film Festival a few years ago.

''They asked me when I was moving here,'' he says. ''I had no plans at the time so I just quickly told them, 'At the end of the year.' And that was that. I was lucky enough to book the very first audition I went for in LA, an indie film called Arcadia Lost, so that gave me confidence. But it definitely was a scary thing when I was just a kid from the Sunshine Coast, suddenly thrust into the madness of LA.''

While you can take the boy out of Australia, you can't take the cheeky, Aussie out of the boy. ''I want to always be able to keep exploring new characters and great writing ... and if some travelling comes along with certain jobs, that's fine by me, too.''

 

Jessica Tovey

10. JESSICA TOVEY

From Petersham, NSW.

Where you've seen her On the small screen in Paper Giants: The Birth of Cleo and Underbelly: The Golden Mile.

Where you should look out for her On the big screen in Two Mothers, alongside Naomi Watts, Robin Wright and Ben Mendelsohn.

It's often said that acting, while having its own set of challenges, is not rocket science. With a HSC score of 98.8, however, Jessica Tovey might be one of few actors who could have probably been a rocket scientist. So why choose acting?

''Honestly, I never have had any real desire to work in any other profession,'' she says. ''Why be a rocket scientist when I can play one today and then be a cop or an Amazonian warrior the next?''

Like many actors, Tovey also hopes to direct some day, ''but right now I'm just observing different directors' approaches to projects''. Anyway, she says, ''this industry doesn't really allow for long-term planning. But that's half the fun.''

Class of 2011: Where are they now?

Elizabeth Debicki made Stephan Elliott's A Few Best Men a bit easier to watch but we're still more excited about seeing her in Baz Luhrmann's epic The Great Gatsby next year. Similarly, while we're still waiting to see Alice Englert in Roland Joffe's Singularity, we're encouraged to note she also has Beautiful Creatures, co-starring Brit acting royalty Jeremy Irons and Emma Thompson, in the proverbial can.

We actually got a good look at Bella Heathcote's big international break, entrancing Johnny Depp's vampire across the centuries in Tim Burton's Dark Shadows, and Meyne Wyatt and Ryan Corr turned up in a couple of Aussie hits - the former in the crowd-pleasing The Sapphires, the latter in Not Suitable for Children. Corr can also be seen alongside this year's Next Big Thing, Penelope Mitchell, in 6 Plots before the end of the year as well as on stage (see Page 11).

On the small screen, Kiruna Stamell's character gave Warwick Davis more chances than he deserved in Ricky Gervais's and Stephen Merchant's Life's Too Short, and Anna McGahan scored a plum role on hit drama House Husbands. Ben Schumann had a good run on the third season of Tangle.

Younger readers will have been enjoying Tim Pocock's work on TV show Dance Academy, while older ones can look forward to seeing him soon in Australian war film Forbidden Ground. And Jess Harris scored an AACTA nomination for her acting on cult comedy Twentysomething (which she also wrote and co-created).