‘The Canary’ began as a very ambitious project, both on a personal and professional level. Filmed by a team of only 4 people and shot on both the open ocean and in the raw Australian bushland, it very much threw everyone into the deep end of film making.
Filmed throughout the years of 2021-2022, between Covid lockdowns and one of the hottest Australian summers on record. A truly independent passion project, the film had a final budget of $10,000, which is remarkably little for a full-length period film. But the team worked extremely hard to bring the story to life, spending hundreds of hours in order to complete the project.
Emilie Lowe was just 21-years-old when she first began directing ‘The Canary’. This was her feature directorial debut, and she also acted in and wrote the film. She graduated with a degree in screenwriting while in the middle of creating ‘The Canary’ and founded Salt and Honey Productions, an independent film company dedicated to telling both the sweet and sour narratives of film.
Taking 3 years to complete, the micro budget and tiny crew led to multiple roles being taken onboard by each crew member. For example, Emilie herself took on the roles of director, writer, actor, editor, second cinematographer, location scout, costume and production designer.
Renown local Peter Renzullo worked as cinematographer, despite his disability of being legally blind, with only 3% of his vision, which also highlights the film’s themes of self-acceptance and perseverance in the face of challenges. The beautiful score was entirely composed by WA’s Nicholas Gardiner and Suzanne Lowe took on her role of first-time producer, production manager, location scout and behind the scenes photographer. The very small production team worked tirelessly with each other to release the film
The iconic yellow dress was sewn by a local seamstress and many of the props where either vintage pieces, or hand-made by the team and family members.
Emilie states that ‘the period nature of the film was vital for the story, highlighting that the themes of the 1800’s are still highly relevant to many members of society today.’ It also allowed for some beautiful costume creation and scouting of unique WA locations, while also allowing for captivating imagery and an evocative plot.
Edited throughout 2023-2024, ‘The Canary’ has been a process of much love and dedication, and we all had so much fun in the creation of this film.
The director, writer, actress, editor, secondary cinematographer and production designer behind 'The Canary', Emilie has been working tirelessly on the project for over 3 years. Her first feature film, she recently won ‘Best Director’, ‘Best Actress’, ‘Best Art Director’ and ‘Best Original Story’ in New York.
Recently winning ‘Best Cinematographer’ at the New York Film Awards, Renzullo has never let being legally blind stop him from showcasing his incredible visual style. Having only 3% of his vision, Peter as been working non stop in both cinematography and sound design for the last 7 years.
Suzanne took on many roles for the film, including that of the producer. She utilized her creative and organisation skills to prepare locations, catering, casting, press and logistics. She also took on the support role aiding in production design, BTS photography and camera assistant.
Nicholas Gardiner is a screen composer based in Perth, Western Australia who specialises in film, documentary, TV and installation-based art. He has composed for a number of locally and nationally produced works of various mediums and has a strong record of collaborations with numerous local and national production companies.
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