Cthulhu (2000 film)
Encyclopedia
Cthulhu is an Australia
n low budget horror film
made in 1996-1997 and released in 2000, by producer-director Damian Heffernan. It was mostly based on the two Lovecraft
stories: "The Thing on the Doorstep
" and The Shadow Over Innsmouth
.
Filmed on location in Canberra
during the winter of 1996 with additional scenes shot in early 1997, the film was finished digitally in 1998. Most of the filming was completed in the first two week shoot. A large number of the interior locations were shot in the (now demolished) Royal Canberra Hospital
which was de-commissioned in 1991 and remained vacant for many years before the building was imploded in July 1997.
Produced on a very low budget the movie was actually shot on 16mm film and transferred to Digital Betacam
for finishing. The film also features an entirely original soundtrack by Australian musician Jason Sims.
A rough cut, dual head print was screened for Miramax in the Australian Film, Television and Radio School's theatre in the hopes of obtaining finishing funds but was not ultimately purchased. The Producers abandoned hope of a theatrical release and raised additional funds to finish on video for a DVD
release.
After a festival preview screening at the Melbourne Underground Film Festival
the filmmakers signed with the sales agent Max Stuart and Associates for worldwide representation. The film was purchased by Channel 9
for screening in Australia as part of their Australian content quota obligations. The film was also purchased by Trend Films in Italy
for screening via their Satellite Television network.
The film was most recently screened at the HP Lovecraft film festival in October 2007 in Portland
, Oregon
.
A tenth anniversary DVD was scheduled to be released in 2009 which will feature a commentary by members of the cast and crew as well as stills and DVD-ROM content.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n low budget horror film
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
made in 1996-1997 and released in 2000, by producer-director Damian Heffernan. It was mostly based on the two Lovecraft
H. P. Lovecraft
Howard Phillips Lovecraft --often credited as H.P. Lovecraft — was an American author of horror, fantasy and science fiction, especially the subgenre known as weird fiction....
stories: "The Thing on the Doorstep
The Thing on the Doorstep
"The Thing on the Doorstep" is a short story written by H. P. Lovecraft, part of the so-called Cthulhu Mythos universe of horror fiction. It was written in August 1933, and first published in the January 1937 issue of Weird Tales.-Inspiration:...
" and The Shadow Over Innsmouth
The Shadow Over Innsmouth
The Shadow Over Innsmouth is a novella by H. P. Lovecraft. Written in November-December 1931, the story was first published in April 1936; this was the only fiction of Lovecraft's published during his lifetime that did not appear in a periodical....
.
Filmed on location in Canberra
Canberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
during the winter of 1996 with additional scenes shot in early 1997, the film was finished digitally in 1998. Most of the filming was completed in the first two week shoot. A large number of the interior locations were shot in the (now demolished) Royal Canberra Hospital
Royal Canberra Hospital
Royal Canberra Hospital was the first hospital in Canberra, the capital of Australia. It opened in 1914 on the Acton Peninsula, as the Canberra Community Hospital. It grew to become the major hospital in Canberra before being closed in 1991 and later demolished in 1997.- Early Years 1912–1939 :In...
which was de-commissioned in 1991 and remained vacant for many years before the building was imploded in July 1997.
Produced on a very low budget the movie was actually shot on 16mm film and transferred to Digital Betacam
Betacam
Betacam is family of half-inch professional videocassette products developed by Sony in 1982. In colloquial use, "Betacam" singly is often used to refer to a Betacam camcorder, a Betacam tape, a Betacam video recorder or the format itself....
for finishing. The film also features an entirely original soundtrack by Australian musician Jason Sims.
A rough cut, dual head print was screened for Miramax in the Australian Film, Television and Radio School's theatre in the hopes of obtaining finishing funds but was not ultimately purchased. The Producers abandoned hope of a theatrical release and raised additional funds to finish on video for a DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
release.
After a festival preview screening at the Melbourne Underground Film Festival
Melbourne Underground Film Festival
The Melbourne Underground Film Festival was formed out of disagreements over the content and running of the Melbourne International Film Festival...
the filmmakers signed with the sales agent Max Stuart and Associates for worldwide representation. The film was purchased by Channel 9
Channel 9
- Asia and Pacific :* Channel 9 * DZKB-TV Channel 9, the flagship television station of Radio Philippines Network* Modernine TV, formerly known as Channel 9 * Nine Network, Australia* TV9 * TV9 * TV9...
for screening in Australia as part of their Australian content quota obligations. The film was also purchased by Trend Films in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
for screening via their Satellite Television network.
The film was most recently screened at the HP Lovecraft film festival in October 2007 in Portland
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
, Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
.
A tenth anniversary DVD was scheduled to be released in 2009 which will feature a commentary by members of the cast and crew as well as stills and DVD-ROM content.
Cast
- Paul Douglas - Inspector LeGrasse
- Melissa Georgiou - Asenath Waite
- Malcolm MillerMalcolm MillerMalcolm Miller was a sail training ship which was built in Aberdeen, Scotland by John Lewis & Sons, shipbuilders. She was sold out of service in 2001 and renamed Helena C and currently serves as a private yacht.-History:...
- Professor Armitage - James PayneJames PayneJames Payne was an English cricketer who played for Lancashire. He made one first-class appearance during the 1898 season, and at least four appearances for the Lancashire Second XI in the same year....
- Edward Derby - Adam Somes - Dan Upton