Lets get wasted . . .
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Drugs. Suicide. Rape. Murder. Highschool just ain't what it used to be in Wasted On The Young.
Forget the teenage dream, highschool is literally a nightmare in the directorial debut from Australian filmmaker Ben C. Lucas. Wasted On The Young plays out like a Greek tragedy in a highschool setting, following outsider Darren (Oliver Ackland) as he attempts to deliver his own brand of justice after an incident at a party involving his stepbrother Zack (Alex Russell) and crush Xandrie (Adelaide Clemens).
The low budget, indie film was a hit at the Toronto International Film Festival where it screened last year and its star, Oliver Ackland (below), gave a standout performance which saw him win the first inaugural Heath Ledger Scholarship award. It's a performance that's so convincing, the audience would never guess the actor who plays the 17-year-old protagonist is actually in his thirties.
``The age difference was something that really excited me about the project straight away,'' says Ackland.
``I'm 31 and the fact that he's 17 . . . I remember seeing Matchstick Men and in a behind the scenes featurette they were interviewing the lead girl who was playing a 15-year-old in the film but was actually in her mid twenties.
``I was really impressed.
``When that opportunity came around I got excited and would go and hang out at indie nights in clubs with young kids.
``I tried to kind of immerse myself in that stuff as much as I could .'' 
To portray Darren's feelings of ``awkwardness and isolation'', Ackland says he watched YouTube clips and interviews of Kurt Cobain, Nick Cave and River Phoenix.
``It was more the fact that they lived by their own set of ideals despite what was going on around them,'' he says.
``I felt like that kind of mirrored the character, how he was stuck in that superficial universe which was the school, he can't relate to people and yet he finally connects with another human being in Xandrie.''
Ackland says he remembers reading the script and thinking ``this is one I really want''.
``You don't get that feeling all the time,'' he says.
``As an actor that's what you're after, you're after those dark places that make your job more interesting.'' 
Filmed on location on Perth, the three month shoot gave Ackland the opportunity to meet and hang out with the late Heath Ledger's family, who awarded him the Heath Ledger Scholarship award.
``It was cool to meet his parents and hang out with them, I can't say thanks enough to the people who got that up and running,'' he says.
``The scholarship gave me money to fly over and live in Los Angeles.
``It was just incredible timing.
``I was broke, then suddenly I was in LA with money people had just given me to do what I'd been struggling to do for years.
``It was my ticket to get over there.''
Ackland (below) says as a huge fan of Ledger, the award inspired him to be more ``fearless'' in his film choices.
``I was a fan and I loved the choices he made as an artist and the way he went about doing it,'' he says.
``And the fact he seemed like an artist rather than a performer, which I admired.''
``It kind of inspired me to be a bit more reckless and fearless about work. 
Wasted On The Young is out today. You can read my exclusive chat with Ben C. Lucas here.
The rapper turned actor found critical success in best picture Oscar-winner Crash and nominee Hustle & Flow. He said the ``smart money'' is on his No Strings Attached co-star:
The 16-year-old actor from Sydney has spent his first year in Hollywood starring in blockbusters such as I Am Number Four and Flipped. He throws his support behind an animated contender:
As a two-time best director Academy Award nominee and the man who directed Helen Mirren in her award-winning turn in The Queen, Frears knows all about the selection process and his bet is on a fellow Brit for best actor.
The star of upcoming Australian film Wasted On The Young and recipient of the Heath Ledger Scholarship tips Ledger's The Dark Knight co-star:
As one third of legendary hip hop group De La Soul, Posdnuos aka Plug One is an influential force in the music industry. But he's also an avid movie lover who has been following the Oscars race closely:
Best known for his boundary pushing films Hedwig and the Angry Inch and Shortbus, Cameron Mitchell is behind the raw drama Rabbit Hole, which scored Nicole Kidman a best actress nomination:
The former Underbelly actor and star of shark thriller The Reef has his fingers crossed for one of the few Australians in the field:
After being homeschooled when he was younger, Lucas says a lot of the ideas in the film are based on his experiences when he started high school.
Wasted On The Young opens the