WHEN I phone to speak to Ryan Hodgson about his new film Blame, he has spent the day doing interviews.
Culture and Arts Minister John Day has just announced that the film will play at the prestigious Toronto International Film Festival and Ryan’s phone is running hot.
I ring at a time that is scheduled for an international conference call and he politely tells me he will call back.
And he does. Right on time.
The buzz around Blame is gaining momentum, since it first premiered in Melbourne a month ago. The film was produced by Ryan’s company Factor 30 films, which he formed with wife Melissa.
“When I first read the script it was so dynamic and engaging,” Ryan said.
“While I was attracted to it creatively, I also knew that the story could be achieved on the limited budget we could likely raise.”
The film deals with justice and revenge after five friends attempt the ‘perfect murder’ of a man, who then survives.
The movie stars new it-girl Sophie Lowe and was filmed over a four-week period, a timeframe Ryan describes as ‘preposterously fast’.
“Blame was filmed in the Perth foothills at the end of the hottest and driest summer on record in Perth.
“So that was physically draining and certainly not glamorous.”
Ryan, who attended Warnbro Primary School and Safety Bay Senior High School, admits he wasn’t particularly interested in film making.
It wasn’t until chatting to a friend who was studying at Curtin Film and Television school, that, unhappy in his human biology classes, he decided to transfer.
“I knew from the first class in the first week that it was what I wanted to do.”
He hasn’t looked back since, producing television commercials for clients, including Fremantle Dockers, Tourism WA, Lotterywest and Bankwest.
“I enjoy almost everything I get to do,” he said.
“Filmmaking is a collaborative process and I love working as a part of a team to inform, educate or entertain an audience."