FEATURE FILMS

I've done a lot of things in the feature film and TV commercial industries, from starting off as a model-maker and graduating to special effects as a technician, co-ordinator and supervisor. I think the high point of that work for me was when I had the role of Special Effects Supervisor on the 2010 Russian blockbuster film 'Kandagar' (Kandahar) which was shot in Morocco with Russian, Belorussian, Ukrainian, Moroccan, French, and our small Australian crew.

As head of department I was responsible for producing the physical special effects for the film with a team of technicians. The story was based on real events that occurred in Kandahar in 1995 when the Taliban captured and held the crew of an Ilyushin IL-76 and their plane for over a year before they overpowered their captors and made a daring escape with the aircraft.

The film was shot mostly on location in Marrakech and up in the nearby Atlas Mountains before moving to the eastern desert region airport at Er Rachidia where we worked with an Ilyushin IL-76 and crew who flew from Belarus for the production after the original plane was destroyed by fire in DR Congo, which was in keeping with the general production intensity.

The Ilyushin IL-76 was one hell of an action vehicle, and yes, we got to fly in it thanks to some hard partying with the crew and a supply of excellent organic Vodka from Australia.