Paying homage to the cheeky Confessions comedies of the 1970s, Secrets of a Wallaby Boy follows a horny young gay chap who thinks his new job as a cycle courier might help score him some action. But he has no idea about the sinister truth behind Wallaby, Inc…
With the film now available on Prime Video and Tubi, we spoke to some of its key cast and crew, including hardworking producer Pete Tomkies…
STARBURST: Many readers will be familiar with your award-winning 2018 horror short Once Bitten, which you directed; what prompted your move into the world of producing?
Pete Tomkies: I’m not sure it was ever a conscious decision! As soon as I read the script for Secrets of a Wallaby Boy, I told Kieron [Moore, director] I wanted to do whatever I could to help get the film made. After we’d met a few times to put together our plan of action, I just kind of fell into the role. It also meant that during the production phase, Kieron could focus solely on the actors and crew, while I managed things behind the scenes.
Were you familiar with the genre that Kieron was paying homage to when he pitched his idea to you, or did you have to research those early movies?
I knew of the Confessions films but still haven’t watched one! I grew up with the Carry On films, however. They’re similar in style and feel, just a bit less bawdy. As a lover of all things horror, my favourite is Carry On Screaming, of course! But Kieron’s vision for the film was so strong, and with the inspiration of his script and storyboards, I always knew we were on the same page creatively.
What kind of budget were you working with on Wallaby, and what route did you go through to pull it together?
A very, very small budget! We went through a few different costing exercises and eventually shot Wallaby Boy for under £20,000. Finding the funding for an independent film is always a challenge so we had to use a number of sources. We ran a Greenlit fundraiser campaign and were lucky enough to get FAB Global Media on board to support us as well. In addition, we had some private funding we could use.
Every production has its fair share of challenges, but given your budget limitations we’d imagine you had to wrestle with more than your average film; of them all, what would you say was the most demanding challenge you had to overcome?
Usually with low-budget films, you restrict the size of the cast and the number of locations, but we had twenty-two actors and over forty locations! As a result, sourcing locations was probably the biggest headache. We got some for free, including Tim’s [played by Brandon McCaffrey] flat which was actually Kieron’s home at the time! However, finding larger locations such as Argyle the MP’s house and Bruce’s lair, aka the Wallaby server room, were more of a challenge logistically and financially. One of the things I am most proud of is that, apart from a few intern and background actor roles, the crew and cast all got paid. We made sure everyone got fed as well!
And can you recall a particular shot or scene that proved the most difficult to pull off, whether it be budgetary limitations or otherwise?
We shot the whole film in 14 days plus one day of pick-ups, so every day was a challenge to stay on schedule. However, we had a fabulous cast and crew who always delivered, and our AD Becky kept us on track. In pre-production, my biggest concern was probably the lair given our budget and resources. Thankfully, our production designer Katie was an absolute star and built a wonderful space to film in. The look of that scene is one of my favourite parts of the film.
From a producer’s perspective, what’s the most important lesson you learnt from your first feature? Any cautionary tales you can impart to those wanting to follow in your footsteps?
I learnt so much! As a producer, I could study all of the crew and cast interactions much more than when I‘m directing or behind the camera. Filmmaking is always a team effort and understanding how that all comes together is so vital. However, looking back, one thing I would have planned differently was the shooting schedule. We filmed for seven days, had a week off, then filmed for another seven days. In hindsight, seven consecutive days was too long, and we should have had a break after six days.
Outside of the Wallaby-verse, what other genres would you like to explore in the future either as a producer, director, or writer? Or all three, of course!
Since I was a child, horror has been my favourite genre, and my own projects have been horror-themed. However, they also always had elements of comedy along with the scares and gore, so it was great to explore that aspect much more with Wallaby. As a writer, my scripts will always tend towards horror, but as a director and producer I would love to find more non-horror projects to work on.
What projects have you got lined up next?
I’m currently working on three feature scripts – two horror, one not – and will be looking to develop them into production soon. I’m also looking forward to reading Kieron’s next script!
Secrets of a Wallaby Boy is now available to stream on Prime Video and Tubi.
