George Pullar and Ben Oxenbould in Stonefish.

AACTA nominated short film Stonefish is now available to stream ahead of the award announcements on Wednesday, 7 December.

Directed by Megan Smart and written by George Pullar who also stars in the film alongside Ben Oxenbould, Stonefish is a thrilling black comedy about an anxious young poet (Pullar) who accidentally sparks a war with his criminal neighbour (Oxenbould) when he tries to silence the relentless barking of his dog.

Set in a quiet, coastal, Australian town, the story sees two unlikely worlds crash together: hipsters and hoodlums. In an escalating game of cat and mouse we almost witness the forming of a beautiful friendship between two broken men, before it is inevitably undone, by a dirty, hidden truth. 

Here, Megan Smart and George Pullar write about the making of the film. Have a read before watching the brilliant new short film below.

Stonefish Director Megan Smart.

Megan Smart on Stonefish

Megan Smart graduated from WAAPA with a Bachelor of Acting in 2016 where she won the Channel 9 Award for Best Actress in her graduating short film. Since then she has worked as an actor consistently in both film and theatre. Her most notable credits include ABC/BBC’s Wakefield, ABC’s Harrow and feature film Measure for Measure, in which she starred alongside Hugo Weaving. This film premiered at the Oscar-qualifying, Melbourne International Film Festival where Megan was a special guest and esteemed ambassador. Stonefish marks Megan’s debut as a director.

Stonefish is for everyone that ever crumbled under pressure, thought their ideas sucked, struggled to voice an opinion or was afraid of their own talent. It’s about backing yourself, believing you are good enough and that what you have to offer is valuable. A lesson that I certainly had to learn as an actor and filmmaker, as I’m sure many other creatives have had to too. 

Ben Oxenbould in Stonefish.

The two men of this story represent two opposite ends of a spectrum. The Man, confident in every single aspect of himself yet unable to express his emotions in any constructive way, versus Jonathon, who knows exactly how to express himself but cannot find a shred of confidence to do so. They are so unlikely a pair and yet both their strengths irrevocably help the other in their disparate lives. 

As a first-time director coming from an acting background, there was a familiarity to working with the camera, the actors and generally being on set. However the post-production side of things was a whole new world to me. I was particularly fascinated with the process of composition. 

Stonefish features a percussive original score that has been used in conjunction with the action, as appose to the emotion, to catapult us through the story. The only exception to this however, is when Jonathon feels positive emotions, particularly freedom from self-doubt. This only happens twice in the film but when it does a new instrument, a saxophone, is unleashed and catharsis begins. The impact of music on the finished product was a revelation and thrill to me. 

Stonefish writer and actor George Pullar.

George Pullar on Stonefish 

George Pullar is WAAPA trained actor with esteemed credits in Australia and the US. He was recognised by the Australian Academy of Film and Television and nominated as best new talent for his performance as Larry Gray in Foxtel’s A Place to Call Home for which. In the same year, he played a lead role on Foxtel’s acclaimed miniseries Fighting Season. In 2018, he was listed by the Casting Guild of Australia as one the nation’s rising stars. He is recognised for his work as Daniel Fletcher on Chanel 10’s hit show, Playing for Keeps, and was involved in all episodes of its two seasons. He also voiced the role of Bradley Burrows in the Universal Animated Film, Combat Wombat.

For his performance in AACTA nominated feature film, Moonrock For Monday, George was awarded best lead actor by the Australian Screen Network. George is most recognised for his work alongside golden-globe winner Michael Chiklis, on Paramount Plus’, Coyote. He also wrote, acted and produced the short film, Stonefish, which is nominated for Best Short Film at the upcoming AACTA awards. Recently, George has completed leading roles in the feature film It Only Takes A Night, and ABC Drama Series, Barrons. He can also be seen opposite Bryan Brown in Acorn drama series, Darby and Joan.

George Pullar in Stonefish.

The truth is, Stonefish all began with a text message from a good mate. With the out-break of Covid, the stream of acting gigs froze up and I was desperate the make a short film in my time off. I gave myself two goals: write myself a role I thought I’d never be cast in and write a story that was simple but genuinely funny and tense. I also gave myself some realistic boundaries. I wanted to shoot primarily in one location, set it in Australia and focus on the conflict between two people. Easy, simple, affordable. With that, I text one of my best mates, who is also an actor and said let’s make something. I suggested we use his boat. “Just two fellas bickering on a boat” to which he replied “Yea, throw in you in the crab-pot, leave you for the birds”. It was a bizarre thing to say but the image struck me. Myself, naked, in a crab-pot. How could I possibly get there? And so it begged the next question…what kind of person could end up in that pot? 

I reflected on the things I dislike most about myself and stopped at this thought: I hate when I plan to confront someone about something and end up complimenting them. Why do I do that? Is that bizarre? Pathetic? Perhaps. But I was also really peculiar, fascinating human behaviour. And to me, it made for great, painful comedy. This was my starting point for Jonathon. A smart young man with all the words in the world, but a total inability to use them when it counts. He’s insecure, he’s a people pleaser but hidden inside his delicate facade, is well of strong opinions and rage. Then I asked myself, who could I stack him against to place him on a journey that would challenge and rattle him the most? Living on the Gold coast, it was only natural that a Bikie popped into my mind. Then I thought it could be interesting if he’d moved on from that life nowadays. More, a recluse. A dangerous loner. But still, very much a bear you do not want to poke. With those two characters and knowing at some point I would end up naked in crab pot, I wrote my story, Stonefish. 

George Pullar on the set of Stonefish.

When I write, I love to act all the parts out. It’s madness. But it’s also just such an effective way to come up with new, unexpected ideas and hopefully good dialogue. It’s also just a great way to stay sharp as an actor. I love Jordan Peele’s advice “follow the fun”. I’m driven by giggles and trying to find ways to make fun of myself through character. For me, it’s a pretty therapeutic and funny process and at the end of the day, joy frees me up creatively. I try and get in that happy place as I write. I don’t think much about theme until the bones of story are in place and then I like to sit on it and think – okay what is this actually about? What am I really trying to say? I’m a big believer in letting themes bubble up and not trying to prescribe things to heavily to the audience. First and foremost, I want my stories to entertain and create some sort of emotional reaction. 

Completing this project has left me hungry to continue to write and develop my own work. I have co-written a feature film – Close Quarters – along with Megan Smart and Pascal Mercay. It’s a physiological thriller that already has attracted key financing and we’re hopeful to move into production by the end of 2023. 

But, I haven’t been able to shake the idea of bringing Jonathon and Ben’s character (unnamed) back to life and I’d love to revisit the dark comedy of my short. I love the dynamic we created in Stonefish and I think Ben is one of Australia’s best comic actors. Ben and I have been developing a TV series that is loosely built on the back of Stonefish and I’m in the process of pitching the show to various streamers and production companies.

Round 2 voting for the AACTA awards opens today.