Sophie Reynolds and Cameron Mighell in Everything Grows in Eden.

Jack Johnston’s micro-budget road movie, Everything Grows in Eden, is about dreaming, dying, and living with other people, from an emerging country Victoria auteur

A young man, Shane (Cameron Mighell), tries to kill himself by jumping in front of a train. His friend, Lily (Sophie Reynolds), rushes to save him but she’s shaken by how close he came to succeeding. Lily knows a place in the country that might help Shane overcome his demons – in fact, it’s somewhere she used to call home. Shane’s wild best friend Astrid is skeptical but she insists on coming with them on a road trip to the utopian Eden, a journey that will profoundly impact all of their lives.

Director Jack Johnston grew up in a place like the fictional Eden, where a communal style of living can be nurturing but also oppressive. He brings a nuanced approach to this engrossing, funny and ultimately very moving story of three young people struggling to find their place in the world.

A novelistic road movie made in sun-dappled country Victoria for only $9,000, Everything Grows in Eden creates a richly detailed world in which to explore what it really means to build community.

Everything Grows in Eden will screen at the Brunswick Underground Film Festival on Friday, 15 May. Details here.

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