Miley Tunnecliffe to premiere directorial debut Proclivitas in cinemas 19 March
Screenwest caught up with Western Australian writer/director Miley Tunnecliffe to ask her 10 questions ahead of her horror film’s theatrical release.
Western Australian writer/director Miley Tunnecliffe (Molly and Cara, The Heights, 100% Wolf) is set to premiere her directorial debut, Proclivitas in cinemas across the country this month.
Miley Tunnecliffe on the set of Proclivitas.
Produced by WA’s Kate Separovich (Girt By Sea, Evie, Dirt Music) under her production company Lake Martin Films, Proclivitas is the story of a grieving woman who rekindles a romance with her teenage sweetheart, awakening painful memories of the past and a terrifying demon determined to possess her. The film stars Fremantle-born and raised, WAAPA-trained actress Rose Riley (Stateless, Mr Inbetween), George Mason (Power of the Dog, Exposure) and WA actor Hayley McElhinney (The Babadook, Mystery Road: Origin).
Proclivitas was the 2023 recipient of Screenwest’s highly coveted West Coast Visions initiative, and filmed around Perth and Mundaring.
Screenwest caught up with Miley to ask her 10 questions ahead of her film’s theatrical release.
Miley! 14 sleeps to go until your feature debut is coming out in cinemas! How does it feel? Amazing! It’s been a dream of mine for nearly 30 years now to have a film in cinemas. See kids, it won’t happen overnight, but it will happen ha ha.
Miley Tunnecliffe (L) and Kate Separovich (R) with Tenille Kennedy, Screenwest Head of Scripted: Content and Talent at the WA premiere of Proclivitas in February.
You premiered Proclivitas at SXSW Sydney and last month you got to premiere it to a Western Australian crowd at WA Made Festival. How was the vibe on the night? There’s nothing like a hometown crowd. It felt very emotional because so many of the people who have supported me over the years, in the industry and in my personal life, were there to watch the film. Some of the crew and actors were also there with their supporters. There was just a lot of love and excitement in the air. It reminded me why I stay in WA as a filmmaker.
You’ve now directed comedy, drama and horror – which genre do you love the most and what are the main differences or similarities between them, from a directing perspective? Oooh, tough one. I love comedy and I love horror. I can’t decide. It’s nice to have both options to bounce between and to be able to bring a bit of humour into my horror or a little darkness into my comedy.
In the writing and the editing, I notice there are similarities in the pacing and the techniques you use to build tension in the lead up to either a laugh or a scare. But for me, I’d say horror is more of a director’s medium to play in, whereas comedy is so much more the actor’s. When I’m writing comedy, I’m focused more heavily on character. I’m pulling on my acting background and thinking like an actor as I write. Because that’s often where the success of comedy (the style that I like at least) is going to lie – in its characters and performance.
Whereas very early on in the process of a horror I’m thinking like a director. So much of the film is going to be reliant on your technique and voice as a director – the mood, the atmosphere is all going to be created through your choice of shots, your lighting, your sound etc. Character is of course always important but in horror you need to balance it with atmosphere and tone a whole lot more to be successful.
Who are your career idols? So many! I love what Jordan Peele and Zach Cregger are doing in horror, especially with their comedy backgrounds. I grew up loving the indie films of the Duplass Brothers and Lynn Shelton. In Australia I love what the Philippou brothers are doing in horror. And I thank Jennifer Kent for leading us into our current golden age of Australian horror with her film, The Babadook.
Rose Riley as CLARE and George Mason as JERRY, PROCLIVITAS – Photograph by David Dare Parker
Tell us about working with Rose and George. Was it nice to not have to worry about performing as well as directing, or did you miss it? I didn’t miss acting, no! Rose and George were such a dream to work with. We had an amazing casting agent, Natalie Wall from Barrett Casting, who brought them both to my attention. They are both such incredibly exciting Australian talents. They made the roles their own and played off each other in such a nuanced way. And same with beautiful Hayley McElhinney, who I first got to work with on our SBS web series, Molly and Cara. I feel so lucky that the three of them came in and elevated the material with their choices and willingness to dive into what was, at times, quite emotionally and physically challenging material.
If you were to say yes to directing someone else’s script, whose would it be? It’s interesting because I think of myself a writer first and foremost so saying yes to direct somebody else’s script depends on both the material and who the other person is. You really have to be on the same page about so many things – your taste and sensibilities have to be similar, and the trust needs to be there between you both for it to be a successful collaboration. I’m actually working with another WA.A. writer, Heather Wilson, on one of her projects, a horror comedy. She’s written this fun, crazy script which I will be directing. Heather is incredibly talented, smart and she knows how to be collaborative. The development process together has been such a rewarding experience.
They say actors can make the best directors. How much does it help, having that personal understanding of performance? I do think actors can make great directors. I may not know the difference between a lens, but I know how to recognise nuance and authenticity in story and in performance.I’ve also built an understanding of film and visual language through watching so much over the years. And I have a whole incredible crew who interprets what I want into the film’s visuals. But I have so much empathy for actors having been one myself. It’s a hard and incredibly vulnerable job to do. For me my duty towards my actors is to understand what they need and how they like to work, and then get out of the way and let them do their job.
PROCLIVITAS producer Kate Separovich, George Mason (Jerry), Rose Riley (Clare) and writer/director Miley Tunnecliffe. Photography by David Dare Parker. Credit: Lake Martin Films
What are you watching at the moment? I’m obsessed with The Traitors. Sometimes reality TV is the only thing I can watch where I don’t feel like I’m actually working. I’m also watching The Pitt, along with everybody else I know. Obsessed with the Canadian show Heated Rivalry. And I’m super excited for Zak Hilditch’s We Bury The Dead out in cinemas now, and Zoe Pepper‘s Birthright coming out soon!
Where else in Western Australia would you love to shoot and why? I would love to shoot down south in our wine region. It’s one of my favourite places in Western Australia. It’s just beautiful. There’s exciting produce and of course wine! Ha ha. But the landscape and coastline are stunning. The forest areas are gorgeous and atmospheric and I think you can do either romcom, drama or horror down there.
What are you currently working on? What’snext for Miley Tunnecliffe? Right now I’m writing on a few things. I’ve got film and TV projects set up both here in Australia and in the US that we’re in various phases on. So watch this space!
Proclivitas hits cinemas across Australia on 19 March.
Head to Luna Leederville for a special Q & A Screening with producer, Kate Separovich on 24 March.