New Zealand Movie to Premiere in Dunedin
PERFECT CREATURE
Direct from its successful opening at the Montreal Fantasia Festival, PERFECT CREATURE will make it's New Zealand
premiere at the Telecom New Zealand International Film Festival in Dunedin where a large portion of the film was shot,
on Saturday July 28, 2007.
PERFECT CREATURE received rave reviews from its Montreal outing where writer/director Glenn Standring and producer Tim
Sanders were special guests. The following quote encapsulates the essence of PERFECT CREATURE and New Zealand
filmmaking.
“Perfect Creature showcases the vast imagination and ingenuity at work in (New Zealand’s) film industry with a very
original twist on the vampire movie. Part horror film, part sci-fi epic and part cop thriller, it’s a genre junkie’s wet
scream. Rounded out with spectacular fight scenes, reminiscent of The Matrix, and eye-candy galore for dark fantasy
lovers (think of Blade Runner and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, in terms of production design), Perfect
Creature packs a helluva lot into its 90 minutes running time. Standring proves that Peter Jackson isn’t the only
filmmaker in his country capable of bringing to life big, detailed worlds –- and even bigger tales to fill them.” Dave
Alexander, Fantasia
Home-grown suspense-thriller PERFECT CREATURE presents a unique retelling of the vampire mythos. New Zealand
writer/director Glenn Standring takes the supernatural origins of vampires and brings it into a unique setting
presenting them as ‘superior’ beings living harmoniously with humans – until a dissenter tries to break this down
behaving like a vampire of legend.
PERFECT CREATURE exists in an alternate world, set in Nuevo Zeland circa 1960, where some of the hardware is familiar
but there is a distinct Victorian almost Dickensian environment.
The story begins 300 years ago when genetic science was discovered by alchemists eventually leading to the rise of these
vampires. Initially they were bounty to be killed, but in time they became indispensable and revered for their mission
is to now protect human life from viral and DNA mutations. Now known as The Brotherhood they are no longer mankind’s
nemesis but the keepers of science and spirituality.
This delicate balance is about to be destroyed when a Brother, Edgar (Leo Gregory) ‘turns’. Edgar is driven by a secret
he wants to divulge to the world and turns into a vampire of legend who preys on humans. A highly respected Brother,
Silus (Dougray Scott), is engaged to solve the problem and joins forces with a human police detective, Lilly (Saffron
Burrows), to contain the damage and stop the reign of terror.
PERFECT CREATURE is the second feature for writer/director Glenn Standring whose debut, The Irrefutable Truth about
Demons, became one of New Zealand’s most successful film exports. PERFECT CREATURE stars Dougray Scott (Desperate
Housewives, Mission Impossible 2, Enigma); Saffron Burrows (Troy, Enigma, Frida); Leo Gregory (Tristan and Isolde);
Stuart Wilson (The Mask of Zorro) and Scott Wills (Stickmen).
Standring teams up with BAFTA award-winning producer Tim Sanders (The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring,
Whale Rider), Roc Media's Russel Fischer and Haneet Vaswani (Bend It Like Beckham) and Spice Factory's Michael Cowan and
Jason Piette (The Merchant Of Venice, Bridge Over San Luis Rey, Plots With A View).
The production team includes some of New Zealand’s leading technical and creative talent: Director of photography Leon
Narbey (Whale Rider; No. 2); production designer Phil Ivey (The Lord of the Rings; In My Father’s Den), costume designer
Kirsty Cameron (Whale Rider; In My Father’s Den), editor Christopher Blunden (High Heels, Low Lives; Blackball) and
Academy Award-winning composer Anne Dudley (Full Monty; Crying Game; Pushing Tin.) .
PERFECT CREATURE has sold to most international territories and is well on its way to recouping its production budget.
The film was funded by the New Zealand Film Production Fund, the New Zealand Film Commission, Movision, Roc Media and
the Royal Bank of Scotland.
PERFECT CREATURE will be released nationwide on October 18 via Magna Pacific.
ENDS