When farmer Leila McDougall, a first-time movie producer, was casting her movie Just a Farmer, she decided to look no further than her hometown of Ararat for her extras.
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How better to portray her community than to have them on the big screen with her?
The movie screens in theatres around the country on March 21, 2024, with Horsham and Ararat theatres screening the homegrown movie on launch date.
As the launch date nears, excitement builds around the region as locals reflect on their silver screen debut and the process of filming a movie in Tatyoon.
Some want to see their parts make it to the big screen or land on the cutting room floor.
Daryl Chaplin, Nola Davidson, and Dianne Cook are some extras looking forward to the movie's release.
Daryl Chapman appears in several scenes, including the football match scene.
He also scored the role of a truck driver in one of the farming scenes.
Mr Chaplin is familiar with the big screen. He appeared as an extra in Mission Impossible and is an accomplished stage performer in rehearsals for Joseph and the Technicolor Dream Coat, which will soon be playing in Ararat.
"I just play an old lady crying," said Nola Davidson modestly, "and I'm in a scene having a beer."
They share some of these scenes, including a bar scene with Dianne Cook.
Although they all live in Ararat, they didn't know each other before the movie, and now they have become good friends.
They said the cast and crew treated them equally, making the experience extremely enjoyable.
"They were friendly and encouraging." Ms Cook said,
"We didn't know what we were doing, we hadn't rehearsed, we just did as we were told, and it worked."
"It brought a natural and honest portrayal of the scenes to the movie," she said.
Many of the scenes in the movie were filmed during farm work on Sean and Leila McDougall's farm.
Like many other farming scenes, the shearers were instant movie stars.
"The sheep were real; there were no stunt sheep brought in. The cattle were real, and so were the mountains in the background," Ms Cook said, laughing.
"One day on set, I heard one of the extras say it was the best thing they'd ever done or been involved in, and I feel that way too," Ms Cook said, "I think we all did."
They all agreed that having locals in the movie had added to its authenticity and, more importantly, to the message of farmers' mental well-being.
The movie deals with the rate of suicide in the farming community but focuses on the resilience and strength of that same community.
The film stars acclaimed Australian actors Robert Taylor, Trevor Jamieson, Susan Prior, and Damien Walske-.Howling
Ms McDougall plays the lead role, her first on the big screen.
