ACM Films is excited to announce that Sweet River has been nominated for ‘Feature Film Production of the Year’ in the Screen Producer Australia (SPA) Awards 2022.
Sweet River is a haunting psychological thriller filmed in Byron Bay and Tweed Heads region in Northern NSW and the first film produced by ACM Films. Distributed by Pivot Pictures and released as a Netflix film in 2020, Sweet River follows Hanna (Lisa Kay; Heartbeat, Vera) who returns to the sleepy town of Billins in search of her son’s body. Her investigations uncover more than she expected and threaten to expose the town’s secrets – secrets that both the living and the dead will fight to protect.
Boasting an overpowering sense of tension and a narrative that draws you in with quiet but undeniable force, Sweet River is a powerful high-concept local edge-of-your-seat thriller.
Sweet River also stars Martin Sacks, Genevieve Lemon, Chris Haywood, Rob Carlton, Eddie Baroo, Sam Parsonson, Bryan Roberts and Jeremy Waters. The film is directed by Justin McMillan, the screenplay is written by Marc Furmie (Terminus) and Eddie Baroo (Black Sails, Son Of A Gun) and produced by ACM Films Founder and Executive Producer Ashley McLeod.
Ashley McLeod comments, “It is an absolute honour for Sweet River to be nominated in such a prestigious category and amongst an extraordinary group of Australian films”.
“I am so proud of the team behind Sweet River. This incredible achievement is testimony that no matter what size the film budget, great stories can be created locally as we harbour an exceptional array of talent and have access to many unique locations this beautiful country has to offer” adds Ashley.
Ashley McLeod is currently casting for his new comedy horror Big Red, directed by Nick Robertson, written by Australian actor Matt Day, to be distributed in Australia and New Zealand by Pivot Pictures.
The SPA Award recipients will be announced on Wednesday 30 March, 2021 at the prestigious Screen Producers Australia Award ceremony on the Gold Coast.
The Awards honour the skill, accomplishment, and imagination of their members and remain the only awards voted solely by the production businesses who take Australian stories to the world and help the Australian independent production sector to thrive.
ABOUT ACM FILMS
ACM Films is an Australian based independent content production company founded by Ashley McLeod.
Ashley’s film career has provided him with solid grounding and extensive experience. From his first big break as a sound recordist on multi-award-winning Burke’s Backyard through to developing and writing a feature film screenplay while establishing his locations company, when he sold it to move into producing, it was positioned as Australia’s leading location company. Ashley has encountered almost every imaginable scenario through his rise to producing. It is with this wealth of knowledge and production experience that sets Ashley apart.
Ashley has produced over 2000 TVCs for national and international brands. In 2019 Ashley produced his first feature film, Sweet River which was sold to Netflix as a Netflix Original and streamed in 2020. Sweet River had a theatrical release across America in April 2021 and has won numerous awards at international film festivals. Ash has a number of projects in development, he is currently in pre-production on BIG RED, a comedy horror genre film.
http://www.acmfilms.com.au/
Interviews are available with Producer Ashley McLeod.
Marguerite Barbara PR 