Based on real life war diaries, Before Dawn is an epic retelling of one of Australia’s biggest military victories during World War I. Jim Collins (Levi Miller, Pan), a young man from the outback, leaves his family-run sheep station to join the soldiers on the western front with hopes of making a difference. But soon, the realities of the muddy, ruthless, and entirely unforgiving war take their toll on a guilt-ridden Jim.
As the men in the battalion are whittled away and hope becomes a distant memory, a final chance at redemption arises amid one of Australia’s greatest battles. Jim must risk death, or forever carry the burden of leaving yet another man behind.
Also starring Travis Jeffery (Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes) and Ed Oxenbould (The Visit), Before Dawn is a powerful and unforgettable story showing a different perspective on the impact of war.
Writer-director Jordon Prince-Wright (The Decadent and Depraved) tells us more about the film…
How did the idea for Before Dawn first come to you?
I was first introduced to the soldier diaries during a school trip to a museum when I was about 14-15 years old. I was fascinated by not only the massive stories around the war, but also the smaller, personal stories which showed similar events but from different perspectives, soldiers, nurses, and so on. Then after speaking to lots of different people, I found out that many didn’t realise that Australians fought on the western front.
This small idea grew over the years and as I became a filmmaker, and shot other films, it’s a story that remained close to my heart. Later, when I started speaking to film distributors and investors I found out a lot of people didn’t realise how much the ANZACs [Australian and New Zealand Army Corps] contributed during the First World War, and what the conditions were like. So it really developed from there, seeing the handwritten diaries on the school trip and building the idea and story over a long time.
The very first shots take us straight into the trenches, what made you want to take this approach right off the bat?
I wanted to place the audience in the trenches and to feel what the ANZACs felt, the claustrophobia, the mud, the rain, and the harsh conditions. Within the narrative, we see flashbacks of Jim’s story to understand where he came from, and his innocence in a way, but it wasn’t intended as the driving force of the plot. I didn’t want to take the standard approach of some war films: meeting recruits, training, then going to war. I wanted to show what these men and women went through and set a tone for the audience.
The film features a great ensemble of characters. Was this a deliberate choice when it came to writing and casting?
Many of my friends say I was born in the wrong era because I love watching the old ragtag hero films, like The Magnificent Seven, The Dirty Dozen and Kelly’s Heroes. In a lot of these, as much as it was about popular actors, it was all about the collective ensemble. I leaned into this idea because the more I read the original diaries, the more I noticed it was rarely about one person. One soldier’s diary may have been from his perspective, but they’re always talking about their mates, so that definitely inspired the script.
When it came to casting, as well as auditioning actors, I really scrutinised headshots to see how they’d all look side by side. Since everyone’s in uniform, you can’t be that creative with dressing differently, so it’s more about finer details, and how they’d all fit together, and their dynamics as actors. However, I got to work with the most amazing and talented cast. I also believe half the job is casting correctly, the other half is finding the performance you want from those actors on the day.
Are there any scenes which stand out for you?
I always love blowing stuff up! [laughs] We even caused an earthquake which reached 2.8 on the richter scale! It was all above board of course, but that was caused by 40 tonnes of explosives costing $1.4m that went up in 10 seconds, so that was very impressive to see. But in all seriousness, it wasn’t the easiest shoot. It rained when we didn’t want it to rain, then when it wasn’t raining, we needed rain machines, and it was one of the coldest winters on record. But it’s funny, we noticed after about two weeks in, the harder the conditions were, people were just laughing it off and I think it helped build a sense of camaraderie amongst the cast and crew. Everyone became this close-knit family which is good and that’s exactly what we needed.
In the lead up to a very important confrontation scene between two characters, we cancelled it twice due to not having the right weather. It was one of those scenes that was written very early on and we knew it would be important, a centrepiece in the story. So I’m glad I was stubborn with something like that because it became one of my favourite scenes and worth holding out for. After the premiere, people left the film in tears some said it was one of their favourite scenes, too. If something resonates with audiences in that way, it feels like we’ve done our job as filmmakers.
Compared to the harsh scenes in the trenches, there were scenes in the outback which felt like a breeze by comparison. Just don’t work with sheep! I know people say don’t work with children or animals, but I think sheep need their own category too! [laughs]
What do you hope people take away from Before Dawn?
We wanted to showcase the contribution of these brave men and women and what they went through. If seeing the film leads people to take up further research, which I’ve heard has happened all over, that’s truly astonishing to me and I’m proud to have played a part in that.
What are you working on next?
I can’t say too much yet but I’ve been asked to work with a major studio which is underway at the moment. We’ve also got a few other films lined up. I don’t want to be put in a box as a filmmaker. My first feature was a western, now I’ve made a war film and there are other military films coming my way, which is great, but for me it’s all about the story. If it’s a great story, it doesn’t matter what genre it is. It’s more about what feels right and what I can I connect with. Actually, my mum would really like me to make a rom-com but I can’t see that happening anytime soon! [laughs] So, watch this space! There’s also a feature documentary coming soon called In The Trenches, which is all about the making of Before Dawn. I really hope everyone continues supporting this film and sharing it with their friends and family.
Before Dawn is out now on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital.
