STACK April 2017 Issue 150

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0XX APRIL 2017
visit EXTRAS NEWS
It's a scorching afternoon in
Melbourne, and behind the
urban facade of downtown
Collingwood, the future is
being created. And it's a
strange world. At the end of
a gloomy corridor illuminated
by discarded glowsticks and
littered with empty pill bottles,
there is a room resembling a
crack den. Only it isn't drugs
that are being consumed
here...
STACK is on the set of
Stem, a noirish new sci-fi
action-thriller written and
directed by Leigh Whannell
– best known as the scribe
of Saw and Insidious – and
starring Logan Marshall-Green
(Prometheus), Betty Gabriel
(Get Out) and Benedict Hardie
(Hacksaw Ridge).
Although we're sworn to
secrecy on plot details, we
can reveal that Stem is set in
a utopian near-future, where
a paralysed technophobe
(Marshall-Green) receives
an experimental computer
implant that turns out to have
a mind of its own. Think of it
as being like a techno version
of George Romero's Monkey
Shines, albeit with a computer
instead of the monkey.
"My first reaction was
fear," says Marshall-Green
of reading the script," which
means I really liked it. But I
knew it was going to be a lot
of work, given the stakes and
emotion this guy has to deal
with. It was going to need
every ounce of my theatrical
ability."
Gabriel, who plays a
detective investigating
the murder of the wife of
Marshall-Green's character, is
thrilled to be involved in Stem
– being a self-proclaimed
sci-fi fan – and promises that
Whannell's venture into the
genre will be something quite
unique.
Australian producer
Kylie Du Fresne (The
Sapphires) agrees: "Seeing
the world he has created,
he's a film director who
presents something distinct
and different – he really
understands genre and
commercial beats."
A co-production with
American genre stable
Blumhouse (The Purge, Get
Out), Stem is Whannell's
second feature as director
following Insidious: Chapter
3 (2015) and his first back
on home soil, having been
based in the US for the last
ten years.
"Stem is an Australian
film, and you don't normally
get to make films like this in
Australia," adds Du Fresne.
Production in Melbourne
wrapped on March 10.
Download the
STACK Magazine App
for extra treats and content.
STACK visited the set of LeighWhannell's new film, the
sci-fi thriller Stem, and we liked what we saw. Words Scott Hocking
TECH NOIR
WIN A TRIP
TO SAN DIEGO
COMIC-CON
S an Diego Comic-Con is one of the biggest
celebrations of popular culture in the world,
and you have a chance to attend the 2017 event.
Between now and May 7, visit your local
JB Hi-Fi store and purchase any specially
stickered 20th Century Fox title to win a once-
in-a-lifetime trip to San Diego Comic-Con! It
really is that easy. Once you've chosen your
DVD(s), simply head to
and in 25 words or less, describe what you
think your favourite part of SDCC 2017 would
be and why. It could be anything from the
awesome cosplayers and the panels, to the
celebrity guests and the awesome exclusive
merchandise.
The prize includes return airfares for you and
a mate to San Diego Comic-Con 2017, as well
as $500 to spend while you're over there. We'd
recommend saving at least some of this for
return baggage allowance.
SDCC gets bigger and better every year, with
panels featuring the stars from your favourite TV
shows and movies, as well as premiere footage
and trailers. Oh, and of course comics and
artists. The best part? We'll be there too. We've
caught up with the past two winners, and
needless to say, they had the time of their life.
San Diego Comic-Con 2017 runs July 20-23
at the San Diego Convention Center and STACK
will be bringing you all the news as it breaks.
Leigh
Whannell in
Saw (2004)