Stamp on Hollywood
Townsville Bulletin, 9 June 2007

Lick a stamp and send Bowen to the world with a new postcard featuring scenes and sets from Australia. Gordon Fellows, from Bowen Art and Framing, designed the artwork for the postcard and prints and took several of the photos featured himself. The postcard has pictures of Nicole Kidman, Hugh Jackman, the Territory Hotel, stockmen and cattle, the Carney's cattle building, a World War I memorial and other buildings. Mr Fellows said the postcard was selling like hotcakes to tourists and locals. "We've had Hugh Jackman's driver in buying six of the large prints," Mr Fellows said. "They might be getting signed by Hugh and Nicole for charity. It's been flat out." Alice Fellows said the prints were also selling well to people who had roles in the movie. Mrs Fellows has been on set herself playing an 'army girl' extra in the film. "That's why I've got my hair curled like this," she said. "It's been great. I've seen Nicole up close. People in town are all taken up with the movie." Mr Fellows said there was one shopper they were keen to see. "We're hoping Baz will come in and get his print."

---

Bowen's fling with Hollywood
Brisbane Times, 8 June 2007

The tour bus pulling into the north Queensland town of Bowen is not here to see one of the area's seven beaches, or go on a bushwalk. It is not even here to visit the museum or the award-winning pie shop. The visitors which emerge from the coach's air-conditioned innards, blinking in the sunlight, are here to see a whole load of cattle being moved from one end of the town's dusty main street to the other. Oh, and maybe also catch a glance of a Hollywood superstar in the process. This is because Bowen is the main location for Baz Luhrmann's latest epic movie, Australia. Starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman, the film is set in the 1930s, and revolves around the relationship between a respectable English aristocrat (Kidman) and a rough-and-ready cattle drover (Jackman). The two are caught in World War II bombing raids, which is where Bowen comes in: it is the stand-in location for Darwin.

For a town which lists The Big Mango as one of its chief attractions, this is a bit of a change. Known by some as the tomato capital of Queensland, Bowen's usual core of visitors are backpackers who stream in for fruit and vegetable picking season to earn enough cash to have some fun in Airlie Beach, 90km south, or Townsville, 200km north. But thanks to Baz and company, Bowen is attracting those on sleek air-conditioned coaches as well as economy greyhound buses. It has meant that beds are in short supply; great for the town's resorts, not so great for the backpackers or people wanting to visit right now. Thankfully Bowen is just a 45-minute drive from serene resorts of Hydeaway Bay, at the northern edge of the Whitsunday Islands. The absence of a few backpackers is no cause for complaint by the townspeople though, who seem to have been swept up in the movie excitement themselves. Chance meetings with megastars at the fish and chip shop, the local cafe and even the supermarket have left the locals star struck. Shops on every street hang signs welcoming Hollywood to town, and opportunistic businesses are selling Beefy Hugh Jackman pies or dressing up mannequins to look like fair Nicole. Even the Shire Council website now greets cyber guests to: "Bowen Shire Council: Hollywood style."

For the coach group, the first hint of the changes is the slogan written in apartment block-high letters on the water tower which overlooks the highway coming into town. It reads: "Bowenwood." But real (or reel) action is at the far end of town, where whole streets have been roped off for the filming, stretching from the central Grand View Hotel to the waterfront and its long jetty. It is this corner which the visitors make a beeline for, once they are off their coaches. What Bowen locals say was "a hole in the ground" has been turned into a 1930s town through the addition of tonnes of red dirt, a thousand short-horn cattle and half-a-dozen temporary buildings. Among the new edifices are an open-air theatre (The Pearl), a brothel, and an outback pub called the Territory Hotel. On filming days, movie fans seek glimpses of the action by peering through the windows of the pub, which has an extra layer of exterior to make it part of the set. But no-one seems to mind a limited view: many movie aficionados point out that filming in a real town is unusual in the Hollywood world, where entire fake towns are built to provide closed sets.

For the coach group, today is the cattle driving scene, so the set is filled with the clouds of dust raised by the hooves of the short-horn cattle and the horses carrying Jackman and his body double. Volunteers smartly attired in "Australia"-branded polo neck shirts greet the visitors and give them the inside gossip on the film, the stars, and the town. Joan, 72, is one of the 90 volunteers (the film's management asked for 60) giving her Bowen tales a coating of Hollywood glitz. "I have to keep remembering that it's meant to be Darwin," she said, chiding herself. "It's not Bowen." As always, the best tales are personal: Joan's husband wandered into the volunteering hall himself to take a look, only to be given acting roles as a barman, storekeeper and movie-theatre attendant. "I told him I was going to kill him when we got home," she joked, before launching back into movie details. "He told me the film they are meant to be showing (at the 1930s Darwin theatre) is The Wizard of Oz, which didn't come out for another four years, so it shows you they have to cheat a bit." Joan also explained that the temporary movie set was unlikely to stay up for long after filming as they were not cyclone proof. The irony is that it was a cyclone that cost Darwin most of its old buildings; part of the reason Bowen was chosen as the location.

Even now Bowen evokes the feeling of an age gone by; streets as wide as a six-lane highway and hotel buildings so old you feel like you are already on a movie set. Baz Luhrmann himself was taken aback when he discovered the 1940s Summergarden movie theatre already in Bowen, and immediately started using it to view the end-of-day "rushes" - the raw footage he had shot that day. When the set is taken down and the crew drive out of town, it will be places like the Summergarden which people will still flock to - maybe even to watch the end product. But others have called for there to be a more lasting monument to the day Hollywood fever came to Bowen. One businessman even suggested the set should be preserved as it is and turned into a permanent tourist attraction. Yet it is more likely that Bowen will mark the moment in a way they are more familiar with: a mural. Bowen's history is already celebrated in 24 murals painted around the town, so maybe a 25th will be on the cards.

The Bowen Shire Mural Society has been giving guided tours of the murals on Thursday evenings between April and September - long before Baz ever came to town. Their committee's next decision might be whether the latest mural includes the day Hugh Jackman went body surfing in pristine Horseshoe Bay or the night Keith Urban played an impromptu gig at the local pub. But there's no doubt that there will only be one way to get the full story: get off the coach and ask a local about the day Baz came to town.

IF YOU GO:
Filming on Australia is due to continue in Bowen until the start of July 2007, before it moves on to other locations around the country. Cape Gloucester Eco Resort, in Hydeaway Bay, is around a 45-minute drive south of Bowen and offers motel rooms (from $100 midweek/$165 Fri-Sun) and cabins ($165 midweek/ $220 Fri-Sun) next to a pristine beach with views to Gloucester Island, one of the largest islands in the Whitsunday group. Details: visit http://www.capegloucester.com. Visit http://www.tourismbowen.com.au for details of resorts and attractions in Bowen; http://www.australiamovie.net for more on the film.

Hugh's day at the beach
Townsville Bulletin, 24 May 2007

Bowenwood was a hive of activity yesterday, both on and off the set of Baz Lurhmann's Australia. Hugh Jackman took a well deserved break from filming to spend a lazy day at the beach with his daughter. The star spent much of the day at Horseshoe Bay, swimming and popping into a local cafe for a bite to eat. Horseshoe Bay Cafe and Restaurant waitress Glenn Womal said she wouldn't be showering or washing her shirt after her brush with the star. "Hugh signed the collar of my shirt and he touched my neck," Mrs Womal said. "He had his shirt off and he is hot. He has a perfect body and a beautiful smile. "He had his little girl on his shoulders and he put her down to sign my autograph. "He was supposed to go back to the set in the afternoon, but they called to say they didn't need him so he stayed at the beach. "He just said the beach was lovely."

But there was still plenty going on in town. Bryan Brown was the star attraction on set. He downed a few beers as cameramen filmed take after take of the bad guy on Carney's balcony. Brown raised his bottle and waved to patient fans, who had been watching the scene unfold from behind the security barricade. Local extras were in the limelight as film crews shot a town scene including women walking dogs, classic cars and stockmen. A helicopter hovered directly over the set while the stars were at lunch, sending plumes of red dirt swirling up Herbert St. The chopper was supposed to be used to film a final cattle run and George St was blocked for the entire day. But locals were left lining the street for nothing as the steers were let off the hook again. A crew member finally told fans about 5pm the cattle would not be running. He blamed the fading light and said it was likely the cows would run today.

---

Kidman's son stole show
Townsville Bulletin, 23 May 2007

There was no sign of Nicole Kidman yesterday but her son Connor turned a few heads. The young Mr Cruise spent a second day horsing around on the set of his Mum's movie, after flying back into Bowen with Nic on Monday after she took a weekend off. Wearing a stack-hat, and proudly perched on a well-groomed stallion, young Connor followed the other horses up Herbert St, smiling and waving at locals and photographers to signal the end of filming. "I'm having a great time," Connor said. The child's appearance late in the day was the highlight of a tedious day on set. On-lookers were forced to peer through the windows of the Grand View hotel in hope of glimpsing the stars. A helicopter hovering above the set late in the day took aerial shots of the set. But little has changed after the first week of filming, with the scene still depicting 1939 Darwin. However, a pewter soldier now adorns a rock statue in the centre of town, outside the Grand View Hotel, a symbol of the film's progression toward re-enacting World War II. On set yesterday, the dust was flying as Hugh Jackman sent herds of heifers through their paces. The strapping star spent a second day in the saddle cracking the whip. But dozens of fans barely got a glimpse of the main man, with filming taking place well back from the renowned viewing platform at the Grand View Hotel. Massive propeller fans were used to blow up tonnes of dust that had been dumped on the street, to create the illusion of stampeding cattle. But the swirling dust created a smoke screen, through which the stars of the movie were barely visible.

---

Movie sheds light on first ever attack
The Sydney Morning Herald, 23 May 2007

It's being billed as Australia's biggest ever movie, but Baz Luhrmann's "Australia" may also shed new light on an often forgotten episode in Australian history. The outback blockbuster will climax with Japan's bombing of Darwin 65 years ago - Australia's first attack on home soil. "It draws attention to a lot of people about what happened up here during war time and the heritage of World War II we have here," said Brian O'Gallager, from the Northern Territory chief minister's department of major projects. At least 243 people were killed and hundreds more injured in Darwin during Japanese bombing raids on February 19, 1942. The first 40-minute raid badly damaged the town, demolishing eight ships including the destroyer USS Peary with the loss of 91 seamen, and all but one of Darwin's warplanes. The destruction will form the backdrop for the final scenes of the film, when Hollywood superstar Nicole Kidman wanders Darwin wharf after driving 2,000 cattle across the Top End. "There is action aplenty," said Bazmark location manager Phillip Roope. "It's an epic, that's all I can say."

Australia centres on an English aristocrat, played by Kidman, who becomes the proprietor of a cattle station before World War II. She enlists the help of a "rough-hewn" drover, played by Hugh Jackman, in a fight against cattle barons who plot to take over her land. The plot also involves a young Aboriginal child who is rescued from a mission. Speaking at a media briefing with two of the movie's producers in Darwin this week, O'Gallager said the NT government had contributed $200,000 to the project. "It will promote Darwin and the Top End to an international audience and I do think it will really boost our tourism industry, both immediately and with longer term strategic growth," he said. Construction costs, hiring machinery, accommodation and meals for the crew would also provide a welcome injection of funds to the local economy, he said. Roope said the movie had the potential to do for the Top End what Lord of the Rings did for New Zealand six years ago. "Tourism has increased 20 per cent there every year since then," he said. "If an iconic film works it has the ability to kick start something that can generate a lot of interest and a film of this size will generate a lot of international interest. "It is set in a place that is seen as very exotic to people in America and Europe."

The movie also has the potential to shed light on one of the most overlooked incidents in Australian history. This year Darwin commemorated the 65th anniversary of the bombing. But while it was a big affair in the Top End, the anniversary of the Japanese raids rated only a passing mention elsewhere in Australia. Despite this, the producers believe it will soon become part of the national consciousness, after moviegoers are treated to a visual account of the first time bombs fell on Australia. Roope said the movie - describing it as "Gone With The Wind meets Out Of Africa" - was the largest ever attempted by an Australian director with an Australian production company. It is expected to hit the big screen late next year. "This is the biggest Australian film ever, the amount of equipment, the scope of the film, the locations ... it's something that Australia has never attempted before," Roope said. "The north of Australia is a new and exciting frontier and one of the last in the world," Roope said of the film, which is expected to cost $US100 million ($A122.2 million).

Filming will start at Darwin's Stokes Hill Wharf on July 2 to 5, when Kidman is shot arriving in Australia from England in a Qantas flying boat. It will resume on July 10 and 11, after the real life working wharf is made to look as it would have a couple of hours after the bombing occurred. Stokes Hill Wharf will remain open for business throughout the filming. "At the moment we are just starting a bit of the construction process. We're just dressing the edge of the wharf so that from water level it looks like things are going on in a wharf as they would have in 1939," Roope said.

The production company is looking for 300 extras to fill the five to 10 minutes of screen time expected to be included from the wharf filming in the final movie. "The ethnic mix that was Darwin then and Darwin now," Roope said. "Baz is interested in doing things in the real place. The story was conceived up here and he has always, ever since his first trip to the wharf, seen it as a really important part of the story." Filming has already started in the north Queensland coastal town of Bowen, which will portray 1930s Darwin. Luhrmann - whose hits include Moulin Rouge, Romeo And Juliet and Strictly Ballroom - also plans to shoot in Western Australia's unique Kimberley region near Kununurra in late July. But the film begins and ends in Darwin, with what Roope describes as the "mystery of the aqua waters".

---

Nic saddles up
Townsville Bulletin, 22 May 2007

Not even a raring horse can stop Nicole Kidman from getting the job done. The Australia star arrived back on set yesterday after a weekend break proving she can take on just about any role as she rode around the make-shift town with confidence. As she prepared to start filming a cattle drive along the red dusty streets perched on a dark brown mare the beautifully groomed horse became spooked making a sharp jolt in the air. But with confidence Nicole clutched the reins tight and turned the mare around to lead  more than 50 head of cattle through the streets. Dressed in a more masculine look, with full knee high riding boots, the mob followed in her path as a group of stockman, including some Aboriginal women and children, jeered-up the rugged stock. It was a 10-hour wait for a shot of the star for some who rose at 6am after rumours spread across the town that the cattle droving scenes would see the cast, including Hugh Jackman, ride straight through the main street. Council workers blocked of streets throughout the town at 9pm Sunday night to prepare for the filming but the stock never took a step on the bitumen and Hugh wasn't seen. Vehicles parked in the street, including a backpacker's van, forced the crew to abandon the plan as they desperately raced to find car owners, leaving many fans disappointed. But by 4pm the Hollywood queen was showing off her riding talent within 30 metres of more than 100 fans who raced with the paparazzi to get the shot.

---

Fans seeing double
Townsville Bulletin, 19 May 2007

There were lights and cameras but little action during day light hours in Bowen yesterday as rumours spread Nicole and Hugh had skipped town for the day. Filming wasn't kicking off until darkness fell to shoot at the replica Pearl Cinema. But that didn't deter tourists and locals from turning up to the set of Australia before 9am. Those seeking action were rewarded when the body doubles of Nicole and Hugh arrived on set and were put in the saddle. On-lookers stared in awe at the sheer beauty of the horses which were athletic and well groomed. The body doubles were fitted into safety gear before being mounted on horses and put through a training run. Jackman's double was seen clearing a three-tier-stockyard rail fence and into a cattle yard of about 50 head. Those out star-spotting may have stumbled across Aussie acting legend Bryan Brown who arrived in Bowen on Thursday. Brown took time out in the afternoon to talk to local radio about the cast and crew of Australia. He said it was the finest Australian cast that had been assembled and assured audiences they were in for a real thrill. Brown's been cast as a bad guy in Australia – a role he said he loved to play. "I like being a bad bastard," he said. There was little more action around town until the cover of darkness when massive lights supported by three cranes shone on Pearl Cinema. Cast and crew worked well into the night.

---

Most a-peeling job on set
Townsville Bulletin, 19 May 2007

It may not be the most glamorous job in Baz Luhrmann's Australia, but it is certainly the most a-peeling. Linda Granat has been employed by Bazmark Films to help peel hundreds of fruit and vegetables for the cast and crew of the epic Aussie film while it is being shot in Bowen. At $15 an hour, it was an offer the 21-year-old Swedish backpacker couldn't refuse. "It will definitely leave a lasting memory of my trip to Australia," Ms Granat said. Crew walked up and down Bowen's main street yesterday hoping to find peelers for the mystery job. While many said yes to helping out tomorrow night, they were all clueless as to the reason for the strange request. "I asked them why they needed so many people and they said it was to help the cast and extras," Ms Granat said. "We still don't know where we're needed tomorrow night. They said they would call."

---

Making magic with Hugh
Daily Telegraph, 19 May 2007

She collected an Oscar for making Moulin Rouge the visual spectacular it was and it's nice to see Catherine Martin is weaving her magic again on the set of Australia. Very, very nice in fact. As production and costume designer on her husband Baz Luhrman's latest flick, it's Martin who deserves the plaudits and another Academy Award for putting Hugh Jackman in a pair of moleskins and boots. And a tight shirt, too. No wonder his co-star Nicole Kidman is going ga-ga over the scripted love scenes. "I hope we do more than just kiss, he's a hunk," she said on set this week.

---

Equine movie star
Townsville Bulletin, 18 May 2007

Why the long face? Perhaps it was because of day four – the longest day of filming so far on the set of Baz Luhrmann's Australia. Cast and crew endured a mammoth shoot yesterday, from early morning until 8pm. The day was a repeat of the same scenes filmed earlier this week, where Nicole Kidman as English aristocrat Lady Sarah Ashby meets Hugh Jackman as a grizzled yet buff drover for the first time Daytrippers keeping a vigilant watch for a glimpse of the stars overheard the loud fight scene at the beginning of the movie, where Kidman arrives via seaplane in Darwin and walks down the jetty to the Territory Hotel after finding no one to greet her. Jackman then falls through a window after landing a few punches in a pub brawl, landing on luggage and welcomes Kidman to Australia. Yesterday was marked as the first filming of scenes at the Pearl Cinema. While there were no more spontaneous appearances of Hollywood superstars in Bowen's main street, the crowd watching the movie being made has doubled from previous days, all hoping to grab a snapshot of the stars. Spectators were, however, awarded a quick chat and photo opportunity with the film's horse trainer, Peter Gould and his equine friend Spook. The horse proved no spook to the cameras. He was exceptionally well behaved when it came to having his photo taken with adoring fans. Mr Gould said his friend was building up a bit of a filmography. "He's doing really well," he said. "He's been in a few movies so far, such as the Great Raid, which was filmed in Queensland." For the past seven weeks Mr Gould has been training the main cast, including Kidman, Jackman and David Wenham, to ride horses while in Sydney.

---

Stellar line-up at Grand
Townsville Bulletin, 18 May 2007

They don't call it the Grand View Hotel for nothing. With Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman already gracing Bowen with their presence during a surprise visit to Bowen's main street yesterday, more of Baz Luhrmann's all-star cast decided to step out on the town last night. Last night Aussie acting trio Bryan Brown, Ben Mendelson and David Wenham grabbed an after work beer at the Grand View (GV), which has a starring role in the movie itself. The hotel is the end of the line for film set visitors, whose numbers have slowly been building in the past week as tourists drop into the sleepy North Queensland town to grab a glimpse of the stars at work and at play. The GV has even dressed herself up for the show: the Federation style hotel now sports a week old beer garden.

---

Baz buzz at Bowen
ABC North Queensland, 17 May 2007

North Queensland has certainly caught the "Baz Buzz". The quiet seaside town of Bowen has been transformed into Bowenwood with director Baz Luhrman and crew shooting the new movie "Australia". For the next 6 weeks, the tropical town is one of the most important film sets in the world, playing host to stars Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman. Much of Bowen's famous beachfront has been taken over for the film, which is a epic love story set before and during World War Two. The streets are covered in red dust, new buildings have been erected and Bowen is now doubling as 1930s Darwin. Hundreds of locals have signed on as extras, and more are playing the role of volunteer guides who tell tourists all about the sets and shooting schedules. Residents say the movie has put the community on the international map and will be a significant boost to the economy for some time to come. And while the stars of the film have been working very hard, Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman have found the time to take a break and mix with fans. The ABC's Michael Clarke was there, and took some photos and even interviewed the Hollywood actors.

---

You're Kidman, is that Hugh?
Townsville Bulletin, 17 May 2007

Murphy's Law struck in Bowen yesterday.  A professional photographer with a massive telephoto lens who had staked out the set of Baz Lurhmann's Australia all day, left for 20 minutes to answer a phone call from his boss. In that 20 minutes, the film's stars Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman – in period costume – decided to go for a quick walk to say g'day to those who had taken the time out to watch their movie being made. Meanwhile, the film's local volunteers, who had been filling in visitors on the daily occurrences of the production, were awarded with a chat and a photo with the stars. The Australian actors even signed autographs. "The first thing Hugh said to me was 'thank you for being a volunteer'," said Lorraine Maltby, one of the lucky few to have her photo taken with the actors. "It was lovely to hear him say `g'day mate' to everyone, and then ask them whether they wanted their photo taken. "It was just so nice to see. Both of them (Hugh and Nicole) were so friendly and happy to be here." Another volunteer, Cristian Lenske, had a large group shot of all the helpers taken together with the stars. Mr Lenske, who works in his parent's newsagency, said it was amazing to see the pair in real life. "And all of a sudden Nicole and Hugh walked straight towards us."

---

Nicole and Keith Drop in to Bowen's Jochheim's Pies
Who Magazine, 17 May 2007
The shop honours the stars in town to shoot Australia by creating a Hunky Jackman pie, Baz Baguette & Nicole Petit

As the cream of Australia's film industry converge on the small Queensland town of Bowen to film the Baz Luhrmann epic Australia, the locals are over the moon playing host to such stars as Nicole Kidman, her husband Keith Urban, Hugh Jackman and of course the director himself, Baz Luhrmann. WHO spoke to local businesswoman Merle Jochheim, about the buzz that's hit Bowen.

I wanted to ask you about the famous pies you have in the shop as well as your famous customers.
We want them all to be able to come and go without all the photographers following, and it's common knowledge now (we weren't letting on) but both Nicole and Keith popped in for a cup of coffee.

When was that?
Yesterday, just pulled up and came in.

Did they buy any of your pies?
No, Nicole's more into healthy food, which we thought. We actually named some pies after Hugh Jackman. A Hunky Jackman pie. We've got chunky crossed out and we've got a Hunky Jackman Pie, which is just hunky, chunky meat. And we've got a Baz Baguette with Baz written in flour on the baguette. And then we've got a Nicole Petit biscuit, which she loved. She thinks that's lovely. She tried one. And we've got the Kid Mango Cheesecake. It's rather like her, it's creamy, she has the most beautiful complexion. Her skin is just beautiful. We're thrilled that they're living in Bowen and we're thrilled that they can come and go and we hope they can do this more often. They've got such long days, they're there from six in the morning to six in the afternoon. Very long days. It's beautiful weather, a little bit warm, but it's beautiful and everything's looking so gorgeous.

Do you think Nicole and Keith came into the shop because they had heard about your celebrity pies and biscuits?
They probably heard about us because we kind of met Baz Luhrmann when he was looking for a site for the movie. I didn't know who he was and I just gave him a talk and told him how wonderful the town was and he really had a nice feeling about the town. He didn't tell anybody he was in town and I didn't even recognise him. And then he came back and we've had contact with him and the crew ever since. Since they've been building the sets from the last two months, the crew from the gardeners to the top managers, they've been fantastic and just blended into the town. And so has Baz Luhrmann. He's made sure that with the Bowen people, he has really looked after everyone. We're thoroughly enjoying it. It's just so good for the town and at last everyone knows where Bowen is. We don't have to say we're half way between Townsville and Mackay.

How long did Nicole and Keith stay in shop?
Just like an ordinary couple, just a chat and pick up the coffee, waited for the coffee and drove off again. He had coffee. They both had coffee. She likes a coffee. Honestly they were just... If you couldn't see their faces you wouldn't have known (who they were). They just stood at the counter and chatted while the coffee was being made. She was going to work.

What did she say about the Nicole Petit?
She thinks it's lovely, she thinks it's really, really nice. She's quite proud of it, makes us proud of it. Because we wanted something nice that wasn't offensive or stupid and tried to get something to blend into her looks.

I heard you were considering the Steak and Kidman Pie?
Yeah, we were toying with that. That was the sort of thing we were toying with. We wanted it to be something just nice.

---

Hollywood Comes to Bowen for Baz Luhrmann's Australia
Who Magazine, 17 May 2007
WHO speaks to Bowen Mayor Mike Brunker about the buzz that's hit the town since the arrival of Nicole Kidman, Hugh Jackman & Baz Luhrmann

As the cream of Australia's film industry converge on the small Queensland town of Bowen to film the Baz Luhrmann epic Australia, the locals are over the moon playing host to such stars as Nicole Kidman, her husband Keith Urban, Hugh Jackman and of course the director himself, Baz Luhrmann. WHO spoke to the Mayor of Bowen, Mike Brunker and local businesswoman Merle Jochheim about the buzz that's hit Bowen.

It's great you have a town full of people.
Oh shit, yeah, no worries about that.

How are the townspeople coping with the influx?
Well it's been on the go for a while obviously. People have been expecting things to happen when the construction started and the cows all turned up and they've just been waiting for the movie to start. And now she's into it. There's the old Baz [Luhrmann] buzz alright. It's all happening.

How did the cattle run go?
Good. Last Saturday we sat around for a couple hours waiting for it to happen. There were 600 or 700 people in the street. They ran overtime a bit, it was supposed to start at 3pm and eventually by 5, no-one had moved but then the whips were cracking. It was good.

Are the cast and crew enjoying the local tourism or is it all work, work, work for them?
Obviously since they've just started they have a lot of work, work, work. I think they have a six-day week so they have Sunday's off. It would be a good opportunity to get around the town and have a look at the beaches.

What could they do on their day off?
There are a lot of beaches they can have a look at, obviously have a look around the region. The first couple of weeks, because they are working they might not want to go anywhere. We're having a seafood festival on the 26th May and on June 3rd it's Queensland Week and, the Premier (Peter Beattie). For first time they're going to celebrate Queensland Week outside of Brisbane.

You've had meetings with Baz [Luhrmann], how did they go? What was he like?
He's a bit of a character. He's been true to his word up to now, everything he's said he's delivered on, which was good. We had to give him some hints, not hints, but some direction on infrastructure in the early days. But he's been good.

How long will the cast and crew be in town for?
About six weeks. Once all the media stuff dies down they'll be able to get around the town a bit more freely and once they settle in they'll find that we're around. A lot of media were let in (on-set) yesterday which a couple of the guys reckon they'll tighten up today but they gave them a good look yesterday and then hopefully they'll sort of die off and go away.

Have you met Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman or any of the big stars?
I was standing in line with Keith Urban in the tucker tent yesterday when we went for lunch. All the cast and crew get into together. Keith went back to the trailer with Nicole but everyone else is mingling together with the extras and volunteers. It's a family environment.

Where is the film location exactly?
It's straight down the end of our main street. Herbert Street, on our esplanade. There's the sea —a little park and then the sea. And there's a big vacant block of land there. We were in the process of running with developers to go in there but they've held off until the movie's been done. They were just very lucky that all the planets lined up and that it was still actually there. You wouldn't think there would be such vacant blocks of land beside a jetty, on the front beach. They were very lucky.

When did Baz Luhrmann first consider Bowen as a location?
Over 12 months ago. Baz came to town six months ago when he first had a good look at it.

Where are the bulk of the cast and crew staying?
All in town, a mixture of motels and houses. The stars are in town and that's probably one thing we stipulated in the early days — that the community is giving up a lot of stuff in the main street and are being inconvenienced so we would like to see the stars stay in town. Houses have been vacated for them. Some of them (residents) were asked if they wanted to go on holidays and they could have their holiday paid for them and the stars have a nice home.

Have you seen Nicole and Keith together?
Oh, on the set together.

Are they still looking like the honeymoon couple?
Very much so.

It's great that Keith has time to be with her...
I think with their jets and everything it's only a couple of hours flight and when he's had his Sydney concert, I think he'll be back again.

---

Rolling, action, rumour
Townsville Bulletin, 16 May 2007

Interest remained strong as day two of filming for Baz Luhrmann's epic Australia got under way in Bowen yesterday. Hundreds of locals milled about outside the Grand View Hotel hoping to rub shoulders with Nicole and Hugh yesterday afternoon, after a well-sourced whisper spread that the stars would make an appearance at the end of filming. Disappointment was clear when the duo had failed to show by 7pm - well after the rumoured time of 5.30pm. But Hollywood was hard at work until well after dark, re-shooting takes of both Nicole arriving in 1938 Darwin, and Hugh's character fighting in a rowdy pub brawl. An official movie schedule, released yesterday, outlines a rough plan of the next six weeks of filming in Bowen.

Today will centre on perfecting the scene where Lady Sarah Ashby arrives in Australia and meets Hugh. It will be the third 12-hour day of filming the same scene, with shooting scheduled from 6am to 6pm. Australia volunteer tour guide Ivan Roberts said a helicopter may have been used to aid effects in the first three days of filming, but there was no activity in the sky yesterday. But tomorrow, the action will move from the Territory Hotel to the Pearl Cinema. The stars will have a late night, with shooting taking place from noon until midnight. Speculation is mounting that Keith Urban will return to Bowen after performing in Sydney for an impromptu performance at the Grand View Hotel on Thursday night. Friday will see an all-night filming session, from 4pm to 6am on Saturday, before the stars take a break for the weekend. Mr Roberts said a crane would be used to dump water over Nicole during filming at the Pearl Cinema on Friday, to re-create a tropical downpour. Next week, actor Bryan Brown will don a fat-suit for his role, as filming moves to Carneys Corner at the intersection of Dalrymple and Herbert streets, where Brown's character is attempting to claim Nicole's cattle and property.

---

Nicole, Hugh and a cast of thousands
Daily Mercury, 16 May 2007

The lights are up, the cameras are rolling and there is definitely no lack of action in the once sleepy town of Bowen. The rumour mill has gone into overdrive since filming began this week on Baz Luhrmann’s new project, Australia, with paparazzi lurking around every corner and hundreds of keen spectators lining the streets to catch a glimpse of the action. The Grandview Hotel has become the unofficial viewing platform for the film – not to mention the town hub for film gossip and star sightings. One onlooker said female lead Nicole Kidman and husband Keith Urban had reportedly been spotted at local bakery Joachim's early yesterday morning, while her male counterpart Hugh Jackman supposedly took some time out at a local gym. Other spectators were more focused on the film's impressive sets with one woman saying "it's amazing what they’ve done to this place, just amazing". Some even speculated at the chance of Nicole Kidman's husband returning to the town for a surprise concert at some point in the near future. But not everyone was thrilled with the Hollywood invasion, with many in the crowd voicing their annoyance at the paparazzi who have hit the town in force. "One guy actually snuck on set yesterday and took some photos before he got kicked off, so now they've increased the security threefold," said another photographer, who did not wish to be named. One youngster on a school trip was also less than impressed with the film set, telling a friend he was upset that he couldn’t actually make out any of the stars. But for the majority of onlookers, Hollywood fever was rife, despite the distance between cast and crew and eager fans yesterday. "They can't stay all the way over there all the time," one optomistic onlooker said. Bowen resident Tracey Morton, who got a sneak peek at the stars last Sunday, said the town was truly coming alive now that the stars had arrived in the region. "It's pretty exciting – the whole thing didn't really bother or interest me until I saw Nicole and Keith the other day – now it’s like it’s really hit," she said. "My husband is a plumber and he's actually at the set right now fixing the hot water in Baz Luhrmann's motorhome – I can’t wait until he gets home to tell me about it." And with just under two months of filming remaining in the coastal town, there are sure to be plenty more stories yet to come.

---

Sweaty Jackman in action
Daily Telegraph (Sydney Confidential), 16 May 2007

Fist fights - if only make-believe - broke out on the film set of outback epic Australia yesterday. Hollywood hunk Hugh Jackman could clearly be seen sporting several bloody cuts on his face after a bar-room brawl in the opening scenes of Baz Luhrmann's $130 million film. Jackman's character meets his love interest, played by Nicole Kidman, as he crashes through a window. There was no sign on set of Kidman, who earlier stopped at the local bakery with husband Keith Urban before he flew out for the second leg of his national country music tour began in Sydney last night.

---

Bowen abuzz over Baz's vision
News.com.au, 15 May 2007

Locals are calling it the "Baz buzz". The film industry is calling it the biggest punt in Australia's cinematic history. Baz Luhrmann's latest film, Australia, has moved production - and brought intense levels of excitement - to Bowen, in north Queensland, after shooting in Sydney. Luhrmann has taken with him two of Hollywood's biggest stars, Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman (and her husband, Keith Urban), and the biggest film production ever seen outside the walls of Australia's three major film studios. Bowen's moment in front of the camera began yesterday with a traditional "welcome to country" ceremony for Kidman, Jackman and the rest of the cast and crew by Birri Gubba Juru tribal elder Jim Gaston before shooting began. Bowen Mayor Michael Brunker has watched Luhrmann and the director's Academy Award-winning designer wife, Catherine Martin, transform his coastal town into 1940s Darwin.  And he's seen his townsfolk burst with enthusiasm. "I think people will calm down after a week or so," he said yesterday. "But everyone's excited now that Nicole and Hugh are here. It's been like having a baby really; 12 months ago we were just talking about it and the conception of the idea. The set started going up, but until the stars arrived the big stars had been the 400 to 500 short-horn cows that have been practising up and down the main street." Luhrmann has brought a David Lean-style scale and major Hollywood budget, estimated to be $US100 million ($120 million). The romantic epic stars Kidman as Lady Sarah Ashley, an English aristocratic who follows her husband to his Australian cattle station, crossing the country with a drover, played by Jackman.  Luhrmann told The Australian his vision could presage a future where the nation's biggest stars regularly returned to work here with Hollywood studio money. "We may fail but in the end what this production symbolises is a different kind of future for the Australian film industry," he said. That future has already seduced Bowen.

---

Everyone's in a lather
Excerpt from Townsville Bulletin, 15 May 2007

Rain down on Nic
Movie talk from Bowen has it that Nicole will be rained on this Friday night. Apparently she will be in the open air picture theatre built on the set and rain will pour down from the boom of a crane dangling above the movie theatre. And as for the handsome old pub The Territory Hotel? It burns down at the end of the movie.

---

Australia: The movie now in progress
Excerpt from Homes Worldwide, 15 May 2007

Australia is set to be the largest production in Australian film history, with a record budget of A$100 million and crew of 300. Filming in Darwin will begin from 2 July 2007 for around two weeks; Stokes Hill Wharf is the main location there. Bowen, in north Queensland is being made over to look like 1930s' Darwin; the bulk of the filming is taking place in WA and Queensland. The cattle station scenes will be filmed near Kununurra, and Beatrice Hill near Adelaide River will be a location for floodplains and buffalo scenes.

---

Bowen in Hollywood limelight for Luhrmann flick
ABC News Online, 15 May2 007

Bowen locals in north Queensland are enjoying the spotlight as the filming of Baz Luhrmann's movie Australia continues to draw the crowds. Yesterday's first day of filming brought in tourists from around the world wanting to catch a glimpse of Hollywood stars Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman. Volunteer guide John Warby says it is great to be so close to the action. "Baz Luhrmann and his crew have just been fantastic in the way that they've approached the public," he said. "They don't want to exclude the public at all, they want to include everyone as far as they can, we're standing on the set there. There's not many places where you can do that, when a major movie like this is being made, is there?"

---

'Nicole Kidman Cup' cancelled
Courier Mail, 15 May 2007

An A-list race meeting dubbed the Nicole Kidman Cup has been cancelled due to a fashionably late entrance by stars involved in a new Baz Luhrmann epic. The Bowen Turf Club had planned a one-off race meeting this month to coincide with filming in the coastal town of Australia, starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman. Kidman was to have presented the winning trophy and Jackman to have judged the Fashions on the Field after Luhrmann promised the stars would attend the Bowen meet. But the stars did not arrive in time for the May Day event and, because of rules preventing two clubs from holding races on the same day, the next meet cannot be brought forward from its scheduled July date.  Bowen club vice-president Cyril Vains today said it was a shame.  "I think there are some very, very disappointed people but there's nothing much we could do," Mr Avens said.  "It would have been marvellous."  He said other "spoilsport" clubs would not change their events.  Bowen Shire Mayor Mike Brunker said locals now hoped to lure the famous pair to a meet-and-greet at a planned seafood spectacular on the town's foreshore. "We'd be hoping someone can come," he said. "Everyone's excited, it's a bit of a buzz around the place - the Baz buzz we call it." The small coastal town has been excited about the chance of meeting the Hollywood actors as Jackman, and Kidman - accompanied by husband and country music singer Keith Urban - donned period costumes and began filming.

---

Nic's outback movie magic
Daily Telegraph, 15 May 2007

Watched by husband Keith Urban, a costumed Nicole Kidman joined a rugged-looking Hugh Jackman yesterday for shooting of the $100-million outback epic, Australia. The north Queensland town of Bowen was transformed into 1938 Darwin for the scenes, which feature Kidman, who plays an English aristocrat, arriving in Australia for the first time. Star-struck locals watched as director Baz Luhrmann, Jackman, Kidman, Urban and 400 cast and crew took part in a Aboriginal "welcome to country" ceremony.

Jackman, who was dressed in period costume with a three-day growth and cowboy boots, won fans by posing for photos with the baby of a local couple. The X-Men star lived up to his reputation as a good guy of Hollywood, shaking hands and admitting he was yet to relax into the laid-back north Queensland lifestyle. Asked if he had time for a beer, Jackman reluctantly admitted he was too busy. "That would be nice, that would be great, but they are working me hard," he said. Jackman's character is a hard-working, hard-drinking, brawling ringer. The actor, producer and Boy from Oz stage star won fans as he posed for photos cradling the baby of a local Aboriginal couple.

Luhrmann told more than 400 cast and crew gathered for the mid-afternoon ceremony he felt a special "magic" in the air. "We have a big creative challenge ahead," said the director of Moulin Rouge, flanked by his stars. "But we can all see and feel how this is a really pristine spot, and cinema needs magic, and this place feels very magical to us," he said.

Transformed into 1938 Darwin, the seaside end of Bowen is dominated by hundreds of cattle, a huge set of rough-hewn wooden stockyards, a hotel, pearling luggers, brothel, Chinese opium den and market garden, all built from scratch over the past six weeks. Sunshine Coast retiree Rowan Stanley, 63, who has been cast as one of three government officials, gushed about meeting Kidman. "She is beautiful, lovely, and even after she walked past a dozen or so times in different takes she was still gorgeous," he said. Bowen Mayor Mike Brunker said he auditioned for the role of fire truck driver but was "too fat with not enough hair". "I got the cut, I'm too busy any way," he said. "But now standing on the set I have hairs standing up on the back of my head. "To see how realistic it looks is amazing."

---

Filming starts in Bowenwood
ABC North Queensland, 14 May 2007

The first day of filming for Baz Luhrmann's latest project Australia began today and already locals have been star spotting. Nicole Kidman has arrived in town with husband Keith Urban and was snapped checking out the new set in the local paper. 630 ABC's Peter Mitchell was in Bowen on the weekend snooping around the set himself, and he managed to get some photos from behind the fence.  He checked in with Michael Clarke on the Breakfast Show this morning, but hadn't spotted any of the big stars. He said lots of people were walking around the town and trying to get a sneak peak of the set. "The cattle have been doing rehearsals of the run down the main street and onto the wharf today," he said. But he said the cattle were not enjoying themselves as much as the onlookers.  "They've been expressing their opinion rather forcefully on the street. Some of the local business people are not all that happy about it," he said. The streetlights and signs have all been changed to a period style for the filming, and a lot of red dirt was brought in to make the street more authentic. 630 ABC's Paula Tapiolas had a chat to Bowen Mayor Mike Brunker this morning about the buzz around town. He said he missed Nicole's arrival because he was at the footy game, but would have lunch with her on the set tomorrow. Mr Brunker said the big stars were staying in houses rented off local residents. "We had to fit 400 people in, that's cast and crew together," he said. He said backpackers and tourists had been flooding into the town, and even joining in on the action. "I met some Korean backpackers who are going to be extras, playing Japanese people," he said.

---

Welcome to Bowenwood
Townsville Bulletin, 14 May 2007

It was the moment all of Bowen had been waiting for. The excitement was palpable when Hollywood superstar Nicole Kidman arrived in Bowen late yesterday with country music star husband Keith Urban in tow. Secrecy and speculation surrounded the arrival of the A-list stars ahead of filming for Baz Luhrmann's epic film Australia, which starts in Bowen today. But there was no mistaking golden girl Nicole as she was whisked away from Bowen Airport and taken for her first tour of the set, which had been specially created to resemble pre-war Darwin. Looking elegant and relaxed in a subtle cream knee-length dress, cardigan and flat sandals, Nicole smooched and cuddled with husband Keith as they wandered along the balcony of the `Territory Hotel'. The couple were driven along the newly laid red-dirt road before they got out of the car near the cattle yard and entered the Territory Hotel about 5pm. After looking over the interior, Nicole and Keith appeared on the side balcony, where they casually chatted and surveyed the town. Moments later, the distinct rumble of cattle could be heard as hundreds of cows were ushered back into their pen at the centre of the set for a special cattle run for Nicole's benefit. Clearly delighted with the sight, Nicole casually waved to fans from her vantage point on the front balcony. She and Keith smiled and touched as they watched the cattle come in. It was a fitting introduction for Nicole – to both the set and to Bowen. The Territory Hotel is also where Nicole's character Lady Sarah will meet co-star Hugh Jackman for the first time in the film. According to volunteer movie tour-guide Gloria Halloran, Lady Sarah will walk up Bowen's wharf wearing a beautiful gown with her hat to one side. But when Lady Sarah strides in to Darwin there is no strapping Hugh waiting – just a lot of noise from the Territory Hotel, where a pub brawl is going on.

---

Kidman starts filming
Courier Mail, 14 May 2007

Nicole Kidman began work on the Baz Luhrmann-directed Australia today after jetting into Bowen yesterday. Kidman dressed in period costume for her first scenes in the $100 million-dollar blockbuster. Yesterday, Kidman flew into the north Queensdland town and was whisked off by a security team in a scene fitting of an action-packed Hollywood blockbuster. Burly security guards bustled the movie mega-star and her husband Keith Urban into four-wheel drives with blacked out windows to avoid a small welcome party waiting at the airstrip of the north Queensland town after her jet touched down about 3.30pm.  The couple arrived in the town for the start of filming today of the Baz Luhrmann outback epic, Australia, after spending the night in Brisbane where the Caboolture-raised country music singer Urban played his first home concert in two years. They were driven directly to a stately Queenslander on the outskirts of Bowen which will become home over the next few months of filming. Nearly 100 volunteers have been recruited from the ranks of star-struck locals to help co-ordinate the flood of sightseers flocking to the new film set.

---

Beach filled with vehicles
Townsville Bulletin, 12 May 2007

Bowen's main beach could be mistaken for a military base. More than 45 ex-army vehicles are rolling into town to be a part of the multimillion-dollar Baz Luhrmann epic Australia. The truck that Hugh Jackman will drive in the film has been transformed from an old wreck into a 1930s supply truck. Sydney-based action vehicle supervisor Geoff Aylor is in Bowen with his team putting final touches to the cars and trucks that will feature in Australia. He said Jackman's car had been basically rebuilt. "The truck is virtually a '42 model that has been made to look like a '38 model," Mr Aylor said. "We have two trucks that are exactly the same in case something goes wrong with one. But not only that, they can also use one car to film a scene while the other is being used for filming in another location."

Mr Aylor said cars would be streaming in from all over the place to be in the movie. "Some are coming from the Blue Mountains, Dubbo and we've also got a lot coming from Mackay and Townsville as well." Mr Aylor said while some cars were undergoing final touches, others were doing test drives along the town's main street. "The Northern Territory Police truck was in a chook shed full of rats before being transformed into what it is now," he said. Mr Aylor said he had been providing his vehicles for films for about 12 years. "We've had cars in Superman Returns, Stealth, South Pacific, Thin Red Line and we were recently up in Port Douglas for Fool's Gold," he said. "It's very satisfying seeing them go from old rust buckets into what they are now," he said. Once all the vehicles were ready to go, Mr Aylor said there would be no slowing down. "It will be hectic keeping up with Baz. He's fantastic to watch because he knows exactly what he wants – he's all over it," Mr Aylor said.

---

Baz's crew roll in
Townsville Bulletin, 12 May 2007

Filming of Baz Luhrmann's epic Australia will start on Monday and Bowen is filling up with cast and crew. Hundreds of crew members as well as body doubles touched down in Proserpine yesterday before driving to the film's set in Bowen. One woman had a striking resemblance to Hollywood superstar Nicole Kidman and is believed to be her body double. The crew arrived on a private charter plane from Sydney and will be based in Bowen for the next six weeks. Australia unit publicity officer Edweana Wenkart said the remaining crew that had arrived were excited to finally be on location. "We've basically moved the entire production office from Sydney to Bowen and we'll be making sure everything is in order to start filming next week," Ms Wenkart said. "People are just starting to find their feet and feel at home because we will be here until the end of June."

Film director Baz Luhrmann said as final days of filming wrapped up in Sydney, there was palpable excitement in Bowen.  "The one thing we already feel, and in fact have felt from the day of our first visit, is that the citizens of Bowen and the outlying areas are making this film together with us," Luhrmann said. "So it's something we're all looking forward to (filming in Bowen) – and not just because we want to escape the Sydney winter." Those already in Bowen have spent about six weeks perfecting the set as well as rehearsing in time for filming to begin. The town's foreshore has been transformed into 1930s pre-war Darwin with existing buildings undergoing major face-lifts and red dirt spilt on bitumen roads. In the lead-up to filming, a doubles dress rehearsal, without the A-list cast, will be held today. Nicole Kidman and her co-star Hugh Jackman are expected to arrive in Bowen by tomorrow, before filming begins on Monday.

---

Moo-vie stars
Townsville Bulletin, 11 May 2007

Bowen's usual smell of ocean spray was replaced with the out of place aroma of cattle manure yesterday morning. Excited onlookers rose early to watch Baz Luhrmann's real 'moovie' stars in dress rehearsal down the town's main street as the sun rose on his new movie, Australia. The director, who arrived on a Jetstar flight at Proserpine Airport about 7.45 last night, is expected to start filming on Monday. About 700 cattle trotted down the main street of Bowen yesterday, led by body doubles for the movie's stars, Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman, on horseback. George and Herbert streets were blocked off with electric fences to guide the cattle through their paces, flanked on either side by Aboriginal stockmen. Extras, dressed in their cowboy best, watched the procession in readiness for filming next week. Bowen local Robert Johnson took his son Jacob along to watch the once-in-a-lifetime experience of a cattle run down the main drag. "Jacob was very excited, I don't think he's seen cattle before unless it's at the show," he said. "Actually, to tell you the truth, I think it's the same for me. It's not a sight you often see in the middle of town."

---

Kidman set for action in $100m epic
The West.com.au, 11 May 2007

Baz Luhrmann's hugely awaited outback epic Australia shifts into top gear at the weekend as cast and crew of the $100 million production descend on the north-eastern Queensland town of Bowen. For the past month stars Nicole Kidman, Hugh Jackman and Brandon Walters, the 11-year-old Broome cancer survivor who was thrust into the limelight when he won the coveted role of an Aboriginal musterer, have been rehearsing in Sydney. Much of that time was spent mastering their horse-riding skills in preparation for the production. The serious business of realising Luhrmann's long-held dream of a lush Gone With the Wind-inspired romance about an English aristocrat (Kidman) who inherits a cattle station just before the outbreak of World War II begins on Monday. Bowen, 200km south of Townsville with a population of 8500, has been transformed by the production, the most expensive movie production in Australian history (rivalled only by George Miller's Happy Feet). Luhrmann's crew and an army of locals have been working round the clock to recreate 1940s Darwin, building a picture theatre, police station, hotel, brothel, shantytown and stockyards for the 750 cattle which will have a starring role. The Luhrmann juggernaut is expected to roll into Kununurra for the Kimberly leg of the movie towards the end of July.

---

Epic explodes into action
Herald Sun, 11 May 2007

Talk about a boom in the film industry. Filming for big-budget flick Australia went off with a bang this week when a bomb was dropped on a beautiful old home in Vaucluse, Sydney. Well, perhaps not a real bomb, but the impression of one at least. To recreate the historic bombing of Darwin during World War II, award-winning director Baz Luhrmann used hundreds of dummies to take the full force of the action. The outback flick was expected to leave Sydney yesterday with Nicole Kidman, Hugh Jackman and the rest of the cast and crew heading to Bowen, Queensland. The township is showing some excitement about their visitors. What they have dubbed the "Baz buzz" is manifesting itself in all sorts of ways -- the pie shop has named its products after Jackman. A massive herd of cattle arrived in the town last week while large parts of Bowen are nearly unrecognisable under set scaffolding. Kununurra in the Kimberley region and Darwin will also play host to more scenes. Still no word on how the actors' backsides are holding up after weeks of equine training.

---

Baz blows up Australia set
Daily Telegraph (Sydney Confidential), 10 May 2007

It may be a boom time for the Australian film industry, but Baz Luhrmann's big budget epic was expected to give cast and crew more bang for their buck last night. In a carefully-staged scene, the award-winning director was set to drop a bomb on the Strickland House set - recreating a dramatic attack on the fictional pile Nicole Kidman's aristocratic character calls home. According to Confidential spies, the sequence was meant to be a blast from the past, mimicking the historical bombing of Darwin during World War II. And thankfully for the hard-working extras, who have laboured into the wee hours during the past week of night shoots, Luhrmann prepped hundreds of dummies to take the full force of the action - which looked like a Christo art installation yesterday.  The outback flick is expected to leave Sydney with a bang, with Kidman and her leading man, Hugh Jackman, to roll out of town with the rest of the crew bound for Bowen, in Queensland tomorrow. Moving swiftly through the scenes at Vaucluse, Luhrmann and his crew will settle into the mango capital for the next few months, before droving on to Kunnanurra and Darwin for more scenes later in the year. The scene change will be music to the ears of some actors, who are reportedly footsore after a glamorous dance sequence took its toll on many cast members.  Kidman, who will play Lady Sarah Ashley, was filmed in a candid version of Dancing With The Stars, snapped waltzing between takes with Jackman and co-star Bryan Brown.

---

Baz's Australia comes to life
Daily Telegraph, 10 May 2007

It was a mere six weeks ago that work began on the massive set, with the challenge of turning a corner of Bowen, Queensland into 1940s era Darwin. With filming due to begin on Monday, the set is currently a flurry of activity - with dozens of workmen hurrying to and fro carrying anything from shop signage to drink containers for the 750 head of cattle making an appearance in the film. On Saturday director Baz Luhrmann will arrive for a dress rehearsal and see the completed set for the first time. The film's location manager, Carl Wood, gave local paper the Townsville Bulletin, a personally guided tour of the set of Luhrmann's new epic movie Australia - starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman. Wood also shared details of how the production crew has battled for 40 days and nights to create an entire town, including a picture theatre, police station, hotel, brothel, shantytown and stockyards. This morning the large herd will thunder through the streets to rehearse for their starring role. The set has become its own tourist attraction, with tourists and locals making slow drive-bys to catch what glimpse they can behind the wire fences. Soon the fencelines will be moved further back from the set to allow filming to begin.

Although Bowen traditionally boasts beautiful sunny weather, Mr Wood said work crews had been set back by a few days of wet weather. Now everyone is buckling down to finish the final touches before the movies stars arrive on set for the first day of filming. Everywhere you look there's tradesmen painting stonework on buildings, men hauling signage on to modern-day pubs and bales of hay being strewn across the cattle yards. Mr Wood said every meticulous detail of the set was carefully planned and all modern finishings and embellishments hidden or pulled down. Things you would never have thought of need to be covered to truly resemble a 1940s Darwin. Even the street lights have been replaced with more traditional fittings. Authentic looking stone buildings are actually made from plaster that have been cleverly painted and moulded to look like real stone. The bitumen road and even driveways of nearby residents will be covered in red dirt, reminiscent of the Northern Territory. Mr Wood said the dirt had been carefully mixed to find the right colour. It was then sent to Sydney to undergo testing under cameras and lighting before the final shade was chosen. The only burst of green among the dry town comes from some beautiful old trees that look to be the perfect setting for a romantic interlude. Mr Wood said many of Bowen's modern buildings had panelling added to create a wartime era look. And on the vacant blocks from the dirt arose an entire town, with many of the buildings being built from scratch. The newly erected buildings were yesterday being painted with dirt and water to create a run-down effect. Mr Wood said this was the biggest set he had worked with. "It's such a wide, large area with the sea and the wharf and the blocks," he said. "I've never worked on such a wide open location. It takes up six streets, it's absolutely huge."

---

Abuzz with movie gossip
Townsville Bulletin, 9 May 2007

With movie star Nicole Kidman due to arrive any day, Bowen locals have become Hollywood experts. About 60 Bowen residents are manning a movie information centre to keep curious locals and sightseers up to date on the happenings on the set of Baz Luhrmann's latest film Australia. Although the movies stars Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman are yet to arrive, it hasn't stopped the droves of people from visiting the Bowen set to watch the quiet town transform into early 1900s Australia. Volunteer Gloria Halloran said since the information centre was set up yesterday they had been inundated with visitors. "Everyone has been flat out," she said. "There have been lots of people from overseas asking questions. There has also been lots of locals coming down walking their doggies. It's all very exciting."

Fellow volunteer Debbie Hosie has already become starry eyed after a run in with Russell Crowe when he visited the set during Anzac Day. "I was with the dart club at the Grand View Hotel when he walked past, she said. I said 'I think I know you from somewhere'. I think he was on his way to his yacht that he came here on." Ms Hosie said the volunteer team would soon be getting uniforms. "There's been lots of people stopping and taking photos," she said. "This movie is really going to put Bowen on the map." The volunteers will work in shifts at manning three booths set up throughout the town during the six-week filming schedule.

---

Stars drop in to film
Camden Advertiser, 9 May 2007

Hollywood came to Camden this week. World-renowned Australian actors Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman were among a cast of top-shelf actors who visited Camelot to take part in a film shoot for Baz Luhrmann's movie Australia. Camelot's owner Brendan Powers allowed the Advertiser to visit his property while scenes were being filmed at the farm's stables. Mr Powers, who has owned Camelot since 1999, said using it as a location for a film that would be seen by millions would put Camden on the map. It will be a long time before Mr Powers forgets his brush with the stars. He said two of his children, daughter Tayla, 11, and son Connor, 10, stumbled upon the movie stars at various stages. ''It's not every day that you have Hugh Jackman in the loungeroom and Nicole Kidman practising her lines in your bedroom,'' Mr Powers said. ''Tayla walked in on Nicole rehearsing her lines and Connor walked in, saw Hugh Jackman and said, 'hey, you're Wolverine [character from X-Men movie] aren't you?''' Mr Powers, who had a ''quick chat'' with Nicole Kidman's husband Keith Urban, who ''dropped in'' on Monday, said he was thrilled when Luhrmann decided to use his 80-acre property as the backdrop for the start of the movie. ''We've got the number one director and the number one star in the world here at the moment,'' Mr Powers said. ''I don't know how much better it could get it's great. 'It's a great way of promoting tourism in the area. 'I've been saying for a while that we've got a Bowral right here and we should utilise it, so I hope that with the movie being filmed here, it'll be beneficial for Camden and put it on the world map.''

---

In the grip of Baz buzz
Courier Mail, 7 May 2007

It started out as little more than a murmur, but the atmosphere locals call the "Baz buzz" is at fever-pitch in Bowen. For the past 12 months, the north Queensland town has been preparing to host the filming of the $130 million outback epic, Australia, which is set to start there next week. While the cast, including Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman, are still shooting scenes in Sydney, part of the town has undergone an extensive makeover in recent weeks. The makeover has all but erased any trace of Queensland and replaced it with scenes reminiscent of Darwin in the wartime early-1940s, the period in which Australia is set. For residents of the place they're calling "Bowenwood", the chance to watch a blockbuster unfolding in their backyard is not to be missed. By now, everyone there has heard the story about how world-famous director Baz Luhrmann went virtually unrecognised as he arrived unannounced for a low-key look at the surroundings. In doing so, he encountered Merle Jochheim, proprietor of Jochheim's Pies and self-described town history teacher. The 72-year-old is the great-great-granddaughter of the explorer who founded Bowen in 1859, and specialises in highlighting its attractions to anyone who is interested – which Luhrmann was. "If I'd known who he was, I wouldn't have been able to talk to him. I would have absolutely clammed up," she said. "I do find it nice to stand outside the shop and encourage visitors to stay in Bowen – I tell them to go up and see all the beaches because you get a 360-degree view of the town. I got a lovely message from a friend the other day, saying, 'Of all the herrings you've sent up the hill, you've finally hooked a marlin'." It's been a catch worth celebrating.

Although some locals claim the VIPs will stay on nearby Hayman Island, Bowen mayor Mike Brunker says that is not the case, but will not be drawn further on their plans. "I could tell you but then I'd have to kill you," laughs Cr Brunker. "Our big thing, when we were talking to Baz, was interaction with the local community. I said, 'The last thing we want is a helicopter coming from Hayman Island with Nicole on it and we see the dust from the helicopter coming out in the morning and the dust from the helicopter going back in the afternoon'. And he assured us they would come here and be a part of the community." It seems Luhrmann has been as good as his word. "There isn't an area that they haven't drawn on, from food supplies, to accommodation, to sourcing the furniture," Tourism Bowen manager Therese Saad said. "As they're doing that, they're wheeling and dealing with the community." Alan Bryson, a local who runs Monarch's Harbourside Homestead, rents most of his rooms to young backpackers drawn to the region for its fruitpicking opportunities. The film's casting agents hope to draw on their ranks to fill the 1000-odd places for extras from a range of countries, in keeping with the cosmopolitan nature of Darwin in the 1940s. Like most locals, Mr Bryson said filming the movie in Bowen could only be good for the town. "The amount of people who would normally not stop in Bowen who have been pulling up is amazing," he said. "I think the contribution the film is making to this town is something the people of Bowen should be welcoming."

---

Surreal days in Bowen
The Sunday Mail, 5 May 2007

Bowen is living a strange double life. The north Queensland town is simultaneously a vast film set, preparing to work around the clock to help create Baz Luhrmann's new epic film, Australia. But the town is also pretending to be a 1940s Northern Territory town and wartime Darwin. As the first of the cast and crew moved in this week locals adapted – one local cafe started selling "hunky" meat pies in honour of one of the stars, Hugh Jackman. And a woman who looked uncannily like Nicole Kidman drove a herd of cattle through the streets. It wasn't Kidman – it may have been her stand-in – but the cattle drive gave residents a taste of what was to come. Hundreds of extras will be used in the film. Most will be drawn from Bowen and surrounding towns.

---

Locals herd in behind Baz's mob
Townsville Bulletin, 5 May 2007

As clouds of red dust rose in the distance and the hot afternoon sun dipped on the horizon, a street rehearsal for the much anticipated outback epic Australia got under way in Bowen yesterday.  Locals and visitors who had waited several hours lined the footpaths as 700 short-horn cattle, specially chosen for the 'moovie', were driven up the main street and on to the film set. While many crew members had been in Bowen for several weeks already, the film's A-list cast which includes Nicole Kidman, Hugh Jackman, Bryan Brown, Jack Thompson and David Wenham are yet to arrive. They are expected next week. Yesterday, one of Kidman's four stand-ins was among those leading the massive pack. Kidman and Jackman have been undergoing intense riding training in Sydney leading up to the movie. Tourism Bowen manager Therese Saad said the opportunity to watch a blockbuster unfolding before their eyes was too good to miss.

---

Kidman's Australia delight
The Daily Telegraph, 5 May 2007

It started out as little more than a murmur, but the atmosphere locals have dubbed the "Baz buzz" grew to fever-pitch in Bowen this week. For the past 12 months, the North Queensland town has been preparing to host the filming of the $130 million outback epic Australia, set to start on May 15. While the cast, including Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman, are still shooting scenes in Sydney, a massive group of support actors – a herd of 700 shorthorn cattle – had a four-hour street rehearsal in Bowen yesterday afternoon. As The Saturday Daily Telegraph's exclusive photographs reveal, part of the township has undergone an extensive makeover in recent weeks, erasing all trace of Queensland and replacing it with scenes reminiscent of Darwin in the early-1940s, the period in which Australia is set.

As the town's makeover neared completion yesterday, Kidman revealed her first week of filming in Sydney has been nerve-racking but joyous. "The loveliest thing is being able to work with such a prestigious group of actors," Kidman said. "These are people I have known most of my life and to be doing an ensemble piece with them is a great privilege. The other delight has been working with most of the crew, who I have been working with since I was 14 years old, but I am nervous still." Production will continue in Sydney before relocating to Bowen. For long-time residents of the place they're calling "Bowenwood", the opportunity to watch a blockbuster unfolding in their backyard is not to be missed. Everyone in town has heard the story about how world-famous director Baz Luhrmann went virtually unrecognised as he arrived unannounced for a low-key look at the local surroundings. In doing so, he encountered Merle Jochheim, proprietor of Jochheim's Pies and self-described keeper of the town's history. The 72-year-old is the great-great-grand-daughter of the explorer who founded Bowen in 1859, and she specialises in highlighting its attractions to anyone who is interested – which Luhrmann was. "If I'd known who he was, I wouldn't have been able to talk to him. I would have clammed up," she said this week. "I find it nice to stand outside the shop and encourage visitors to stay in Bowen. I got a message from a friend the other day, saying, 'you've finally hooked a marlin'." It's been a catch worth celebrating. Outside Merle's bakery, a handwritten sign, changed daily, announces "the number of sleeps" until the cast arrives in town. Mrs Jochheim is anticipating at least some of the actors will drop by and has put a special menu on in their honour. "I'm hoping Hugh Jackman will turn up. I saw him on an American morning show and he said a meat pie was his favourite, so we've got a Hunky – not chunky – Jackman pie and a Baz Baguette. We've kind of got nothing for Nicole because I can't imagine her having a pie."

Although locals claim to have heard the VIPs – including Kidman – will be staying on nearby Hayman Island during shooting, Bowen Mayor Mike Brunker claims that's not the case, but refuses to be drawn. "Our big thing, when we were talking to Baz, was interaction with the community. I said, 'The last thing we want is a helicopter coming from Hayman Island with Nicole on it and we see the dust from the helicopter coming out in the morning and the dust from the helicopter going back in the afternoon', and he assured us they would be a part of the community." Luhrmann has been as good as his word. "There isn't an area that they haven't drawn on, from food supplies to accommodation, to sourcing the furniture," Tourism Bowen manager Therese Saad said. "(The financial impact for Bowen) will be in the millions."

Alan Bryson, who runs Monarch's Harbourside Homestead rents most of his rooms out to young backpackers. The film's casting agents are hoping to draw on their ranks to fill the 1000-odd places for extras. Bryson is also reportedly being paid for use of the exterior of his boarding house, which will feature in some of the scenes. "We were going to paint it, but when we got word that it was going to be in the shot, we thought we'd better not paint it some nice, bright, modern colour because it's not got to fit in with that era," he said. Kidman can't wait to start filming. She said she was excited to resurrect her working relationship with the Moulin Rogue team, Luhrmann and his wife Catherine Martin: "I just hope we can make our country proud."

---

Nicole Kidman pub with no beer
The Daily Telegraph, 4 May 2007

Bowen is now the official home of the pub with no beer. The Territory Hotel stands proudly on the site of the set for Baz Luhrmann's movie Australia but workers constructing the set would be hard pressed to find a cleansing ale inside. It's a prop that would only serve to tease the workers, and others, as they go about their business in the hot North Queensland sun.  Bowen Shire Mayor Mike Brunker said he had his own plans for christening The Territory Hotel. "I'd like to have a licence for that,'' Cr Brunker said. "I would like to have a closing beer in there ... it would be a good place to finish.''

The pub is a stand-out feature of the movie set, a recreation of early 1900s Darwin. There is a custom built cattle-yard in front of the pub and small huts and shacks making up a village behind it as construction crew keep preparing for the shoot. "There's a lot of red dirt to be put around the front intersection,'' Cr Brunker said. "They've closed off the jetty . . . it's all coming together quite nicely.'' As Bowen prepares for a flood of Hollywood cast and crew, the town is now under siege by tourists.  Cr Brunker said the oceanfront set was attracting a lot of visitors. "A lot of people are coming in to take photos ... coming down from Townsville and all over the place,'' he said. "People are coming in on their holidays.'' A fence has been erected to keep the tourists out of the Northern Territory, or Baz Luhrmann's version of it.

Filming is set to begin on May 10 or 11 as the town eagerly waits on the arrival of Hollywood royalty Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman. Rehearsals are now under way in Sydney for the Baz Luhrmann big budget movie Australia.  But just like the two legged stars of the epic romance, the four legged cast members will also need to rehearse before filming begins in Bowen next month. In all, it is expected about 1500 head of shorthorns will be used in the movie. Part of the main herd came down from Mount Pleasant station, near Collinsville, to the Euri Creek stockyards this week.  Now to learn their "moves" the cattle will firstly be taken to the Bowen Turf Club grounds for rehearsals.  A replica circuit of the one they will have to follow in town and on the movie sets at the Front Beach is to be pegged out there to get the shorthorns "familiarised".

In the film, Nicole Kidman plays an English aristocrat, Lady Sarah Ashley, who finds herself in an unlikely partnership with a cattle drover Hugh Jackman. The duo fights to save her cattle station from falling into the hands of local beef barons. After arriving in Darwin with the herd, cattle and stars have to survive the upheaval of the Japanese bombing the port. "This is the crucial part of the film," the movies location manager Carl Wood said. "Early in the filming before the end of May the cattle will be driven, basically, from the junction of Herbert and George streets into Dalrymple Street, across to "Kavanagh Street" in Darwin and down to the wharf," he said. Because of the angle of the shooting, no Darwin scenery will be required to be set up in Bowen streets until the old harbour masters building. Filming from the veranda, looking towards the wharf, the cattle will appear from underneath. "There will be rehearsals for that in the week or two before the shoot," Mr Wood said. He said there would be a circuit which would be advertised where the cattle would go to get into position for filming. "Its probably up Gregory Street, along George and down Herbert, so we have got the smallest route possible. "The replica at the turf club will help the cattle get it in their brains," Mr Wood said. "Hopefully, there will be some retention," he said. Meanwhile, the cattle at Euri Creek will be coming into town at first light on Sunday. Coming off Dry Creek Road they are expected to be driven along Telegraph Road through the Delta and over Russells Crossing to the showgrounds, initially. They will then be a common site grazing around Bowen as they wait for their call for lights, camera and action.

Hunt for movie extras still not over

You may have seen the big white marquee set up at the former Bowen NQ Stockfeeds site in George Street. You also may have heard of some people being called in for a costume fitting. But just because your telephone has not rung, do not think your movie career as an extra has ended up on the cutting room floor. Bazmark Film extras casting director Gabrielle Healy said staff would be calling people selected to fill various extras roles in Baz Luhrmanns Australia right up until the first week of June. Costume fittings this week began in earnest and will continue throughout this month and into the next. For people who missed the extras registration days, you may still have a chance. Ms Healy said the hunt was still on for men and women aged 16 and over, Asian and indigenous persons. Anyone fitting those descriptions can sign up at Bowen NQ Stockfeeds former premises at 57/3 George Street, today between 3pm and 5pm. Just ask for Nikki.

---

Nic's Northern exposure
Townsville Bulletin, 3 May 2007

When Nicole Kidman starts filming her new movie in Bowen in a couple of weeks time it will mark a full circle in her career. Eighteen years ago, bright-eyed Nicole came to North Queensland to star in the deep sea thriller Dead Calm. She was an unknown then, a fiery, wild-haired young starlet whose big-screen credits were limited to small Aussie productions BMX Bandits and Windriders. She signed up for Dead Calm because she wanted to work with the more accomplished Sam Neill and with an expectation it was just another step in her determined plan to one day be famous. But not even she expected the worldwide applause for her chilling portrayal of a young wife fighting off Billy Zane's madman on a yacht in the middle of the ocean. Dead Calm would be Nicole's breakthrough into the big time. Now, in her 40th year, she's coming back to the North a very different actress, set to play a very different role.

In Baz Luhrmann's Bowen-based epic, Australia, she's an aristocratic Englishwoman who finds herself in the Outback and on a droving trip to Darwin which she reaches just as it is bombed by the Japanese during World War II. Bowen has been selected because of its resemblance to 1940s Darwin and Nicole says shes looking forward to casting her eye over what has been described as one of the most beautiful spots along the Australian east coast. "I expect we'll be shooting in Bowen for almost two months," she said from Sydney where the cast is in rehearsal.  "We'll almost be locals by the time we leave." Although it is rumoured she will stay on Hamilton Island and a chopper will take her to and from the set each day, she's not sure where shell be staying. "It's up to the production to work out where to put us all' and keep us out of mischief."

But that doesn't mean she won't be out and about around town during the filming. She confidently expects to have time to meet the locals and get out into the community a bit, despite the pressures of work. Although she doesn't think she'll have much time for sightseeing, she hopes to fit in a trip to the Great Barrier Reef. "I would like to find the time to do that," she said. "I love the ocean and I've done a lot of scuba diving so it would be great to have the chance." She laughed at reports in the UK that she had learned to round up cattle and castrate bulls for her role as the aristocrat who inherits the cattle station Faraway Downs and hires Hugh Jackman to move the herd across the country.  "I don't know where that story came from. I've never castrated a bull." However she and Hugh have been brushing up on their horse riding skills at Sydneys Fox Studios. "I'm learning riding, dressage, mustering cattle and cutting. It's been such a great learning experience for me, I love riding horses."

Nicole says she is excited about working with Baz and Hugh again, and she is not alone. The movie industry has big expectations for Australia for various reasons, not the least of them the obvious film-making chemistry between Nicole and Baz. He, like no other director, has captured the best of Nicole. He showcased her comic timing, sense of drama and striking beauty in the frenetic musical Moulin Rouge and he framed her sense of style in their multimillion-dollar foray into TV advertising, a commercial for Chanel No 5. "I love them both and look forward to working with them both again," Nicole said. "I had a small practice run working with Hugh when we played Mumble's mother and father in George Miller's animated film Happy Feet. And, of course, I had the most wonderful experience working with Baz on my last Australian movie, Moulin Rouge. I think he's a creative genius. So too is his wonderful wife Catherine Martin who is the production designer. They are two of the most special people in the world."

She is tightlipped about the specifics of her role in Australia. Baz is notorious for keeping a lid on all of his productions until opening night and expects his actors to do the same. However it has been reported that Jack Thompson will play Kipling Flynn, a drunken accountant and flamboyant bon vivant, a role which almost seems penned especially for him. Bryan Browns suitably weathered features will perfectly suit the role of cattle baron King Carney, the single greatest landholder in the countrys north, and David Wenham will play Neil Fletcher, a station manager who plots to possess Faraway Downs. Although Kidman was actually born in Hawaii, her parents are Australian and she regards Australia as her home, even though she doesnt get home as often as she likes these days. Her film commitments as well as juggling her role of mother to Isabella and Connor, children she adopted with ex-husband Tom Cruise, make trips home complicated.

However she is excited to be spending so much time in her homeland this year, particularly as it coincides with her husband Keith Urban's Australian concert tour. Urban is expected to spend time with Nicole during her stay in Bowen, the Whitsunday lifestyle the perfect tonic after his much-publicised stint in rehab for alcohol abuse.  "I really hope to be at some of Keith's concerts," she said. "I can't wait. We're so grateful that were both able to be in Australia doing what we do and giving back to our country. I've wanted to make this film since I was a little girl. I mean that in the sense of wanting to make a film about my country for my country.'' Although she says that, ideally, she'd like to do just one production a year because it takes so much out of her, her schedule seems rather busier than her ideal. In just a relatively short time shes won an Oscar, three Golden Globes, become the highest paid actress in Hollywood and recently was invested as a Companion of the Order of Australia.

Kidman has completed work on director Oliver Hirschbiegels science fiction movie The Invasion, the visiting and Noah Baumbach's comedy-drama Margot at the Wedding. That's in between her much-praised work on Happy Feet. She has done the film adaptation of the first part of the His Dark Materials trilogy in which she plays the villainous Mrs. Coulter. She is also set to star in director Wong Kar-wais next film, The Lady from Shanghai, with Headhunters and Need slotted in for next year. "But I'm focusing on this film right now. It's a big, big production." She likes to switch genres so she doesn't get bogged down in just one type of role. "I love all genres. I like to try alternative genres and to keep things unpredictable." But wherever she goes in the world, wherever shes filming, and whatever role she's playing, she always brings with her a little touch of home. "I always bring the little homey things like candles and chocolate," she said.

---

First snap: Kidman in new Baz flick
The Daily Telegraph, 2 May 2007

This is the first picture of Nicole Kidman looking grand as cattle queen Lady Sarah Ashley in Baz Luhrmann's sweeping new $120 million epic Australia. The Oscar-winning beauty, 39, plays an upper-crust English aristocrat who heads Down Under just before World War II to confront her skirt-chasing husband - only to find him dead. This leaves her in control of a massive Northern Territory cattle station the size of Belgium. Kidman joins a massive cast of top Aussie talent with Hugh Jackman, David Wenham, Bryan Brown, Jack Thompson, John Jarratt, David Gulpilil and Bill Hunter all hand-picked by Luhrmann. Filming began in Sydney this week at the 150-year-old Strickland House in Vaucluse, which is doubling as Darwin's Government House. Kidman and a bearded Jackman were earlier spotted brushing up on their riding skills in Centenntial Park. Riding is an essential part of the film - the pair fall in love as Jackman, playing a rough stockman, helps her drive 1500 cattle across the property.

Shooting takes place over five months with the production moving to the tiny North Queensland mango town of Bowen later this month. The coastal community is now bustling with construction workers as more than eight town blocks are taken back in time. Stockyards, shacks, old-fashioned cottages, shops and even a hotel have been erected at the oceanfront site. A 93-year-old sugar cane locomotive called Homebush has even been enlisted to play a significant role in the flick. The loco started chugging around near Mackay in 1915 and was kept in mint condition by sugar company CSR. Homebush will stay in Bowen until the end of next month - CSR even had to arrange for train tracks to be laid in the town's main street to complete the illusion. But getting Bowen ready hasn't been all smooth sailing. New Idea magazine made a classic blunder when it ran a photo purportedly of Bowen's main street with inset snaps of Kidman and Jackman. Unfortunately the picture is of the main street of Roma - an inland Queensland town at least 1000km to the southwest. It also features a series of distinctive bottle trees, which can't even be found in Bowen. Bowen Shire Mayor Mike Brunker was not amused. "Of all the beautiful photos of Bowen they had to go and use one of Roma,'' he stormed. "(The photo) has even got bottle trees in it."

---

'Baz buzz' puts movie spotlight on Bowen
Abc.net.au, 2 May 2007

A north Queensland tourism body says the filming of Baz Lurhmann's movie Australia in Bowen will pour millions of dollars into the region. Bowen Tourism manager Therese Saad says the movie, staring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman, has put Bowen on the map. Ms Saad says the locals cannot wait for filming to start. "The excitement now is building because it's getting closer and closer to that time and already we have many, many, many people visiting the town just to have a look at the sight alone so, yes, we've got the Baz buzz going I suppose you could say," she said.

Bowen Mayor Mike Brunker says there are hundreds of people a day taking photos of the set and he expects the steady flow of tourists to turn into a flood within a fortnight. "We're expecting a bigger circus because obviously the stars are going to be the major attraction ... we've had Russell Crowe down looking at the set and we've had numerous numbers of tourists coming through, but I think once Nicole Kidman and the stars get here, well, that's when we'll see major chaos I think," he said.

---

Riding the history train on-set
The Townsville Bulletin, 1 May 2007

A locomotive that once pulled passengers and cane around Ingham's Herbert district is to get a starring role in Baz Luhrmann's Australia to be filmed in Bowen this month. Homebush, a 93-year-old loco built in Leeds in 1914, started its working life in the Mackay area in 1915 with the Colonial Sugar Refining Company. The rustic-looking loco has been well maintained over the years and is still in the possession of CSR at the company's Victoria Mill outside Ingham. Victoria Mill spokesman Paul Giordani said Homebush would be transported to Bowen soon and would remain on site until the end of June. He said CSR had arranged for train tracks to be laid in Bowen's main street this month. "We think it's great Homebush is going to be in a movie," he said.

CSR Herbert rolling stock engineer Rob Johnson said that in 1921 when Homebush's tour of duty in the Mackay district drew to an end the loco was sent north. He said it was used to transport passengers between Lucinda and Ingham and to haul cane to the Victoria mill. He said that from 1932 through to 1976 Homebush transported tramway maintenance gangs around the Victoria Mill district. It was also used to haul cane. Mr Giordani said Homebush was a star attraction at the annual Australian-Italian Festival in Ingham in May where it was used as a novelty train ride. "Due to filming commitments Homebush will not be able to make its annual appearance at the Australian festival in May," he said. Mr Giordani said CSR would make a diesel locomotive available to festival organisers. "Next year Homebush will be back and people who take a train ride will know they are being towed by the locomotive that featured in the Baz Luhrmann movie," he said. Mr Johnson said CSR would also be sending two old 'stalk truck' wagons to Bowen. He said the wagons were used in the early part of last century to carry entire lengths of cane.