Hunter Home Of Us Success

Newcastle Herald

Wednesday May 16, 2007

with Amy Edwards and Anita Beaumont

DIRECTOR Cherie Nowlan is just weeks away from her next film Clubland hitting Aussie cinemas but first she will return to her roots.

Nowlan will visit her home town of Singleton to discuss the film that originally spurred her career.

She will take part in a Q and A session on Wednesday, May 23, at Rose Point Cinemas, following the screening of Thank God He Met Lizzie.

"I go up all the time to see my family. My parents are there," Nowlan told The Word.

"It's nice that the film has been included in the cinema's program."

Rose Point Cinemas at Singleton runs a regular monthly program of classic Australian films.

Directed by Nowlan, Thank God He Met Lizzie landed its star Cate Blanchett an AFI award for best actress and propelled her onto the international stage.

Since appearing in Thank God He Met Lizzie, Blanchett has featured in high-profile hits such as Lord of the Rings, Elizabeth, Babel and The Good German.

"I saw Cate's first play out of NIDA. I knew from that play she was remarkable," Nowlan said.

"She just walks into a room and has that luminous star quality. She's bright and charming . . . she's the whole package."

Nowlan has spent the past 18 months working on Clubland, which will be released at the end of June in Australia. It features Golden Globe-winning actress Brenda Blethyn.

The comedy-drama, which was shot in Sydney, will be released by Warner Brothers in the US.