MAD Max will return to the big screen with the documentary film Beyond the Wasteland set to play at the Ballarat Drive-In this month.<\/p>\n
The doco\u2019s director and co-producer Eddie Beyrouthy said the film began initially as a record of Mad Max star Bertram Cadart\u2019s road trip from Queensland to Melbourne to attend the 40th anniversary celebrations of the original movie.<\/p>\n
It quickly evolved to honour the fandom itself.<\/p>\n
\u201cBertram just knew so many people in the Mad Max community, and after about a month of research, we realised that there\u2019s something more, something bigger out there. The movie just grew from there,\u201d Beyrouthy said.<\/p>\n
The documentary filmmaker said while Beyond the Wasteland pays tribute to Australia\u2019s role in the series, it also expanded to showcase the global influence of Mad Max on pop culture.<\/p>\n
The production travelled abroad to the United States, Japan and Europe to highlight various conventions, events and cosplayers, and Beyrouthy said he was \u201chumbled\u201d by the passion on display by the fans.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo matter where we were around the world, it was fascinating to see the way everybody connected and worked together and embraced each other and the culture,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Breaking down the series\u2019 lasting impact, Beyrouthy said the staying power of Mad Max stems from its ability to pool an \u201censemble of other passions\u201d from a plethora of groups.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve got the V8 cars and you\u2019ve got costumes, the rock\/punk scene,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not just a really specific niche. It\u2019s a wide array of areas that all come into one. There\u2019s a little bit of Mad Max in all of us.\u201d<\/p>\n
Beyrouthy said he looks forward to showing Australians the extent to which the series has impacted culture beyond its homeland and that he hopes the film\u2019s sense of community will \u201cdrive people\u2019s passion further\u201d for inclusiveness and connectivity.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe fandom hasn\u2019t been exposed in this way before. We\u2019ve all got our day jobs but these guys, after 5pm they enter another world. They enter the wasteland.\u201d<\/p>\n
Beyond the Wasteland screens at the Ballarat Drive In from 8.30pm on Saturday, 19 February. Tickets are available via showbizcinemas.com.au\/ballarat\/drive-in.<\/p>\n
The event also includes a Q&A with Beyrouthy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
MAD Max will return to the big screen with the documentary film Beyond the Wasteland set to play at the Ballarat Drive-In this month. The doco\u2019s director and co-producer Eddie Beyrouthy said the film began initially as a record of Mad Max star Bertram Cadart\u2019s road trip from Queensland to Melbourne to attend the 40th […]<\/p>\n