In a bold move, upcoming Aussie horror flick The Tunnel will be released for free on bittorrent, in the hope that fans will also choose to shell out for the feature-filled DVD release.
It's the brainchild of Sydney-based filmmakers Julian Harvey and Enzo Tedeschi. Their big idea is to embrace the internet, rather than fight against it.
"We believe that if we stop fighting the peer to peer networks, they could become the biggest revolution we have ever seen in the way we share entertainment and information," the team says.
The project first got the internet's attention as the director pair crowdsourced the movie's funding online. Distracted Media sold the 135,000 individual frames of the 90 minute movie for $1 a pop, to cover the indie flick's budget. If the movie ever makes any cash, one frame will be chosen at random and net the owner one percent of the film's takings.
The ambition is that the team "would be able to make a movie unencumbered by a studio's need for box office," the website details. It didn't work out perfectly -- according to the site's tally only 26,618 frames were sold -- but the film will hit torrent trackers on its intended May release.
If you enjoy the film, Distracted Media hopes you'll also be interested in the DVD release which includes two hours of exclusive footage, including an alternate ending and a behind-the-scenes look at the film-making process. It will be distributed by Transmission Films, an Australian firm that's collaborated with Hollywood behemoth Paramount to release more than 100 films, including Good Night and Good Luck, Super Size Me and Rabbit Proof Fence.
The Tunnel is a horror film about a sprawling, real-life network of catacombs buried deep beneath Sydney. They were originally intended to house a new rail line, but construction was eventually canceled. The government apparently proposed a plan to use the water in the flooded tunnels to help water shortages in the city, but the plan was scrapped.
Now, in Harvey and Tedeschi's horror film, a journalist heads down to investigate why. We'll find out what she discovers when the film releases on 19 May. Our money's on zombies.
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