WWII thriller filming on Melbourne’s cutting-edge virtual production stage

L to R: Noah Jupe, Matthias Schweighöfer, Patrick Gibson and Andreas Pietschmann.

Victoria will stand-in for WWII-era Belgium in Play Dead, a new survival thriller now filming on Melbourne’s cutting-edge virtual production stages at Docklands Studios Melbourne.

The production is currently filming at NantStudios’ LED in-camera VFX stages at Docklands Studios Melbourne, the largest permanent LED volume in the world, recreating the 1940s Belgium countryside circa WWII. Filming has also taken place in South Gippsland.

The production will create more than 300 jobs for Victorian screen workers, including 160 on-set crew, 40 cast and extras, 100 post-production and digital effects and 10 skills development opportunities for emerging screen practitioners in stunts and virtual production. 

The film is expected to inject over $24 million into the Victorian economy, engaging around 100 local businesses—from armourers and special effects technicians to prosthetics artists, LED engineers, real-time compositors, and virtual production crews, among many others.

Directed by Jaume Collet-Serra (Carry-On, Black Adam), Play Dead stars rising British actor Noah Jupe (A Quiet Place, Franklin) and an international cast including Matthias Schweighöfer (Army of Thieves, Oppenheimer), Patrick Gibson (Dexter: Original Sin), Andreas Pietschmann (1899), Juliette Gariepy (Red Rooms) and Sebastian Griegel (Young Woman and the Sea). 

Australian actors Joel Jackson (Ms Fisher’s Modern Murder Mysteries), Sean Keenan (Barons), Harrison Quast (Ten Pound Poms) and Don Hany (Ali’s Wedding) have also been cast.

A Nocturnal Entertainment production, Play Dead is produced by Akiva Nemetsky and Keaton Heinrichs, alongside Sam Raimi (Spider-Man, Crawl) and Rob Tapert (Evil Dead Rise) for Ghost House Pictures, JD Lifshitz and Raphael Margules (Barbarian) for BoulderLight, and Dane Eckerle (Last Straw) for Bad Grey. The screenplay is by Peter Stanley-Ward and Natalie Conway. 

The production was attracted to the state by VicScreen, the Victorian Government’s creative and economic screen development agency through its Victorian Screen Rebate. The production is also accessing the Federal Government’s Location Offset.

Play Dead joins a raft of major projects filming in the state, including psychological drama series The Dispatcher, gridiron drama feature ‘the Untitled John Tuggle Project’ and Liam Neeson action feature The Mongoose.                                 

Recent productions which have been filmed on the volume screens at Docklands Studios Melbourne include the soon to be released Netflix series The Survivors, the upcoming Sarah Snook series All Her Fault and Ice Road 2: Road To The Sky starring Liam Neeson.

Minister for Creative Industries Colin Brooks said, “This latest production shows that screen is a serious business for our state, one that creates jobs, builds our skilled workforce, generates millions for our economy and showcases Victorian innovation to the world. Our investment in cutting-edge screen technology is also paying dividends, and when combined with our stunning locations and expert crews and screen talent, it is a winning combination that keeps productions from across the globe coming to our creative state.”

VicScreen CEO Caroline Pitcher said, “Play Dead is yet another screen production to utilise Melbourne’s LED in-camera volume screens at Docklands Studios Melbourne, engaging our world-class technicians and demonstrating Victoria’s capability for high end virtual production.”

Nocturnal Entertainment’s Akiva Nemetsky said, “Working on Play Dead here in Melbourne has been an incredible experience. The support from VicScreen has been invaluable, and what truly sets Victoria apart are the exceptional crews, talented cast, and stunning locations just a short drive from the city. Being able to shoot the majority of our film at NantStudios in Docklands, within a world-class facility like Docklands Studios Melbourne, has elevated this production in every way. It’s a testament to what’s possible when great infrastructure meets local talent.”

Learn more about the Victorian Screen Rebate