A story with a big heart, plenty of laughs and lashings of sweet and sour chicken kiev, The Merger is the tale of a struggling, small town footy team that recruits refugees to survive.
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Reuniting the crew that created Backyard Ashes, director Mark Grentell and producer Anne Robinson joined forces with comedian, actor and writer Damian Callinan to adapt to the screen his award-winning, stage show of the same name.
Mr Callinan said the struggling footy team, who resound with the Aussie battler war-cry “keep doing it until you’re not s---”, is but a canvas upon which a new, more accepting culturally diverse Australia can be painted.
“When you bother to listen and learn from what our refugees have actually been through, wanting to turn them away isn’t an option,” said he said.
The message of inclusivity in The Merger isn’t just limited to the story on screen. The supporting cast includes many settled refugees.
Director of photography Tony Luu was born on the boat as his family fled Vietnam, and David Bridie’s film score includes many refugee musicians, including Farhad Bandesh, a Burundi ex-child soldier who has been a detainee on Manus Island for six years.
Many refugees in Wagga were extras in the film, including Yazidi refugee Khato Izzeldin, who became one of the featured players in the Bodgy Creek Roosters, and even got a character name of his own choosing, Iraqi Kev.
The film will launch Wagga on August 28.
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