By Tanya Steele
The Old Badger Creek School will be host to a fun filled few days as it becomes the site for a student led film called ‘A town called Valhalla’ at the end of April.
The restored 19th century schoolhouse captured the eye of film student and filmmaker Gisele Kieffer who thinks the building will be a great fit for her murder mystery film.
“The town the film is set in is a bit lost in time and this building is perfect, it’s beautiful and exactly what we were looking for,” she said.
Other parts of the film will be shot further afield in the town of Walhalla, which is part of what inspired the title.
Badger Creek’s Old School and Hall have become the centre pieces for some of the scenes in the production as Walhalla did not have any suitable historic buildings.
The student director and her crew have been to the site a few times in preparation for filming and are looking forward to working there.
“I think it’s one of the locations that sort of makes the film and helps bring people into the story,” she said.
The beautiful Healesville area and scenery hold sentimental value Ms Kieffer and she appreciates the area for its natural beauty.
“Being able to film here with these beautiful old buildings is wonderful and we’re very excited to come up next week,” she said.
The original old school building and nearby hall were actually saved from demolition and moved to their current location by local residents in the late 1980s, many of whom were Badger Creek CFA members.
The film production was crowdfunded and has also extended a casting call for extras when they shoot the Badger Creek scenes on 29 and 30 April.
The film has a social media presence on Instagram under the label ‘A town called Valhalla’.
The crew are looking for kids aged between seven and 16 to play the role of school children and filming on the set of the murder mystery film promises an exciting experience for all.
“We thought it would be easier and more fun if we had actual local school kids from around the area,” Ms Kieffer said.
