‘Takes a village’: Shaynna Blaze shares passion in stamping of family violence
Interior design star Shaynna Blaze and her talented children are shining a light on an insidious issue in an effort to “change the world”.
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When Shaynna Blaze said “hey, let’s make a movie” she didn’t quite understand the challenge that lay ahead.
She was talking to her children, Carly Anne Kenneally and Jess Kenneally, when the idea came to fruition – they were going to make a film about domestic violence.
“It started when mum was asked to MC an event for Safe Steps,’’ Jess recalls.
“She was asked to host and facilitate the vigil at Federation Square. My partner Emma and I went along to support and that had a huge effect on us. They had the roll call of the names and victims of family violence over the past year and that had a profound effect on mum and me and Carly as well.
“We thought what can we do in this space? We’ve been wanting to make a film for a while, we just weren’t sure what that was going to be. So we said why don’t we make a film that can have a voice as well. Why don’t we make something that can have an effect for positive, for good, and not just a piece of art.
“Our aim was to always to make a piece of art, make a film, but see if we can make a film with a message and a voice. Change the world a little bit for the better even if it’s in one person’s life and hopefully a lot more than that.”
Shaynna, an award-winning interior and set designer, who is best known for her work on Selling Houses Australia and as a judge on The Block, worked on the film as executive producer with Carly Anne and Jess directing.
The Fort explores several heavy themes – the generational cycles and shames of family violence, patriarchal masculinity, survival tactics and the communication challenges experienced by victim-survivors and the people around them who want to support them.
The story is set in regional Victoria in the 1990s, with Jess playing one of the lead roles, and it was shot on location at the Kyneton home the trio were renovating.
Shaynna, Jess and Carly Anne all have different views on how long it took to make, but it was around five years from idea to screen.
“I haven’t really been involved a lot in the production side, a lot behind the scenes,’’ Shaynna says.
“I remember I went to (The Block creator) Julian Cress at the start and I said, ‘OK Jules, what does an EP do? What is my actual role?’
“And he said getting it finished. Then I learnt what getting it finished is. It’s the hustle, not being embarrassed asking for favours. Looking at your bank balance, what can I or can’t do, harassing people, corralling people, asking for favours again and again.
“That was out of my comfort zone because I really don’t like doing a lot of that. They were skills that I had to get and thank God I did.
“To try and get people to come to the movie, we’re speaking to lots of corporations, we’re speaking to government, speaking to people in the DV sector, you just have to break down doors.”
While making the film, the family founded Voice of Change, a not-for-profit charity using the arts to amplify the voices of victim-survivors of abuse, and to change the cultural attitudes and beliefs that underpin family violence. Shaynna chairs the charity and runs her successful interior design business Blank Canvas Interiors.
The Fort also includes a pre-filmed post-screening discussion presented by Voice of Change with Ryder Jack (facilitator, Tomorrow Man program), Georgina Williams (chair, UN Women Australia) and Adrian Asdagi (head, Carlton FC’s Carlton Respects program). In the discussion the panellists discuss the film’s themes and how the small actions of many can lead to meaningful large scale change.
“The fact is when people are caught up in coercive control, it’s very hard to get out of,’’ Shaynna says.
“You’re in it and it’s very hard to be on the outside. It takes a village to help to stop this. (People should learn) what the signs are in manipulation and what the signs are in people being manipulated and us being able to talk about it and being able to stop it before it starts.
“The education that it doesn’t have to get to that stage, that we can learn as human beings, we don’t have to be violent in our actions and also in our words and we can be better people.
“That is something we have to do as a community. If there’s anything out of this, it’s the learning and yes there is help for people going through it.
“But also people standing on the outside, that you’ve got a role to play as well. Whether it’s in your community, your sports club, your workplace, understand the triggers in people and be able to have the tools to engage and disrupt.”
The film hit cinemas last month but the trio is still working hard behind the scenes with special screenings across the country.
“We had got into CinefestOZ (Film Festival) in Perth and we were so excited about it,’’ Carly Anne says.
“Tickets were booked and we had this whole amazing weekend planned and wanted to meet other filmmakers and it all got cancelled because of Covid and Perth had gone into a lockdown. We never really got that closure and we just kind of lost that year in a pandemic.
“We’ve been really trying to think of alternative ways. Mum did such an incredible job, she’s had a whole year and a half of post production that we had on the film in getting it out there. It’s been incredible to see mum, so thank you.”
Carly Anne, who works in editing, and Jess, a sound recordist, are keen to continue in the field.
“For me personally this is what we love,’’ Carly Anne says.
“This is what I want to do for the rest of my life. I don’t know if I necessarily want to direct again. The reason Jess and I initially wanted to do it was because we wanted it to be something he could act in and I could edit and we probably didn’t see ourselves directing and we kind of fell into that … but absolutely we want to continue that.”
Jess adds: “It’s the career we both want. We love film, love television. It is such a special industry and we’re definitely in it for the long haul.”
Shaynna says adding filmmaking to her resume was a rewarding and insightful experience.
“I do have a production company and I’m looking at smaller projects,’’ she says.
“(This) film is so niche and particular and I met some incredible people along the way. I would only do that again in a collaboration, trying to do it ourselves, it’s too hard.
“You don’t have the contacts, you don’t have the financial support and you don’t have the distribution, that’s probably the biggest fall down. Creatively you can make a movie but the distribution, it’s a real killer.”
But, she adds, she is in talks to take the film global.
“We had a very small budget but once it got through a certain stage to justify the dream, the quality had to be a certain level,’’ Shaynna says.
“Things cost more and more but once you’re in the trenches you either lose the whole process or you just have to keep going.
“We’ve got some incredible contacts happening now in Perth which is where it was meant to start. I did take it to New York and I’ve been invited back to LA, and New York are very interested.
“This should not be a taboo subject.”
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