Streaming success for local filmmaker

Shailer Park-based filmmaker Brian Vining has recently found success on the big stream.

His first independent feature film, The Last Video Store, is now available on Apple TV, Tubi.tv and other major streaming services.

The film is a heady nostalgia trip shot in the hallowed aisles of a video store, that follows the love story of 2 young employees and the return of a dangerous ex-boyfriend.

Brian, a local industry veteran, had always wanted to create and produce a love story set in a video store.

‘I used to work at a film school down in Southport, and a couple of likeminded individuals, Nicole Leo and Nicole Acworth, asked if I had a feature script,’ he says.

‘I had lots of them already written, including The Last Video Store. We talked about the project all the time and decided we should just go ahead and make it.’

The script, which had been left untouched for years, was a practical choice to produce as it only required one location: the beloved Runaway Bay video store.

‘I always wanted to make a film about video stores, there’s something romantic about them,’ Brian says.

‘It seemed like a rite of passage to go to a video store on a Friday night, look through the different genre aisles, scratch your chin and pick up a DVD or two with some popcorn or mixed lollies.

‘It’s a shame that the actual store we filmed in, That’s Rentertainment in Runaway Bay, has closed down now.’

As the store was open during regular trading hours at the time, Brian and the crew were only able to shoot at night.

The crew filmed for 15 days from late night until daybreak.

The Last Video Store recently garnered positive audience reception after a successful cast and crew screening at Hyperdome Event Cinemas.

‘We’re very proud of what we’ve accomplished,’ Brian says.

‘Until it was picked up for streaming, you second guess yourself and struggle with impostor syndrome. When you’ve worked on something for so long, you don’t know if it’s funny anymore.’

Viewers have described the movie as funny, moving, unexpected and uplifting.

Brian’s already in talks with producers and working on his next film, which will be a caper comedy involving seniors.

‘I’ve tried for many years to make a film traditionally, which requires a producer and funding bodies,’ he says.

‘Making films is today much more accessible due to available technology – you can shoot a film on digital cameras and edit it on a home computer.

‘Times have definitely changed – our film was self-funded with a couple of investors and self-distributed.’

Brian’s biggest advice for aspiring filmmakers is to just ‘go out and do it’.

‘Just write your story, get a bunch of actors – even if it’s just family and friends – and go make it,’ he says.

‘A lot of filmmakers believe you need someone else’s permission to start. The cavalry won’t come, you just need to initiate your own projects and keep doing it.

‘Once you’ve made a film, you can prove to producers that you can deliver.’

Read more about The Last Video Store or find the movie on Apple TV and Tubi.tv.