The Recipient of AACTA Pitch: Mother in Partnership with Monster Pictures Announced

AACTA today announced the recipient of AACTA Pitch: Mother in partnership with Monster Pictures; the ultimate horror and genre film development initiative. Following the final round of pitching, Rhona Rees has been announced as the recipient of the $10,000 in development funds and an exclusive distribution deal with Monster Pictures, for her concept FREYA.

Narrowed down from a longlist of 20 entrants, eight finalists pitched their projects to a panel of judges comprised of established screen industry professionals Robbie Miles, Kim Taylor, Rose Lourde, Chris Brown and CEO and Head of Monster Pictures, Grant Hardie.

Rhona Rees’ winning concept FREYA won the panel over, with its strong characters that resonate with contemporary audiences, and an idea that breaks the bounds of the existing maternal horror genre. Please see below for the FREYA’s logline:

“In a future where birth control is available only to men and abortion is completely outlawed, a young woman must fight for her autonomy and her life when she is tricked into falling pregnant to a one night stand.”

Awards and Industry Development Manager, Ivan Vukusic said, “with one of the strongest pitches I’ve seen in some time, Rhona’s project FREYA almost demands to be made. Throughout the process her vision, and that of her team, really came in to view and it’s always a joy for me to witness closely the real time growth of creativity and ideas. Our judges were blown away, and we know FREYA will certainly be a film that will attract a lot of attention and conversation.”

Co-founder, Head of Monster Pictures and 2022 AACTA Pitch: Focus judge Grant Hardie said, "Rhona embraced the spirit of the initiative from the start with FREYA, and throughout the process, kept the project front and centre in the judge's minds with solid pitch materials, ultimately nailing the final pitch to take the win.”

2022 AACTA Pitch: Mother recipient Rhona Rhees said of her experience:

“Winning the AACTA Mother pitch competition is a huge personal achievement, and hopefully the first of many green lights in my feature filmmaking debut. Producing the project materials for each round helped me crystalize my ideas and get market ready. To be chosen from such a talented and dynamic group of finalists is a huge honor, and I hope to do AACTA and Monster Pictures proud with my film FREYA.”