Film Locations
Essendon Fields and Essendon Airport have been used as the
backdrop for several local and international film and television
productions.
Rush
With its exceptional production values and outstanding
Australian cast, Rush has established itself as an action-drama
series of the highest calibre. The Rush team used the Old Air
Ambulance facility (Bldg230) on Bristol St, Gate 20 and the Apron
in front of Bldg 230 in a shoot. The scene required Bldg 230 to be
dressed as a police air wing base, and the cast can be seen racing
through gate 20 and into a helicopter.
The Killer Elite
Directed by Gary McKendry and staring Robert De Niro, The Killer
Elite is about a retired SAS man who is forced back into action
when his old comrades start being murdered. Essendon Fields
provided access to the northern end of the main terminal of the
airport, along with the main Apron and viewing deck areas. Other
scenes required the current terminal to be dressed to look like a
1970's Middle Eastern airport. The Western Apron, Hanger 85 and the
Old Fire Station (was overhauled to resemble an old military base)
were all used in scenes.
Stingers
Stingers was an Australian police drama television series that
chronicled the cases of a deep undercover unit of the Victoria
Police. The original cast members include Peter Phelps, Joe
Petruzzi, Kate Kendall, Ian Stenlake, Anita Hegh, and Jessica
Napier. Essendon Fields provided the northern end of the main
terminal and runways where suspects were spotted getting into
private jets.
Conspiracy 365
CONSPIRACY 365 is the story of a year in the life of teenager,
'Cal Ormond', played by AFI-Award winning Australian actor Harrison
Gilbertson, who is forced to go on the run and become a fugitive as
he searches for the truth behind a deadly family secret. It is the
single largest drama production ever commissioned for subscription
television to be broadcast on the Family Movie Channel commencing
January 2012.
A location was sought for principle photography for some aspects
of the first few episodes of this series and Hangar 5 at Essendon
Airport was chosen as an ideal location. Remmi Aloni, Location
Manager for Circa 365, says "I specifically chose Hangar 5 for its
aesthetic. It is large with a vintage facade and translates very
well on screen. We also needed our protagonist to appear as though
he was flying, and Essendon Airfields offers a vast horizon so as
to achieve, or 'cheat' a flying shot." For a production of this
scale, many aspects of filming were carefully considered, including
logistics of suitable locations as Remmi Aloni points outs and
Essendon Fields suited our needs perfectly.
Eskimo Joe
Hangar 5 set the backdrop for a magazine cover shoot featuring
Eskimo Joe for a national magazine under the banner of Street Press
Australia which includes titles, Inpress Magazine in Melbourne, The
Drum in Sydney, Time Off in Brisbane and The Drum in Perth. The
shot required a vast open spaces theme and Hangar 5 at Essendon
Airport was the perfect location.