Carnifex (film)

Carnifex is a 2022 Australian horror film directed by Sean Lahiff and written by Shanti Gudgeon and starring Alexandra Park, Sisi Stringer and Harry Greenwood. Its plot concerns an aspiring documentarian and two conservationists who venture into the Australian outback to record the animals displaced by bushfires hoping to preserve the forests, whereupon they discover a terrifying new sub-species descended from the supposedly extinct Thylacoleo carnifex.

It had its world premiere at the Sitges Film Festival in October 2022. It was given a theatrical release in Australia in December 2022. In Sweden it's released on Australia Day in January 2024, distributed by Cinecct Sweden.

Casting
Developed from an original concept by Dancing Road, Carnifex is an environmental horror/thriller with a talented cast that features Alexandra Park (Ben Is Back/The Royals), Sisi Stringer (Children of the Corn/Mortal Kombat) and Harry Greenwood (Hacksaw Ridge/Wakefield) with a cameo by Darren Gilshenan.

Filming locations
Carnifex is shot in South Australia. Adelaide, Adelaide Hills, Belair National Park, Port Adelaide, Morialta Conservation Park, Lobethal, Gorge Wildlife Park.

Directors notes
Carnifex is one of many horror films set in the Australian outback. Director and editor Sean Lahiff tells FilmInk about the location: "It’s the unknown. It’s such a vast country. We can’t know exactly everything that’s out there, and I love the idea of playing on the fear of the unknown. At night time, it’s just an endless sprawl of forest, and that’s terrifying for me. Even just the sounds — up until making this film, I hadn’t heard a koala doing a mating call before. The Australian native animals make some crazy noises, and I love that. I wanted to share that with audiences around the world because it’s so unique."

Release
Carnifex premiered at the Sitges Film Festival in Sitges, Catalonia, Spain, on 6 October 2022, then it screened at Adelaide Film Festival in Adelaide, Australia, on 22 October 2022. The Movie premiere at the Cinemas followed in Australia 1 December 2022. Then Cinecct Sweden and Arvet Agency managed the film rights for the Nordic countries in 2024. The Swedish movie premiere is set to 26 Januari 2024 Australia Day.

Critics
"Carnifex is a textbook 1970s-era monster mash-up. Paul Byrnes on December 2, 2022, The Sydney Morning Herald" "Carnifex is a serviceable man vs. beast outing that embraces tension over gore. Peter Gray on December 01, 2022, The AU Review" "The bush outshines the beast in this classily-made Australian horror story. Penelope Debelle on October 31, 2022, The New Daily" "Skådespelarna är bra, framför allt Alexandra Park, och filmen känns faktiskt som en dokumentär, vilket gör den lite unik. (Eng. The actors are good, above all Alexandra Park, and the film actually feels like a documentary, which makes it a bit unique) Pidde Andersson on January 25, 2024, Toppraffel!"