Chook Shed

When her greatest artistic achievement is withdrawn from public display, an ageing and uninspired sculptor desperately chases a fresh artistic vision.

Full synopsis in EPK.

  • Hayden Flynn
    Director
  • Hayden Flynn
    Writer
  • Tom Matthews
    Writer
  • William Jack Thaxter
    Writer
  • Izrael Little
    Producer
  • Sarah Hegge-Taylor
    Producer
  • Hayden Flynn
    Producer
  • Diana Stathis
    Key Cast
    "Em"
  • Caitlin O'Farrell
    Key Cast
    "Lena"
  • Tavis Pinnington
    Director of Photography
  • Violet Selwood-Thomas
    Production Designer
  • Project Type:
    Short, Student
  • Runtime:
    12 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    October 27, 2023
  • Production Budget:
    5,000 AUD
  • Country of Origin:
    Australia
  • Country of Filming:
    Australia
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    3:2
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    Yes - Victorian College of the Arts
  • Byron Bay International Film Festival
    Byron Bay, NSW
    Australia
    October 19, 2024
    World Premiere
    Young Australian Filmmaker of the Year (Nominee)
Director Biography - Hayden Flynn

Best described as “the teacher’s pet gone a little rogue”, Hayden is a filmmaker passionate about grassroots storytelling and impactful cinema. With experience across commercial, narrative, and documentary works, he specialises in capturing unique human stories that transcend borders. He enjoys walking the line between the profound and absurd; grandiosity and intimacy; the beauty of precision and the allure of impulsivity. After receiving his Bachelor of Fine Arts (Film & Television) from the University of Melbourne in 2023, Hayden moved to London to join RD Content as a creative and film director. He was recently nominated for Young Australian Filmmaker of the Year at Byron Bay International Film Festival.

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Director Statement

"Making Chook Shed was like creative therapy for me. Crafting Em’s struggle to find meaning and purpose was my way of reconnecting with my own. This is a film about identity – both personal and artistic – which I do not believe to be a fixed, immutable truth. Self-discovery, therefore, is not a singular event, but a state of being.
Em shows us that we must give ourselves the freedom to be constantly discovering, even if that sometimes means making painful decisions.

Chook Shed is a love-letter to artists of every persuasion; a reminder to stay grounded, and to know our worth."

Extended statement + Q&As in EPK.