Experiencing Interruptions?

Ghosthunter

A western Sydney security guard and part-time ghost hunter, Jason King has spent two decades searching for his absent father. As a survivor of trauma, he seeks to reconcile his fractured memories and piece together his past. When his search converges with a police investigation, an horrific family secret is exposed — forcing him to confront a brutal past in order to reclaim his future.

  • Ben Lawrence
    Director
  • Ben Lawrence
    Writer
  • Rebecca Bennett
    Producer
  • Ben Lawrence
    Producer
  • Jason King
    Key Cast
  • Cathy
    Key Cast
  • Detective Ellen Quinn
    Key Cast
  • Karen Johnson
    Editor
  • Hugh Miller
    Cinematographer
  • Rafael May
    Composer
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Feature
  • Genres:
    Mystery, family, social impact, crime
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 36 minutes 5 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    July 28, 2017
  • Production Budget:
    1,100,000 AUD
  • Country of Origin:
    Australia
  • Country of Filming:
    Australia
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital, Arri Alexa, Sony
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Sydney Film Festival
    Sydney
    Australia
    June 7, 2018
    World Premiere
    Documentary Australia Foundation award - WINNER
  • Sheffield DocFest
    Sheffield
    United Kingdom
    June 11, 2018
    International premiere
    Illuminante award nominee
  • Melbourne International Film festival
    Melbourne
    Australia
    August 7, 2018
  • Sitges International Fantastic Film Festival
    SITGES - International Fantastic Film Festival of Catalonia
    Spain
    October 10, 2018
    European Premiere
    Noves Visions Section - IN COMPETITION
  • DocsMX
    Mexico City
    Mexico
    October 13, 2018
    International feature category - In Competition
  • Brisbane International Film Festival
    Brisbane
    Australia
    October 14, 2018
  • Austin Film Festival
    Austin, Texas
    United States
    October 28, 2018
    North American Premiere
    Documentary Category - In Competition
  • Rokumentii
    Joensuu
    Finland
    November 15, 2018
Distribution Information
  • Madman Entertainment
    Country: Australia
    Rights: Internet, Video on Demand, Pay Per View, Hotel, Airline, Ship, Theatrical, Video / Disc, Paid TV, Console / Handheld Device
    Country: New Zealand
    Rights: All Rights
Director Biography - Ben Lawrence

Ben Lawrence is a film-maker & photographer based in Sydney, Australia.

His debut feature documentary, GHOSTHUNTER won the Documentary Australia Foundation award at the Sydney Film Festival, 2018 - where it had it's world premiere.

GHOSTHUNTER's international premiere was at Sheffield Docfest, 2018 - where it was nominated for the prestigious Illuminate Award.

GHOSTHUNTER was also nominated for 4 AACTA awards, taking home the prize for best editing of a feature documentary.

Ben's TV commercials have been awarded at every major international advertising awards and his short films have screened at Edinburgh, Los Angeles, Clermont-Ferrand, Sao Paulo and San Gio film festivals.

He has had three solo photographic exhibitions and been recognised at the International Photography Awards in New York, the Spider Awards for photojournalism in London and the Australian National Photography Portrait Prize.

In 2016 he co-directed MAN UP, a 3x1 hr TV documentary series for the ABC, which focused on Australian men's mental health and suicide.

Ben is currently in post production on his feature drama HEARTS AND BONES, starring Hugo Weaving and produced by Matt Reeder (WEST, THE LITTLE DEATH and JOE CINQUE’S CONSOLATION).

He lives in Sydney, Australia.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

In 2010, I read an article in my local paper about a man who had seen his dead
brother’s ghost. This triggered a seven year journey into the psyche of a ghost hunter who discovers that man’s enemies are not demons, but human beings like himself.
This film explores how our identities are forged from a very young age, and how our ability to forget protects us while we construct our lives. And while we survive by this ability to forget, our compulsion to remember and our desire to know the truth, creates a irreconcilable war that plays out deep within our hearts.
Ghosthunter began as a story about a man facing grief by healing the haunted lives of others. It revealed itself to be the tale of one man’s overwhelming desire to confront a past that threatened to destroy him.