Mockbuster

SANTA BARBARA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL 2026 REVIEW! With Mockbuster, Anthony Frith, with co-writer Sandy Cameron, has crafted for a new generation the twenty-first-century equivalent of Chris Smith’s eternally endearing American Movie. This is a reality check for all the dreamers out there. Quit that wishing upon a star nonsense and go tell the honchos at the Asylum (the studio behind Sharknado) you’ll direct their next dinosaur action epic!

This great bloke named Alexander once said that fortune favors the bold. Well, the Asylum produces pictures that don’t cost a fortune, so this Adelaide lad who dreamed of making his mark on the cinematic landscape figured, “How hard can it be?”

Next thing you know, he’s on his way to the land of dreams to sign a contract to deliver the next big Mockbuster on the Asylum’s slate. The only thing is, there is no script. The movie is already expected, and Anthony has a whopping six days to get all the magic in the can.

Making videos with mates and corporate training videos for his family is one thing. But, making your first feature for a studio with a reputation for notorious schlock, for a price that wouldn’t cover the mineral water budget on a Marvel movie, and having it knocked off in just a week. No worries?

Failing to land the obligatory “name” actor, as the “notable” talent down under did a runner when they heard the word Asylum in the pitch, Anthony, sidelined, treads water while waiting for a script and trying to muster a local producer to assist him in making the impossible possible. This turns out to be a dead end, a producer experienced in manifesting lunacy arrives as Mr. Frith fortifies himself for a date with destiny and the director’s chair.

“Anthony has a whopping six days to get all the magic in the can.”

Yet, when placed in the moment he has achingly longed to hold, as last-minute costume approval and aggravation caused by excessive script changes and time-burning rehearsal both flay and fray emotions, until at last, day one is done. Still, in the days that follow, Anthony finds himself in the same position as Terry Gilliam in Lost in La Mancha, wrestling against time, money, resources, as well as semi-ludicrous expectations that had the regular producers Anthony talked to before production began simply refusing to start.

The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, and the key to achieving any dream is simply to keep going, long after hope and reason have taken the last train out of Sydney, or, like the subject of this documentary practically illustrates, forget trying to be the idols you worship and walk your own path. You cannot hope to emulate another’s journey towards success, and Anthony realizes late in the game, revel in your hour of joy, and don’t hold it up for comparison. Rejoice, for all you’ve ever wanted to contribute to the art form you hold so dearly is happening right before your very eyes.

Last-minute hang-ups plague the production all the way to re-shoots, that is until The Land that Time Forgot’s (the movie within the movie) director receives a leg up from an old Asylum co-star, as Michael Pare (Streets of Fire, Eddie and the Cruisers), decides to add a “name” and a little veteran polish to the mayhem of his monster movie of the week.

As inspirational as The Insufferable Groo, and as deeply moving as He Dreams of Giants, Anthony Frith took his dream by the horns and wrangled it into submission with guts, grace, and the perseverance of a more seasoned filmmaker. Mockbuster is about never giving up, despite impossible odds, costume mistakes, organizing camera insurance, and figuring out how to entertain the masses with pocket change. And keeping the running time at ninety minutes. There’s a lesson for you, James Cameron.

Mockbuster screened at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival.