The journey to make Andreas Toumbas’ debut feature film, A Bad Influence, was long and arduous. The film emerged from the global disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic to reach impressive heights.
Navigating pandemic disruptions
The Australian filmmaker of Greek-Cypriot origin planned for the movie’s release in April 2020, and it was then the world came to a halt due to the global pandemic.
“COVID-19 was a massive blow. Film festivals were cancelled or went online, so I withdrew from them all.
“It was disheartening to be working at breakneck pace for two years only for things to be completely halted,” Toumbas says.
The writer, actor, and director used the delay to touch up his film, re-edit it and adjust the colour grade. It began to screen three years later across international film festivals in the United States, Sweden, and India, among others.
“There were rejections, which are always hard to deal with. Eventually, we started getting accepted; it was a great feeling knowing people were gathering in cinemas around the world to watch our little indie movie,” Toumbas tells Neos Kosmos.
From screenings to distribution deals
The film’s first milestone was to be picked up by the LA-based distribution company Indie Film Rights.
“I was over the moon; I found just before the Sydney screening in June. Indie Film Rights have a good reputation, so I knew the film would be in good hands.”
The filmmaker credited the company with helping the movie land a deal with Amazon Prime Video, first in the U.S. and now in Australia.
“This is the most satisfying. It makes it real. Anyone can Google the film and then, in one click, have access to it on one of the world’s most extensive streaming platforms.
“I honestly didn’t expect it. In saying that, things were different five years ago when we started filming; streaming has come a long way in making indie films more accessible to people, and that’s great.”
Bad behaviour inspires ‘A Bad Influence’
Toumbas’ comic-drama revolves around a housewarming party that spins out of control. One of the characters, Steve, a loudmouthed and often obnoxious mate, shows up, does what he does best, gets blind drunk then throws things into chaos.
The story was inspired by real-life events and characters says Toumbas. He adds his own bad behaviour at a “mate’s wedding”, where he got wasted as part of the base narrative, along with an old housemate who was “really bad drunk” Toumbas says.
“I was nearing 30, and I wanted to make a feature film soon and trying to come up with a story that would be relatively easy to shoot on a low budget. No monsters or car crashes; something about real people,” Toumbas says.
Toumbas dug into personal accounts, changed the setting to a housewarming party, and the low-cost production was filmed almost entirely at his parents’ home, Sydney’s Earlwood.
“It was challenging for the family as filming days started at 6am and ended at midnight. Everyone had to stay in their rooms and be quiet the whole time.”Toumbas was supported by his family, who he says were aware of his passion for filmmaking.
Always, some deep Hellenic inspiration
The filmmaker’s grandparents all hail from the Cypriot town of Aradippou, and his close ties with family made him feel comfortable to film his picture at his parents’ home.
“As Greeks, we love to entertain and enjoy time with friends and family and treat guests like family. I like to think the cast and crew felt like part of the family,” Toumbas says.
Toumbas says a trip to Greece and in 2011 to Cyprus, where he met his cousin, played a role in inspiring him to pursue filmmaking.
Independent filmmaking is tough; complete creative freedom, he says, produces pictures that are “more raw and pure”.
“They aren’t made to make money off an audience; they are made for the audience to feel something.
“We lost a couple of years throughout the journey; however, 2020 wasn’t the right time, and I’ll trust the universe on that one,” says a reflective Toumbas.
