The Gift That Gives, the fourth romantic comedy by writer / director, Joy Hopwood, is coming to Channel Nine on 19 th April 2024 at midday with a stellar cast: Takaya Honda (Neighbours), HaiHa Le (Boy Swallows Universe), Lily Brown Griffiths (The Script of Life), Damien Sato (Rhapsody Of Love), Susan Ling Young (The Office – Australia), Genevieve Craig (Chikas), Atharv Kolhatkar (Marriage Agency), Andy Trieu (SBS Pop Asia) & Lex Marinos (Kingswood Country).
Callum (Takaya Honda), an author, meets Kate (Lily Brown Griffiths) and her friend Linda (HaiHa Le) while promoting his book. Kate is smitten, but Callum falls for Linda. At Linda’s shop, they discover anonymous love letters, propelling them on a quest to uncover the writers & identities. The film had its Brisbane premiere as part of the BLUSSH romance festival in February 2024.
“We’re excited that The Gift that Gives has been fast tracked to have its Australian Television premiere on the nine network as it’s an independent film that was made with a lot of heart. During our Q & A sessions after our theatrical screenings in Sydney, Melbourne & Sydney, audiences have mentioned that they felt the passion the cast and crew have put into the making of this film and the film’s back story too. Callum’s back story is actually based on my personal back story. His experiences at school and how his mother experienced racism.”
When asked what it was like working on set, with great actors like Lex Marinos, Takaya Honda and Hai Ha Le were quick to respond.
“Lex is such a funny guy, everything he did on set, it was tough to keep a straight face, everything he did was amazing,” says Takaya Honda.
“Lex provides most of the comic relief moments, as well as Susan, she’s very funny,” says HaiHa Le. “It takes a lot of courage and tenacity to set out to make a film and I wanted to be part of the ride. It also has a warm and positive message which I hope will resonate with audiences. Joy Hopwood is such a powerhouse she gets things done.”
“The Gift that Gives has diversity but it’s not about diversity. I was attracted to this film because it’s an interesting blend of a rom-com and a whodunnit with rich and diverse characters. The script has some interesting twists and turns that don’t get caught in rom-com cliches,” Takaya Honda adds.
Lex Marinos who starred in the iconic sitcom Kingswood Country in the 1970’s, plays a character in this movie who delivers one funny line after the other. He highly commended Hopwood on the themes she explored in the script. “Human emotions like love, hope, and happiness are universal; they don’t belong to any one section of society,” he explained. “Working with a diverse cast and crew is very much what contemporary Australia feels like to me.”
The Gift that Gives was also an award winner at New York International Women’s Festival.
Joy Hopwood has come a long way since her early days being a presenter on Play School. She embarked on her journey to filmmaking over 10 years ago also working as an actor in the 90’s and believes that diversity is an important element in filmmaking, both in front and behind the cameras. She is also in post production for It’s Our Time, co-produced with Erica Long.
“The Gift that Gives is a feel good film with life hacks which I hope the audience will take away with them after watching, as we come here on earth with nothing and will leave with nothing; it’s what we do in between that matters- making a positive difference in each other’s lives. I hope this film will also inspire other female filmmakers to embrace their own personal stories and share them on screen.” says Joy Hopwood.
The Gift That Gives is an uplifting feel-good film, screening on Friday 19th April at midday on Channel 9.
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