Deakin Alumnus explores share house life
Alumni newsAfter completing a Bachelor of Contemporary Arts at Deakin University, Alumnus Rob Innes has produced and directed a new ABC iview documentary about house mates and share houses.
New kids on the block Mashup Pictures have released their first ABC iview original series Housemates, uncovering the unique and sometimes crazy ways Australians have made house sharing work - and the horror stories of when it goes wrong.
But in a time where finding a place to live is the number one concern for youth in Australia, could you live in these houses?
This new documentary series exclusively for ABC iview looks at three very different and controversial ways to share a house and the housemates who try to make it work.
The series also includes Horror Housemates, three breakout segments of when good housemates go bad! Based on true and reported stories and told with different and creative interpretations.
Housemates is produced and directed by Rob Innes who was recently selected in the 2016 ‘Ones To Watch’ program by the Screen Producers Association. He has lived in share houses for the last ten years.
‘The idea for the show came about as my friends often talk about their shared living experiences, and all of them were so different – we set out to capture those unique differences’, says Rob.
Scott Brennan, popular TV and radio comedian, co-produces the series and is the writer of Horror Housemates. ‘These segments allowed me to tick “recreating a lounge room orgy entirely out of barbecue meat” off my bucket list,’ says Scott.
TV and film producer Mish Armstrong, who is a producer on the recently announced MIFF 2016 Opening Night film ‘The Life and Death of Otto Bloom’ consults as executive producer, and Aleck Morton, who has worked on shows across all networks, is series editor.
Episode one features Crunchy Town, where 20-30 people live at any one time without any privacy; they share beds, couches and floor space. The food bill? Zero dollars. Sam is the leader of the house that works more like a community.
Episode two reveals the Private House, where boundaries between private and shared space are strict, but what happens when a housemate breaches one of these boundaries?
Episode three is the App House, which tries to achieve the ultimate share house utopia, turning shared living into an economic system - the more chores you do, the less you pay.
Could you live in these houses?
You can view housemates at http://iview.abc.net.au/programs/housemates/
