Jackpot

Synopsis

Dean and Kelly are struggling financially. Dean stays home to take care of their 9-month old child, Frank, whilst Kelly works long hours at the supermarket. One day, they win the lottery and all their money problems disappear in an instant. However, as their money troubles vanish, deeper issues begin to bubble to the surface.

Director's Biography

Kieran Charnock Director

Kieran first started making films at 12 on a mini-dv camcorder. After finishing high school, Kieran trained in the UK at the Young Actors Studio at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. Upon graduating, Kieran performed with numerous professional theatre companies in Wales including the Sherman Theatre Company and the Black Rat Theatre Company. Returning to NZ, acted with Wellington theatre company Long Cloud Youth Theatre, where he worked with respected directors Willem Wassenaar and Aaron Cortesi. The next year, Kieran performed in national tours of Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet with the Ugly Shakespeare Company. In 2013, Kieran starred in his first screen role - as the lead actor in the New Zealand Film Commission funded short film 'Cub', which went on to screen and win awards at numerous film festivals around the world. Since then, Kieran has quickly started to rise through the ranks of New Zealand screen actors. He has appeared in several NZFC funded short films, and his feature film credits include 'Slow West', 'The Rehearsal', 'Stray', and 'Cousins'. His television credits include the New Zealand mini-series 'When We Go To War' and the BBC series 'The Luminaries'. Kieran won several awards for his performance in 'Stray', including Best Actor at the 2018 Moscow International Film Festival. Kieran is also an avid filmmaker - having written half a dozen spec feature film scripts and two spec TV series scripts. Kieran has directed and cut several short films. Kieran was nominated for Best Director at the NZ Show Me Shorts Film Festival for his short film 'Stranger' in 2018. In 2018, Kieran finished cutting his first feature film - 'Black Shark' - filmed on a budget of $10,000, shot in just ten days, and painstakingly edited over a 12 month period, he is still trying to get it through the final and most costly stages of post-production.

Kieran's passion for writing and working with actors has inspired his love of filmmaking. His films are made to showcase raw and authentic performances. In 2020, Kieran is completing his Master in Fine Arts in Filmmaking at Miramar Creative Centre, Victoria University of Wellington.