Work concluded with the filming of the climactic confrontation between the film’s lead character and her father’s murderer, who leaves him dead among the vines of Burrundulla vineyard to start the film.

Co-producer Robbie Miles said the Mudgee community had been incredibly welcoming and helpful, from the Mudgee Wine Grape Growers Association to the Tourist and Van Resort where the cast and crew stayed and even shot a few scenes.

As well as shooting much of the film at locations around Burrundulla vineyard, the Crushed crew filmed at Windamere Dam, the Lue Hotel, the barrel room at Robert Stein Winery and the Mudgee Guardian office - which they turned into a police station.

The high temperatures away from the coast were a bit of a shock for the filmmakers, turning everyone into a “sweaty hot mess”, but adding to the thriller’s dry and strained atmosphere. 

The makers of Crushed set out with the ambition to make a thriller on a tight schedule and limited budget, but make it as good as a big-budget film.

The short 21-day shooting schedule enabled the filmmakers to recruit well-known actors and experienced behind-the-scenes talent, who fit the producers’ passion project in between other commitments.

Actor Les Hill, known to audiences of Home and Away and Rescue Special Ops, left Mudgee at 7pm on his last day of shooting and only had time to get home and wash his clothes before flying out to Los Angeles for another project.

The cast and crew are working for minimal pay, but are all shareholders in the finished project.

“It was a gamble, but it did attract an amazing cast and crew,” Mr Miles said.

“Everybody cares about getting it made.”

Mudgee High School student Danica Roberts joined the crew after appearing as an extra, and had such a good time fetching, lifting and helping that she is now considering filmmaking as a future career.

“It’s been really awesome,” she said. “I love it.”

Most of the cast and crew have been friends for many years, have worked together or studied together at the Australian Film Television and Radio School - while the production’s catering has been provided by the director’s parents.

“The great thing about away jobs is the way everybody sort of bonds as a family,” Mr Miles said.

He said everyone on the film had about ten jobs, and they were all happy to help out wherever they could, with actresses fetching each other coffee and one actor spending his days off carrying film equipment.

“There’s not a single person we could do without,” Mr Miles said.

The crew will be back once more in March to shoot a few overhead scenes of the grape harvest, and around a year from now, local audiences should be able to see their town on the big screen.