Summerfield (film)

Summerfield is a 1977 Australian film, directed by Ken Hannam, written by Cliff Green (who wrote the screenplay for Picnic At Hanging Rock) and produced by Patricia Lovell (who produced Picnic At Hanging Rock). It stars Nick Tate, Elizabeth Alexander, John Waters, Charles 'Bud' Tingwell, Max Fairchild and Geraldine Turner. Summerfield was filmed on location on Phillip Island and Churchill Island in Victoria.

The story begins with Simon Robinson arriving in a small seaside community to take over as teacher at the local school. He makes the acquaintance of siblings Jenny and David Abbott (Alexander and Waters, respectively), and Jenny's daughter Sally, who live on the island estate of Summerfield. The discovery that his predecessor vanished without a trace and, that Sally has a rare blood disorder lead Simon to try to uncover the truth behind the mystery.

Cliff Green wrote the script for Peter Weir however he was busy on The Last Wave (1977) so Ken Hannam was hired instead. The budget was raised within three weeks from the Australian Film Commission, Greater Union, the Victorian Film Corporation (who put in $76,500) and private investors. These were essentially the same parties who invested in Break of Day (1976).