Port Arthur massacre movie set for release next year and will focus on killer Martin Bryant’s life

A new movie centred on the life of Port Arthur mass murderer Martin Bryant has begun production in Victoria.

The scripted feature film is entitled Nitram, which is Martin’s named spelt backwards and is being helmed by acclaimed Snowtown director Justin Kurzel.

American actor Caleb Landry Jones is playing the role of the lone gunman responsible for Australia’s worst massacre on April 28, 1996, which took the lives of 35 innocent adults and children. 

Due to the sensitive subject nature of the movie, producers chose to film in Victoria instead of Tasmania where the tragedy occurred, the Sydney Morning Herald reports.

The film will not depict the killings, but will instead focus on Bryant’s life before his murderous rampage in an attempt to understand how the atrocity occurred. 

The publication also reports that the film will not name Byrant, and will also assign fictional names to other key characters.

Lead actor Caleb, 30, is best known for his roles in critically acclaimed movies such as The Florida Project, Get Out and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.

Australian stars Judy Davis, 65, and Anthony LaPaglia, 61, have taken on the role of Bryant’s parents.

Actress Essie Davis will be playing the 54-year-old Tattersalls lottery heiress Helen Harvey.

Nitram, which is written by Shaun Grant, will debut at the Melbourne International Film Festival next year.

It will then see a brief theatrical release before being available on the subscription service Stan.  

In a statement on Monday, Stan’s chief content officer Nick Forward said that he had ‘complete faith in the Nitram team’s creative vision and ability to handle the film’s subject matter with sensitivity and respect’.

The Port Arthur massacre is known as one of Australia’s darkest days.

Bryant’s bloody rampage started when he drove to the Seascape Guesthouse in Tasmania, where he murdered owners David and Sally Martin with a military-style semi-automatic rifle.

He then headed to the Port Arthur historic site where he had lunch before opening fire on guests in the Broad Arrow cafe, gift shop and carpark. 

His trail of destruction took the lives of 35 adults and children, injuring another 23, and prompted historic gun control legislation under the John Howard government.

Bryant pleaded guilty to 72 charges including murder, attempted murder, causing grievous bodily harm and arson.

On November 22, 1996, more than seven months after the massacre, Tasmanian Supreme Court Chief Justice William Cox ordered Bryant serve 35 life sentences without parole.

Bryant has never offered an explanation for his actions. Still, there is speculation, including from investigators, that his murders were sparked out of retribution for grievances and others were collateral damage. He will die at Hobart’s Risdon Prison.