During many years of working in the film industry, a Mandurah actor has identified a gap for women over 50 in filmmaking.
Having always dreamed of writing, directing and producing her own piece, Tracy Bolton dipped her toe into the pool with a short film, Edith, which she filmed at her local laundromat.
Tracy's next project will be her most ambitious yet, writing and directing her first feature film, a psychological thriller called Descent which will be predominantly filmed in the Peel region.
"I want to focus on Mandurah as a filming location and get other filmmakers to consider it," Tracy said.
"The laundromat where my previous film was made had such a vibe, it was really retro. Edith had a little premiere at The Backlot in Leederville on January 1, but I like to move quickly into new things."
Opting to jump into writing her new piece, Tracy said she was drawn to the idea of a psychological thriller - and originally set out to write a 40-minute piece in the format of a Netflix episode.
"When I was finished writing and transferred it into the film format it was 60 minutes long. I didn't set out to make a feature film, it just happened that way," Tracy said.
Descent is written to be an edge-of-your-seat psychological thriller with a central focus on rock-climbing, and a large portion of the film to be filmed at an Airbnb in Dawesville.
"It will play on a few different elements, one being rock-climbing. I wanted to make a film which has some action in it.
"A lot of new filmmakers will make the set in a room or a house or a park - but I think WA is so beautiful and amazing, and my whole family is into outdoor pursuits."
The film was also the perfect project for leading woman Ashlee McKenna, who Tracy met on the set of another project as an actor.
"I thought she'd be perfect for this role. On her Facebook she has amazing photos of her as a rock climber, she's been to the Himalayas, climbed in Ethiopia, she's a true rock climber."
Tracy recruited a small and solid cast of actors and crew members, including 14-year-old Mandurah local Amelia Newman, who will be playing her first minor lead.
Filming will begin in the last weekend of July, and Tracy said doing a winter shoot was "ambitious" but "exciting".
"If there's torrential rain that is going to be a game changer. We won't be able to film any rock-climbing scenes on a rainy day. But we are pushing ahead.
"We have an Airbnb in Dawesville and are going to get quite a few scenes under our belt. I've done a lot of professional shooting as an actor and have learnt a lot just from watching the crew and how they all work together."
Tracy said the remote cabin location appealed to her visually, and an excellent crew would help her bring her vision to life with university students and professionals alike joining together for the project.
As part of Women in Film and Television (WIFT), Tracy said she'd had access to mentors around the world who were part of the film industry.
She attended countless lectures and gained a vast scope of knowledge she said would be pivotal for her future in filmmaking.
Tracy said one of her greatest passions was making space for women, particularly middle-aged women, in the industry.
"It's still really hard to get a look in at my age, being 50 plus. I don't want there to be any barriers to what I do - so I just decided I'm going to do it anyway."
To follow along with Tracy's filmmaking journey, and for updates on Descent, find the page on Facebook.