The description in the “about” section on the YouTube channel for the RackaRacka brothers describes Danny and Michael Philippou as “Wannabe Film-makers on a rampage!”
Well, the Philippou twins are the real deal now, actual filmmakers, whose directorial feature film debut Talk to Me is every bit as brilliant as the duo are precociously talented.
Talk to Me is about a group of friends who conjure up spirits using an embalmed hand. They become hooked on the new thrill, until one of them unleashes terrifying supernatural forces.
The horror movie has been a long time in the making, because everything the brothers have done to date has led to this moment.
Danny and Michael developed a cult following after posting a series of stunts on their RackaRacka YouTube channel.
The term RackaRacka is inspired by the Adelaide suburb Pooraka, where the two were raised.
Talk to Me premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival where A24 bought the rights to distribute it in the United States.
Danny said the whole experience was surreal.
“The entire Sundance experience … us and the cast and the crew spent the entire of Sundance just crying and completely overwhelmed at what was happening,” he said.
“We couldn’t fathom – like the people who were reaching out — and the things that were happening just felt so unbelievable.”
Among the filmmakers they heard from are heavyweights Jordan Peele (Get Out, Us, Nope) and Steven Spielberg.
Sia discounted Chandelier
The film has already had a preview screening at the Adelaide film festival and will be released in Australian cinemas on July 27.
The soundtrack for Talk to Me is quintessentially Australian with songs from artists such as Western Sydney drill group Onefour and fellow Adelaide local Sia, who was keen to see the film succeed.
“She discounted it for us,” Danny said of the song Chandelier.
“She gave it to us for a fraction of the price they usually charge.”
Danny said the tracks that were chosen were simply songs the brothers love. Michael agreed.
“I didn’t think we’d be able to use that kind of quality of music, but we were able to. It was amazing.”
Inspired by RL Stine and the Goosebumps novels they read as children, the two made their first amateur movie when they were just nine years old but had already been dabbling in filmmaking from the age of seven.
“Creating is just something we’ve always been drawn to,” Michael said.
“We’ve always got to be making something or writing something.
“Ideas always pop in our heads 24/7. From the moment you wake up and go to sleep, it’s always something to do with film – to an annoying amount.
“‘Cos a lot of these ideas are probably useless but they just form – ideas, shots, moments and it’s too many and you’ve got to just start making them to get them out of your head.
“So, we’ve always just created.”
‘It just felt authentic’ to Australia
Their YouTube videos have amassed almost 1.2 billion views. They have 6.73 million followers on YouTube alone and that’s growing by the day.
The two shot to fame in 2014 after posting a Harry Potter vs Star Wars clip. That video has had 34 million views to date.
Their activities haven’t been without controversy. Michael faced court in 2020 for filming a video which shows him driving a car filled with water to a local bottle shop.
“If it’s in your head, you’ve always got to just do it,” Michael said.
“Taking physical risks or financial risks or something like that for fans and for creation is something I’ve always just wanted to do.”
Miranda Otto stars in the film along with Zoe Terakes (Wentworth, Nine Perfect Strangers) and Sydney actor Sophie Wilde (Eden, The Portable Door, You Don’t Know Me, Tom Jones) who plays the lead role.
The twins were adamant about casting Wilde, who believes the film authentically captures youth culture.
“I feel like in Australian films we really like to focus on nature and the bush and the landscape, which is beautiful,” Wilde said.
“But it felt really interesting to see something that was more urban and more about the youth culture. It just felt authentic and I hadn’t seen anything like that before.”
