A filmmaker is hoping to cast Sam Neill and Jacki Weaver in the lead roles of a feature film that tells the story of Australians who suffered under what he calls the "absurdities" of cannabis prohibition.
Mary Jane is the debut feature film from independent production company Space Between the Gaps.
The film follows the fictional lives of Norm and Beryle, retired dairy farmers from New South Wales' Northern Rivers region, as they navigate their later years.
Their lives are upended when Norm receives a bone cancer diagnosis.
Set against the backdrop of 2012, the emotional drama traces the couple's ordeal as Beryle is driven to the black market — and effectively into criminality — to obtain the medicine her husband requires.
Though the story is fictional, it will strike a chord with the many Australians who, prior to the legalisation of medicinal cannabis in 2016, found themselves treated as criminals for trying to help the people they loved.
Screenwriter and filmmaker Eugene Gaffney, who works under the name Eugene E-NRG, said the story is grounded in reality, with Norm and Beryle standing in for the countless people who faced the same impossible choice.
"This is not picking up on any one story, but based on many true stories. It's a beautiful love story, a romance in the final years of Norm's life," Eugene said. "We're focusing on a time when it was really absurd, when no-one could be prescribed medicinal cannabis."
"It's still absurd today of course. When you have dozens of police officers at peaceful 4/20 events, and when there's a ring of police around the roads leading to Nimbin for MardiGrass, the absurdities are still present.
"We feel the movie could be a watershed moment, one that opens hearts and minds and where those in government say 'look, let's change the law'."
For Eugene, founder of Space Between the Gaps, this will be his first feature-length production. A fundraising push is set to launch shortly, with potential backers expected to include players from the cannabis industry in both Australia and North America.
"We're a small, independent film company, we're not doing big-budget films, A$5 to 6 million will the minimum," he said. "We've already raised half-a-million dollars so we have people out there already who are interested, there is traction."
The production is also searching for an executive producer to come on board.
When asked who he would most want in the lead roles, Eugene pointed to Sam Neill and Jacki Weaver without hesitation.
"Sam has the right temperament and Jacki would bring comedic and dramatic abilities. They would be ideal for the roles," he said.
While the film itself remains some time away, one idea that grew out of the script is already being developed.
As Eugene worked on the story, he looked for ways to forge a deeper connection between Beryle and the cannabis plant. The answer came in the form of dream sequences in which Beryle encounters Mary Jane, a goddess of cannabis.
Mary Jane has since taken on a life of her own as a standalone character, and she is due to be introduced to the public at MardiGrass in Nimbin this weekend.
"I became really excited by the idea of the plant itself becoming a character," said Eugene.
"We've worked with a voice artist who voices Mary Jane and a brilliant animator. The idea came from the writing process where a little steam becomes a river and the river opens up into the ocean.
"We're going to Nimbin, which will be an experiment for us, a test to see if people will connect with her.
"Her vision is global emancipation. There's a disparate narrative around cannabis, and a lot of disinformation and misinformation, and negativity.
"We see Mary Jane as a character who can tell the story of the plant authentically."