The Rehearsal — Unit Stills Photography | Sydney Fashion Photographer

January 11, 2026

Award-winning short film The Rehearsal — production stills and official poster photographed on set.

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Once again outstanding. Thank you so much

sean

From Film Set to Festival Poster — The Rehearsal (2025)

Working on film sets as a Unit Stills Photographer always offers a unique perspective on storytelling. Unlike traditional photography assignments, the camera becomes a quiet observer inside the filmmaking process — capturing moments that unfold naturally between actors, light, and movement.

Award-Winning Short Film — The Rehearsal (2026). Maria Poleshchuk, commercial photographer in Sydney

As a Unit Stills Photographer, I worked on several independent film productions with Albion Lane Productions in Sydney, capturing cinematic still images during filming. One of the projects I had the opportunity to work on was the independent short film The Rehearsal, produced by Albion Lane Productions in Sydney.

The film brings together a small but dedicated creative team, including director Sean Alderson, cinematographer Victor Hawke, and actors Steve Howard and Daryl Hoffman. The story explores themes connected to the lived experiences of the Remembered Australians, people who spent time in institutional care during childhood — a subject that requires sensitivity and thoughtful storytelling.

From a visual perspective, my role on set was to capture still images during filming — moments that reflect the atmosphere of the scene while remaining faithful to the lighting and visual language created by the cinematographer. These photographs are often used later for press materials, publicity, and promotion of the film.

Unlike staged photography, production stills are captured in the middle of the filmmaking process itself. The challenge is to work quietly alongside the crew, without interrupting the scene, while still finding frames that carry the same emotional weight and visual composition as the film.

One of the images photographed during filming later became part of the film’s visual identity. That still image was selected as the official poster for The Rehearsal, representing the project in its festival promotion.

Soon after, the film went on to receive recognition at the Kangaroo Valley Short Film Festival, where it won the award for Best Short Film.

For me, this project became an interesting example of how photography created during production can move beyond documentation and become part of the film’s public face.

While my main work remains in fashion and portrait photography, projects like this allow me to explore a more cinematic visual language — observing how light, performance, and atmosphere come together in storytelling.

Working on The Rehearsal was also a reminder of how collaborative filmmaking truly is. Even on independent productions, every project relies on a close-knit team where directors, actors, cinematographers, and crew contribute their craft to bring a story to life.

Behind the Poster Image

The poster image was captured in one of the key locations of the film — the bar where the long-awaited interview is about to take place.

The story of The Rehearsal is built around anticipation. The interview itself is never shown on screen. Instead, the film stays with the emotional weight that comes before it: the drive towards the meeting, the conversation in the car, the quiet decision that it is finally time to speak, the walk across the street, and the moment the characters arrive at the door. Much of the film lives in that sense of hesitation, memory, and courage just before something important is said out loud.

This made the bar itself feel significant while I was photographing the set. It was more than just a location — it carried the tension of what the characters were about to face. The stillness of the frame, the doorway, and the sense of arrival all seemed to hold the emotional centre of the story.

The film is rooted in the lived experiences of Australians who, as children, were placed in institutions and suffered abuse, silence, and intimidation for many years afterwards. Some of the real people connected to this history were also involved in the making of the project, which gave the work an added sense of responsibility and care.

Because of that, I understood while photographing this moment that the image had a particular weight. It was not only visually strong, but also connected to the deeper structure of the film — the threshold between silence and testimony. When this still was later chosen as the official poster image, it felt like a natural and meaningful choice.

Credits

Film
The Rehearsal

Production
Albion Lane Productions

Director
Sean Alderson

Producer
Sienna Sirkka

Director of Photography
Victor Hawke

Cast
Steve Howard
Daryl Hoffman

Unit Stills Photography
Maria Poleshchuk

Festival Recognition
Best Short Film — Kangaroo Valley Short Film Festival

Location
Sydney, Australia

Watch the Film

The short film The Rehearsal can be viewed here: https://lnkd.in/d49xfypZ

Maria Poleshchuk is a Sydney-based fashion photographer and production stills photographer working across editorial photography, portraiture, and cinematic visual storytelling. Alongside fashion and portrait work, she occasionally documents film productions, creating unit stills and publicity images used in film promotion and festival campaigns.

See more fashion and editorial projects in my portfolio