By Kate Love

Filmed in Byron Bay, against the canvas of Australia’s famous east coast surf beaches and rainforests, Bosch & Rockit is a raw and unapologetic exploration of unconscious parenting and the deeper themes of love, forgiveness, and relationships.

In the late summer along the Australian coast, young father Bosch hits the road in a hurry to avoid a run in with the law. In tow is his teenage son Rockit, who believes he is on a magical holiday with his father. BOSCH & ROCKIT is a journey through boyhood and manhood and an unforgettable true story about love, forgiveness and the powerful bond between a father and son.

We asked writer, producer and director Tyler Atkins about this love letter to Byron, the themes of love and forgiveness, and what he hopes people will take away from his debut feature film.

At the core of this film is a tender yet troubled relationship between a father and teenage son, seen through Rockit’s eyes as he grows up in the late 1990s. What was it about this connection that was important for you to share?

I think the most important thing for me in telling the story was exploring the repercussions of unconscious parenting and the effects that has on a child, but also I wanted to show an innocent child that had a hard upbringing and instead of falling into the victimised state, he grew through adversity.

Bosch & Rockit doesn't shy away from the hard stuff, whether it’s a drug bust, crooked cops, betrayal or the impact of addiction on a family. How do you address these difficult themes whilst still retaining a sense of hope and even humour?

The way I leant into difficult things through Bosch & Rockit was being authentic and not trying to be something it wasn’t. For me in my life, without hope and faith, there’s really nothing else and I believe that hope and faith gets us through the hardest and darkest times and I also think humour is vital and being able to laugh at things even when times are tough is such a great release and I really wanted to lace in humour throughout the first half of my movie because it really creates a bond with the characters and even though we all struggle, the fact that we can have a laugh and have fun really helps one’s life.

It was very important for me to be real and to keep the swearwords, and to show a real life character with no filters because that’s how I grew up. I fought many battles to keep the swearwords in my film. I had to fight battles to keep the authenticity of this film there and I fought for the moments that do trigger the audience. I also made sure to keep the hope, because hope can keep us fighting and keeps us going, hope allows us to change things in our lives, it can change the outcome of a situation that may seem there is no way out.

One of the key elements of this film is the concept of magic. “Magic is everywhere,” says Bosch. What do you believe about the magic of human connection to ourselves, each other and the world around us?

I believe the ocean, that energy, that soul, is magical and it was a very big influence into creating my movie and exploring the characters of, the ocean, nature, the birds, the whales. To me, those things make me feel at home, it brings me a sense of oneness with the planet and I really wanted to explore that and explore the one out Rockit has, which is nature and the ocean and the one thing Bosch gave Rockit was the ocean. He taught him how to surf and throughout my film that’s where Rockit goes when he’s upset, when he’s depressed and when he has no one else. It’s very important for me to sprinkle that through my film.

You describe Bosch & Rockit as a love story. Father and son swear at each other one minute and express their love the next. Can you expand on this push and pull of what it means to love unconditionally?

Relationships are never black-and-white and there’s always push-pull in every relationship and I think unconditional love means that there’s no conditions there’s no “you did that and I don’t like you and I don’t love you because you hurt me“ I believe unconditional love is forgiveness, it’s being able to love someone for all their flaws and all their qualities.

Bosch faces many hardships from mistakes he’s made yet does his best to protect Rockit from these harsh realities. How does Bosch interpret the world for Rockit and what happens when the bubble bursts?

Bosch totally protects Rockit. I mean when you look at it, you can’t really blame Bosch because if he had told Rockit that he was on the run from the police it would’ve totally pulled the rug out under Rockit‘s feet and I think Bosch really does protect Rockit. He made a bad mistake and he does everything he can to fix that, or at least to give Rockit some stability in the midst of chaos. You can’t really blame Bosch because if he had of told Rockit, he would of freaked out, so I really wanted to create that safety net around Rockit and Bosch doing the best he could in a situation that wasn’t ideal.

You’ve got an incredible cast with Luke Hemsworth as Bosch and newcomer Byron local Rasmus King in the role of Rockit, who emerges as an ‘out of this world’ talent. What was it like seeing your story come to life with these gifted actors?

I feel very fortunate to work with the actors that I did. They are of the highest calibre of actors in Australia and the world and it was such a blessing to collaborate with real performers and real artists, who brought so much humanity to the characters. And to discover Rasmus King who was an absolute force in his first film was such a huge blessing.

We recognised many beautiful scenes of the Northern Rivers, from surfing at The Pass, riding bikes up to the lighthouse and humpback whales. Can you describe this ‘love letter’ to Byron Bay and how it informs the film?

Bosch and Rockit is my love letter back to a place that gave me so much growing up as a kid and still continues to do so. Without the ocean, without the vast hinterlands, without the whales, without the dolphins, I couldn’t imagine where I’d be and I’m in such gratitude to what the world offers us every day.

What unique opportunities arose from filming in the Northern Rivers region? What were some of the highlights of the production? How was the overall experience for your cast and crew?

The overall experience in shooting in northern rivers New South Wales, was the generosity of the locals. Having been from this area we were supported by the locals who would bend over backwards to help our production out. I had access to some of the best actors and crew that anyone could’ve only dreamt of and we were very supported by the lands and by the local communities.

There’s some stunning imagery of pro-surfer Rasmus King riding the waves. How do you think turning to surfing impacts Rockit’s capacity to find resilience and hope within himself through tough times, or is it just an escape?

The ocean teaches us a lot of lessons. As a surfer you know when you’re too deep to take-off, when you’re going to get hurt, when you’re going to get smashed by the waves, you know where the perfect spot is in the ever-changing ocean. I think that energy mirrors Rockit’s journey because when Rockit is sad or upset he goes in the ocean whether it’s stormy or it’s rough and I really wanted to lean into that ocean mirroring Rockit’s life.

You mention that your aim for the film is to uplift, motivate and inspire audiences to forgive ourselves and others. How has the power of forgiveness been integral to your own life and the story you tell through this film?

I believe forgiveness is giving forward, it’s very profound and very powerful, we hold onto things that don’t serve us or others as we all make mistakes. Holding onto things festers in us and it becomes very toxic, the art of communication and forgiveness is very vital in healing not only ourselves but everyone around us. I would not have been able to tell this story unless I forgave myself first and then my parents, which helped me tremendously in my life moving forward.

We understand that this film is based on a true story. We watch as a boy grows towards manhood whilst dealing with the impacts of unconscious parenting. What was it like for you to create this coming of age story?

Yeah it was a very beautiful serving story. The story is about parenting, the occasions of unconscious parenting and the effects that has on a child but also as a child growing through adversity into a place of complete forgiveness. It was really amazing for me to run a crew to work with some of the best cast and crew in the world and I grew a tremendous amount. I found my voice as an artist because I had a lot of people holding space for me to grow as a filmmaker.

Finally, we’ve touched on the overarching themes of love, forgiveness and the powerful bond between father and son. What is your hope for what this film will bring to the world and how it will touch, and perhaps even change, people’s hearts?

My hope is that Bosch and Rockit allows people to start the conversation about their childhood or their upbringing. I hope people feel something and I hope people fall in love with it. I just hope people go and watch it. I made Bosch and Rockit to ultimately allow people to start the conversation about their childhood or their upbringing. I hope people get triggered by it and I hope people fall in love with it. I hope Bosch and Rockit confronts people and allows them to question the decisions and the choices that they make in their lives and the repercussions that has on the people around them. I served the story as best as I could and I made the best film I could of. I reached for the stars and now it’s up to God and whatever God wants to do with his film, I’ve got to trust that too.

MEET TYLER ATKINS, RASMUS KING AND SAVANNAH LA RAIN AT A SPECIAL Q&A SCREENING OF BOSCH & ROCKIT AT PALACE CINEMAS BYRON ON AUGUST 12 OR IN CINEMAS EVERYWHERE FROM AUGUST 18.

About Tyler

Tyler Atkins is an award-winning filmmaker who embraces life with spirit and joy. He has surfed and lived around the Australian beach culture since he was born. A dedicated Sikh, he does Kundalini Yoga and meditates every morning before sunrise, which maintains his healthy attitude towards life and living.

Tyler just completed production on his debut feature film, BOSCH & ROCKIT, which he wrote, directed and produced. He shot it throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, being one of the first productions to successfully shoot through the worldwide pandemic. The film, set to be released in early 2022, is already receiving rave reviews from industry professionals.

In 2019, Tyler worked on the upcoming TV series, Shantaram, for Apple TV+. He began in the Writers' Room under Eric Warren Singer (American Hustle), then moved to the Director's Team, assisting Justin Kurzel (Snowtown). They filmed on set in India and Melbourne with Oscar winning Cinematographer, Anthony Dod Mantle (Slumdog Millionaire).

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