Australia's Hollywood-style houses set the scene with movie star quality

From the homes of James Bond and Batman to Jay Gatsby, Australia has a tremendous range of mansions that could easily double as Hollywood film sets.

For some, it’s the homes looking out to magnificent Sydney harbour views or over the rolling green hills of the NSW Southern Highlands that are the most desirable for film-makers.

For others it’s those grand old-style estates of Melbourne or the ritzy Queensland glitter-fests.

But wherever their location and whatever their style, many are equally in demand by the film and television industry.

“The grand scale of many of our prestige homes, their styles of architecture and the panoramic views many command are all incredibly cinematic,” says award-winning film and TV production designer Murray Picknett, whose credits include projects such as Blue Murder, Carlotta and the hit movie Bootmen.

“We have a huge variety of top-quality houses in this country, and many have the size, the features and the grandeur we are always looking for.”

A house in Brisbane’s Ascot accessible via a 50-metre-long Batman-like secret concrete tunnel hidden behind roller doors in the hillside has many of the elements most sought after.

The 128 Crosby Road property, for sale at $10 million-plus, has seven bedrooms and more than 1400 square metres of living space over six levels as well as panoramic 180-degree views of the city and Moreton Bay through to Mount Coot-tha. 

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“It’s so reminiscent of a Hollywood film set and it’s just like Batman’s home where he drove through a tunnel and a waterfall to arrive there,” says Queensland Sotheby’s International Realty agent Tyson Clark.

“It’s just mind-blowing. You wouldn’t believe it if you saw it in a Batman or Ironman movie, but it’s there, and it’s astonishing.

“It’s stunning to have an underground bunker and then an elevator up through all six floors. Then on the top, all the glass doors slide back into the walls to provide a picture frame of the views.”

A feature-packed mansion-style home fronting a straight stretch of the Brisbane River in the much-desired, leafy, high-end enclave of Fig Tree Pocket has an extra-special secret – a hidden room off its plush library. Pull out and slide the huge timber bookshelves and all is revealed: a concealed room and bar.

At Australian Film Locations, a company that sources homes in Australia for film and TV-makers from around the globe, Chris Mayer-Plummer says the nation has plenty of properties that can provide magnificent settings, with the very best commanding $10,000 to $15,000 a day. 

Now working on one of the biggest budget Chinese TV series ever to be filmed outside China, he’s using one Sydney harbourside home and another large mansion in Dural.

“We always look for character, views, space and an aesthetic,” Mayer-Plummer says. “It has to be something out of the ordinary with a nice warm feel, and we have a lot of top homes that fit description.”

In Sydney’s Seaforth, a five-bedroom, six-bathroom house at 7 Seaforth Crescent has a waterfront setting with inclinator access from the five levels down to a deep mooring with a jetty and boatshed. 

“It is 100 per cent Hollywood,” says agent Eddy Piddington, of Clarke & Humel Property.

“I’ve been there a few times, and this has a lot of hard surfaces, strong lines and an elegant profile. And you could imagine seeing James Bond racing down the inclinator to jump into his boat and speed away … “

The incredible harbour views are a major feature of a five-bedroom, four-bathroom grand Federation home on the waterfront at Cremorne Point, Sydney.

Having undergone a careful renovation, the 59 Milson Road property is in beautiful condition. It is scheduled to go under the hammer on July 7 with a price guide of $9.1 million to $10 million.

“It’s got spectacular views and a real flexibility where you can have one sensational home or turn it into two luxurious apartments,” says Ray White Lower North Shore agent Geoff Smith.

“And like certain upmarket Hollywood homes, it’s certainly beautifully done.”

Picknett agrees that any of these homes would make great sets.

“I can imagine shooting in all of them,” he says. “They all have space, views and that glitz factor.”