Dee directing Masa Yamaguchi (The Jammed)

Films 

Dee McLachlan is an internationally acclaimed filmmaker who has directed nine feature films across action, adventure, thriller, comedy, horror, and drama genres. Her feature credits include Scavengers, Born Wild (starring Brooke Shields and Martin Sheen), The Double-O Kid (Cory Haim and Brigitte Nielsen), the road thriller Deadly Chase, and TriStar Columbia Pictures’ The Second Jungle Book (Roddy McDowall, Billy Campbell).

After immigrating to Australia, Dee wrote and directed The Jammed, a Melbourne-based thriller inspired by real events surrounding sex trafficking. The film received seven Australian Film Institute (AFI) Award nominations in 2008 and won Best Film, Best Screenplay, and Best Music at the 2007 Inside Film (IF) Awards.

She subsequently directed the political satire 10 Terrorists, the supernatural thriller Out of the Shadows, and most recently the science-fiction feature 2099: The Soldier Protocol starring David Arquette and Kendal Rae.

Photo - Dee directing Masa Yamaguchi in The Jammed 
2007

The Jammed Trailer

“Welcome to the best Australian film of the year” Jim Schembri. The Age.

"Revelatory & powerful…superbly delivered” George Palathingal. SMH.

 “The best Australian film of the year” David Stratton. At The Movies
Watch The Jammed
bio continued
Dee began her career in South Africa, where she created and directed the multi-award-winning adventure series Solo Ascent, the 13-part Soweto action-drama Steelman, and Silent Hunter, which received a Gold Award at the New York Film Festival. Her television work also includes directing episodes of Season Two of the acclaimed prison drama Wentworth.

In addition to her feature and television work, Dee has directed numerous documentaries, including A Doctor’s Life, which received a Silver Dolphin at the 2012 Cannes Corporate Media & TV Awards, as well as Everest – The Promise, Mystery of the Pharaohs ,and the African episode of Tipping points, and

Beyond filmmaking, Dee is also an author, journalist, and publisher. She has written a series of children's books and authored several non-fiction works, including The Truth in Journalism and The Child Protection Racket. Her writing explores media integrity, government accountability, civil liberties, and child protection issues.

In 2013, she founded Gumshoe News, an independent news and commentary platform that has since published more than 4,000 articles from a diverse range of contributors. Through her journalism and advocacy work, she has investigated issues spanning child protection, family law, media ethics, government transparency, and human rights.
MOVIE POSTERS 

10Terrorists

A shock and Awe(some) comedy. A parody on reality shows.

Born Wild

An African adventure starring Brooke Shields and Martin Sheen

The Second Jungle Book

A remake of the classic story, starring Roddy McDowell and Billy Campbell.

Double-O-Kid

A teen espionage action starring Corey Haim and Bridgette Nielson

10Terrorists

(2012) - A Shock and Awe(some) comdey.

In a comedy questioning the world we live in, a Los Angeles producer sets out to make the most extreme and controversial Reality Television show ever - but gets more than he bargained for.  In a series of challenges like Convict Chain-gang pursuit, Blasterchef (instead of Masterchef) and the Armed Apprentice (to replace The Apprentice) the film challenges the senses.

The Wheel

This is the original trailer from when 2099: The Soldier Protocol was still titled The Wheel.

The trailer captures the film's dystopian vision.

Director Showreel

Extracts from past productions:

TV series (series 2) of Wentworth  (2014), 10Terrorists (2012), The Jammed (2007), Deadly Chase (1992), The Double-O-Kid (1994), and Scavengers (1987) an African action adventure.

2099 The Soldier Protocol

2099 - The Soldier Protocol (2019) - David Arquette, Jackson Gallagher and Kendal Rae. The film follows a paraplegic inmate who agrees to brutal experimentation to regain his legs in a secret bio-tech facility. When we were making this, we did not realize that maybe it is not 2099 but more like 2029.
MORE MOVIE POSTERS 

Scavengers

Dee's first feature - a KGB spoof in Africa 

Silent Hunter

A documentary special - a true wildlife story that won a Gold Award at the New York festival in Nature (1987)

10Terrorists 

Filmed like a real reality show, the actors never knew who was going to be sent home. 

The Little Hunter

A true story following the lives of a type of Born Free couple John Varty and Gillian Von Houten.

Scavengers

Scavengers was Dee's first feature film, produced in 1986 and released in 1987. Distributed internationally by Crystal Sky, the film achieved remarkable early success, with most territories sold at its first film market. The film also secured a theatrical release on the U.S. cinema circuit.

Starring Kip Gilman, Brenda Bakke, and Ken Gampu, Scavengers was made before the era of computer-generated visual effects. As a result, all of the film's action sequences, stunts, and explosions were the real deal. 

Out of the Shadows

Out of the Shadows (2017) is a horror movie about a newly married detective and his pregnant wife. The couple move into their dream home unaware of its dark history. (Director)

Wentworth 

Wentworth (2014) TV Series 2 - Looking into the lives of the inmates and prison staff of Wentworth Correctional Centre as they navigate the ups and downs of their lives in the prison system.  (Director)

Deadly Chase

1992 - Andrea Buck and Dee McLachlan's first collaboration. An epic road thriller, filmed at St Andrews outside Melbourne. Made on a shoe-string budget, the film sold world-wide through Crystal Sky Distribution.

Everest - The Promise

Documentary - Climbing Everest. (Editor)
1975 - 2025

Awards

AWARDS"SOLO"–French Trophy (1978)"FITZROY"–Certificate of Merit (1978)"SOLO ASCENT" (1984)-PREMIO SPECIALLE.32nd Int.F.F. Trento Italy-S.A. ACADEMY OF ART.1985/6. Best documentary. ARTES AWARD. Best Documentary 1986."SILENT HUNTER" (1986)-GOLD MEDA.1987 New York Int. Film & TV Festival. "RUNNING WILD" aka "BORN WILD" (1995)-BEST FEATURE FILM-Santa Clarita Int. Family Film Festival-AWARD OF EXCELLENCE-U.S. Film A.B.-DR TOY'S BEST 10 VIDEOS for 1996-DOVE AWARD-PARENT’S CHOICE AWARD"THE SECOND JUNGLE BOOK"(1997)-AWARD OF EXCELLENCE-U.S. FilmA. B