page_title: Murder of Leigh Leigh
section_title: Theatrical and film adaptations
hierarchical_section_title: Murder of Leigh Leigh / Theatrical and film adaptations
caption_attribution_description: Stockton Ferry, Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia
context_page_description: The murder of Leigh Leigh, born Leigh Rennea Mears, occurred on 3 November 1989 while she was attending a 16-year-old boy's birthday party at Stockton Beach, New South Wales, on the east coast of Australia. The 14-year-old girl from Fern Bay was assaulted by a group of boys after she returned distressed from a sexual encounter on the beach that a reviewing judge later called non-consensual. After being kicked and spat on by the group, Leigh left the party. Her naked body was found in the sand dunes nearby the following morning, with severe genital damage and a crushed skull.
  Matthew Grant Webster, an 18-year-old who acted as a bouncer at the event, pleaded guilty to her murder and was sentenced to 20 years in prison with a 14-year non-parole period. He was released on parole in June 2004, after serving 14½ years. Guy Charles Wilson, the other bouncer and only other person aged over 18 at the party, pleaded guilty to assault; a third male pleaded guilty to having sex with a minor.
context_section_description: Newcastle's Freewheels Theatre commissioned Nick Enright to produce a play that explored themes around the rape and murder. Titled A Property of the Clan, it premiered at the Freewheels Theatre in Newcastle in 1992, and was performed at the National Institute of Dramatic Art in 1993. The title was taken from the controversial quote in the psychological report on Webster made in preparation for his trial. Enright omitted the criminal acts and the murder from the play, instead focusing on the drama, its participants and the aftermath of the murder. The play was shown at various high schools in the Newcastle area, and following its positive reception was shown at high schools nationally, winning several awards. However, Newcastle High School, where both Leigh and Webster had been students, declined to show it. The play is set in the fictional town of Blackrock, and the rape and murder victim is named Tracy. Leigh's family requested that the name be changed, as 'Tracey' was the name of Leigh's cousin and best friend. The name remained, despite other revisions to the script; the play was retitled Blackrock. It was performed by the Sydney Theatre Company in 1995 and 1996.
  Blackrock was developed into a film of the same name, which was partially filmed in Stockton and released in 1997. The community of Stockton opposed filming in the area, stating the memories of the events were still fresh and the details of the script were "too close for comfort". When filmmakers arrived in Stockton the local media treated them with hostility, and locations that had previously been reserved were no longer available. The situation was exacerbated by the filmmakers' denial that the film was specifically about Leigh, despite the choice of Stockton for filming. Leigh's family were opposed to the film, saying the filmmakers were "feasting on an unfortunate situation" and portraying Leigh negatively. Associate professor Donna Lee Brien of Central Queensland University stated that some fictional aspects in the film portrayed Leigh in a negative manner, though the book Reel Tracks by Rebecca Doyle credited the film with correcting misinformation reported in the media regarding the murder, as well as with providing a forum for reflection on the events. The film received a mixed-to-positive reception in Australia, but performed poorly when shown elsewhere; Brien stated that because the film lacked the "poignant and powerful narrative support of Leigh's tragedy", it was deemed by critics to be "shallow and clichéd".
caption: The Stockton Ferry, where several scenes from Blackrock were filmed[3]:154
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