Kitty Green - THE SECRET TO HER SUCCESS

Melbourne-born director Kitty Green, 39, knows first-hand how a fun night out in a bar can suddenly turn into something more menacing.

To make her point, her new thriller The Royal Hotel sees American backpackers Hanna and Liv (Ozark’s Julia Garner and Game of Thrones’ Jessica Henwick) venture into the outback – working in a remote pub to pay their way back home.

So, do you have any backpacking stories of your own?

I did so much backpacking through Europe and all around. The script blends everything together so it’s hard to distinguish which is me, and which is fiction, but I’ve definitely done my fair share of drinking in weird bars in weird places. 

The men at ‘The Royal Hotel’ are either harmless or threatening, depending on your viewpoint. Has something similar happened to you too? 

Yeah, I’d been living in Brooklyn, and was back to Australia on a gorgeous beach somewhere in Byron Bay. And I was in a pub with friends and a guy who I hadn’t met before, suggested [that] I order a [rude drink]. And I suddenly felt very uncomfortable even though a few moments ago, it was all fun and jokes. 

So, what’s it like for two women backpacking together in real life?