In an experiment gone wrong, a young boy named Jake makes a new friend and his troubled hometown is plunged into chaos. With the creature rapidly evolving every day, Jake finds it increasingly difficult to keep his new pet secret. Jake's friends and new girl Abbie realize that they are not the only ones interested in this strange, mischievous little dinosaur.
began writing the script to My Pet Monster in early 2015 after the success of his debut feature, Dinosaur Island. The international rights were acquired at the American Film Market by Faisal Toor from Empress Road Pictures for its newly formed Selects Division. Rehearsals began December 2015. Principal photography commenced in 6 January2016 in Australia, with Drummond directing. Live-action filming locations included Lithgow, Katoomba, Rydal and Portland, while CGI was done at Hive Studios International in Leura, New South Wales. Additional filming took place around the Lithgow area before transferring to Portland. Principal photography was completed on 15 February 2016. The film is scored by Chris Wright, who also composed the score for Drummond's debut feature, Dinosaur Island. Sound mix was completed by the Academy Award winning Peter Purcell, known for. Visual effects were completed by Hive Studios International, with Drummond acting as Visual effects supervisor.
The theatrical trailer was released on 13 January 2017 to positive reviews, with commentary from Dread Central stating, My Pet Dinosaur was "...The best movie Spielberg never made..." and Hollywood Reporter billing it as, "E.T. meets Pixar." The film was distributed widely in Australian cinemas on 22 April 2017 and upon its debut at the Chinese box office took the number seven position grossing US$870,000 on its first day. After its initial release, the film continued to hold its top 10 position. My Pet Dinosaur was released in the US on digital platforms. Foreign box office intake was approximately 1.49M USD
Critical Response
Upon its Australian release, My Pet Dinosaur has received mixed yet positive reviews. Richard Gray from The Reel Bits gave the film a positive review, praising the use of local Australian resources. Alaisdair Leith from Novastream Networks gave the film five out of five stars describing the film as visually stunning. The Movie Critic next door was impressed with the film's nostalgic qualities, stating that it was a film that "hearkens back to the beloved Spielberg classics of the 80's", whilst criticising the film's editing. Mike McLelland from FlickeringMyth.com rewarded it a mixed review, but was impressed with the central CGI character, stating that "Magnus is a lovely central creature, cute and curious at the beginning and later imposing and magnificent. Though there were obvious budget constraints, Magnus remains interesting and believable throughout" Jarod Walker from Filmink also gave a mixed review, stating that it was a film which "will amuse the kids, but adults will find it under budget and highly derivative."
Soundtrack
My Pet Dinosaur is a for the live-action film of the same name. The album features the original score composed by Chris Wright, and includes the end credit track "Only Human" written and performed by Muma Megs featuring Eirie released on 6 September 2017 and reached Number 1 on the Children's Music, Australian iTunes charts. The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack was released on Australian iTunes 20 August 2017 and reached Number 20 on the Soundtrack charts.
