Melanie Lynskey made her feature-film debut as Pauline Parker in Peter Jackson's Heavenly Creatures.
Released in 1994, the New Zealand film dramatizes the relationship between teenagers Pauline Parker and Juliet Hulme. Lynskey played Parker, while Kate Winslet played Hulme in her own feature-film debut. The two characters were based on real people involved in a notorious 1954 murder case in Christchurch.
Jackson co-wrote and directed the film with Fran Walsh. Instead of presenting the teenagers only through the crime's facts, the movie emphasizes their imaginative inner world, including a fantasy kingdom they create together.
Heavenly Creatures received an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay. Lynskey later became known for work in films and television, while Winslet went on to win the Academy Award for Best Actress.