See: Byron Bay Film Festival
It's 9 days packed with independent films and workshops that resonate with everything we love about Byron. Social and environmental issues, diversity, creativity, positive living and multi-culturalism - it's all covered. On at the Byron Community Centre, March 5 - 14. The Byron Bay Film Festival program features flicks like My Tehran for Sa...
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FILM | The Lovely Bones
If you ever find yourself in an argument regarding how Peter Jackson should just stick to producing and forget about directing, The Lovely Bones would be your debate winner. Poor performances all round, particularly by Marky Mark Wahlberg who manufactures the lamest routine of his career. Enduring his onscreen efforts finishes only third last thoug...
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FILM | The Boys Are Back
The main reason I could recommend this movie to anyone I know is that it’s beautiful to look at. There’s definitely a selfish pleasure in seeing South Australia captured on the big screen and The Boys Are Back will make you feel that you’ve somehow failed to notice the sunburnt grandeur of your own backyard. I’ve always pref...
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FILM | Paranormal Activity
Only the other day I was lying in bed pondering the zombie glut, the remake glut and was pining for a good scary ghost flick. Then along comes Paranormal Activity. I haven’t copped it fright-wise like this since Ringu. Proper scared. Scared to be home alone, kind of chilled-to-the-bone scared. Made for 10,000-odd bucks on digital video in ...
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Hola - Opening Night!
This is one of those awesome things that might go undetected on your radar if we don’t cram it in your face, so forgive the extra email in your inbox this week. The Hola Mexico Film Festival is kicking off this Friday night, bringing with it a smorgasbord (or Mexican equivalent) of fun, drama, comedy, suspense and hijinks from down South of t...
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15 / Love Fundraiser
The latest project for Urtext Film Studios in Adelaide, is a short film with short skirts and plenty of balls. Not, like that.15 / Love is, however,set to get audiences sizzling with its portrayal oflust as a teenage girl experiencesa sexual coming-of-age.More importantly, the film is adiscussionabout adolescence, curiosity and overall, the strengt...
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FILM | Whatever Works
Another year, another Woody Allen movie. Awesome. He’s like Christmas. Except he’s Jewish. Like Christmas, though, you can never be sure if this year is going to be good fun, depressing as hell or just a little bit naff. Thankfully, Whatever Works is not only solid Allen but a welcome return to a New York setting after a few years farti...
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Paint It White - how to light up your long exposures...
If Picasso can do it, so can you. Now today, instead of diving headfirst into my usual style of a long drawn out rambling introduction on how awesome it would be to use lights to spruce up your crappy long exposures and how terribly cool and 'avant garde' you'll become amongst your friends and peers, I figured I'd just skip a step or two and go ...
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Manhattan Short Film Festival
Merge has THREE DOUBLEPASSESto the Manhattan Short Film Festival. Leave your dang name at the bottom of this 'ere story and we'll get it sorted! From 428 entries submitted from 36 countries, the Manhattan Short Film Festival proudly introduces 10 finalists' films that will screen 532 times in 173 cities in 5 continents to an audience of over 100...
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FILM | Okuribito (Departures)
Tackling the subject of death in a movie can be tricky. Finding a balance of sadness, hope and realism can easily go awry. To avoid this, Departures cleverly handles the topic vicariously through the main character Daigo Kobayashi – meaning that the audience never has to. Daigo returns to his home town from Tokyo following a failed spell...
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