The Pool.
The 71st Sydney Film Festival today announced a sneak peek of 17 new films and events to be featured in this year’s 5-16 June 2024 Festival. The announcement is in advance of the full program launch on Wednesday 8 May.
“This first look at the 2024 program delves into the profound and the peculiar, from remarkable true stories to works of fiction and ingenious hybrid films that land somewhere in between,” Sydney Film Festival Director Nashen Moodley said.
“This selection, though diverse in setting and scope, reveals some common themes: resilience foremost amongst them. These films offer a taste of a Festival program rich with discovery and insight, poised to captivate and inspire.”
ADVERTISEMENT Watch The Switchblade Sisterhood here.
Two new Australian films will celebrate world premieres. In Vitro is the highly anticipated feature from directors Will Howarth and Tom McKeith (Beast, SFF 2016) and stars Ashley Zukerman (Succession) in an Australian sci-fi mystery thriller set on a remote cattle farm in the near future.
In The Pool, director Ian Darling (The Final Quarter, SFF 2019) paints a cinematic portrait of a year in the life of the iconic Bondi Icebergs, the pool and the people who cherish it.
Will Howarth, Tom McKeith and Ian Darling will attend the Festival to present their films.
The full Sydney Film Festival program is announced on Wednesday 8 May 2024. You can find more details here.
In Vitro
Directed by Will Howarth and Tom McKeith
Written by Tom McKeith, Will Howarth, Talia Zucker
Produced by Will Howarth, Lisa Shaunessy and Bec Janek
Starring Ashley Zukerman, Talia Zucker and Will Howarth
Ashley Zukerman (Succession) stars in a gripping Australian sci-fi mystery thriller set on a remote cattle farm in the near future.
With cattle production devastated by ecological disasters, Jack (Zukerman) and his wife Layla (Talia Zucker) are conducting biotechnology experiments at their isolated property. While Layla longs for the return of their son from boarding school, Jack carries out research he hopes will save his family from financial ruin. This meticulously written and brilliantly performed feature from Aussie directors Tom McKeith and Will Howarth (Beast, SFF 2016) takes unpredictable turns as gloomy skies gather and the couple’s relationship begins to strain. Strikingly filmed on the eerily dry Monaro Plains of NSW, In Vitro is claustrophobic, suspenseful and scarily believable.
In Vitro.
The Pool
Directed by Ian Darling
Produced by Ian Darling, Mary Macrae
A spectacular cinematic portrait of the iconic Bondi Icebergs – the pool and the people who cherish it – from The Final Quarter (SFF 2019) director Ian Darling.
Breathtaking footage and a quintessential soundtrack are woven into a meditative and poetic story. Icebergs is the most photographed pool in the world – an inviting destination for everyone from locals to tourists, beginners to competitive lap swimmers. From sunrise to sundown, rain or shine, we meet the diehard regulars recalling tales of Icebergs past and present. Darling and his team, including DOP Ben Cunningham, editor Sally Fryer and sound designer Paul Charlier, have crafted an evocative, joyous and beautiful picture of a beloved place and its community.
Cinema Australia 