Setting the world of women’s cinema on fire

The World of Women’s Cinema WOW Film Festival launches today with so much Australian talent on display.

For 20 years the festival has showcased female filmmaking talent not only from Australia but from around the world and is held in different venues around Sydney.

Below you’ll find a list of all the Australian short films screening during the festival as well as a short description. A more detailed list of films including international shorts and cast and crew information can be found at http://www.wift.org.

I Dream A Geisha
The life of Japan’s well respected female entertainers, through the eyes of a little girl’s dream. This animation adapts the heart of a Geisha’s life into a whimsical journey filled with song and dance as Kiyomi finds that all she ever dreamed of becoming will leave her with a loveless life.

Chicom
‘Chk’ is the sound of a Chicom landmine – the sound it makes when you step on it. But it only explodes when you step off it. Four soldiers, one bomb – whose foot is it under?

Sam’s Gold
Sam, a nine-year-old boy, makes a solitary journey to school through the stark landscape near the commission flats where he lives. The imaginary world, as told by a far-away older male storyteller, his only solace. An encounter with two young teenagers presents both a temptation and a threat to Sam. But when the boys take away the one thing that makes him feel truly loved, Sam must find the courage to fight back. Sometimes stories are all we have.

The Fence
1992, Sydney – Cambodian refugee Virak is living at the Villawood Refugee Hostel, working and saving to bring his wife over to join him. But then they build a fence… overnight the Villawood Refugee Hostel, a place of freedom & inclusion, has become the Villawood Immigration Detention Centre – a jail. And Virak has become a prisoner.

Moving
It’s his last day in town, his last chance … Ash spends his last day in his hometown creating a video of the haunts he shared with his childhood friend, Violet. Ash has fallen in love with Violet but has never said anything to her. Today is his last chance.

The Guard
During his lonely night shift, Tony encounters two teenage refugees seeking shelter inside his car park. Upon discovering their difficult past, Tony begins to empathise with their hopes for freedom.

Lotus
Shumi Ruan is in a waiting room before her ballet audition. Will she be able to find peace within herself: Will her nerves get the better of her, or will she be able to look within herself and find the peace and confidence she needs?

Aboriginal Heart
A young city doctor gets bamboozled by the gentle cunning and stunning art of group of Aboriginal women in outback Australia.

Josh
Josh Hemsworth is an aspiring Australian actor with dreams of following in the footsteps of his famous and more genetically blessed brothers. As the subject of a local documentary film Josh begins his bid to forge his own path in the industry, starting with his first casting. Amusing mockumentary.

…The Dancer From The Dance
… The Dancer From The Dance reveals, through beautifully danced and spoken sequences, the compelling stories and philosophies of an astonishing array of culturally diverse, creative and poetic Australian dancers of all ages.

The Orchard
Saverio hasn’t spoken to his brother Leo in 10 years. Now Leo is dead, leaving behind whispered rumours, an overgrown orchard and his 18-year-old goddaughter, Anna. As the funeral guests head to Leo’s funeral, Anna wanders off into the lush orange groves. Intrigued, Saverio follows, only to be confronted by what he most wants to avoid – Leo’s memory and his own dark desires.

Why Ryan Is On Detention
When Jason dies after a heavy tackle during interschool footy, his coach Mr Thomson and best mate Ryan are left to deal with the aftermath. Thommo doesn’t want to talk about it, where Ryan doesn’t even know where to begin.
Their shared silence hides a sad truth about what it means to be a man on Thommos tea. But now with Jason gone and Thommo seemingly indifferent, Ryan must decide what kind of man he wants to be.

Breathe
Anna wants her boyfriend Rowan to meet her godfather, Leo. But the events of this weekend will tear all three of them apart.

Limbus
Fiona promised herself she’d never go back. But when her father dies she is forced home to the seaside town of her childhood. Staying in an anonymous seaside hotel Fiona is in limbo between alienation and nostalgia, repression and desire, who she is pretending to be and who she really is.

Tender
Max and Cate meet and straight away it’s on with no restraint. But are they fooling around or falling in love?Tender charts the uncertain path through casual sex towards love – or something else.

Stiletto Girls
Documentary about raunch culture in Australia and its participants. Interviews with young women burlesque dancers, burlesque club owners, feminists and academics. What is raunch culture and why do women participate?

Fruit
In an inner city brothel, a naive newcomer asks an experienced working girl a question, which forces one of them to make a choice and the other to accept the one she has already made.

Enzo’s Moon
Enzo must leave the love of his life when his family emigrates to Wagga Wagga. Enzo writes everyday but the letters never arrive as he waits patiently under the big yellow Moon.

All God’s Creatures
Brothers Asher and Charlie are very different – Asher likes fishing and swearing, Charlie likes tea parties and crafts. In the summer of 1987 – the first since their father walked out of their lives – their relationship undergoes a test of almost mythic proportions when Asher’s confusion and anger boils over into a mindless act of cruelty.

Jump
A story that celebrates difference. In a visually dazzling story about the importance of family when pursuing your dreams, Jump tells the tale of 12-year-old Edwin, a circus clown like his father, who defies tradition by embarking on a daring quest to become a trapeze artist.

Love, CV
Caine needs to score a job within hours, so he reluctantly takes his mates’ advice to lie during an interview in a desperate attempt to succeed. He fails, again. But fate intervenes and he has a second chance.

Decrepit
There is something that just doesn’t add up about the murder of Laurence Wrinkle. The suspects include Lawrence’s young bride Lulu and his son from a previous marriage, Ashleigh. But as the story unfurls, each character recounts their version of the events and deceptively simple truth begin to warp and fracture under scrutiny.

The Fort
As D’Arcy is chased around her production office by actors, production crew and her mentor, she is forced to try to explain ‘The Story’ that she is trying to tell. But she is unable to distill the essence of an ever-expanding, bloated narrative. This throws her into an existential crisis.

Advance Australian Film
An independent filmmaker takes the viewer on an exploratory journey that chronicles the development and inner-workings of Australian cinema. The documentary also explores the challenges facing our industry today – ultimately seeking solutions for a brighter future, as crowd-funding, social media marketing and online distribution models are empowering filmmakers like never before.

The Interviewer
Thomas Howell gets more than he’s bargained for in a job interview at a prestigious law firm; an insult about his tie, a rendition of Harry Potter and the chance to change the lives of a father and son.

Tango Underpants
Carolyn, a young Australian backpacker, travels to Buenos Aires where she discovers not only the wonders of the Tango but also the vital importance of the right underwear! Starring Emma Booth.

Iron Hands
A boy with iron hands falls in love with a porcelain doll. When she is kidnapped by the evil Bird Prince, he has to find a way to save her.

The Spice Girls of India
In the wake of their father’s death, seven young sisters vow to continue his famous spice business; no mean feat in Jodhpur, India, where girls are routinely attacked with acid or killed over dowry disputes. This uplifting documentary follows their inspiring story, as the seven intrepid sisters take the men on at their own game and prove that variety is indeed the spice of life.

Awake
A teenage boy with sleeping problems wages war on his mother’s new relationship.

Worm
A dance-infused comedy short that asks the question – how far would you go for love? Martin Parker finds himself in a police interrogation room, his torn tux smeared with cake, blood and someone else’s spew. He’s just been accused of a serious crime he swears he didn’t commit. He’d better have a good story.

The Kingdom Of Doug
Josie and her fellow cult members have gathered in an ice skating rink to mass suicide. But when Josie loses faith in Doug, her charismatic cult leader, she starts questioning their choice to die.

Dance Of The Books
Look what surprises these timid books are hiding on a stormy night…

Easy Tiger
A seemingly innocent short animation dealing with teenage pressures and self harm. World Premiere

Tritch
In modern day Shanghai, a wealthy housewife’s life of luxury becomes increasingly disrupted by the presence of a young ghost. What begins for Mei as a peculiarity slowly creeps into a beautiful terror that may bring life to specters of the past.

Zoo
An absurdist comedy exploring the evolution of humans and our instinctual behaviours. Set in the 60’s at a lavishly surreal dinner party, the film seeks to challenge whether as humans we’re really as advanced as we think.

Bloomers
When Stella realises that she’s the only girl in her class who doesn’t have her period, she sets out to fast track her way to womanhood through somewhat unconventional methods.

Did I Tell You About Jasper?
The story of a dinner party turned crime scene, where etiquette is challenged and competition is the main course. Tempers rise and the evening quickly spirals into a frenzy of insults, threats and violence. An unusual black comedy.

We Keep On Dancing
Two distinctly disparate characters come together over a broken down Volkswagen Beetle in this sweet, amusing tale of love, loss and… car trouble.

Booth
A loving mother, a cheating husband. A disabled son and one phone call to change everything.

Touch
The story of Sue and her daughter Jessica. Sue left her husband and two children ten years ago and today Jessica has turned up on her mother’s doorstep wanting answers.

8 Inch Pinch
A young police officer lands a cushy assignment to deliver an illegal ferret to a wildlife shelter unharmed but a chomp to his penis whilst he’s driving turns his mission into the most unexpected siege of his career.

Photocopier
Young Andy starts a job in a law firm high above the city. Office manager, Kate, is there to show him the ropes. All goes well for Andy in the firm until he becomes involved in an illicit affair.

Train Station Dude
Narelle is looking for love in all the wrong places including at the Train Station. Narelle, a thirtysomething-year-old single female just wants to get married. After having a bad day, she meets an unexpected visitor from her past. He offers her a second chance and she is forced to make some choices.

My Name Is Pornsuk
A half Thai-Australian artist, Pornsuk, suspended between two cultures, travels to Brisbane to find his estranged father. There begins a story about fortune telling, salsa and papaya salad in which he searches for his cultural and artistic identity.

Jack And Lily
Jack would rather play an imaginary game of war on his own than hang out with his neighbour, Lily … until a surprise attack changes everything. Jack discovers that girls are not so boring after all.

Amalia Lucia Gomez is Gluten Intolerant
4-year-old Amalia, one half Mexican, one half Italian, is a little girl torn between two cultures and two crazy, dysfunctional parents, intent only on teaching Amalia about one half of her culture. Amidst all the bickering, Amalia finds a light at the end of the tunnel… but are there strings attached.

The Suitcase
The story of a suitcase that travels through the hands of various owners, and how such an object has its own story behind it – the story that we, the owners, never know.

101 Cupcakes
Amy faces the daunting task of packing up the family house following the death of her mother. In the throes of grief she decides to remake her mum’s old cupcake recipes, a healing journey that re-connects an entire neighbourhood. Stars Diane Craig.

Mermaid and the City
Ariel comes to shore with a dream no sea creature ever dared to dream before: to wear a pair of jeans. What follows is a tale of how crippled a mermaid’s life is in the inner city streets of Sydney.

Dr Sarmast’s Music School
Musicologist, Dr Ahmad Sarmast, son of famous Afghan musician Ustad Salim Sarmast, returns to Kabul after 15 years to reopen the music school, closed down by Islamic extremists in 1992, with the dream to transform it into Afghanistan’s first national institute of music.
Determined to help revitalise his country’s devastated music culture, Ahmad also has a personal quest – to give Kabul’s street kids and orphans the chance to go to the music school, believing that the healing power of music will transform their lives.

Muriel Matters
London 1909, an actress from Adelaide makes worldwide headlines after taking to the skies under a 25 metre balloon emblazoned with ‘Votes For Women’ – known as “that daring Australian girl”. Muriel Matters is inspired by playwrights, anarchists and revolutionaries to use her performance skills and bravery in the fight for women’s rights.

A Life Exposed: Robyn Beeche
Australian-born photographer Robyn Beeche became renowned in London for her iconic images of the 80s. She was celebrated for her groundbreaking photographs of painted bodies, and her collaborations with counter-culture personalities. She gave up her London success, and has been living in India for 25 years, where she has dedicated herself to documenting Indian rituals as a form of spiritual service.

How the Light Gets In
A moving documentary portrait of artist and mother Susie Dureau, who uses painting as a way of processing significant events in her life.

A Woman’s Journey Into Sex
A Woman’s Journey Into Sex follows Detective Lacey’s quest to determine if women need emotional connection for good sex. As Lacey travels from Australia to the USA, UK and Jamaica, she dips into her dictionary on women’s social history and investigates women paying for sex, female orgasms and romance dependency.