CinefestOZ and WIFT Australia open call for annual Writers’ Retreat

Aspiring and established female and non-binary screenwriters are now invited to apply for the 2024 CinefestOZ and Women in Film and Television (WIFT) Australia Writers’ Retreat. The free program, which will be held from September 1-4 in Western Australia’s South West during the CinefestOZ Film Festival, provides space and time for up to four participants…

CinefestOZ Film Prize finalists announced!

CinefestOZ today announced four dramatically different Australian films are in the running to win Australia’s richest $100,000 film prize at the 2024 CinefestOZ Film Festival held in Western Australia’s beautiful South West, August 31 – September 8. The finalists, which will all have their Western Australian premieres at the festival, include hilarious new family comedy…

Interview: Damien Giglietta

In the confronting new Australian film Mercy of Others, six friends reunite after a friend’s murder, only to confront their darkest secrets and deepest fears. Trapped in a night of psychological terror, they must face a long-buried deed to survive, revealing that every action carries haunting consequences. At the helm of this intense thriller is…

Lincoln Lewis and Zarlia Chisholm join Stephen Osborne’s Hagar’s Hut

The new thriller, Hagar’s Hut, is currently in production, promising to deliver a gripping tale set against the scenic backdrop of the beautifully rugged Queensland landscape. Written by local Indigenous Australian writer Jesse Seeley and directed by Stephen Osborne, (Dome House Six, Strangeville) the film embarks on a journey through the complexities of psychological trauma…

Wellbeing, intergenerational trauma and systemic disadvantage – Luisa Mitchell writes about her new documentary, Our Wellbeing, Our Way

Indigenous Australian’s holistic and interconnected ways of experiencing wellbeing is brutally disrupted by British colonisers, leading to negative intergenerational trauma and systemic disadvantage. Luisa Mitchell’s Our Wellbeing, Our Way (OWOW) is a dramatic journey from our ancient past to our living present. For over 60,000 years, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have lived in harmony…

Interview: Nick and Nathan Lacey

Nick and Nathan Lacey’s excellent short film, Die Bully Die, has won the $7,000 Dendy Live Action Short Award at the 71st Sydney Film Festival. Die Bully Die follows Max (Matthew Backer), who encounters his high-school bully, Adam (Drew Weston), 17 years later in a fancy restaurant, where Max’s grudge against Adam manifests in horrific…

Interview: Paul Goldman

Filmed on the outskirts of Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, Kid Snow tells the story of a down-and-out Irish fighter named Kid Snow, who gets a shot at redemption in a rematch against the man who beat him ten years ago. Directed by Paul Goldman, the film is set in 1971 and follows a rowdy traveling tent-boxing…