This year’s Queensland Film Festival boasts an array of challenging and compelling short films. Dominic Barlow and Luke Goodsell look at a handful, including those from acclaimed directors like Lucile Hadžihalilović and Ben Rivers.
Queensland Film Festival – An Interview with Festival Director John Edmond
We caught up with Queensland Film Festival director John Edmond to discuss the second instalment’s eclectic program, its place in the Brisbane culture and plans for the future.
Gold Coast
GOLD COAST grounds its recreation of the 19th-century West African slave trade in powerful images, music and characterisation that make it utterly contemporary.
Fursonas
FURSONAS’ study of the American furry fandom goes from flattering to shocking, laying out the social hierarchies of an online community in admirable style.
Life, Animated
LIFE, ANIMATED is a basically satisfying documentary about a young man coping with autism through Disney films, told in sweeping and simple fashion.
Viva
VIVA survives a rocky opening to become a luminous father-son drama that defies the conventions of feelgood tales.
In the Shadow of the Hill
Dan Jackson’s documentary IN THE SHADOW OF THE HILL scathingly examines the police oppression of a Rio de Janeiro favela through human stories and protest footage, with compassionate though difficultly balanced results.
War on Everyone
John Michael McDonagh’s comedic follow-up to CALVARY rises above smug faux-Tarantino antics to become a surprisingly absurd and beautiful genre riff.
We Like Shorts, Shorts: Cruise Patrol
Ahead of the Animation Showcases at Sydney Film Festival, Dominic Barlow takes a closer look at a highlight from last year’s presentation, Bobby de Groot’s CRUISE PATROL.
Call Me Dad
In studying the male perpetrators of domestic violence, CALL ME DAD expounds upon the personal complexities of the epidemic with skill and sensitivity.