South Australian filmmakers were in the spotlight at the 77th Festival de Cannes in France this weekend with a showcase of five South Australian films.
With the support of the Malinauskas Government, the Adelaide Film Festival has brought a delegation of 10 South Australian filmmakers including three First Nations filmmakers to the Festival de Cannes Marché du Film.
The showcase included the presentation of five near-complete South Australian film projects at the Adelaide Film Festival Goes to Cannes event to an audience of sales agents, investors, programmers and other market delegates.
The Adelaide Film Festival Goes to Cannes showcase put the spotlight on these exciting South Australian projects:
- Lesbian Space Princess: Directed by Emma Hough Hobbs and Leela Varghese, this boundary-breaking animated adventure features sassy humour, a kickass heroine, and a whole lot of girl power.
- Kangaroo Island: Director Timothy Piper's captivating family drama is set against the stunning backdrop of Kangaroo Island.
- With or Without You: Prepare to be touched by this heartwarming story of a mother-daughter bond, directed by Kelly Schilling.
- The Iron Winter: Director Kasimir Burgess's powerful documentary of friendship during a deadly Mongolian winter will stay with you long after the credits roll.
- Mockbuster: A thought-provoking exploration of the world of cinema designed to make you laugh, directed by Anthony Frith.
The event was an incredible opportunity for our local filmmakers to connect with key industry figures and shone an international spotlight on our state's thriving film scene at the world's largest film market.
Filmmakers participated in a curated roundtable program as well as a series of networking opportunities to assist them to make industry connections that could lead to international distribution deals and screenings at film festivals globally.
These five works will also be in competition for the inaugural Goes to Cannes Award to be handed out on 20 May, with the recipient set to receive a minimum guarantee of €10,000 (AUD $16,300) towards their project.
The AFF x Cannes initiative is funded by the State Government, with the South Australian Film Corporation funding the participation of First Nations South Australian filmmakers.
As put by Andrea Michaels
It is an incredibly exciting and a potentially life changing experience for these 10 South Australian filmmakers to have the opportunity to showcase their films at Festival de Cannes.
This is an opportunity to show their films at the biggest film market in the world and make global industry connections.
The Malinauskas Government is so proud of our state's thriving film industry and to support our filmmakers to shine internationally on the biggest of big screens.
As put by Adelaide Film Festival Chief Executive Mat Kesting
Supporting the filmmaking community is a key part of Adelaide Film Festival's strategy and helping to connect South Australian filmmakers to the global market via Adelaide Film Festival's networks is a way of fast tracking our stories to the world.
There is enormous interest in new voices in cinema from around the globe and the Goes to Cannes initiative has helped to platform the work of South Australian talent at the world's largest film market, connect our talent directly to the market and strengthen connections with other filmmakers and festivals around the world.
We look forward to premiering several of these projects at the upcoming Adelaide Film Festival 23 October – 3 November.
