First Chair 2021
A 17 minute portrait documentary film that explores one woman’s lived experiences as a survivor of domestic violence and homelessness, told with humour and heart.
A 17 minute portrait documentary film that explores one woman’s lived experiences as a survivor of domestic violence and homelessness, told with humour and heart.
The once celebrated graphic designer Paul Andrews has fallen from grace. Battling against the demands of vacuous clients, deprived of his voice, he descends into an obsessive and distorted search for creative expression.
Frankie and Charlie have moved to a tiny house. They regret it. It’s Christmas Eve. Frankie is miserable. Charlie’s organised a festive family lunch. Then Charlie finds a disoriented cockatiel by the river. She tucks him into a box and brings him inside. Little do they know – this bird has its own agenda. Nobody seems to notice something strange has started falling from the sky.
Arriving on a cruise ship as though pulled by an invisible string, senior citizen Donald discovers an apparent murder scene. While searching for answers, he finds a second body, and an emergency is declared. When it becomes clear that the murderer is not of flesh and blood, that Donald is next in line to be killed and that the ship’s captain is a ferryman carrying his passengers to the afterlife, he and the other elderly tourists decide to make a break for it.
Inside a den fortified to keep people out, Josh finds himself trapped with four unstable drug dealers and a possessed bag of meth. An ancient evil with a proclivity for gratuitous acts of violence makes its way through the whacked-out inhabitants, one by one. As eyeballs are pulled out and throats are slit around him, Josh realises that, to survive, he must claw, cut and burn his way out.
In a not-so-distant future, scientists have discovered immortality. What follows is a surreal exploration of the sometimes banal, sometimes chaotic consequences, begging the question: is there meaning in infinity?
Narrated by the birds that roost in the rafters of a shopping centre, "Peeps" is a portrait of five unique teenage girls in contemporary Australia.
Martin was born with just 2,000 words to use in his lifetime, and once he's spoken them all, he will fall irreversibly silent. Fearful of a voiceless future, Martin decides to save his words for the perfect moment. But in being so cautious, he risks not being heard at all.
Pitch Black takes us inside the claustrophobic worlds of three young men immersed in the online black-pill subculture, as they struggle to reckon with their actions.
Arguably Russia’s most famous folk song, Dark Eyes has captured hearts around the world for the past 100 years. This portrait explores the song’s somewhat controversial history, its musical versatility and its cultural relevance. Performances by Louis Armstrong, Frank Sinatra, Liberace, a 13-piece orchestra and a Russian folk group make it clear why Dark Eyes has stood the test of time.
Adam Elliot's earliest film, Human Behavioral Case Studies, is a drawn animation rather than claymation like his other films. It's about unusual human behaviors or obsessions. At only a minute long, it's just long enough to be memorably, darkly amusing.
Two strangers meet whilst both working a shift at a dodgy restaurant in Melbourne's CBD.
A girl stands on a lonely road looking into the distance and into her future.
In a used-car yard lives Tony, a wacky, waving inflatable-tube man, who dreams of being more than just an advertising gimmick. Spending his days flapping in the wind and peeking in the office window, Tony is mesmerised by a commercial for an all-new, shiny red convertible. Whisked away by his imagination, he dreams of a world beyond his own and a life behind the wheel. As time moves on, Tony becomes as tired and worn as the used-car yard. But when the car he’s longed for finally arrives in the dealership, Tony is forced to break his limits to protect his dream from a group of thieves.
Film student Patrick Atallah has a problem on his hands: his graduation documentary was cancelled at the last moment, so he has just one day in a studio to make an entire, fully realised film. What’s the film going to be about now? He doesn’t know, but he’s hoping to find it along the way. To do this, he invites five of his closest friends to the studio to help him come up with some interesting ideas.
A man trying to propose to his girlfriend is blindsided by the telepathic accusations of a childhood teddy bear.
Emerson Hayes is a 60-year-old sculptor who lives in a caravan and works from an old shed in the back corner of her daughter’s coastal egg farm. When she is informed that her most acclaimed and last remaining work on public display is being replaced, she seeks a new home for it with family friend Lena, who curates a prestigious contemporary gallery. Lena, however, demands that Em present a fresh new work if she is to be considered for exhibition. As Em struggles to break out of her artistic rut, she is forced to reckon not only with her place in the art world, but with her entire identity.
With a career spanning well over a decade in the bloodiest, most violent subgenre of pro wrestling, David "Gweedo" Brown reflects on his time as a deathmatch wrestler.
When Jade’s oldest and dearest friend begins to prioritise the needs of someone new at their weekly social netball game, her deepest fear of losing the friendship begins to consume her. While the teams wait for the harsh winter rain to ease so they can resume their game, Jade aggressively attempts to win back her status during a seemingly friendly, low-stakes card game.