In Melbourne this week
By Bronwen Beechey
St Kilda Film Festival
Every year the St Kilda Film Festival presents an extraordinarily diverse program of new Australian short films and videos, made by students at film and TV schools and by independent film makers. The festival this year, March 24-28, celebrates its 10th birthday with an opening night party hosted by comedian Tracey Harvey.
The four videos Green Left Weekly was able to preview gave some indication of the exciting and original work being shown. David Blows Up, directed by Edwin James Lynch, presents a darkly comic tale of a cleaning lady's revenge on her abusive husband. Out of Order, to be shown as part of the "Animation Showcase" on March 27, is an innovative piece produced by the Australian Children's Television Foundation which uses cut-out animation to illustrate the emotions of sadness, hate, anger and happiness described by children.
One of the films featured in a retrospective of the last 10 years will be Emma-Kate Croghan's Sexy Girls, Sexy Appliances, a hilarious three-minute send-up of pornography and advertising which was a hit of last year's festival. Croghan, a 21-year-old student at the Victorian College of the Arts film school, also has a new video for this year's festival. Desire is a black-and-white piece that tells a story of a lonely laboratory worker who becomes obsessed with a parcel left on a train by a beautiful, mysterious woman, in a film noir style that's very reminiscent of 1930s British thrillers.
A number of documentaries will also be shown. The Sleep of Reason, directed by Peter Jordan, examines the human fascination with depictions of the end of the world. The film interweaves old movie footage, works by painters such as Bosch and Brueghel, film of the making of the atomic bomb and the memories of survivors of the bombing of Hiroshima to interesting effect.
Other features include Jackie Farkas' award-winning Amelia Rose Towers, and Road to Alice, a comic road movie starring Noah Taylor and Hugo Weaving which was named Best Short Film at the 1992 AFI awards. There will also be special programs devoted to experimental film and to women's film making.
Programs are available from the St Kilda Town Hall (ph 536 1397).
Brunswick Music Festival
The 1993 Brunswick Music Festival looks set to improve on its successes of past years, with a varied and exciting program of music running until April 4.
This year the festival began with an exciting new development. In recognition of the International Year of Indigenous Peoples, the City the first Brunswick Koori Arts Festival, a celebration of the work of Koori artists, musicians and craftspeople and an introduction to Victorian Koori culture. The festival, on March 14, was attended by around 1600 people.
The celebrated festival concert series takes place from March 24-28. Various Brunswick venues will be jumping to the music of the Backsliders, Joe Geia, Wild Pumpkins, Tunari, My Friend the Chocolate Cake, Judy Small, the Mills Sisters and Tiddas to name just a few. Lovers of African, Middle Eastern, Greek, Koori, blues, a cappella, Cajun, Celtic and Australian contemporary folk and rock music will all be catered for.
The festival finishes on the weekend of April 3-4 with the Brunswick Children's Music Festival. This event was extraordinarily successful last year and promises to present more great entertainment and workshops for children up to 12 years old.
For programs and bookings, contact ring 388 1460.