Winners announced for 2023 St Kilda Film Festival
Taking home the most awards was Mud Crab. David Robinson-Smith took home Best Director for this film, which was also awarded Best Original Score by James Mountain; Best Achievement in Cinematography by Jacyln Paterson; and Best Actor for Joshua Mehmet.
Mud Crab nominated for 7 awards at St Kilda Film Festival
Including a nomination for Best Short Film, and Best Original Score for James Mountain’s music.
AFTRS Student Films Claim Major Prizes at FlickerFest
Mud Crab received the Avid Award for Best Original Music in an Australian Short Film, in recognition of the work of composer James Mountain.
via AFTRS
Composer James Mountain & Director David Robinson-Smith | Mud Crab
AFTRS Master of Arts Screen graduates have started 2023 off strong, receiving three major prizes for student films at the 32nd edition of Flickerfest. This follows a bumper year that saw multiple AFTRS films appear in major international festivals such as Cannes and Palm Springs.
David Robinson-Smith’s 2021 MA graduate film Mud Crab has also returned from abroad to receive the Avid Award for Best Original Music in an Australian Short Film, in recognition of the work of composer James Mountain’s (Master of Arts Screen: Music, 2020). The film recently earned first place in the Asia-Pacific in the 2022 CILECT CAPA Best Film Competition, placing fourth worldwide. Mud Crab saw its worldwide premiere at the Melbourne International Film Festival in 2022 and has since screened at Raindance International Film Festival (UK), Aesthetica International Film Festival (UK), Santa Barbara International Film Festival and Freshwave Film Festival (HK). Mud Crab’s next stop is Santa Barbara International Film Festival, and Australian audiences can catch the film streaming on MUBI.
The 32nd annual Flickerfest International and Australian awards were announced in a ceremony on 29 January, following the highly successful 10-day festival at Bondi Pavilion. Flickerfest will now hit the road on a 48-venue national tour to all states and territories across Australia. See the full program here.
Source: https://www.aftrs.edu.au/news/2023/aftrs-student-films-claim-major-prizes-at-flickerfest/
Film Review: Short and Confronting
Mud Crab is a film on the edge with a visceral power and is showing as part of this year’s Flickerfest. Review by Martin Fabinyi
‘Mud Crab’ playing at 2023 FlickerFest
Mud Crab will screen as part of the Best of Australian Shorts 3 program.
Tickets: https://flickerfest.com.au/programme/best-of-australian-shorts-3-2023/
‘Sunset Country’ now streaming on ABC iview
On a scorching hot weekend in rural Victoria - love, loss and grief culminate leaving an aging father and his daughter to contemplate his impending mortality.
Film Review: Short film ‘Sunnies’ teaches a lesson while delving into heavy subjects
4-star review of Sunnies by Rhiannon Clarke
AFTRS Films Win Major International Film School Prizes
The winners of the CILECT Awards are chosen by the community of CILECT schools, which includes 180 institutions from 65 countries.
via AFTRS
Two AFTRS student films have taken top honours at this year’s CILECT CAPA Awards. CAPA is the Asia-Pacific Association of CILECT, the International Association of Film and Television Schools.
Mud Crab, a 2020 capstone project of AFTRS’s Master of Arts Screen, won the Best Film – Fiction prize in the CAPA regional section and was placed fourth worldwide. Acts for the Invisible, also from the 2020 Master of Arts Screen, won the CAPA Best Film – Documentary prize.
The winners of the CILECT Awards are chosen by the community of CILECT schools, which includes 180 institutions from 65 countries. Voting panels include students, professors and staff, amounting to hundreds of members on each panel.
Mud Crab, written and directed by David Robinson-Smith, will have its international premiere in October, with details to be announced in the coming weeks, following the film’s recent world premiere at Melbourne International Film Festival. The film centres on a woman reflecting on her culpability, as she recounts the traumatising assault she witnessed of a young man in a small Australian coastal town. David’s Master of Arts Screen collaborators include producers Adam Daniel and Adam Finney, production designers Sharna Graham and Calum Wilson Austin, editor James Taylor, composer James Mountain and sound designer Nathan Turnbull. Cinematographer Jaclyn Paterson is a 2017 graduate of AFTRS.
“The CILECT Awards are highly competitive and recognise the very best in student filmmaking from film schools around the world. For AFTRS and its students to be awarded first prize in both the fiction and documentary categories two years running is a significant achievement. Our congratulations to the brilliant filmmaking teams and to the AFTRS teaching staff who have guided their film studies,” said AFTRS Director of Teaching and Learning, David Balfour.
Source: https://www.aftrs.edu.au/news/2022/aftrs-films-win-major-international-film-school-prizes/
Major Year for AFTRS Student Films Continues with Four Films Selected for MIFF
Three of the four selected AFTRS student films will have their world premieres at MIFF. A House, written and directed by Matthew D. Taylor, Mud Crab, written and directed by David Robinson-Smith, and Lucky Peach, written and directed by Grace Tan will be making their debuts at the festival’s 70th–anniversary edition.
via AFTRS
A year that has seen AFTRS student films selected for major film festivals around the world, including Cannes and Palm Springs, continues with the announcement today that four titles will screen at next month’s Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF).
Three of the four selected AFTRS student films will have their world premieres at MIFF. A House, written and directed by Matthew D. Taylor, Mud Crab, written and directed by David Robinson-Smith, and Lucky Peach, written and directed by Grace Tan will be making their debuts at the festival’s 70th–anniversary edition.
MUD CRAB
Reflecting on her culpability, a woman recounts the traumatising assault she witnessed of a young man in a small Australian coastal town.
Director: David Robinson-Smith (MAS Directing, 2021)
Writer: David Robinson-Smith (MAS Directing, 2021)
Producer: Adam Daniel (MAS Screenwriting, 2020), Adam Finney (MAS Documentary, 2020)
Cinematographer: Jaclyn Paterson (Diploma in Grading, 2017)
Production designer: Sharna Graham, Calum Wilson Austin (MAS Production Design, 2020)
Editor: James Taylor (MAS Editing, 2020)
Original music: James Mountain (MAS Music, 2020)
Sound design: Nathan Turnbull (MAS Sound, 2020)
Sunset Country to screen at 2022 St Kilda Film Festival
From 24 June 2022 as part of the Australian Drama Showcase.
Sunnies to screen at Flickerfest 2022
From 21-28 January 2022 as part of the Best Of Australian Shorts 5 and Indigenous Spotlight screenings.
With the Cattle to screen at 2022 Antenna Documentary Film Festival
With the Cattle screens as part of Australian Short Competition: Session 1.
Minimalist in composition yet expansive in impact, With the Cattle poignantly brings viewers up close and personal to the tranquillity – and ephemerality – of life for farm cows.
With the Cattle screens as part of Australian Short Competition: Session 1.
Sunset Country to screen at the 2021 Poitiers Film Festival in France
From 28 November to 1 December 2021 as part of the screening Short films selection 6.
Sunset Country to screen at 2021 Schnit Worldwide Short Film Festival
A transnational film festival simultaneously taking place in eight cities on five continents worldwide: Bern [Switzerland], Buenos Aires [Argentina], Cairo [Egypt], Cape Town [South Africa], Hong Kong [China], Moscow [Russia], New York [USA] & San José [Costa Rica].
Schnit Worldwide Short Film Festival is a transnational film festival simultaneously taking place in eight cities on five continents worldwide: held in Bern [Switzerland], Buenos Aires [Argentina], Cairo [Egypt], Cape Town [South Africa], Hong Kong [China], Moscow [Russia] & San José [Costa Rica].
AFTRS Student and Alumni Films set Brisbane International Film Festival
Twenty-three films by AFTRS students and alumni headed to the 2021 Brisbane International Film Festival (BIFF), including With the Cattle, directed by Cameron Dunlop and featuring music by James Mountain.
via AFTRS
Twenty-three films by AFTRS students and alumni headed to the 2021 Brisbane International Film Festival (BIFF), which will bring its lineup of over 100 features, documentaries and short films to Brisbane cinemas from 21-31 October.
AUSTRALIAN FESTIVAL HIGHLIGHTS: SHORT FILM SESSION 2
With the Cattle
Director/producer: Cameron Dunlop (Master of Arts Screen, 2020)
Cinematographer: Ian Tyley (Master of Arts Screen, 2020)
Composer: James Mountain (Master of Arts Screen, 2020)
Editor: Liam Clark (Master of Arts Screen, 2020)
See the full 2021 Brisbane International Film Festival program.
33 AFTRS Student and Alumni films on show at Sydney Film Festival 2021
Sunnies, written and directed by Ismail Khan will have its world premiere at the Festival. The film was recently named joint Best Film – Fiction Prize at this year’s CILECT CAPA Awards, the Asia-Pacific Association of CILECT, the International Association of Film and Television Schools.
via AFTRS
33 AFTRS students and alumni films have been selected to screen at this year’s edition of Sydney Film Festival. Now in its 68th year, the festival will bring over 230 features, documentaries and short films from around the world to cinemas in Sydney and SFF On Demand from 12-21 November.
Four short films made by AFTRS students are featured this year, two of them world premiere screenings and one selected for the prestigious Dendy Awards competition.
Sunnies, written and directed by Ismail Khan (Master of Arts Screen: Directing) will have its world premiere at the Festival. The film was recently named joint Best Film – Fiction Prize at this year’s CILECT CAPA Awards, the Asia-Pacific Association of CILECT, the International Association of Film and Television Schools. Sunnies was produced by Bachelor of Arts Screen: Production student Skye Leon and additional Master of Arts Screen students in key crew roles include James Ward-Miller (cinematographer), Sean Doyle (sound recordist and sound supervisor), Alexander Cox (editor) and James Mountain (music score).
AFTRS CEO Nell Greenwood said: “We are delighted that our students will have the opportunity to present their films in the cinema and experience a live audience response to their work. It’s encouraging to see such fruitful creative collaborations between AFTRS students. I congratulate all of our filmmakers selected for the 2021 Sydney Film Festival.”
AFTRS films win top international film school prizes
The CILECT Awards are highly competitive and recognise the very best in student filmmaking from film schools around the world. It’s an incredible achievement for AFTRS and its students to be awarded first prize in both the fiction and documentary categories.
via AFTRS
Two AFTRS student films have taken top honours at this year’s CILECT CAPA Awards. CAPA is the Asia-Pacific Association of CILECT, the International Association of Film and Television Schools.
Where is My Darling?, a 2020 capstone project of the Australian Film Television and Radio School’s Master of Arts Screen, won the Best Film – Documentary prize in the CAPA regional section and was placed fifth worldwide. Sunnies, also from the 2020 Master of Arts Screen, was jointly awarded the CAPA Best Film – Fiction prize.
The winners of the CILECT Awards are chosen by the community of CILECT schools, which includes 180 institutions from 65 countries. Voting panels include students, professors and staff, amounting to hundreds of members on each panel.
Adam Finney wrote, directed and produced Where is My Darling?, which follows a charismatic homeless man who raises the money to personally deliver drinking water to the drought-stricken outback. Adam’s crew included fellow Master of Arts Screen students Cameron Dunlop (cinematographer), Nathan Turnbull (sound recordist and sound designer), James Taylor (editor) and Daniel O’Brien (music score), with Bachelor of Arts Screen: Production graduate Alfred Faber also credited as sound recordist.
Ismail Khan wrote and directed Sunnies, which centres on a troubled teen who decides to steal a pair of sunglasses from the local shops – an act that is later revealed to be part of a much bigger plan. The film was produced by Bachelor of Arts Screen: Production student Skye Leon. Additional Master of Arts Screen students in key crew roles include James Ward-Miller (cinematographer), Sean Doyle (sound recordist), Alexander Cox (sound recordist) and James Mountain (music score).
“The CILECT Awards are highly competitive and recognise the very best in student filmmaking from film schools around the world. It’s an incredible achievement for AFTRS and its students to be awarded first prize in both the fiction and documentary categories. Our congratulations to the brilliant creative teams for receiving this significant honour and to all the AFTRS staff who’ve supported the students to this fantastic outcome,” said AFTRS CEO Nell Greenwood.
AFTRS films recognised at CILECT CAPA Awards
AFTRS has received strong representation at CILECT CAPA Awards, with two of the school’s student films winning prizes.
via if.com.au, by Staff Writer
Still from Sunnies | Dir. Ismail Khan
AFTRS has received strong representation at CILECT CAPA Awards, with two of the school’s student films winning prizes.
CAPA is the Asia-Pacific Association of CILECT, the International Association of Film and Television Schools.
The winners of the CILECT Awards are chosen by the community of CILECT schools, which includes 180 institutions from 65 countries. Voting panels comprise students, professors and staff, amounting to hundreds of members on each panel.
Where is My Darling?, a 2020 capstone project of the AFTRS Master of Arts Screen, won the Best Film – Documentary in the CAPA regional section and was placed fifth worldwide. Sunnies, also from the 2020 Master of Arts Screen, was jointly awarded the CAPA Best Film – Fiction prize.
Adam Finney wrote, directed and produced Where is My Darling?, which follows a charismatic homeless man who raises the money to personally deliver drinking water to the drought-stricken outback. Finney’s crew included fellow Master of Arts Screen students Cameron Dunlop (cinematographer), Nathan Turnbull (sound recordist and sound designer), James Taylor (editor) and Daniel O’Brien (music score), with Bachelor of Arts Screen: Production graduate Alfred Faber also credited as sound recordist.
Ismail Khan wrote and directed Sunnies, which centres on a troubled teen who decides to steal a pair of sunglasses from the local shops – an act that is later revealed to be part of a much bigger plan. The film was produced by Bachelor of Arts Screen: Production student Skye Leon. The Master of Arts Screen students in the crew include James Ward-Miller (cinematographer), Sean Doyle (sound recordist), Alexander Cox (sound recordist) and James Mountain (music score).
AFTRS CEO Nell Greenwood paid tribute to the creative teams, as well as the AFTRS staff who supported them.
“The CILECT Awards are highly competitive and recognise the very best in student filmmaking from film schools around the world,” she said.
“It’s an incredible achievement for AFTRS and its students to be awarded first prize in both the fiction and documentary categories.”
Source: https://www.if.com.au/aftrs-films-recognised-at-cilect-capa-awards/
35 AFTRS Student and Alumni Films on show at Melbourne International Film Festival
AFTRS CEO Nell Greenwood said: “These three exceptional short films are brilliant demonstrations of AFTRS’ commitment to the pursuit of excellence and the strength of the creative collaborations that are formed between our student cohort and recent alumni. Our congratulations to all of the cast and crew.”
via AFTRS
Still from ‘Sunset Country’ | Dir. Petra Leslie
A staggering 35 feature, short and documentary films by AFTRS students and alumni have been selected for the 2021 Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF).
Three short films made by AFTRS students have been chosen for the highly competitive short film program.
Alba was written and directed by Mariella S. Solano while studying the Bachelor of Arts Screen: Production. Fellow student collaborators on the film included cinematographer Julian Pertout, production and costume designer Chloe Beckley, editor Tiffany Lui and sound supervisor Alex Linder, and several other crew members.
Sunburn was directed by Jaslyn Mairs, written by Claudia Bailey and produced by Ben Bauchet while completing the Bachelor of Arts Screen: Production course, with alum Lev Jutsen co-producing. Student heads of department included cinematographer Gabriel Morrison, sound supervisor Eli Potter and production designer Sidonie Pitot, with AFTRS graduates in key roles, including sound recordist Tahira Bales-Donohoe and editor Angus Roche. The film stars well-known actors Brenna Harding and Zoe Terakes. It has previously screened at CinefestOz, WA (2020); Brisbane International Film Festival (2020); Berlin Student Film Festival, Germany (2021); Flickerfest (2021); Gold Coast Film Festival (2021); and the Tel Aviv International Student Film Festival, Israel (2021).
Sunset Country will have its World Premiere at MIFF. Director and cinematographer, Petra Leslie, completed the film as part of the Master of Arts Screen: Cinemtography program, with fellow students in key positions including Nathan Turnbull (sound supervisor), James Taylor (editor), Eirena Sapounas (production designer), James Mountain (composer). Petra’s cast include Raelee Hill, Trevor Hanna and Chris Davies.
AFTRS CEO Nell Greenwood said: “These three exceptional short films are brilliant demonstrations of AFTRS’ commitment to the pursuit of excellence and the strength of the creative collaborations that are formed between our student cohort and recent alumni. Our congratulations to all of the cast and crew.”
Sunset Country to screen at 2021 Melbourne International Film Festival
Set in regional Victoria and shot in claustrophobic 4:3, Sunset Country is a contemplative, compassionate account of a very difficult stage of life that is rarely depicted on the big screen. With humble honesty and affecting precision, it offers a profound insight into ageing, grief, resignation and the pressure of being responsible for the life of another.
A middle-aged woman cares for her elderly father, whose will to live is on the wane.
Set in regional Victoria and shot in claustrophobic 4:3, Sunset Country is a contemplative, compassionate account of a very difficult stage of life that is rarely depicted on the big screen. With humble honesty and affecting precision, it offers a profound insight into ageing, grief, resignation and the pressure of being responsible for the life of another.