Discoveries from Australia World Cinema

Travelogue of journey around Europe

The Midnight Sower is a modern adaption of The Sower Parable found in the Bible, explored through the life of India, a young woman, who after making what seems a small choice, finds herself out on the street and in subsequent dialogue with God as to His presence in her suffering. Throughout the night, she reaches out to people in her life, who each in their own way inhabit a part of this parable.

Visit the waterfalls, forests, beaches, rivers, reptiles, mammals, birds and butterflies that are part of Australia's stunning kaleidoscope of images.

For the first time, cameras go behind the scenes at the Australian Museum. Join Gold Logie winner Tom Gleeson as he discovers the labs, the treasures and the action leading up to their biggest exhibition to date.

Four young gay men navigate the world of the hook-up app 'Grindr', sharing their experiences of longing, disappointment and discrimination.

Exposing Australia’s involvement in the dark world of human trafficking.

Coming out is always hard, especially when you haven't told anyone before.

Recollections of the Australian women's Peace Movement told by those who helped shape it, from 84-year-old Irene Greenwood whose activities go back to WWI, to the protests of the women at Pine Gap in Australia.

Part 3 of the History of Australian Cinema series. The story of the Australian film industry in the 1930s, from the pioneering days of talkies through to the decline of the industry with the coming of WWII.

When teenage friends Laura visits Josh’s family home for the first time, the nature of their relationship is challenged by a series of misunderstandings forcing Josh and Laura to confront their true feelings.

16mm. 5 minutes. Colour.

A young photographer lusts after his ideal subject - and believes he cannot create his art without her.

Ilyas, an expatriate writer who lived most of his adult life in Australia, returns to Turkey in the hope of finding inspiration for his new book. Instead, he ends up having to deal with the breakdown of a relationship and, a deepening writer's block, in a land he feels estranged.

A man discovers what the meaning of life is as he experiences severe hallucinations day by day.

A mob of sheep are going into a very uncertain future.

D'Arcy loves Lloyd, but Lloyd has his sights set on Rand, the handsome straight policeman.

An atmospheric work encompassing female fetishism, gender as performance, and female to male transvestism.

After reading over 300 self help books, Jordan Shanks (Friendlyjordies) has condensed the best from hundreds of authors who have already condensed the wisdom of thousands of years of thought and research on personal development. He’s crammed it all into a one hour show, with sides of paying out hipsters and Coffs Harbour…So not nearly enough time to cover everything, but LOOK! You’ll get something valuable out of it, alright? What do you care?

This colourful stop-motion animation utilises Essendon Airport drummer Paul Fletcher's collection of dolls and nick-nacks.

“An impressionistic documentary. Black and white, alcoholics, blind people, wheelchairs...the down and out in Sydney. I was greatly influenced by documentary films I saw at the Workers’ Education Association Film Group. Real images were cut together with footage I’d shot in Waverley Cemetery—a cemetery here in Sydney—in a sort of symbolising where I suppose we all finish up, whether we’re handicapped or not! The film has no narration. Someone said I ought to have a composer write a soundtrack, so I went to great lengths...working with musicians in a studio. It was completely new to me, and I wasn’t really comfortable with it.” (Paul Winkler)

When speed demon and record holder Josh “Wheely” Wilson learns that there might be someone in town faster than him, he sets about finding an elusive legend by the name of Burnout Barry - to challenge him to a race.

Two enby best buddies match with the same unicorn hunters on tinder, but have they met their match?

Bound to a wheelchair following a traumatic roadside accident, Owen attempts to cope by escaping into the safety of his imagination; an alternate world where Owen resides in a forest as an owl.

“I wanted to make grass grow...to show the life force of a tree. Bark-Rind was shot totally single-frame...each shot exposed three times...close-up, mid shot, long shot. I used the sound of insects, signifying pollination, life...and I tried to make their sound visible. The camera starts on the grass, flowers, then works its way up the trunk, into the crown of the tree, then onto the next tree. The film vibrates...switching from sound/film...film/sound. You wonder whether you're looking at a film image or at the sound itself.” (Paul Winkler)

Using the dancing body as a metaphor, The Circadian Cycle examines morphology, biological rhythm and animal behaviour. The film charts a day from sunrise to evening, moving through cycles of nature, from nascence and awakening to predation and death.

This astonishing documentary investigates how an advertising slogan invented by Madison Avenue executives in 1948 has come to define our most intimate and romantic rituals and ideals. The Diamond Empire, which sent shockwaves through the transnational diamond industry when it first appeared, systematically takes apart the myth that "diamonds are forever." It exposes how one white South African family, through a process of monopoly and fantasy, managed to exert control over the global flow of diamonds and change the very way we think about courtship, marriage, and love - an achievement all the more stunning given that diamonds are in fact neither scarce nor imperishable. Zeroing in on how "the diamond empire" managed to convert something valueless into one of the most coveted commodities in history, the film provides a riveting look at how marketing and consumer culture shape not only global trade and economics, but also our very identities.

A young Chinese celebrity is called into an emergency meeting after a fan of his commits suicide.

Sereena confronts stigma and stereotypes on a daily basis being a transsexual in today’s society. In this short hybrid documentary, Sereena refuses to justify who she is and turns it back onto us and asks – what do you see when you look at her and can you look past the superficial and see the real her?

What happens when six strangers from different walks of life respond to an online ad to meet someone new for the first time in front of a camera? A social experiment unpacking first impressions and the lost art of conversation.

Trust. Deception. Loyalty. Who can you trust?

90 minutes of the most demented African DIY movie mayhem: demons, witches, ninjas, midget gangsters and Antichrists, Ghanan Terminators and crap-CGI Spidermen run amok in a journey upriver into the dark heart of African Z-grade cinema.

This documentary is about as new as you can get! With an exuberance that simply leaps from the screen, this tasty piece documents the long awaited comeback of Perth punk rock luminaries, Kerb. With relentless drive Steve Browne, the band’s ever optimistic front man, is determined to get the boys back together after breaking up in 1999. Anyone who’s played in a band would know how difficult it is sometimes to get the group together just for a regular rehearsal let alone recording sessions when the band is spread around the world. As you’d expect, the sailing isn’t quite a smooth as the idea and the band lurches from one issue to the next, not in the least because of Steve’s constant spur of the moment decision making processes. This fly on the wall film is a cracker from start to finish as it pops and fizzes along its erratic route that’ll have you in some way admiring the gumption, ambition and innocence in what it takes to get the band back together.

Emily is definitely not experiencing the smoothest ride on the road to greater understanding.

Holden is alone on her 18th birthday, stuck attending to her terminally ill mother’s caravan park when she meets her father for the first time.

Documentary about the life and teachings of Adi Da Samraj.

An intimate look at the life and work of Stephen Cummins, who blazed a trail through the 1980s, examining desire, oppression and the politics of sexuality. Reacting against the environment of AIDS paranoia and ensuing homophobia, Stephen created films that are both bold in their politics and beautiful in their poetry.

The intimate story of Khaled, a young man struggling to hold onto his humanity as he searches 10 years, across continents, for peace and freedom.

"Pauly's Shorts" is a collection of short films, career highlights and unseen banned footage from the career of Australia's most politically incorrect comedy machine, Pauly Fenech. Stretching back to the very beginning of his career, "Pauly's Shorts" takes us from the very first short film "Pizza Man", that started the "Fat Pizza" series, all the way to the hit bogan comedy "Housos". Featuring "Fat Pizza", "Swift and Shift Couriers" and "Housos vs Authority".

Opportunities come and go, and with it comes along choices. A young woman while travelling abroad receives some bad news about her Father. Arriving back to her hometown, she starts to slip into the town's apathy and can't seem to get back out to follow her dreams. This movie explores the relationship between a photograph, apathy and the illusion of life.

The most in-depth look at Machine Gun Fellatio to date, "To Pussytown and Back" features a 45 minute documentary with backstage access to their world: The History, The Heartache, The Love, The Madness, The Felafel. Also included is a show recorded at the Sydney Metro on Friday 27th of September 2022, music videos, and more!

Your postcode shouldn't dictate what you can wear or who you can love. This documentary highlights the unique challenges the LGBTQI community face growing up and living in regional towns.

Follow the epic journey of nine Indigenous Australian Rangers, along with acclaimed Indigenous musician Dan Sultan, as they travel to Kenya, Africa, to share knowledge, culture and music with a tribe of Maasai Community Rangers. Through the lens of award-winning filmmaker Rhys Graham, this film tells the often-untold story of the sacrifices and strength that bind together the international Ranger family.

In this hybrid-documentary, a diverse cast of young queer people retell five stories from Melbourne’s queer community to create a snapshot of our collective history.

As he dresses, a bear reveals more than just a hairy chest - he talks about the highs and lows of his life and the healing power of love.

Six people deal with a deep loneliness in weird and wonderful ways.

A competitive diver faces her fears while taking on new heights.

Geenie Reenie and Dozen check some emails on the computer at home. A click there, a click there… what could possibly go wrong!

The willingness to pass on the power of life to the next generation is maybe the greatest purpose of all.

In outback Australia, a feral camel is fitted with a tracking device known as a Judas Collar, that brings with it destruction.

Papua New Guinea "Land of the Unexpected", a country of rugged mountain ranges, impassable terrain and isolated villages. With over 850 indigenous languages and cultural groups, people align themselves with their tribe before their nation. P.N.G. Style follows adventurer and one-man film crew David Fedele's 3 month solo journey through Papua New Guinea, armed only with a backpack, camcorder and traveling guitar.

Artist Atong Atem shares her story of embracing her dark skin tone while growing up in Australia.

Today, Afghans are one of the largest migrant populations fleeing their country for Europe/the West. Since 2002 the international community has injected more than a trillion dollars into Afghanistan. What went wrong? This film examines the counter insurgency/ culture campaign that the US government [and others] waged. Told through the eyes of Afghan youth, who start the country's first ever heavy metal band and an adventurous Australian, who created a Western style music scene in the capital - Kabul. Will head banging, disenchanted Afghans win the hearts and minds of their peers or will the Taliban come back from the grave?

The host with the most Buzz introduces two of his greatest chefs, Mr. Antonio and Mr. Jones for his 24th annual cooking show.

An attractive young man joins a cricket club and finds that the vice captain may have an unexpected vice...

One of humankind’s greatest achievements has been to walk on the moon. It was marked in history as a phenomenal success. What if that first step had turned out a little differently? As Neil Armstrong is about to take his first step on the moon, something catches his eye in the distance. Naturally curious, he leaps out into the unknown territory to investigate. What he finds will forever change the course of human history.

Letters from a young girl to her father.

A make-shift Time Machine sends one man hurtling back through time - 3 seconds back in time