Discoveries from Australia World Cinema

This film describes the expectations placed on people of a refugee/immigration background to behave a certain way, and fit into a mold of sorts, when in reality, people are diverse in their identity, their beliefs and experiences. The red string unifies different individuals when it runs through them and provides an important link. Connecting them like the string of a marionette. This emphasizes the unlikely community formed in detention centres through common experiences - of identity being stripped away from individuals

Ghostbusters meets The Matrix in this experimental short film from the makers of Wyrmwood: Road Of The Dead.

LIVE at the Royal Melbourne Showgrounds, Melbourne, Australia: 1. Family Reunion 2. Dumpweed 3. Don't Leave Me 4. Pathetic 5. What's My Age Again? 6. Aliens Exist 7. Going Away to College 8. Blow Job 9. Mutt 10. All the Small Things 11. Untitled 12. Carousel 13. The Country Song 14. Dammit

Luca visits his frail Nan on her deathbed, and reflects on their shared past through a series of vivid memories.

A mother visits her reclusive adult son in a last ditch effort to convince him to come to the hospital to say goodbye to his dying father, but his resentment has a life of its own...

Around a campfire, on a moonlit night, two Anmatjere Elders, Patsy and Jane Briscoe, sing and re-tell an epic Dreaming story told to them by their father and grandfather. It is a story of two young men who are forced into action when a clan of demon Cannibals devour their entire tribe and kidnap the young men's mother and sister. Alone and outnumbered, the young men defy all odds as they defeat the demons and reclaim their women.

The Bradley family mysteriously go missing on a trip along the Great Alpine Road in Victoria, Australia. An investigation uncovers evidence including camcorder footage and the empty family car. No member of the family has ever been found...

Murder, sex, drugs, art politics... Sneakers Hanging on telephone lines have become a powerful urban symbol, inspiring genesis theories both hilarious and sinister. In an effort to get to the truth once and for all we asked the people of Earth to help us solve the mystery.

Ahoy there me hearties! Join Captain Feathersword, his shipmates and The Wiggles, as they go Sailing Around the World in an amazing adventure filmed on location! From "London Town" to Sicily and San Francisco, everyone will have a great time on this wiggly, giggly global trip! So climb aboard the SS Feathersword and hoist the mains sail as The Wiggles take you to sing in Sydney and move to the beat in Mexico. Don't forget your passport with 15 fun traveling tunes, it's all hand on deck for fun!

When a freak accident grievously injures her housemate, a guilt stricken pacifist must protect them both from a mysterious creature that roams their apartment after dark.

Joan (Helen Twelvetrees) is a Canadian, adopted by Ma Dawson (Nellie Ferguson), a struggling horse breeder and trainer. Joan thinks "legs don't make a race horse, it's blood", and so she buys an unwanted thoroughbred colt called Stormalong. Helped by Ma's son Tommy Dawson (Frank Leighton), Joan restores the horse to health and fitness, and soon enough the horse is winning race after race, becoming a favourite for the Melbourne Cup.

Adult film starlet Vixen Velvet wants to be a real actress - she gets her chance when the remote town she's filming in finds itself in the grip of a zombie apocalypse.

This iconic and Academy Award-winning newsreel shot by Damien Parer contains some of the most recognised images of Australian troops in the Second World War.

As she prepares for a first date, Isabelle is pestered by the apparition of Dorothy Ainsworth, a chain-smoking, well-spoken, long-since deceased author of 1950’s lesbian pulp novels. Isabelle is grappling with ‘dead lesbian syndrome’ and resents Dorothy for perpetuating it in her writing.

What if you woke up one morning and your neighbourhood had been overrun by baboons? Would you go Bananas?

Jack is straight off the plane. He has few friends and no money. In desperation, he accepts an apartment formerly housed by the main suspect in a serial murder case - John Ellroy. Plagued by insomnia, Jack broods in the apartment and wanders the inner-city streets of Melbourne. His loneliness leads him into a friendship with a teenage addict Janie, and into a bizarre obsession with Ellroy. Jack struggles to retain his sanity as his world spirals into madness and violence.

What is the cost of a second chance?

1972 animated adaptation of the classic Mark Twain tale

A surfer travels the world on a quest to save dolphins.

Juno is an average school student at Tempe High School, until he bonds with an ancient totem of great power. He gains incredible superhuman abilities and must push forward through whatever mystery awaits.

Two friends, Matthew and Josh are tasked with surviving a nuclear bomb.

The Road to Patagonia is a stunning, intimate and unflinching series of love letters within a documentary – firstly, a love between two people, and secondly between humanity and the Earth. Ecologist Matty Hannon begins an incredible solo adventure, to surf the west coast of the Americas by motorbike, from the top of Alaska to the tip of Patagonia. But deep in the wilderness - alone with the wolves and the bears - the journeyer’s plans unexpectedly fall to pieces. After losing everything, and on the cusp of quitting he meets the girl of his dreams, a permaculture farmer named Heather. Shot over 16 years, the result is an adventurous exposé on the more-than-human-world, offering a physical and spiritual odyssey to better understand our place in Nature.

From the world's most famous penguin parade on Phillip Island to the penguins living in St Kilda, we meet key characters who will attempt to complete their mission: to stake their territory, partner up and raise their chicks.

A man pleads with his estranged daughter to come back home, however nothing is ever what it seems.

A cop's hunt for clues becomes much more than routine as his search reveals a devastating truth...

A short, magic realist drama that explores antisemitism, queerness and spirituality. Daniel, a teenage boy caught in a web of lies, is pulled in different directions by his best mate and burgeoning Neo-Nazi, James, his secret lover, Isaac, and his orthodox Jewish father, Adam. As his ability to juggle his identities falters, he finds himself haunted by a Hasidic spectre demanding a sacrifice.

The lives and careers of iconic fashion designers Jenny Kee and Linda Jackson, who created a bold Australian identity through their clothes

Larry, an ordinary man going about his everyday life is entrapped in an epic battle between good and evil. Is he the chosen one of legend?

An insecure young man with a god-complex tackles feelings of isolation and lonliness one night with his friends when the TV reveals the existence of God, causing the young man's realtionships to reveal their vapid nature.

BURN GENTLY is an exploration into the ins and outs of the music industry, its growth, pressures, expectations and its hardships, through the lens of Australia’s many influential artists, contributors and industry professionals.

You Should Have Been Here Yesterday combines hundreds of hours of lovingly restored 16mm footage with a salt-infused soundscape by Headland. This cinematic poem tells the story of a wild community who took off up the coast and discovered a whole new way to live. Going back to the never-before-seen camera reels to ask the question – what do we keep and what do we leave behind? Featuring Tim Winton, Wayne Lynch, Bob McTavish, Albe Falzon, Evelyn Rich, Maurice Cole and many more. Inspired by Moonage Daydream and Jen Peedom’s Mountain.

The true story of a Sydney prostitute and her lesbian relationships and the unusual desire of one of her regular male customers.

The story of how an Australian and international community of blacksmiths, welders, artists and volunteers responded to the devastating Black Saturday bush-fires by creating perhaps the nation's most ambitious public artwork and memorial – The Blacksmith's Tree, a three tonne, 9.8-meter tall stainless steel and copper gum tree.

Peeling back the veneer of civilized humanity, Spinneret reflects on the animal instincts we pretend we can control.

A husband and wife take extreme measures to free themselves from an abusive marriage.

Three young misfits venture into the Australian outback to find what they believe is a meteorite that has crash landed near their country town, only to discover it's something far more mysterious.

A long, long time ago Alex Proyas (Director of 1994's "The Crow", 1998's "Dark City" and 2004's "I, Robot") directed a 1 minute 14 second short movie called "In Your Eye", which was shown on MTV occasionally.

An upbeat, witty, and timely exploration of a global community of artists creating innovative work in their quest to rediscover and revitalise the endangered Yiddish language. From behind-the-scenes with an acclaimed Yiddish-language version of Yentl in Melbourne, to enjoyably transgressive punk-Klezmer musicians, and Barrie Kosky’s latest trailblazing production in Berlin – the endangered Yiddish language is alive and well in this rousing documentary. The language originated amongst the Jewish community in Eastern Europe, but almost disappeared when more than half of the world’s Yiddish speakers were murdered during the Holocaust. Most of the artists and performers (aka Yiddishists) in the film didn’t grow up speaking Yiddish, but all have found solace, identity, and inspiration in its rich traditions and culture. Ros Horin has mapped a fascinating cultural history.

In Skin Deep, Palmateer explores her own interpretation of what it means to be free. By stripping down and riding waves in remote and idyllic locations, she undertakes a journey towards uninhibited self-expression.

Claudie seeks advice from an old flame as a new love is born from the embers.

Two Warlpiri boys grow up together in a small remote indigenous community. They find strength in family and culture when troubles turn up on a trip into town.

MUFFLED LOVE is a feel-good comedy about getting the romantic bits right.

Actor, Comedian, and Social Media Superstar Celeste Barber exposes the stories behind some of her most famous Instagram celebrity parody images, her new relationships with famous people, the pitfalls of being married to someone so much hotter than her, and what it’s like to be an Anti-Influencer.

An intelligence officer struggles to remain impassive when faced with the choice to save a female asset from her violent husband, or to force her back into her abuser's arms.

Hendrix's best friend, Harris goes missing in the Spring of Valentine. Only Harris and the Nerina sisters know the truth of what actually happened in that Garden of tragedy. Based on Hylas and the Nymphs.

In 1974, Countdown burst into loungerooms all over the nation and set the music scene on fire. 50 years on, the ABC is inviting you back to the party to celebrate the little Aussie show that became a global phenomenon.

Roo remains mute as he fends for survival with his sister collecting recycle bottles, working in a run down paper factory and living in a squat. A social worker arrives and tries Reiki therapy to heal what she feels is a deeper pain inside him, which begins to uncover the sinister past and events of this brother sister relationship, leading to a final twist.

Play time is a lot more fun when you wiggle. Just ask Greg, Murray, Anthony and Jeff…otherwise known as The Wiggles®. Watch as this band from "down under" turns play time into a giggly, wiggly, musical celebration in this compilation of three episodes from the "Wiggles Television" series in Australia. Dorothy The Dinosaur will be there. So will Wags the Dog, Henry the Octopus and Captain Feathersword. So get ready to put your hands together and sing alone while The Wiggles keep you moving and grooving all day long. You’ll learn about the importance of family and friends as you make some new friends of your own! Play time has always been a time for giggles, and now it’s the perfect time for The Wiggles.

A young man who goes door to door in search of an automotive apprenticeship spends his free time kicking up dust doing donuts with his buddies on the outskirts of Melbourne.

A man returns to his country only to find a society where citizens police each other with their mobile phones and where there is more freedom inside prison rather than outside it.

Antigone arrives in Sydney from Greece to have an arranged marriage with Telis, but is rejected by him as he expected a younger woman. Telis's older brother, Manolis, sympathizes with Antigone.

Tom Gleeson uses his confidence and dry wit to reflect on the events of 2020, and everyone from the Victorian government to Byron Bay locals are in the firing line.

A forbidden attraction divides a family.

A young mother, Von struggles to raise her son Jackson, who is affected by high-functioning autism. Facing social problems at school and challenged by his own disability, Jackson loses his self-esteem and ambition, abandoning his favorite passion: sketching. Von and her husband must put aside their own mounting financial and personal issues to give Jackson the strength and inspiration to pick up his pencil again.

With an impending eviction hanging over their heads, freshly unemployed Maggie, gig-economy worker Will, and feuding couple Isabelle and May embark on a seemingly futile hunt for an affordable share house. Along the way they encounter unsanitary toilets, attic kitchens, and an alleged haunting. As Will forms an unlikely friendship with a war veteran, Isabelle hits it off with her local barista, and endless mishaps, coincidences and hook-ups gone awry abound.

Chronicles the story of NASA. From the legacy of Gemini and those first breathtaking walks in space to playing golf on the moon and to everyday life in space where little things can present the most amusing problems -- like eating breakfast!

A dark comedy about the evolving relationship between two people who are completely different save for one thing; they both want to die.

Celia has always been obsessed with the future, but planned for none of it. She has created a name for herself both here and in the UK, performed at the three major comedy festivals around the world and was nominated for the Barry Award at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival in 2014 with this show. Celia is also a rising star of the small screen appearing on everything from Utopia and Offspring to Have You Been Paying Attention?, Spicks and Specks and Dirty Laundry. Why not go? She could get hit by a bus tomorrow.

A housewife (Perri Cummings) who becomes infected with the vitriolic words of a bigoted talk radio host, in this commentary on the culture of fear and distrust spread by the media post-9/11. Created for Drafthouse Films’ THE ABCS OF DEATH ‘26th Director’ competition.

A customer tells a cautionary tale of the dangers of public transport. Part of a series of short films animating real life conversations between a 2nd hand shop worker and their customers.