Best Of Australian Shorts 1 – 2024
The 1st of seven programmes featuring the best of Australian short films in competition.
Our home-grown talent battle it out for the prestigious Academy® qualifying award for Best Australian Short Film.
Screening: Sat 20 Jan, 4pm | Runtime: 119 mins | Classification: under 15 to be w/adult
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Somerton Man
In the summer 1948, a well-dressed man was discovered dead on the beach at Somerton Park. No injuries, no identification, and every label removed from his clothing. There was no one missing who fit his description. A dead man with no name. He simply became ‘Somerton Man.’
AUSTRALIAN PREMIERE- Runtime: 10min
- Year: 2023
- Country: Australia
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Sleeping Beauties
The house that you were born in, is your destiny: While Ayse is yearning to escape from the family home in pursuit of her freedom, she sinks deeper into her dungeon. She is living under the oppressive regime of a patriarchal society. She is though dominated by her mother who wishes to place Ayse into a woman’s ideal life that the society depicts. Ayse beautifully demonstrates a soul lost in between two worlds ; one that’s tied to family values, home and one with an immense desire to break free and find independence in newly found lands.
WORLD PREMIERE- Runtime: 15min
- Year: 2023
- Country: Australia
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Lacerate
Gloria, an aspiring painter, drives on an empty tank. Under her skin something bothers her. Hands steadfast at the wheel, refusing to fill up, she tempts fate. Colliding with unspoken grievances she must reframe herself amongst missing paintings.
AUSTRALIAN PREMIERE- Runtime: 20min
- Year: 2023
- Country: Australia
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Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge
When 6 year old Wilfrid finds out that his 96 year old best friend Nancy has lost her memory, he sets out to see if he can get it back. A live-action adaptation of the classic children’s book by Mem Fox and illustrated by Julie Vivas, ‘Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge’ is a heartwarming story about memory loss and intergenerational connection, featuring celebrated actors Benita Collings (Play School) and Bruce Spence (Mad Max, Star Wars).
AUSTRALIAN PREMIERE
View trailer- Runtime: 15min
- Year: 2023
- Country: Australia
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What’s In A Name?
Whilst taking part in a larger documentary, a young couple rediscover fractures from a forgotten history.
View trailer- Runtime: 9min
- Year: 2023
- Country: Australia
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Unidentified White Male
A repressed high schooler must grapple with his masculinity and identity in the face of rejection from his unrequited love.
WORLD PREMIERE- Runtime: 9min
- Year: 2023
- Country: Australia
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Lean In
Moral-abiding feminist comedian, Rach, receives a massive blow after a show when she is rejected by the agent she was so hungry for. Rach’s brother Benny takes her out to his work Christmas drinks as a means to cheer her up. But in his world of sales bro’s Rach is pushed to see if she’s got the “tenacity” to survive in their world. Will she flip on her morals and throw her integrity to the wind to step up to their plate?
WORLD PREMIERE- Runtime: 17min
- Year: 2023
- Country: Australia
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Beautiful Things
A struggling poet. A recovering addict. A resentful matriarch. A fractured family, held together by a yearly ritual. However, this year there’s an unexpected visitor.
WORLD PREMIERE- Runtime: 10min
- Year: 2024
- Country: Australia
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Sideswipe
When relationship guy Louis gets dumped by his long-term girlfriend, the 30-something year old is left to navigate a brave new world of hookup culture. Desperate not to die alone, Louis swipes right for a frivolous fling while best friend Cam ditches the apps to manufacture her own Hollywood-style romance. The pair divide and conquer at a local bar and in one chaotic afternoon they learn that love is no longer blind, it just swipes left.
WORLD PREMIERE- Runtime: 14min
- Year: 2023
- Country: Australia