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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
2012-05-02 Daily Xml
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SHORTS FILM FESTIVAL

Mr PICCOLO (Light) (15:42): On Sunday night I had the pleasure of attending a screening of the 2012 Shorts Film Festival being held in the Norwood Concert Hall this week. The festival is nine years old this year. What started as a tiny event held in a former motor garage has grown into a highly respected and internationally regarded film festival, which screens only the best 60 films received and has a luminary list of judges made up of industry, arts and media professionals.

Shorts is proudly supported by our own South Australian Film Corporation. Indeed, one of the founding directors of the festival was the former SAFC chief Teri Whiting, who has just stepped down as chairwoman this year. Support is also given in equal measure by industry professionals. For example, Australian film producer David Lightfoot has just stepped down from the board and has been named the founding festival patron. As members will be aware, Mr Lightfoot is one of Australia's best film producers, with notable projects under his belt such as Wolf Creek and Toni Collette's AFI Award-winning Japanese Story. The real-life and real industry advice and mentoring of people like Ms Whiting and Mr Lightfoot provide entrants with opportunities to learn more.

The remit of the festival is 'telling a story'. This festival celebrates function as much as it does form. It explores film as a medium to present a narrative, not to just look pretty. From the pieces of work I saw on Sunday night, the entrants are succeeding spectacularly. I saw a number of short films on the night, ranging from the quirky to serious drama, some with very strong moral and ethical messages.

I would like to particularly mention one film, not necessarily because it was the best of the night but because of my strong interest in the topic covered by the film. The film is called Restare Uniti, or 'Stick Together'. The film is about the experiences of Italian migrants who were interned in camps around Australia during World War II, which I have spoken about before in this place. This powerful film told only one story, but its message and theme was universal. It is about injustice, the injustice experienced by Italo Australians during World War II in this country. It was interesting to note the reaction to the film by the audience.

Apart from its obvious artistic merit most if not all of the audience were unaware of the internment policy during World War II. These filmmakers are helping to bring to life parts of our history that have not been well recorded or widely told. I wish to congratulate the former Curtin University students who have made this wonderful film. The producer and screenwriter is Daniel Tenni, a former Curtain University student. The director is Julius Telmer, and the lead actor is Frank Fazio. The two of them met at Curtin uni.

With very modest budgets the short filmmakers make some wonderful films. The prizes awarded to the top filmmakers are terrific not solely for the monetary value, which is considerable, but also for the opportunities they provide to the winners. We have to remember that these small budgets, which they work with, do go a long way. I understand, for example, that the filmmakers of the film I just mentioned are now in the process of making a feature length documentary that will tell the story in more detail, and hopefully they will go on to make a feature film.

One of the prizes from the film festival is an all expenses paid trip to an international film festival like Cannes or Sundance, which provides the winner with valuable networking opportunities and offers insight into the mechanisms of the global marketplace.

I would also like to highlight one particular prize. Taking its name from the same formula as the first and second prizes—Gold and Silver Shorts—the Black Shorts Prize is awarded to the best Indigenous film and is valued at $10,000. The prize itself is negotiable, but I think generally this is a fantastic initiative to promote young Indigenous filmmakers and get them noticed on an international stage.

There is during this week a phenomenal array of talent on display. It is almost a shame that there are not enough prizes to go around. I do not envy the jobs the judges have in trying to pick one winner among such a talented pool. These filmmakers are the Beresfords, Weirs, Hicks, Noyces, and Coxes of tomorrow. I wish to congratulate all the entrants on making it this far and wish them all the best in the competition.

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