There are few festivals in Australia that can say they support
local feature films and keep a straight face. MUFF is one of those
rare festivals.
I’ve discovered that festivals, not distributors are the
‘gatekeepers’ of the industry. You can’t sell a film without
reviews and buzz.
As a director/producer, I completely understand that festivals
are not a charity and in order to survive, they must program for
box-office results. But for most programmers, this translates to
only selecting Australian films with established names and/or million
dollar plus budgets, which basically rules out non-government funded
projects, cutting off independent cinema with new and unknown cast
and crew.
I’ve had the pleasure of meeting many Australian filmmakers, both
established and upcoming talents working across all genres and
formats and the running theme has been this: they did not receive
recognition here until the tick of approval from overseas.
The majority of our most treasured filmmakers are working outside
of Australia. Why? In search of financing is one reason. But another
is the rampant snobbery and not just for genre cinema.
In order to slow the exodus of the great actors and filmmakers
and regain local box office, we need support all the way down the
chain. This doesn’t mean celebrating poor quality films, but truly
recognising good work across a diverse range without needing quotes
from Variety or Harry Knowles to have an effect back home.
Despite these ramblings, I’ll leave you with this: a bitter, divided
industry will never be able to move forward. I’ve recently learnt
that Australian cinema commands a wealth of respect internationally.
If only we could see it ourselves. Long live Aussie cinema!
Steven Kastrissios |
