What on earth is going on at the Sydney Film Festival?

Mark Sarfaty, the recently appointed chief of the Sydney Film Festival, has resigned from his position just one year after his appointment, Inside Film has reported.

This is extraordinary news considering the festival is going through Chief Executives almost as quickly as Italy changes government.

Reading like the book of Genesis, Sarfaty, previous head of Dendy Cinemas, replaced Fiona Cameron who was in the role for just three months and took over from Clare Stewart who took on the role not long after she took on the role of Artistic Director when Tony Grierson departed after he replaced Jennifer Naughton.

Is it just a case of bad luck or are there undue pressures from sponsors, the board or from staff within? They certainly didn't have a particularly fun year after their program was cut short by a week due to global financial pressures.

So what keeps that door revolving?

Keep your eyes peeled for their annual report release later this year and whether its good or bad news. A good litmus test is to see whether its bad or not is to see how close to Christmas Day the Annual Report is made public.

I can't shed any light on what's happening down at the festival even though I worked at the SFF in 2006 in the marketing and publicity departments as a mere foot soldier with a group of great colleagues.

Next!

Review: The Pillowman at Company B and In Bruges at Sydney Film Festival

The Pillowman by Martin McDonagh
Company B

In Bruges written and directed by Martin McDonagh
Sydney Film Festival


Martin McDonagh is flavour of the month in Sydney at the moment. Not only are you able to catch Company B's excellent production of the 2003 play The Pillowman, but over this weekend you can also catch the Australian premiere of his debut feature In Bruges at the Sydney Film Festival.

For fans of his dark and brutal writing, there couldn't be two better reasons to get out into the wet and wild winter that Sydney is having at the moment. Just don't take anyone who is slightly sensitive to what one might call 'rich' language because from some reports people are walking out of the theatre production. This is not to mention the people I witnessed who got up in disgust from the film.

Doesn't it just give you the warmest feeling to know that people still get up and leave 'shocking theatre'? And it happens despite all the protective cushioning dressed up as warning signs that now plague our theatres.

So I will give it to you clearly. Martin McDonagh's plays are filthy rich in swearing, as he litters the text with feck this and feck that like confetti over a bride and groom.

The shame of it, for those that leave, is that the swearing is the least shocking element of his plays (or film for that matter). He has an elegantly forceful way of placing very normal people in extraordinary, absurd and violent situations that ask the big questions of personal responsibility, fate and choice. And despite the heightened situation it is all beautifully placed within the realms of possibility.

In The Pillowman, we meet Katurian K. Katurian (Damon Herriman), a writer living in a police state, somewhere, sometime with his mentally affected brother Michal (Steve Rogers). It smells instantly of the world of Winston Smith as the play opens up with Katurian interrogated by good-cop Tupolski (Marton Csokas) and bad-cop Ariel (Dan Wyllie).

Central to the allegations are some short stories which Katurian has written that depict violent scenes and violent deaths of children. A string of unsolved murders in the town similar to the stories as well as the toes of a child discovered in Katurian's home leads him to become the prime suspect.

Although the play is set within the confines of the interrogation rooms the stories of Katurian are told throughout, taking you to dark fairytale worlds of his imagination. But the dark fairytale soon becomes a reality as the childhood of Katurian and Michal expose a fractured and unresolved past.

Director Craig Illott has crafted a stylish and honourable production for Company B and along with designers Nicholas Dare, Jo Briscoe, Niklas Pajanti and Jethro Woodward they have created a world that does not overstate but passionately delivers the reality and fantasy of the worlds.

What is most beautiful, aside from the excellent performances from one of the strongest casts to be ensembled in Sydney this year, is the simple story-telling that has you enraptured like a child.

It was then an unexpected delight to then find myself walking into the State Theatre just yesterday to witness the Australian premiere of In Bruges directed and written by McDonagh in his first venture into the world of feature films.

Ray (Colin Farrell) and Ken (Brendan Gleeson) are hitmen who have suddenly had to hot-foot it to the Flemish town of Bruges at the order of their gangster boss (Ralphes Fiennes) after an accident. Waiting for 'the call' to give them the all clear, Ray despairs at the thought of having to spend two weeks in the 'shithole' of Bruges while his older companion delights in the medieval history, the canals, cobble-stone streets and the beautiful tower of the city.

Ray explains to Ken, "I grew up in Dublin. I love Dublin. If I grew up on a farm, and was retarded, Bruges might impress me but I didn't, so it doesn't."

And so it goes, with Ray despairing over his 'accident' until he stumbles across a film set in the alcoves of Bruges where he meets the stunning Chloe (Clémence Poésy).

The performances by Farrell and Gleeson are spot on as they wrap the delicious one-liners around their tongues, playing brilliantly off each other.

It's interesting to see McDonagh translate his writing style to the world of film. His biting dark humour, the swearing, the politically incorrect comments and the violence are all there. So too is his trademark ability to ask those questions of personal responsibility.

But somehow, his transition into film loses a certain something. Within the beautiful realm of theatre, it is his unique strength of conjuring up worlds and people outside the four walls that makes him such a stunning playwright. The theatre is a place where he can let loose his imagination onto the audience and create a pressure cooker of tension as the outside forces bear down on the stage.

In film, he has found the restrictions and is forced to re-create the reality of his imagination and show all his cards. Don't get me wrong, this is a fantastic film that is a hilarious and brilliant ride but for those who have followed his stage work, there is that missing element.

But then again, maybe that's the nature of the film beast.


The Pillowman - Directed by Craig Ilott Set design Nicholas Dare Costume design Jo Briscoe Sound design Jethro Woodward Lighting design Niklas Pajanti. Cast: Amanda Bishop, Marton Csokas, Lauren Elton, Damon Herriman, Steve Rodgers, David Terry and Dan Wyllie.

Images:
Top - Dan Wyllie and Damon Herriman. Photo- Heidrun Lohr
Bottom - Brendan Gleeson and Colin Farrell

But what on earth is it?

I think it is absolutely marvellous that the Sydney Film Festival has hurled itself into the 21st Century by establishing an official film competition.

The Sydney Morning Herald has reported that the Sydney Film Prize, worth $60,000 is the biggest in Australia.

I have stolen a photo of festival director Clare Stewart holding the prize from the Herald website (sorry). But the question has to be asked.... what on earth is that award supposed to be?

Some smarty-pants sub-editor at the Herald called it a Blue Pavlova.

The look on Stewart's face seems to be crying out 'Do I really have to eat this?!'

The Sydney Film Festival website calls the prize "a unique award created by Dinosaur Designs, pictured above".

'Unique' is certainly a word for it. Hideous could be another.

Don't get me wrong - I am a big fan of Dinosaur Designs, having bought numerous things from them over the years. But this award, it almost looks edible or maybe an oversized brooch that a friend has brought home from a community college class.

I think it could also be an excellent feature next to a pool. Surrounded by terracotta, it could be stunning.

But lets look at the practicality. Suppose it is handed over to a prize-winner, they hold it up into the air, the blue rocks reflecting into the crowd. They then go home, exhilarated that they now have $60,000 and a trophy.

The question then gets asked - where can I put it. It will roll off a mantle piece. If you put it on a table, people might think it's a big coaster. You can't put it in the bathroom, just in case someone uses it as a soap dish.

What do you do?

Now there's a short film plot, if ever I saw one. What's the theme for Tropfest next year??

Image credit: Tamara Dean, Fairfax Media

Position Vacant

Due to a restructure and the Operations Manager departing, the Sydney Film Festival have today advertised in the Australian Financial Review for a General Manager who will now report to the Board.

Please see details below.

Position Title: General Manager, full-time three-year contract

SFF Mission: To develop and deliver a sustainable world-class film festival, which engages all stakeholders and achieves critical acclaim by presenting a unique program, which inspires, challenges and entertains an increasingly broad and diverse audience.

Position Purpose: To manage the enterprise and with the Executive Director, to develop and action appropriate strategies to deliver the outcomes implicit in the vision and mission statements and as defined from time to time in the cultural enterprise plan. This position will manage the development functions of the enterprise with responsibility for building and maintaining effective and productive partnerships with funding agencies, sponsors and donors, and industry partners that maximise cash revenues and in kind support for the enterprise.

Further information and selection criteria can be found HERE.

The closing date for applications is 5pm Friday 14 December 2007.

To apply, please send your CV, with a covering letter stating how you feel you meet the requirements of the role, in particular addressing the Critical Selection Criteria, to jobs@sydneyfilmfestival.org, with ‘General Manager’ in the subject header.


Declaration: I am a member of the SFF and worked at the 2006 festival.

Review: To Be Romeo & Juliet

To Be Romeo and Juliet
A film by Robert Schlaht
Canadian Film Festival

For anyone who was disappointed with the less-than-revealing Sydney Theatre Company documentary In the Company of Actors which premiered this year, you will be pleased to know that there is a new film out there that sets the standard for arts documentaries.

To Be Romeo & Juliet, a new movie from film-maker Robin Schlaht is showing tomorrow afternoon as part of the Canadian Film Festival at Chauvel Cinema, Paddington.

I was lucky enough to be sent a copy of the doco a couple of weeks ago, and to my great surprise, I discovered a film that is raw, revealing and revelatory.

Without the promotional-like gloss of In the Company of Actors this documentary digs deep into the process of creating theatre by travelling with three sets of companies all staging productions of Romeo & Juliet.

One group is an amateur group based in England led by a director that tends to be all talk and no action. He becomes uncomfortable as the young actors playing Romeo and Juliet clearly need help in adding lust and passion to their roles. Indeed at one stage he suggests they go off to practice on their own.

The footage then switches to the young actresses bedroom, where the two young performers are left to their own devices as they try and become accustomed to the physical intimacy that they think that they need. Adolescent hormones, naivety and total lack of directorial leadership twist and turn their emotions as they become lost in the rehearsal process.

Meanwhile, the documentary skates across to Canada where a youth theatre production of R&J is under way. With teenagers on a holiday camp, they only have a few weeks to get the show up. The patience of the director to get the best out of his young charges who face the simple frustration of learning lines and working out how to play the characters while still remaining cool, is a testament to his professionalism.

Heading further afield, the film then looks at a professional production from the National Theatre of Chile. The scene opens up as the large ensemble ignore their scripts and hurl themselves at each other to create that sense of ensemble. Physical boundaries are immediately broken down as they push boundaries of theatricality to get to the heart of the director’s vision.

The delight of this film is that it not only documents the working process of each of the productions, but also throws in for good measure, the highs and lows of mistakes, ego’s and lost causes. The intimacy of the footage that Schlaht gets is phenomenal as the subjects of the documentary become accustomed to his constant presence.

It is the type of documentary that will make those familiar with the industry take another look at the cross section of process through the three levels. For those that are unaccustomed with the rehearsal process behind theatre is nothing short of revelatory.

If you have tomorrow afternoon free, I recommend you head to Paddington and catch this most worthwhile film.


The screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Robin Schlaht and drinks for the opening his new photography exhibition in the Chauvel mezzanine.

1st of December 2007, 2:00 pm - Chauvel Cinema

A Contagious Deficit?

The Sydney Film Festival has posted an operating deficit of $131,000 in stark contrast to last year's stronger than expected $32,000 surplus.

However, in a press release distributed yesterday, "the net overall position of the SFF stayed steady with the strong performance of the organisation’s reserves resulting in a reduction in net assets of less than $1k".

The SFF, in the same release also stated that "the two main factors contributing to the 2006-07 operating deficit were unforeseen structural changes in the film industry, in particular the introduction by distributors of film hire charges for titles to be commercially released subsequent to the festival; and the impact of extreme weather conditions on performance in the first week of the festival..."

It should be pointed out that the introduction by distributors of 'film hire charges' has been in the making for a number of years on a global level so should not have been unexpected by the SFF Board.

The press release also claims that one of the highlights of the 2007 results is that "the 2007 program was substantially more ambitious in scope, resulting in a 5.6% audience growth
with a total of 129,672 admissions".

However, this isn't as good as it first appears. What the release doesn't mention is that the program increased in size by 30% this year - which means the average audience per screening dropped considerably compared to the previous year.

This is not a good result for the festival especially after they had managed to turn around their fortunes last year under the directorship of Lynden Barber and Tony Grierson. In 2007 the Board replaced Barber and Grierson with Clare Stewart from the Australian Centre for the Moving Image, where she also ran into financial difficulties.

Next year looks a little brighter for the festival with an additional $1.8 million from the NSW State Government over four years, and the City of Sydney has also committed an additional $450,000 over the same period. It will be interesting however to see whether the costly expansion in programming will be reigned in a little by a board renowned for micro-managing the event.


Declaration: I am a member of the SFF and worked at the 2006 festival.

The Hedda Complex

Ian Darling, film maker, appeared on Sunday night at the Sydney Film Festival to present the new documentary that he has directed and produced, In the Company of Actors, which follows the Sydney Theatre Company’s preparations to tour the production of Hedda Gabler to New York’s Brooklyn Academy of Music.

Darling, also an investment services professional, described himself as new to the world of film and failed to mention to a packed State Theatre that he is now Chairman of the Sydney Theatre Company. He runs his own film company, Shark Island productions, and told the audience that it was a privilege to have been allowed into the rehearsal room to film the documentary. At the presentation Darling announced that a charitable organisation, The Caledonia Foundation, an arm of Caledonia Investments of which he is Executive Director, had generously decided to provide a grant to donate a DVD copy of his documentary to “every high school in Australia… to encourage a deeper understanding of theatre”.

It was Ian Darling who, as Chairman-elect of the Sydney Theatre Company, defended the appointment of Cate Blanchett and Andrew Upton as co-Artistic Directors at a press conference in November last year saying “we reached a unanimous decision that the intentions of Cate and Andrew were in total sync with the intentions of the board in terms of the artistic direction of the company."

The Hedda Gabler production in 2004 and international tour in 2006 was prominently in the headlines and marked the return of Cate Blanchett to the Sydney stage after a brief absence in Hollywood. Directed by current Artistic Director, Robyn Nevin and adapted by Blanchett’s husband, Andrew Upton, the Sydney season was a sell-out with “standing room only” and marked the first venture back to the Brooklyn Academy of Music for the STC since the less than successful 2001 tour of The White Devil.

This is a feel-good documentary about the STC family. Centring on interviews with the cast, who talk about some of their experiences in remounting the production, we also see some of the actor antics when they forget their lines or are waiting off-stage. We follow them to New York, struggling with subway ticket machines and preparing for a star-studded premiere and we experience the problems that the construction team have when the set is too low for the larger theatre in Brooklyn. Darling pointed out that one of the cast thought that it was like a “home video”.

The description for In the Company of Actors says “within the world of theatre, the rehearsal room is a sacred space, the private domain where boundaries are pushed, risks are taken, mistakes made, vulnerabilities exposed and, at its very best, magic created. It is not a place into which the public is often, if ever, invited. Until now...”

Unfortunately, as the documentary only starts with footage from the re-mount it misses out large chunks of casting and early rehearsal processes that have been captured in more recent documentaries such as Drama School (2001).

Indeed, it is hard to believe that there isn’t more interesting footage. It involves Robyn Nevin, who has a reputation for being colourful, during what must have been a very trying time in coordinating an enormous tour to New York and when the STC was involved in a number of public controversies.

It doesn’t mention the conflict that arose after the initial production in 2004 between actor Julie Hamilton and Nevin as reported in the Sydney Morning Herald when Hamilton discovered that she was to be the only member of the seven-strong cast not to be going on tour and that “Robyn Nevin could take on the role of Aunt Julle”.

Nor was the issue surrounding the lack of finances to fund the tour documented. Alexa Moses in the Herald reported in February 2006, that the Brooklyn Academy of Music footed the bill for most of the tour apart from around AU$250,000 which the Sydney Theatre Company had to raise through “help from the Australia Council, the Federal Government, sponsors and individual donations”.

The result is less a warts-and-all documentary about the STC and is more like a promotional video that has carefully orchestrated the public profile that the Sydney Theatre Company would wish to convey to current audiences and to young people around the country.

Both Nevin and Upton talk of the reasons for taking a production to New York, stating that audiences there are “intelligent” and “theatre literate”. It appears that the company has created a difficult situation by limiting local audience development over the years and anchoring creative decisions within the framework of subscriber seasons.

As subscriber numbers diminish back home in Sydney, the company looks to be engaging in a publicity campaign to develop a better public profile for audiences and sponsors alike. As opposed to touring big international productions and creating promotional videos, wouldn’t it be better for the STC to expand on more of its good work through recent productions and its Wharf2Loud programme?

This documentary may end up being counterproductive and instead of helping the STC’s reputation, portray the company as a little too paradisiacal to almost be unsettling. It could distance the STC from audiences that little bit further. It could on the other hand, open up a discussion that is desperately needed. What do Sydney audiences want from the STC? And what does the STC want from its audiences?

In the Company of Actors screens at the Sydney Film Festival again at 1.35 pm on Thursday 14 June, State Theatre.

Who is Edith Piaf?

It seems that there is a little bit of a chill coming from the south as they look on to see how this year's Sydney Film Festival fares. Festival executive director, Clare Stewart, who was previously Head of Film Programs at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI) in Melbourne is under the radar from many of her contemporaries south of the border.

The Sydney Film Festival which has had a lot of problems keeping its head above water, finally managed to turn a profit last year and the initial response to her appointment was one of surprise as ACMI was brewing its own financial woes.

Even ex-Telstra chief Ziggy Switkowski resigned as board president of ACMI as it recorded a $5 million loss in its first two years. It is clear that the Sydney Film Festival cant afford many more deficits, so hopefully Stewart can keep last years Sydney Film Festival finances going.

This year's programme again centres around the State Theatre, Dendy Opera Quays and Greater Union Cinemas on George Street. There was talk that Chauvel Cinemas in Paddington would also share in the programme which would add another feather to the cap of the Sydney Lord Mayor's City of Villages plans. But again that appears to have been squashed by a presentation partner.

The programming for this year appears to be very engaging with strands in locally made films, a special array of films from Turkey and Brazil, combined with the regular genres of 'red hot' documentaries, world cinema and gala events. There is also a particularly unique strand that deals with Accessible Cinema covering a range of topics from autism to blindness.

Melburnians, are however, curious about the opening night film La Vie en Rose, a film about Edith Piaf. They have already started heckling Sydneysiders resident in the southern capital with one source reporting the taunt "Hey! You're from Sydney aren't ya? Don't you know who Edith Piaf is?"

One thing about this festival is certain, our cousins down south are looking on with a watchful eye.



Disclaimer: I worked for the Sydney Film Festival last year for three months and I am a member of the Sydney Film Festival.

So, you've started a film festival...

Generally, I don't complain if there are too many arts events going on in Sydney, but surely, havent we now got enough film festivals now?

A couple of weeks ago was the big one - Tropfest - a short film festival held in the beautiful Domain in between Martin Place and the NSW Arts Gallery.

The Domain is a beautiful venue, complete with a fence of fig trees and the skyline behind. Bats fly over as thousands sit on picnic rugs with champagne aloft as they watch the selection of short films.

Tropfest started at a small cafe in Darlinghurst called the Tropicana Cafe. Hence the name 'Trop Fest'. It was a wonderful way to protest the conservative film selections broadcast on television and the showings at the Sydney Film Festival.

A few years later, and there are enough film festivals to fill your social calendar for a year...

Sydney Film Festival, Tropfest, Flickerfest, Queerscreen, Greek Film Festival, Serbian Film Festival, South American Film Festival, French Film Festival, Spanish Film Festival, Arab Film Festival, South Asia Pacific Film Festival, Message Sticks Indigenous Film Festival, Mardi Gras Film Festival, Sydney Travelling Film Festival, Sydney Seniors Film Festival, Eco Environmental Sustainability Film Festival, Indian Film Festival, German Film Festival, African Film Festival, Short Film Festival, Silent Film Festival, Sydney Fringe Comedy Art & Film Festival, Italian Film Festival, Bondi Short Film Festival, Women on Women International Film Festival, International Animation Festival, Eyescreen Short Horror Film Festival and Science Film Festival... to name just a few.

It represents a truly amazing diversity of Sydney's multicultural society. But sponsors, audiences and film makers must be goggled eyed by now.

Which film festival are you talking about again?

The even sadder thing is that most festivals pay very little money to film makers for the showing of their films. A hit film on the international film circuit can travel for months, with broad audience appeal and not even get close to recouping of costs. Not that that is the role of a festival, but it is a sad state of affairs for small film makers non-the-less.