ANODE FESTIVAL

It’s official, summer is (almost) upon us. With it comes that warm, breezy, devil-may-care frivolity that is to blame for empty wallets, heavy eyelids and daydreaming at work. If you’re wondering what to do with this newfound energy, Sydney is doing what it does best – a festival. The Anode festival is a, “genre-busting” season of art events across Sydney and Melbourne, connecting independent, local and experimental artists in unique spaces across the two cities. Anode celebrates everyone as creators, says artistic director Tiani Chillemi, and is, “very much about creating a framework for artists and other curators to come together and focus on their art rather than public liability insurance, marketing and production budgets.” Kicking off for its first full run in Sydney on November 21st, Anode promises to keep your cultural calendar chock-a-block. Films, exhibitions, installations, performances, walking tours, online projects and parties populate the eclectic program, which seeks to, “connect nodes of local artists and creatives.”

Beautiful Losers
Catch the opening night screening of Beautiful Losers, a doco following the trials and tribulations of the creme-de-la-creme of New York’s indie art stars that coalesced around the Alleged Gallery in the 90s. Champions of DIY skate, punk and hip hop cultures, these are nerds, freaks and outsiders come good, creators of one of the most influential cultural movements of a generation. Opening night features the doco, as well as “performers, video art, projection, pop-up bar and dancers.”

Sat Nov 21, Paddington Town Hall

Figures and Loops
Step inside the bizarre and passionate world of artistic roller-skating with this doco from directors David Regos and Walter Matteson. The film traces the journey of a group of competitors from small town California as they battle to reach the world championships in Germany. Glitzy, emotional and cut-throat, the film should be almost as exciting as the roller-skating display that will be going on outside the cinema.

Sun Nov 22, Paddington Town Hall

Sharing Stories
Sharing Stories is an online digital media project that offers people in remote and marginalised Australian communities the opportunity to jump on the digital bandwagon. Facilitating creative engagement with new technologies, the project aims to, “ignite positive engagement”. Recording of traditional songs, stories and lessons in new media ensures that this unique knowledge and culture is not lost in the modern burn.

Wed Nov 25, secret Redfern location TBA

Video from the Borough
Connecting Brooklyn, NY to Sydney, NSW this project, called From the Outside Looking In offers a series of video art projections, collectively known as Video From the Borough. Curated by Sydney artist and performer Robyn Wilson on her recent trip to New York, this is about as close to the Big Apple as you’ll get without leaving dry land.

Sat Nov 21, Paddington Town Hall

See www.anode2009.com/sydney-program.html for pricing and other details