FLICKERFEST 2010

A film about grief and growing up written and directed by Newtown-based film maker Craig Boreham is one of a raft of local productions to feature at this year’s Flickerfest short film festival, which kicks off tonight at the Bondi Pavilion. Drowning explores the changes wrought on a teenage boy after the death of his older brother – his place in the family, his relationship with his best friend and his sexual awakening. “I was interested in the unspoken aspects of grief, the way you can be torn apart inside and on the outside you can look perfectly fine,” Boreham explains. “The central characters are young men and even more detached from expressing their needs, which internally may be destroying them from within. Even though it is a very Sydney world, the themes and characters and what they are going through are universal and will hopefully ring true no matter where the film is seen.” With 97 films selected from more than 1600 entries from across the world, the 19th Flickerfest has a strong local presence – 45 feature films and five documentaries are Australian. Another film from a Sydney-based director is Liebermans In The Sky, an off-beat comedy and Cabalistic journey about a hapless waterbed salesman written and directed by AFTRS graduate Richard Vilensky. “The film taps into not only personal experience but also the fears and anxieties that exist in modern Jewish culture in Australia,” Vilensky explains. “What I want to say with this film is that there is catharsis and joy in failure.”

Jan 8-17, Bondi Pavilion, Bondi Beach, 1300 306 776 or mca-tix.com.au