Jun 6, 2012

My Sydney Film Festival 2012 Schedule

Instead of bore-ing you with details as to why I don't blog enough, I'd like to share my schedule for this year's Sydney Film Festival. It seems like everyone has done one, so why not paint myself like a sheep and join in!

Sydney Film Festival means a bit more than watching movies all day and being completely immersed in festival-mode for over a week. To me it was arguably (between me and, myself) the starting point at which I began my love for film and desire to work at film festivals. My first SFF was in 2009, when I had just left a photomedia degree for film school. I thought volunteering at SFF would be a great way to watch lots of films and meet like-minded people. Watch lots of films, and meet like-minded people I did. I volunteered at a range of other film festivals after SFF that year, and also broadened my knowledge on film distribution through festivals. I also met Kieran who, in flowerless language, is my partner in crime to this very day. So SFF has been a bit of a significant event in my life, and it's always a pleasure (understatement) to be returning to it year after year since that very memorable year of 2009.

I was lucky enough to be able to book into more films than usual this year after receiving a flexipass gift from Kieran. We split it, of course, and still bought another afterwards. Unfortunately this year I am missing out on 3 full days of festival goodness due to travel.

There are some other films I wish I could fit in. To name a few, BULLY, MONSIEUR LAZHAR, POLISSE, THE KING OF PIGS and HOLY MOTORS.

Anyhow, here's my schedule for this year's Sydney Film Festival:

JUNE 6
Woody Allen: A Documentary
Tatsumi

JUNE 7
La Pirogue

JUNE 8
Moonrise Kingdom

JUNE 9
Beasts of the Southern Wild
Maori Boy Genius
The Imposter

JUNE 10-12
away 

JUNE 13
Headshot

JUNE 14
The World Before Her
Our Homeland

JUNE 15
For Ellen

JUNE 16
Postcards From The Zoo
Side By Side
The Last Dogs of Winter

JUNE 17
Undefeated

And to finish this post, I thought I'd share this memorable scene from Annie Hall. I sure hope I don't have to listen to anyone like that in the queues this year!

Apr 2, 2012

Janet Cardiff's 'Audio Walks', a look at locative media

In my media class today, we looked at the history and ideas in locative media and mapping. We were shown this great example of locative media by artists Janet Cardiff and George Bures Miller whose collection of works titled Audio Walks demonstrate the use of audio as a way of telling a narrative or imaginary stories that relate to a particular, physical space in which the participant is required to move and interact with through a series of audio clips.


Cardiff's introduction to the Audio Walks sums it up perfectly:
The format of the audio walks is similar to that of an audioguide. You are given a CD player or Ipod and told to stand or sit in a particular spot and press play. On the CD you hear my voice giving directions, like “turn left here” or “go through this gateway”, layered on a background of sounds: the sound of my footsteps, traffic, birds, and miscellaneous sound effects that have been pre-recorded on the same site as they are being heard. This is the important part of the recording. The virtual recorded soundscape has to mimic the real physical one in order to create a new world as a seamless combination of the two. My voice gives directions but also relates thoughts and narrative elements, which instills in the listener a desire to continue and finish the walk.

I found that this was such a great idea and method for storytelling that combines the aural pleasure and effect of listening to a soundscape while moving through a space which corresponds to the audio. After hearing Her Long Black Hair (2004), I loved this idea of dislocation between time and space, the relationship between the physicality of a space and our perception of imaginary space through audio. I'll have to do a bit more research on this form of locative media and mapping to find out if there was something similar in Sydney. It would definitely be worth looking out for and experiencing.

Mar 31, 2012

The Opening Monologue to 'Manhattan' (1979)

I am late for many things. For this I am well known for. Many things include great classics, like Woody Allen's Manhattan which I have finally (emphasise - finally) seen tonight.



There is nothing dishonest about Allen's films from what I have known - I have only seen this, with his newer films Match Point, Vicky Cristina Barcelona and possibly something else I fail to remember at this stage. He is so honest and self-deprecating that he is so enjoyable to watch, especially in a film like Manhattan. I have always seen him as the kind of director and writer who will make anything he chooses, and will not care to hear about what you think of it because in fact he already knows. For this, I really admire him for that.

So, next on my to-do list, or 'homework' - forget about the cultural industries and practices readings, see Annie Hall (1977).

By writing so here, I will feel much more obliged and willing to do it. I should try it out some time on readings - it might work.

Christian Marclay's 'Telephones', 1995

A multitude of characters, one single phone call, many different emotions. This great little clip is a 7-minute long 'compilation' of snippets from scenes that involve a phone call - from dialing a number to hanging up - from films that span the history of Hollywood as far as interests go.


I love the moment when every conversation becomes silent, as each character listens back into the earpiece and react in their own way. We might not necessarily know the contexts of these films to completely understand what is being said and felt, but I feel therein lies the magic of this piece.

Mar 30, 2012

Adolescence in 'Beginners'

I recently revisited Mike Mills' second feature film Beginners (2010) after giving in to my quite embarrassing reignited love of Ewan McGregor (I saw Perfect Sense (2011) over the weekend, more on that next time) and thinking about Mike Mills' interesting graphic design and slightly quirky, dislocated style. (That is not to say his films are not cohesive in any way!)


A film seen twice is an entirely different film all together. I love Mike's playful and awkward take on the innocence within every one of us, older, old or young. We lose and we have lost - still it makes us no less of the adolescent we were in our past, and we are still beginners this way. We love and find happiness, yet it makes us fearful. We fear our future, yet it makes us more of who we are.

It's interesting to see that even in Mike's first feature film Thumbsucker (2007) he explores this idea of adolescence and a sense of 'coming of age'. I love this idea of everyone no matter how old is still 'coming of age' - whether they are falling in love again at 38, or dying of cancer. Beginners has a sort of honesty that says 'Y'know what? It's okay to grow up and still be scared'. These ideas are something I'd really like to explore somewhere. I'm always reminded to look back on my childhood for inspiration, and seeing this again has brought me back to this idea.

Mar 11, 2012

'What is the film that made you want to continue exploring Korean cinema?' (Part 2)

To continue on from my entry on how I discovered Korean cinema, I've decided to talk about another film that really changed the way I looked at Korean film and the different ideas in cinema. My previous entry highlighted my first Kim Ki-duk experience, and it was the beginning of what I am today.

I raved about 3-Iron (2004) and how much I loved it to Kieran not long after that. I had already, by then, heard about a few big names in the Korean film world. Bong Joon-ho, Kim something or rather, another Kim this and that, and then - Park Chan-wook. I heard much about Old Boy (2003) throughout film school, here and there in pockets throughout the interwebs and still did not rush to see it. It was kind of like the hype around Kill Bill (2003). It's awesome, It's epic, It's amazing. Or so I had heard. Kieran had a couple of Park's films in his gargantuam of a DVD collection, one of which was J.S.A.: Joing Security Area (2000), a film I had not heard about and had little interest to see at the time. The title alone was uninteresting - that and I had little concrete knowledge of the DMZ and the current situation between the North and South. I looked past all of this and decided to give it a go.


I'll be absolutely honest with you: I could not and did not get through the first 20 minutes of the film in my first viewing. It was all talk, no substance to me. I wasn't paying attention to the lengthy discussions between Lee Young-ae's character and Mr Tall Swiss man, who to me seemed like an excuse of a 'white' man in an Asian film. I fell asleep, and looked no further past the beginning. Kieran had told me what a great film it was, and I simply could not see it. And that was that.

Mar 7, 2012

'What is the film that made you want to continue exploring Korean cinema?' (Part 1)

After writing a piece on genres in Korean Cinema for last year's Korean Film Blogathon, I decided to take part in the challenge again. This year I am writing a short series based around the question 'What is the film that made you want to continue exploring Korean cinema?' I felt it would be a good way to reflect on the last few years and where I am today, an assistant film programmer at Cinema On The Park and being heavily involved in the coordination of the first Korean Film Festival in Australia over the past 2 years.

This entry is also available on the KOFFIA Blog. I highly recommend that you have a read of some of the other great entries taking part in this year's blogathon.

Hope you enjoy the next few entries. Do come back in the next few days for my next entry.

Feb 20, 2012

'This Is Not Poetry'

Seeing as though this will be my official 100th post, I thought I'd do something special like release my graduating short film online and here.

People said that as soon as you leave film school, it is easy to lose track of your films for other things like work and life. It is true. For one and a half years, I was constantly promising myself to complete my graduating short film but to no avail. 'Things' kept coming up, and as it dragged on and on, I didn't really care as much for what I had done, and I'm sure the anticipation to see it eventually died out.

While there are still many things I would like to fix in this film, I can't say that I'm unhappy with the overall work that I have achieved. And thanks to an amazing cast and supportive crew, this idea simply would not have happened.

Here it is. I hope you like it. Please do leave a comment with your thoughts on it, I welcome criticism too.

'This Is Not Poetry'
A young man writes poetry about his love for a girl, only to achieve nothing more than words.

Jan 27, 2012

4A Presents Cinema Alley 2012: Double Vision

On the topic of Asian/Asian-Australian film distribution and the embracing of real multicultural diversity in Australia, 4A Centre For Contemporary Asian Art hold an annual film event called Cinema Alley. Held on Parker St, an alleyway in the heart of Chinatown only a short distance from the gallery's centre, Cinema Alley brings contemporary visual art from both Asian and Australian video artists into the setting of an urban landscape such as Sydney's city. The event hopes to generate and encourage discussions about Asian culture in the city.

 Cinema Alley packs a huge crowd!

This year, the event features the theme 'Double Vision'. Two screens will be spread across Parker St to show both double-channel and single-channel video formats. The two screens will 'create a layering and collision of images', and engage audiences in a new way of experiencing cinema.

 Hiwa K. 'Moon Calendar' (2007) still from video

Some of the artists featuring this year are Peter Alwast, Hiwa K, Kiran Subbaih, and Jun Nguyen-Hatsushiba. The night also features two Chinese artists, Miao Xiaochun and Liang Wei. I've always thought of contemporary Chinese art as being refreshing given the context of China's rapidly changing landscape, so this is great to hear and I certainly can't wait to see what is in store at this year's event.

Amongst the list of artists is Apichatpong Weerasethakul, the highly controversial, contemporary Thai director who's latest film, the beautifully surreal Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (2010) was rewarded the top prize at Cannes Film Festival in 2010, the Palme d'Or. His short film 'Faith' from 2006 will be screening at this year's Cinema Alley.

Apichatpong's 'Faith' (2006) stills from video

Cinema Alley is a free, one-night only event and is being held this Friday evening, February 3rd. While the event is unfortunately sold out, there is a waiting list which you can join and if upon the chance that places are withdrawn from then there is a chance to get in. 

The event coincides with City of Sydney's Chinese New Year celebrations. This will be my first time visiting the annual event, and I'm hoping it will be an enlightening one!

Cinema Alley 2012 - Double Vision
Friday 3 February
@ Parker St, HAYMARKET
8PM Screening / 7PM Bar Opens
Organised by 4A Centre For Contemporary Asian Art

FEATURING
PETER ALWAST
HIWA K
NASIM NASR
LIANG WEI
MIAO XIAOCHUN
JUN NGUYEN-HATSUSHIBA
KIRAN SUBBAIAH

APICHATPONG WEERASETHAKUL
+ SELECTIONS FROM  THE 4A ANIMATION PROJECT

Jan 26, 2012

Michel Gondry's Big ideas continue

Stumbled across this fantastic, crazy Japanese commercial for a clothing store directed by the one and only Michel Gondry. It features his signature giant body parts which featured in many of his music videos including Foo Fighters' Everlong and in his film The Science of Sleep (see below).


It's slightly maniacal, but also great fun and true to Gondry's hugely imaginative style. Whatever medium he chooses to work with, from feature films to short minute-long commercials, he's still able to bring to us a piece of his insanely colourful world with amazing style. See below for this wacky new Japanese commercial.





Jan 25, 2012

Notes on the Malaysian film industry: diversity and multiculturalism

I've been back in Malaysia for just about a week now, and it's been a quiet one. As you may have already heard, this week people have been celebrating Chinese New Year across the globe, and like most Asian countries, everything in Malaysia is 'on hold' for the entire week. The public holiday only applies for two days, but it is pretty usual to have businesses close for the rest of the week, and employees of all races take the 'unspoken' kind of annual leave.

I'm always curious to find out more about the film industry in Malaysia - how it works, what sort of funding filmmakers can apply for, what sort of films succeed at the box office, etc. While I haven't quite got all the answers to those questions yet, I've noticed a large number of cinemas that release country specific films. For example, cinemas in the city or popular malls will screen most of the Hollywood blockbusters and big international titles. What interests me is the ratio of Hollywood titles are to Asian titles (be it Malay-produced, or from Asian countries such as Hong Kong, Taiwan, India or Japan).

Some of the films out in Malaysian cinemas. Top left, right: The Viral Factor (Cantonese), All's Well End's Well (Cantonese). Bottom: Nanban (Tamil)

In almost every cinema across the city (from larger mall-based ones to smaller), there is almost a 1:2 ratio of Asian titles to Hollywood ones. In some cinemas a little further outside the city, the ratio of Asian titles to Hollywood ones was almost 2:1.

The first thing this shows is how multicultural this country really is. Never-ending racial conflict aside, if there are cinemas that purely represent or favour the Asian communities over international/American titles, it really proves to you how the Malaysian film industry promotes diversity.

 A still from Sepet (2004), a Malaysian film written and directed by one of my favourite directors the late Yasmin Ahmad. The film is a modern-day, Malaysian Romeo and Juliet story with a twist on racial divisions in Malaysian society. This is one of my all-time favourites.

Understandably, Malaysia is a country where language can be a barrier for many different reasons, some geographical which may explain the different types of cinemas in Kuala Lumpur and outside of the city. A ratio like 2:1 in favour of Asian titles though, well, I think that speaks for itself.

If Australia is a multicultural country as it so often calls and bathes itself in, then why isn't there a similar level of treatment to diversity? In a country so full of Asian communities, why aren't there distributors helping to bring Asian-produced or Asian-relevant content to Australia to the same degree of crappy Australian-produced films? Why are Australian distributors turning a blind eye on Asian films, or Asian-Australian films when these are people who make up a good majority of communities across the country?

I do think that Australia needs to see more Asian films, or at least help to bring these films to communities with larger Asian/Asian-Australian population. I suppose that having said this, it is the reason why international film festivals such as Sydney Film Festival, Melbourne International Film Festival and even independent ones such as the Korean Film Festival in Australia are so fantastic in bringing films we would not have ever heard of, or will ever hear of again once the festival passes.

You would think that in a country that is so proud of it's multicultural approach and perspectives, people would at least practice what they preach.

Jan 12, 2012

The Wannabe 100th Post

I'd been saving this 100th post for a special entry, like a film review of a favourite film, or a preview of a new film I would shoot for the post - but instead, it has taken me almost three months to get something written!

Then I realise that this isn't my 100th post. It's my 96th, with four drafts in store. 
And then I realise again - I'm an idiot.

So, I'm going to carry on with what would have been the special 100th post, only just a little less special than what I imagine it could be. I thought I would write a quick post about the year that has ended, and of what I look forward to in this new year. I hope that this will start the ball running (yet again) for a long time to come.

Every year comes with its own challenges. 2011 was simply different. I went back to uni with a fresh mind, and with this came a fresh start to my future endeavours. The year and a half long hiatus away from the university life must have been the best decision I have ever made, and I don't think it is one I will regret. I did well in most of my subjects, and although I failed to make most classes in attendance, I managed to run away with results higher than the average student. I'm not one to boast about things like this, but I'd suddenly done miles better than I did when I first went to uni in 2008. That's got to prove something.

University life was no simple breeze this year. I juggled work with studies, and it is true what they say about doing so. It's no simple task. I cut down the number of subjects in my second semester to accommodate for full-time work at the Korean Film Festival, which was something I felt I needed to do and it had always been a desire of mine to do more for this young festival only in its second year. I substituted class time with over-time at the festival, and thankfully it didn't show in my end of year results.

I traveled around Australia more for film. And by 'more', I mean doing back-to-back trips to Melbourne, which is hardly anything. I saw more films at the international film festivals (Sydney and Melbourne), and for the first time traveled to a different city for work. Film had taken me to new places and new experiences in 2011.

I returned to Malaysia for the first time in a record (by my standards) two years, which was one of the best experiences I have had of my home country. It was refreshing and revealing of so many things I must thank for in life. It showed me a place in time that I'd forgotten, and wish not to forget any longer. It reminds me of how far I've come, and how time has changed everything. It's simply amazing how a place can cause such an experience to one's self.

2011 has taught me that in this industry, no matter the differences in cultural ethics between the companies you join, hard work is almost always left unnoticed. It's pessimistic of me to say such a thing, and having only been so immersed in the industry through internships, volunteer work and even the odd paid job (including the one I am currently in), I can assure you that all your hard work will often seem like it is never taking you anywhere. The number of hours you spend in over-time don't matter. The number of friends you lose from all those over-time hours don't matter. No matter how hard you work, you may always find yourself stuck in the same place without so much as a thank you or a pat on the back. The pessimist aside, I do still believe that there is hope to be seen some day. Such a thought can't be used as an excuse for working less hard, or striving to be the best. One day, it will all be worth the while, and I sincerely hope that this year will be the year when I see that glimmer of light. That light that says, 'Well, Raelene, you are definitely moving in the right direction.'

For now, in the early days of 2012, I await my new challenges. If I were to keep a set of resolutions (they are such a forgotten myth), it would be to teach myself patience. Everything will happen in time, and there will be as many opportunities in the future than there are in the present. They will be better, even. It will be better.

Hopefully I can look back at this post one year from now and be happy with where I am, in respect to where I was. It'd also be nice to look back at this post then and see that it wasn't my last post since forever!

So, here's to a new year, a new start and new challenges.