WELCOME TO THE 26TH ST KILDA FILM FESTIVAL The Victorian Government through Film Victoria is proud to support the St Kilda Film Festival in its 26th year of showcasing short films from around the world. Film Victoria has been associated with the St Kilda Film Festival since its inception and we are proud to support a festival that showcases distinctive Australian and global films and provides exceptional support to the craft of filmmaking. The St Kilda Film Festival is not only Australia’s premier short film festival, but is recognised as one of the worlds’ pre-eminent short film festivals for its curatorial strength and the momentum it gives to Victorian filmmakers and their careers. It remains a reflection of the creative heart and soul of St Kilda and Victoria at large. To the filmmakers who have films in competition – I wish you all the very best for your screenings. I encourage audiences to get along to as many screenings as you can and enjoy the feast of film the St Kilda Film Festival provides. On behalf of Film Victoria, I would like to congratulate the City of Port Phillip and the St Kilda Film Festival organisers for what promises to be another exciting year. The Hon. Gavin Jennings MLC Minister for Innovation St Kilda and the whole of the City of Port Phillip is a creative hub for the film industry. Many films are shot in and around the area and many film industry organisations, filmmakers, writers, actors and directors call St Kilda and its surrounds home. Now in its twenty sixth year, the St Kilda Film Festival has been a launching pad for many successful Australian films and filmmakers. The Festival caters for a diverse range of filmmakers and audiences. Two programs specifically support our young filmmakers; Armed & Dangerous and Under the Radar and we are proud to welcome back the Office of Senior Victorians as a Festival partner with their Images of Age program. There will be a free screening of some of this year’s best films featuring themes of ageing, as well as an award for the Most Positive Image of Age. That’s not to mention the concession discount for Seniors Card holders throughout the Festival. It’s not possible to name all of our sponsors and partners here, but I would like to make special mention of our government partners; Film Victoria and Screen Australia. I’d also like to mention Movie Extra, our major sponsor - without our sponsors and partners the Festival would not be possible. We’re taking the Festival to the road again this year so that film lovers in regional areas don’t miss out. We’ll visit towns all across Australia, from Mt Gambier to Meekatharra, so wherever you are you can enjoy some of the great short films that make up the 2009 St Kilda Film Festival. Cr Frank O'Connor Mayor, City of Port Phillip Short films continue to offer a unique viewing experience for audiences who enjoy innovative and exciting new work but occasionally feel jaded by the ‘cookie cutter‘ blandness of much mass market and arthouse fare where diversity and innovation are in such short supply . Over the last 26 years St Kilda has provided public exposure to filmmakers who fall into the ‘emerging new talent‘ category . Many have gone on to achieve careers in the mainstream but most look back with a nostalgic realisation that the short film medium offers a creative freedom that can evaporate in proportion to the inevitable pressures that go hand in hand with higher budgets and attendant artistic compromises. Whether you take the view that short films are the tentative first steps of filmmakers serving a career apprenticeship or view short films as a particular discipline or artform we are confident that you will enjoy the sheer diversity of work on offer this year. Paul Harris Festival Director Welcome to the 2009 Festival, and one of the greatest collections of Australian stories St Kilda has had the pleasure of presenting. Most of us struggle to see more than a handful of Australian films in any given year. St Kilda Film Festival offers a unique opportunity to see much more than that, with 100 of the best locally produced films yours for the taking, squeezed into just six days. This Festival is an enormous team effort and thanks to each and every person who has made this event what it is. Much of the programming you’ll see over the Festival has been put together by the amazing Amber Harris, making her mark as Assistant Producer in 2009. Over to Amber…. I encourage you to broaden your festival experiences this year, whether it means attending as many of the Top 100 films as you can, SoundKILDA, one of the five forums we’re running, the innovative youth programs, our strong international sessions or one of the many informative and social networking opportunities like Industry Open Day and Closing Night Awards. If you’re not happily exhausted by the end of the week you haven’t done enough. Don’t miss it. Amber Harris Festival Assistant Producer Adele Denison Festival Producer |