That cat was out of the bag a few days ago on encore website

“People with management experience should consider applying for the CEO position, and people with high level film programming experience should consider applying for the position of festival director.”

My guess is the jobs will be on ScreenHub

PIFF

I am predicting Gasper Noe's new film ENTER THE VOID will be at this years fest. Check the mad opening credits

i'm a little bit afraid of gasper noe after irreversible. those credits look like they could be the prelude to something similarly assaulting.

Now recruiting for Artistic Director/General Manager

Do it chats! Artistically direct this shit!

Artistic Director AND Head of Programming?

How odd.

oh no, they are two separate jobs. My bad.

I also have my fingers crossed for Machotaildrop.

When is the full program released? Noticed the first bite program is out but not much took my fancy.

Oh. Sorry. June 9 it is.

i did not like irreversible at all. i thought the violence was just plonked in there to shock. it was presented in a very memorable fashion but what shits me is that all the talking they do ''before'' the attack is insufferably boring. that scene on the train in particular wouldn't have made the cut in any film that wasn't trying to teach me a lesson about how brutal people can be, something i already knew from superior films (just about anything directed by Lars von Trier).

Opening night announced:

MELBOURNE, 9 June 2010 – The 59th Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) is proud to announce that the 2010 Festival will open with the World Premiere of The Wedding Party, a Melbourne International Film Festival Premiere Fund title. Australia’s brightest stars and biggest names in film and entertainment will walk the red carpet at one of the most anticipated events on the Australian film calendar. Festival Director Richard Moore comments “In a film world saturated with grim visions of despair and existential angst, what a pleasure it will be to open this year’s MIFF with a sassy, irreverent comedy from first time local filmmakers. The choice of The Wedding Party continues the tradition of opening with a production from the MIFF Premiere Fund – and MIFF’s championing of new Australian film. Apart from the fact that The Wedding Party shows Collingwood losing to Carlton it’s a perfect way to kick off this year’s festivities”.

Originally known as Kin, The Wedding Party is the directorial debut for Melbourne filmmaker Amanda Jane. Set against the backdrop of an impending wedding, the film follows the romance and drama of the Thompson family who are dealing with the ins and outs of relationships. From a deviant brother, and a sister with intimacy issues, to parents who have separated as a result of the father’s infidelity, each couple must each face the one lesson that will get them through the complications of love. Boasting an outstanding ensemble cast of Australian screen talent including Isabel Lucas, Josh Lawson, Steve Bisley, Rhonda Burchmore, Essie Davis, Adam Zwar, Geoff Paine, Kestie Morassi, Nadine Garner and Bill Hunter, The Wedding Party will have the whole audience kicking up their heels on opening night.

“I couldn’t be more proud that the world premiere of the film will be screened on opening night at MIFF. Since the film is a Melbourne story created and produced entirely in Melbourne with the support of the Premiere Fund, opening night is the ultimate premiere. I would like to thank Richard Moore, Mark Woods and all of the staff at MIFF for their fantastic support throughout the entire journey of the film'' said filmmaker Amanda Jane.

steveholt said 5 days ago:

When is the full program released? Noticed the first bite program is out but not much took my >fancy.

Steve Holt, is a bastard

City of Life and Death - grim, but looks good, Battle for Stalingrad-ish.

Air Doll - probably not the best to watch at the festival...

First Squad - The Moment of Truth - was let down by the Sky Crawlers last year, but the Russians should do right.

Lemmy - I know someone who got a ''P'' pass at his Melbourne show, that's good right?

Four Lions - From the maker of the most complained about show in British TV history. Comedy-terrorists?!

Trash Humpers - Am really looking forward to this one for some reason.

Joe Dante tribute also

looking forward to trash humpers too, plus the new sylvain chomet film (the illusionist) should be pretty great

Air Doll - probably not the best to watch at the festival...

how come? i've watched it at home and i'm thrilled to get the chance to see it again in a cinema.

how come? i've watched it at home and i'm thrilled to get the chance to see it again in a cinema.

Too many weirdos. Have bugs crawling all over me just thinking about it.

Interview with the director of Teenage Paparazzo

Videocracy - unfortunately might attract the wrong crowd due to tits.

oh man, you're probably right. i remember when i saw a couple of shifty-looking creeps when i saw the notorious bettie page.

Videocracy - unfortunately might attract the wrong crowd due to tits.

you're probably overestimating people's commitment to perviness - besides if they come for tits and get a critique of Berlusconi's media monopoly instead then all the better

h man, you're probably right. i remember when i saw a couple of shifty-looking creeps when i saw the notorious bettie page

I remember being astonished at the number of old guys in raincoats when I saw Salo a few years back. I'm getting quite amped for MIFF again though they're not selling The Wedding Party to me. At. All.

The Merritt doco was great. Stephin and Claudia are such a sweet double act.
I thought the previous short suffered a bit in comparison - badly recorded sound didn't help.

I'm sick of people telling me I should have enjoyed Monsters more because it was made on a budget of 5 grand or whatever (not that anyone in this thread has been doing that).

If that low cost of filming had been passed on to me and my ticket cost 50c, sure, but it's not like the films problems had much to do with budget constraints.

what was the films problem then?

Agree on the lou barlow doc, pity such an interesting subject was badly served by a very average production - the magnetic fields doco showed how it should be done, fantastic effort and one of the highlights of MIFF.

I think my highlight of the whole festival had to be Nostalgia for the Light. Such a beautiful and evocative documentary about a place that means very different things to different people. I thought it was wonderfully shot and woven together using the concept of 'working in the past' to tie in the stories.

Milton Burlap - yeah 'Boonmee' was great, and for reasons hard to pinpoint. Even the pre-title sequence was an amazing little short in a way (the buffalo). For my money, Apichatpong and Claire Denis are the best we have at the moment, if you fancy a narrative splintered and refracted all over the place. There are a couple of related shorts that go along with Boonmee, you can watch them online - A Letter to Uncle Boonmee (costs $1!) and Phantoms of Nabua.

what was the films problem then?

unconvincing characters, some real bad dialogue, needless exposition.

certainly didn't think it was a bad film however, just didn't live up to it's interesting premise.

i thought monsters worked quite well. If you're going to make a low budget love story, you might as well have giant monsters in it and make a sweet profit from sequel rights.

yeah for sure, I think it's just a case of bad advertising...it was more a love story than anything else.

I thought the acting was quite good

Yeah I thought that acting was pretty good too. Few pretty cheesy moments but overall it was nice. I found Monsters the most relaxing film of the festival, just a 'sit back and enjoy' kind of a thing.

Anyone else see Life During Wartime? Re-watched Happiness, and love how they fit together - completely re-cast sequel! Doesn't get better than Michael K. Williams picking up where Philip Seymour Hoffman left off..

Thought Catfish was great too. Really well made. Only bit i was uncomfortable with was the portrait sitting scene at the end.. a bit cruel and unnecessary perhaps.

Honey was a bit slow, but stunningly shot and acted.

Boonmee - wow. i like it more now than I did yesterday. Excited about the companion shorts.

For my money, Apichatpong and Claire Denis are the best we have at the moment

good call. i'd say apichatpong is probably a notch above denis since the latter's white material was a bit of a letdown and she seems to be moving toward making more conventional films in recent years, having nothing left to prove. AW just keeps getting weirder, funnier, and all-round better.

Hey boner m... it's nice to be agreed with! I was kind of tired when I saw White Material and didn't enjoy it as much as L'Intrus and 35 Shots of Rum, but wasn't sure if it was just because I was below par on the night, so interesting to hear you were disappointed too. But both these guys make multiple-viewing films and I haven't been able to see them all more than once, so... might reserve judgement for now.

12 movies and 7 gigs in 17 days is a bit too much for me, now have a backlog of photos and sleep.

So. I went to see Boy last night. Loved it. During the Q &A the director talked about being pressured by NZ funding bodies to pump out a NZ style Wolf Creek....

On the Israel funding issue, it's common for cultural attaches and embassies to fund cultural activities from their homelands participating in local arts events. This might pay for artists costs, freight for productions, etc. If other artists object to this and want to remove their works on the basis of support coming from a country they don't like, so be it. But it seems a shame and a somewhat puzzling way in which to object by withdrawing public access to your work.

It seemed very ironic after the first episode of Carlos. You're basically on the side of the Palestinians at that point and outside some schmuck is protesting about israeli money.

new artistic director announced

Ah, the lovely Michelle. She'll do well.

Enter the Void now has a distributor in Australia. Still kicking myself I didn't get to see the Red Chapel.

I've mentioned this in its own thread, but since it screened in MIFF '10... Carlos is getting a run on ABC2, starting tonight - the three-part TV version.