Four Australian films selected to screen at SXSW | WPN World People News

Four Australian films have been selected to screen at the 2014 South By Southwest (SXSW) Film Conference and Festival in Austin, Texas. Writer/directors Michael and Peter Spierig’s Predestination, directors Angus Sampson and Tony Mahony’s The Mule, and writer/director Hugh Sullivan’s The Infinite Man will have their world premiere screenings. Kitty Green’s feature documentary Ukraine Is Not a Brothel will also screen at the festival.

Predestination, a film noir, science fiction mystery from writer/director brothers Michael and Peter Spierig (Daybreakers), will screen in the Headliners section of the festival, which features major and rising names in cinema. Produced by Paddy McDonald and Tim McGahan, the film is about the life of a temporal agent who has to recruit his younger self to pursue the one criminal who has for a lifetime eluded him. Predestination received production investment from Screen Australia. The film stars Ethan Hawke, Sarah Snook and Noah Taylor.

Paddy McDonald said, “We are delighted to be screening Predestination, based on a trail-blazing sci-fi Robert A Heinlein short story, at SXSW, which is blazing a trail for media, creatives and technology across so many disciplines. It is real honour to be a part of, and afforded such a great platform at, such an amazing and important event."

The black comedy The Mule, co-written and co-produced by one of Australia’s most successful international screenwriter/actor/producers Leigh Whannell (Saw franchise), will screen in the Narrative Spotlight section, which features high profile narrative films making their world, North American or US premieres. Whannell stars in the film with co-writer and co-producer Angus Sampson, along with Hugo Weaving and John Noble. The film is directed by both Angus Sampson and Tony Mahony, and is also produced by Jane Liscombe and co-written by Jamie Browne. The Mule received both development funding and production investment from Screen Australia.

Leigh Whannel said, "Austin is a film fan's town and we are so excited to be holding the world premiere of The Mule at SXSW, a festival that embraces independent and original films... We cannot wait to see the crowd in Austin devour it."

The Infinite Man will screen in the Visions section, which showcases audacious, risk-taking artists in the new cinema landscape, who demonstrate raw innovation and creativity in documentary and narrative filmmaking. Starring Josh McConville, Hannah Marshall and Alex Dimitriades, writer/director Hugh Sullivan’s The Infinite Man is a time-travel comedy/romance about a man whose attempts to change the past reveal him to be his own worst enemy. The film is produced by Kate Croser and Sandy Cameron and was supported by the South Australian Film Corporation’s (SAFC) FilmLab, run in collaboration with Screen Australia.

Kate Croser said, “We are thrilled to premiere The Infinite Man at the SXSW Film Festival, given its reputation as one of the best launching pads for indie films like ours. Recent SXSW premieres include Lena Dunham’s Tiny Furniture, Harmony Korine’s Spring Breakers and Duncan Jones’ Source Code, and we couldn’t be happier to be in that company.”

The feature documentary Ukraine Is Not a Brothel, directed and produced by Kitty Green, will screen in the SXGlobal section, which hosts a diverse selection of international filmmaking talent, featuring innovative narratives, artful documentaries and premieres. The film, co-produced by Jonathan auf der Heide and Michael Latham, offers an intimate look into the lives of Ukraine’s topless feminist sensation Femen, a movement against patriarchy that has taken the European media by storm.

Jonathan auf der Heide said, “We're really excited. SXSW will be the perfect platform to introduce US audiences to our film and to the women of Femen. We've had a dream run with festivals so far and the film has been all over the world, but our family and friends here in Australia have yet to see it. We can't wait to premiere in Australia later this year!”

Source: Screen Australia