Movie Reviews

The Japanese Film Festival (JFF) in Australia makes a grand return to the cinema for its 25th year from 28 October to 5 December, with a national tour in Canberra, Perth, Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney.

Screening at the new venue of Palace Cinemas in each city, the 2021 Festival program will feature an expertly curated selection of films, from the hottest newly-released feature titles alongside action, anime, drama, documentaries and much more. JFF 2021 will also screen a FREE Tribute Series of films by Shuji Terayama, one of Japan’s most influential avant-garde film directors, in Canberra, Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney as a part of the Festival program.

Plus, for seven days in November (15-21), a free online program of five films will be available for movie lovers and japanophiles from across Australia to enjoy from the comfort of home.

Full program to be announced on 16 September, sign up to the newsletter to stay up to date at: www.japanesefilmfestival.net.

2021 Japanese Film Festival screening dates: 

CANBERRA: 28 October - 2 November
Palace Electric Cinema & National Film and Sound Archives 

PERTH: 4 - 7 November
Palace Raine Square 

BRISBANE: 11 - 21 November  
Palace Barracks & Palace James Street

MELBOURNE: 18 November - 5 December
The Kino Cinema & Australian Center for Moving Images

SYDNEY: 25 November - 5 December
Palace Cinemas Norton Street, Chauvel, Central, Verona

ONLINE: 15-21 November 

The 6th Melbourne Documentary Film Festival runs from the 1st -31st July 2021 Online and the 21st - 31st July 2021 In-Cinema at Cinema Nova as part of Documentary Month!

The festival showcases the very best documentaries from: Venice, SXSW, Slamdance, CPHDOX, Doxa, Hot Docs, VIFF, Shanghai Film Festival, Harlem International Film Festival, Chicago International Film Festival, and the Santa Barbara International Film Festival!

Documentary month comprises of:

140 + Documentaries, Web Series, VR and Shorts

4 World Premieres

15 Asia / Pacific Premieres:

40 Australian Premieres:

10 Victorian Premieres:

6 Digital Australian Premieres:

The Melbourne Documentary Film Festival is proud to showcase an incredible 60 Australian Documentaries, Web Series, VR and Shorts!

Of the 60 Australian documentaries being showcased, an incredible 19 of those are Feature Length Australian Documentaries! Also on display are documentaries from Filmmakers Warrick Thornton and Bruce Beresford!

Opening Night:

Will be on 21st July 2021 @ 6.15pm, featuring the World Premieres of two local Melbourne, documentaries:

Finding Creativity:

To be creative can be incredibly rewarding, yet the process of creativity can be arduous and fraught. Finding Creativity is a captivating exploration of the creative process through the eyes of established glass artist Holly Grace, celebrated chef and restaurant owner Coskun Uysal, talented singer/songwriter Henry Brett and accomplished social entrepreneur Jan Owen. The subjects’ personal stories allow for an enlightening and informative look into how they came to work in creative fields and how they actively seek out inspiration. We hear firsthand accounts of their successes and struggles as they share their respective approaches to creativity. From this, we more deeply understand what it means to be creative and how all of us have the capacity to embrace it.

The Healing:                                                     

The Healing is an inspiring documentary about transformation and getting a second chance in life. It explores a life-saving equine welfare program that brings traumatised ex-racehorses and traumatised military veterans together to help heal each other.​

Closing Night:

Will be on 31st July 2021 at 5.10pm with a live screening of the awards followed by Meeting the Beatles in India.

Filmmaker Paul Saltzman retraces his journey of 50 years ago when he spent a life-changing time with the Beatles at the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi's ashram on the banks of the Ganges River. In 1968, he discovered his own soul, learned meditation, which changed his life, and hung out with John, Paul, George and Ringo. Fifty years later, he finds "Bungalow Bill" in Hawaii; connects with David Lynch about his own inner journey; as well as preeminent Beatles historian, Mark Lewisohn; and Academy Award nominated film composer, Laurence Rosenthal. We also meet Pattie and Jenny Boyd. And much of this is due to Saltzman's own daughter, Devyani, reminding him that he had put away and forgotten remarkably intimate photographs of that time in 1968.

Masterclasses:

Masterclasses will be running online this year via Zoom and will be hosted by Chris Pankhurst of Documentary Life.

The Masterclasses are free to attend by registering at info@mdff.org.au.

· 24th July 2021 Experimental Documentary - with Ashleigh McArthur

· 24th July 2021 Introduction to Mobile Phone Filmmaking for Documentary Filmmakers from Cinespace

· 25th July 2021 Mental Health and Documentary Filmmakers - Doug Block - The D Word and Rebecca Day

· 25th July 2021 Documentary Open Mic - A review of rough cuts, trailers and feedback on short documentary - Helen Gaynor, Andrew Garton, Heather Mcintosh

Selected Highlights:

· Castro's Spies

The thrilling story of an elite group of Cuban spies sent undercover to the US in the 1990s. From their recruitment, training and eventual capture on US soil; this film peers into a secret world of false identities, love affairs and betrayal. Using never seen before footage from the Cuban Film Institute’s archive and first-hand testimony from the people at the heart of this story, Castro’s Spies gives a rare glimpse into the shadowy world of a spy – where the stakes are life and death.

· Floating

This feature documentary tells uplifting stories of ordinary people easing their pain and performing at their highest level through Floatation-REST (Reduced Environmental Stimulation Therapy). On the heels of ground-breaking research by clinical neuropsychologist Dr. Justin Feinstein, a principal investigator at the Laureate Institute for Brain Research, this film follows Shane Stott as he introduces floating across America to the people who need it the most and, in the process, helps them learn how to heal themselves

· ClayDream

A modern-day Walt Disney, Will Vinton picked up a ball of clay and saw a world of potential. Known as the “Father of Claymation,” Vinton revolutionized the animation business during the 1980’s and 90’s. But after 30 years of being the unheralded king of clay, Will Vinton’s carefully sculpted American dream came crumbling down at the hands of an outside investor, Nike’s Phil Knight.

· Alien on Stage

This is a story about a unique crew of Dorset Bus Drivers whose amateur dramatics group decide to ditch doing another pantomime and try something different. Having never done anything like it before, they spent a year creating a serious adaptation of the sci-fi, horror film, Alien; finding ingenious solutions to pay homemade homage to the original film.

For more information on the festival please go to www.mdff.org.au