Melbourne International Film Festival returns from 8 to 25 August, featuring more than 250 films from over 62 countries, two of which are AFTRS student films and ten alumni films. The festival also includes a World Premiere at the Accelerator Shorts Program.
From a period Gothic-Horror set in 1960 to a boisterous look at the Australian female adolescence experience and a film made as part of the Apichatpong Weerasethakul Lab in August 2023, the program brings a multitude of voices and experiences to the screen.
Here’s the roundup!
AFTRS STUDENT FILMS
Two films from AFTRS Master of Arts Screen students will represent the School. Withered Blossoms will have its Victorian premiere, continuing a successful festival run, after its World Premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in the La Cinef competition and its Australian debut at the Sydney Film Festival in June. Written and directed by Lionel Seah and produced by Miki Clarke, the short uses the hallmarks of slow cinema to convey a gentle and tender chronicle of the relationship between a twentysomething and her ageing grandmother.
Bőr will have its World Premiere screening as part of the Accelerator Shorts Program at MIFF, with director Dylan Ferenc Nyerges joining the prestigious Accelerator Lab. The selective-entry MIFF Accelerator Lab provides short film directors with access to workshops and networking events with leading practitioners on the business and creative aspects of the film industry. Previous AFTRS alumni who participated in the Accelerator Lab include Noora Niasari (Shayda) and Shannon Murphy (Babyteeth).
Bőr is a period Gothic-Horror set after the 1956 Hungarian Revolution. It is the culmination of two years of dedicated work inspired by Dylan’s heritage and experiences growing up in Thailand.
The film tells the story of Anna, an isolated Hungarian mother who has re-settled in rural Australia with a defeated husband and alienated son. Dylan said about the film:
“This is a story of cultural dislocation and resettlement, inspired by a very real moment in the histories of both Hungary and Australia: the 1956 Hungarian Revolution and its displacement of refugees. Combined with my own experiences of growing up in Thailand, I felt confident I could serve this story by pairing it with genre – to speak to an interior landscape that embodied otherness and transformation.”
Depicting the postwar migrant experience as a creeping nightmare, the film evokes an ominous mood, with Anna being haunted by her guilt, manifesting as a terrifying white presence that threatens to replace her. The arresting production, cinematography, performances, and design speak to a deeply committed crew who understood first-hand the experience the film was bringing to screen. Dylan said:
“We were also lucky to discover exciting talent who were open to collaborating with me in translating the text to performance. I was directing a foreign-language and there was a deep trust between us all. It was powerful and exciting work, especially when under the pressures of production.
I am equally proud of my team’s dedication and openness to the evolving nature of the work. We did extensive planning during pre-production which provided us ample material to wrestle in post. It was a pleasure.”
Producers Emily Bull and Farabee Kabir added:
“Authenticity was paramount to us, and we were fortunate to receive unwavering support from Sydney’s Hungarian community, whose generosity and collaboration enriched every stage of production, from development to post. Alongside our talented Hungarian cast and crew, our team comprised creatives from a multitude of cultural backgrounds, including members of Sydney’s Chinese and Bengali communities. Their willingness to contribute insights from their own lived experiences of migration and diaspora has imbued the film with even greater emotional depth.”
Emily and Farabee felt compelled to bring Dylan’s script to life, inspired by how the story characterised the impact of the migrant experience on the human spirit, shining light on the overlooked Hungarian-Australia story.
Through an intimate view of historical experiences, Bőr held up a mirror to our times when the number of displaced people has soared, exceeding 130 million in 2024. The team behind the film expressed hope to create a space for audiences to reflect on the urgency of care towards those forced to leave their homes.
The producers said about the World Premiere at MIFF:
“We are thrilled to be premiering at MIFF and to share this nuanced, striking film with Australian audiences. From the moment we heard Dylan’s soulful pitch, we were captivated by its poignant exploration of displacement and cultural erasure. This original Hungarian-Australian story confronts the complexities of the migrant experience and the darker, racist taint of Australia’s recent past. Set in 1960s Australia, a time when multiculturalism was synonymous with assimilation, the film portrays how migrants were embraced only to the extent that they shed their cultural heritage for the Anglo-Australian lifestyle. With its elevated gothic horror genre elements, this film feels timely yet fresh.”
ALUMNI FILMS
Another World Premiere at MIFF comes from a production that has joined AFTRS students, alumni, and long-time creative collaborators. Directed by Sophie Serisier, produced by Monique Placko and written by Laneikka Denne, Oi joins AFTRS productions Bőr and Withered Blossoms alongside AFTRS alum Grace Tan with her short A Daydream with Fini.
With a crew including AFTRS students and alumni Sophie Serisier, Monique Placko, James Mountain, Jarrod Young, and Annika Kumar, Oi looks at a hyper-sexualised Australian teenage experience. Its chaotic, turbulent central character uses violence, persuasion, sexual provocation, and indelible bravado to rule the school.
AFTRS alumni are part of the program with films ranging from Robert Connolly’s Magic Beach, which brings Alison Lester’s children’s book to screen in a magical mixture of live action and animation, to Tom McKeith, Rebecca Sawyer, and Tara Webb’s rural-set sci-fi thriller starring Succession’s Ashley Zukerman and Bethany Ryan and Serena Siow’s feature-length horror steeped in the trauma of the Stolen Generations. Let’s celebrate AFTRS alumni who have brought their skills and craft to various productions, from family-friendly animations to prize-winning documentaries and spirited short films.
A Daydream With Fini
On a sweltering summer’s day, two elderly friends talk about work, travel and dreams.
- Grace Tan (2021 Master of Arts Screen)
Aquarius
The age of Aquarius floods into Nimbin in this radical, love-fuelled documentary exploring the lasting impact of a 1970s counterculture crucible.
- Sam Griffin (2017, MA Arts and Business)
- Justine Kerrigan (1996, BA Cinematography)
Dale Frank – Nobody’s Sweetie
The greatest look yet at a well-known artist very few have seen up close, as the titular visionary recluse invites us into his home.
- Jenny Hicks (2020 Master of Arts Screen)
Every Little Thing
In this big-hearted, visually dazzling documentary, a Los Angeles teacher takes time off to nurture injured hummingbirds and finds herself on an uplifting journey.
- Jessica Wells (2004, Master of Arts: Film, Television and Digital Media Screen Composition)
- Caitlin Yeo (2002, Graduate Diploma of Screen Composition)
Head South
A charming autobiographical valentine to coming of age in New Zealand during the height of punk, which was the 2024 International Film Festival Rotterdam opening-night film.
- Jonathan Ogilve (1989, Certificate Video)
InVitro
A disturbing secret threatens a couple’s relationship in this rural-set sci-fi thriller starring Succession’s Ashley Zukerman.
- Tom McKeith (2010, Graduate Diploma: Directing (Fiction & Non Fiction)
- Rebecca Sawyer (2020, Bachelor of Arts Screen: Production)
- Tara Webb (2011, Graduate Diploma in Sound)
Magic Beach
Ten animators bring Alison Lester’s beloved children’s book to the screen, crafting a magical mixture of live action and animation that is destined to become a family favourite.
- Robert Connolly (1994 Bachelor of Arts Producing and 2004 Master of Arts Honours: Film, Television and Digital Media Documentary)
- Susan Danta (2006 Master of Arts: Film, Television and Digital Media)
Oi
When a brash, boisterous queen-of-the-schoolyard undergoes a traumatic experience, she must confront her own behaviour and unexpressed desires.
- Sophie Serisier (Current Student, Bachelor of Arts Screen: Production)
- Monique Placko (Current Student, Bachelor of Arts Screen: Production)
- James Mountain (2020 Master of Arts Screen)
- Jarrod Young (2018, Graduate Certificate Screen: Editing and 2021, Master of Arts Screen)
- Annika Kumar (2022, Bachelor of Arts Screen: Production)
The Moogai
Jon Bell expands his MIFF 2020 Best Australian Short Film winner into a feature-length horror steeped in the trauma of the Stolen Generations.
- Bethany Ryan (2012, Grad Dip Production Design)
- Serena Siow (2019, BA Production)
You Should Have Been Here Yesterday
Be swept up in this stunning homage to the birth of Aussie surf culture, compiled from over 200 hours of home movies, iconic documentaries and restored 16mm footage.
- Jolyon Hoff (2007, MA Film Television and Digital Media Documentary)
- Nick Meyers (1991, Certificate – Extension: Editing)
Bőr
Director – Dylan Ferenc Nyerges
Producer – Emily Bull, Farabee Kabir
Screenwriter – Dylan Ferenc Nyerges
Cinematographer – Tommy Thoms
Composer – Madeleine Mallis
Editor – Elita Guo
Production Designer – Craig Bornstein
Costume Designer – Nicola Burns, Craig Bornstein
Sound Supervisor – Luke O’Loughlin
Key Cast – Nora Goldbach, Akos Armont, Kai Pakinga
Withered Blossoms
Director – Lionel Seah
Producer – Miki Clarke
Screenwriter – Lionel Seah
Cinematographer – T Oxford
Composer – Kevin Chan
Editor – Jack Needle
Production Designer – Jordan Taylor
Key Cast – Stella Ye, Rachel Young
