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Society & CultureSociety & Culture
Isla's Way Director Marion Pilowsky Talks About the Importance of Seeing the Story of an 87-Year-Old Woman in a Cinema in This Interview
Today
Isla's Way Director Marion Pilowsky Talks About the Importance of Seeing the Story of an 87-Year-Old Woman in a Cinema in This Interview
Much of what I do with The Curb is in a bid to shine a light on voices that may not often get the chance to be heard. That mindset carries through with director Marion Pilowsky's tenderly empathetic and joyfully curious documentary Isla's Way. Here we meet Isla Roberts.Isla isn't a lesbian. She's not a lezzo. She's not a dyke. She's just Isla Roberts.She lives with her 'friend' Susan and throughout the course of the film we hear their stories. Isla is persistent and resilient, living for her country and the ponies she rides with. She's shaped by the land and the land has shaped her soul and world view.In reflecting on the past, we see the way Australia has changed and shifted thanks to the women of the nation. Isla is a proud feminist, and her efforts to ensure that the women of the region are supported in their endeavours is rewarded by having a street named after her.Isla talks about a man she meets in a supermarket who has a broken back. He sees her hugging a friend and he asks 'What does one need to do to get a hug like that?' Isla's response is a tender one, outlining the process of how a hug works. It's that kind of physicality that feels like is missing in the bond between Susan and Isla. While some things change, Isla's mindset about how sexuality doesn't. Susan clearly loves Isla, and Isla loves Susan, but that love exists outside of labels.Isla's Way is a frank and open film, yet never a dour one, with natural comedy emerging throughout Isla's story. It suggests a transference of the ages. Isla talks about her wedding taking place in the registration office, where she misremembers briefly an absent husband (her now deceased partner Allen), meanwhile a wedding with her grandson takes place in a field surrounded by friends and family. Elsewhere Isla recalls the last time she saw her twin sister before she passed away. Later, twin great-grandchildren are born.The warmth of the past lights the way for time to move forward. Isla knows she will die soon, and so be that when it happens, but she also knows that her actions now will leave a mark. She talks about the collective actions of women and how men would never group together to organise a pony club where disabled folk can ride. She's right too.I'm grateful to know Isla. I feel many others will be too. I look forward to spending time with her again in the future with this gem of a film. I cherish these kinds of films completely. They're part of what makes us who we are.Equally so, I cherished the chance to be able to talk with Marion about the making of Isla's Way, and what her experience with getting to know Isla and her extended family was like. We talk about the importance of telling stories that are 'unsexy' or not attractive for funding bodies, and the power of seeing an 87-year old woman on a cinema screen.Isla's Way is currently making its way around Australia after its debut at the 2023 Adelaide Film Festival. Please do yourself a favour and make time for Isla's story. Thank me and Marion later. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Scott Hicks Talks About Exploring The Musical Mind: A Portrait in Process in This Interview
Nov 17 2023
Scott Hicks Talks About Exploring The Musical Mind: A Portrait in Process in This Interview
Scott Hicks is an Academy Award nominated director, with his Best Picture nominated film Shine bringing his work to international attention, alongside the work of the films subject, pianist David Helfgott.We're now some twenty-six years removed from the release of Shine, and the echoes of its impact continues to resonate within the creative minds of those who have become vessels for music. In Scott's latest film, The Musical Mind: A Portrait in Process, he explores just how that well of creativity is tapped into as he follows the lives and stories of four interconnected artists.First is David Helfgott, the centrepoint for each figure and a vital creative force who encourages, inspires, and energises those around him. Moments with his wife, the late Gillian Helfgott, show a supportive, nurturing relationship at work; one where Gillian sees the brilliance of David's mind and the manner that it operates and navigates his path of musicality.Then we meet the man who as a boy played the role of a young David Helfgott's hands in Shine: Simon Tedeschi. Simon is a genius in his own right, and with his story we hear how he navigated the complicated reality of being labeled a 'child prodigy', while also exploring the fractious state he was left in due to that level of reverence.We then flow into the orbit of another youthful genius mind, Daniel Johns. For many, we came to know Daniel through Silverchair, the iconic Australian band that worked with David Helfgott on their magnificent opus 'Emotion Sickness'. Daniel's story is one full of deep complexity. Here is a man who daily tries to grapple with what it means to be a creative entity. Like Simon, it's a complicated state to be in, and not one that Daniel himself fully understands as he sees himself as a conduit for the music, rather than being a musician himself.Finally, swirling into the orbit and feeling the tonal resonance of Shine play out in his own life, is Ben Folds. We see his Adelaide home and hear how his creativity moves forward in unexpected ways. In one awe-inspiring sequence, we see Folds train a captive audience in how to harmonise both together and separately, creating an aural experience that encompasses your heart as you hear it play out.These four figures - David, Simon, Daniel, Ben - each create a layer of a symphony that is tied together by the conductor Scott Hicks. The Musical Mind is a powerful and fascinating exploration of creativity and how important it is for it to be nourished and nurtured by those who see it emerging within individuals.In the following interview, recorded ahead of the films release on November 23, Scott talks about how his own creative mind works, how the sense of dreaming plays out when he's making a film, and what it means to be a filmmaker in Adelaide. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Bromley: Light After Dark - David & Yuge Bromley and Director Sean McDonald Chat About Creating a Space for Open Vulnerability in This Interview
Nov 15 2023
Bromley: Light After Dark - David & Yuge Bromley and Director Sean McDonald Chat About Creating a Space for Open Vulnerability in This Interview
Every so often a presence swirls into our lives in an unexpected manner and changes it just a little bit. For many Australians, whether they be wealthy or not-so-wealthy, that presence is David Bromley. Here is a celebrated artist whose work features on the walls of galleries and private art collectors, while the same artwork adorns cologne labels, reusable water bottles, and more. As mentioned in Sean McDonald's raucous and energetic documentary Bromley: Light After Dark, in Australian cinemas from today, David's work gives people hope, and hope is not something that should be restrained for those who want to access it by how much money is in your bank account. What this means for Bromley as an artist is that his work is everywhere. His critics would say he's overproduced and mass marketed, while his supporters - myself being one of them - would say that he's making high art accessible to all.Either way you look at it, a David Bromley art piece is a slice of his personality, and through Bromley: Light After Dark that we get to see that personality writ large on the cinema screen. Here is a person that's larger than life, full of energy, and supported by a loving family who champion his work and give his mind the space to be what it is: an ever roaming, occasionally anxious, place of darkness that, thanks to a wealth of soul-searching and self-realisation, has been splashed with enough bright paint that it has become a source of lightness and joy. It is, quite simply, the light after dark. There's an openness and a frankness to David Bromley as a person that encourages people in his orbit - and that includes the audience watching this documentary - to feel ok about sharing who they are as people. Watching Bromley: Light After Dark made my partner and I feel seen in an way that precious few films have made us feel. In one sequence, David and his wife Yuge drive a roller over his artwork to create a weathered aesthetic. It's one of the many moments that show creativity let loose. It's bloody energetic and entertaining, and it's done by two people who love and support each other in their creative endeavours.Thanks to the work that I do with The Curb, I get to chat or write about the plentiful creative minds that exist within Australia. I'm always in awe of their creative spirit, and how people manage to express themselves in a country that sometimes wilfully rejects creativity. For creative souls, there is a need to pour yourself into your work, and that need comes with a wealth of vulnerability. Allowing the melding of a creative mind like a documentarian to play with that vulernability amplifies that openness even more. It's that line of questioning which I put forward to Sean McDonald, David and Yuge Bromley in the following interview. As you'll hear, giving David a brief questions opens up a well of ideas and possibly responses. There is a level of generosity that comes with his answers, and I'm grateful that I was able to discuss his work with him. The following interview was recorded on the day of the Optus outage, so there are some occasional audio blips, but the essence of the discussion is still there. I begin by talking about the film with Sean, followed by the arrival of David who brings his own perspectives.Bromley: Light After Dark is cinemas from today and deserves to be seen on the big screen. To listen to previous interviews, visit TheCurb.com.au. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
A Savage Christmas Director Madeleine Dyer Talks About Crafting a Comedic Aussie Christmas in This Interview
Nov 15 2023
A Savage Christmas Director Madeleine Dyer Talks About Crafting a Comedic Aussie Christmas in This Interview
Madeleine Dyer is a writer, actor, director, and producer, whose body of work includes the 2017 comedy series Sexy Herpes, the acclaimed comedy series Colin from Accounts, where she worked with her sister Harriet Dyer, and now her latest film, A Savage Christmas, out in cinemas on 16 November 2023.A Savage Christmas tells the story of the Savage family as they meet for a sweaty summer Christmas in Queensland. After years of estrangement, trans woman Davina, played by Thea Raveneua, returns home with her partner Kane, played by co-writer Max Jahufer. Davina's well meaning parents, James (played by David Roberts) and Brenda (played by Helen Thomson), are still coming to terms with her transition and in a distinictly Aussie boomer-ish fashion, they struggle to understand the importance of pronouns and transitioning.Davina naturally expects her transition to be the focus of the family dinner, but her brother Jimmie Jr (Ryan Morgan) brings a cyclone of disruption along his way with a looming debt he needs to pay to a gangster (played by Gary Sweet). Thrown into the mix is their sister, Leila (Rekha Ryan), who is yet to tell her family about the imminent divorce she's going through. Chuck a dodgy Uncle Dick (Darren Gilshenan) and a frail Pomeranian into the mix and you've got your regular old Aussie Christmas.A Savage Christmas is a ridiculously funny and brilliantly scripted comedy that feels like a breath of fresh air. Performances across the board are exceptional, with Thea Raveneua and Max Jahufer both giving stellar debut turns. Hopefully we see more from them in the future. Equally great is Ryan Morgan who manages to bring a level of compassion to a familar character-type, while screen legends David Roberts, Helen Thomson, and Darren Gilshenan balance the bonkers with the grounded.In the above interview, Madeleine talks about the creation of the script with co-writers Max Jahufer and Daniel Mulvihill, what it means to be able to present an authentic Queensland summer on screen, and how she intends to forge a career in comedy on screen in Australia.To listen to other episodes, visit www.TheCurb.com.au. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Damage Director Madeleine Blackwell Talks About Working Alongside Ali Al Jenabi to Bring This Story of Humanity to Life in This Interview
Nov 8 2023
Damage Director Madeleine Blackwell Talks About Working Alongside Ali Al Jenabi to Bring This Story of Humanity to Life in This Interview
With her delicate and gentle drama Damage, director Madeleine Blackwell has crafted a parable that layers grief, trauma, a sense of location and what it means to live away from home, and more into an emotionally enriching experience. Damage follows Ali, played by Ali Al Jenabi, a refugee in Australia using a friends taxi license to earn some small aspect of a living. As he drives the streets of Adelaide at night, he picks up Esther, played by Madeleine's mother Imelda Bourke.Esther is a lost soul who's unsure of the name of where she needs to go, and certainly has no idea of how to get there. Equally so, Ali is unfamiliar with the streets, relying solely on a soulless GPS device to guide him where he needs to go. At first, their relationship is a fractured one, with Ali quickly becoming frustrated with Esther's inability to tell him where he needs to go. Equally so, Esther's frustration is levelled at how Ali is treating her, as well as her ambivalence in regards to his accent.On paper, Damage suggests that it will be a film about two people connecting with one another through an understanding of the others life state, and while that is an aspect of the film, Madeleine layers it with imagery that reflects the continued surveillance state that we live in. It's a surveillance state that constantly denies the ability to rest, as we see images of Ali's home country in ruins, or clips of rampant progress with space shuttles bursting into the atmosphere, or even a commuter train blitzing through a snow covered track, smothering its awaiting passengers in filthy snow, all culminating in a sense of stress and anxiety that we simply don't have the space to escape from.These motifs inform Ali's life, and in doing so, they try and answer the pointed question: why did Australia go to his home land and destroy it, forcing Ali to seek refuge here? In this sense, Damage takes inspiration from Ali's own life, which was documented by Robin De Crespigny in her award winning 2012 book The People Smuggler. Shots of waiting taxis also filter into the piece, leading to the question of how many people are experiencing the same life journey as Ali is in Australia.That question is also applied to how Australia treats its elderly, as seen with drifting Esther's story. It's not long before we see the path she is following which presents her as a cognisant individual on the cusp of losing her grounded sense of being.Damage is a powerful and impressive drama film, the kind that we deserve to see more of on Australian screens. In the above interview, Madeleine talks about the five year journey to bringing Damage to life, what it was like to work alongside her mother, and the way that music flows into the film in a reflective and enriching manner.Damage is in Australian cinemas from November 9 and deserves your full attention. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Monolith Director Matt Vesely Talks About Why South Australia is the Hotbed for Genre Filmmaking Right Now in This Interview
Oct 25 2023
Monolith Director Matt Vesely Talks About Why South Australia is the Hotbed for Genre Filmmaking Right Now in This Interview
On this episode, Andrew chats with director Matt Vesely about his feature film debut Monolith.Monolith is a chilling sci-fi thriller follows a journalist, played by Lily Sullivan, whose livelihood is at stake after a defamation case threatens her career. In a bid to escape the pressure of the case, she heads to her parents remote home and starts working on a podcast called Beyond Believable, a show that looks at unbelievable true stories. Over the following taut and tense ninety minutes, the journalists world unravels as a story about mysterious black bricks that appear in peoples lives come to her attention. The more she interviews people, the deeper the mystery takes her.In this interview, Matt talks about the process that he employs to create a personality for an inanimate object, about how the writer Lucy Campbell, producer Bettina Hamilton, and himself gave Lily Sullivan the space to build a performance where she is the only character we see on screen, and just what exactly is going on in South Australia which has made it the hotbed for great Aussie films this year.We also touch on the space of comedy in science-fiction, as previously shown in his short films My Best Friend is Stuck on the Ceiling and System Error, both of which are available to watch below.Monolith is in Australian cinemas from October 26. To find out more, make sure to visit the Bonsai Films Facebook page for details.Read Andrew's review of Monolith here and Nadine's interview with actor Lily Sullivan here.My Best Friend is Stuck on the CeilingSystem Error Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Love is in the Air Director Adrian Powers Talks About Working with Delta Goodrem in Paradise in This Interview
Oct 12 2023
Love is in the Air Director Adrian Powers Talks About Working with Delta Goodrem in Paradise in This Interview
On this episode, Andrew chats to writer, director, and editor Adrian Powers about his new film Love is in the Air. This romantic drama tells the story of Dana, played by Delta Goodrem in her return to acting. Dana is a seaplane pilot in Far North Queensland and when she's not monitoring the region from the skies, she's delivering much needed supplies to remote communities. Her job is thrown into disarray when the business that helps fund the operation sends the handsome William (Joshua Sasse) to come and value the business with the intention of decommissioning it. Naturally, romance ensues. Supporting actors include Aussie icons like Roy Billing and Steph Tisdell.In the following interview, Adrian talks about working in a Hallmark-model of film and TV production in Australia with Jaggi Entertainment, he also talks about the contrast of a film like Love is in the Air with his earlier work like the short film Brolga, which was partially shot in the Chernobyl exclusion zone. We also talk about the need for light and fluffy films like this, before heading into a discussion about working with the elements in Far North Queensland and how the beards of characters are decided.Love is in the Air is on Netflix internationally right now, while Adrian's next film, A Royal in Paradise, will receive a limited theatrical release in Australia next week.To listen to further interviews, make sure to subscribe to the podcast feed so you never miss an episode. New interviews are released on Fridays, with bonus interviews appearing on Wednesdays. To read reviews, head over to TheCurb.com.au.Watch Adrian's short film Brolga below and read an earlier interview with Adrian about the short here:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbc2cbM_kRY  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Rebel With a Cause Producers Dena Curtis and Citt Williams Talk About Amplifying First Nations Trailblazers in This Interview
Sep 29 2023
Rebel With a Cause Producers Dena Curtis and Citt Williams Talk About Amplifying First Nations Trailblazers in This Interview
In this episode Andrew interviews Dena Curtis and Citt Williams who are the producers behind the new NITV four part series Rebel With a Cause. This compelling and engaging documentary series follows four First Nations trailblazers - Senator Neville Bonner, poet Oodgeroo Noonuccal, magistrate Pat O'Shane, and radio presenter and media icon Tiga Bayles - and ultimately asks the question of what does it take to make a difference in the world?In the following interview Dena and Citt talk about their work as producers and what it means to delve into culturally sensitive archives and present these stories on screen. Additionally, they reflect on the importance of recontexutalising archives that have so often been curated or managed by white people. To say that Rebel With a Cause is an essential series feels like an understatement. It's arriving at a time where Australia as a nation is going through a major change, with the referendum on the Voice to Parliament being decided on October 14. Within the stories of Neville, Oodgeroo, Pat, and Tiga, we see four people who saw the potential within themselves and their community to change history and the future of Australia. It encourages viewers to consider and contemplate the impact of their actions, and the manner that they have helped amplify, support, and better the lives of First Nations people in Australia.   Rebel With a Cause is directed by EJ Garret, Jill Robinson, S.F. Tusa and Douglas Watkin. It will screen on NITV from October 1st, with episodes dropping each week. To listen to other interviews and read reviews, head over to TheCurb.com.au. New podcast interviews appear each Friday, with bonus interviews appearing on Wednesdays. For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander listeners, the trailer included in this podcast contains the voices of people who have passed away. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Glenn Fraser and Amelia Foxton Unleash About Their Wicked Horror Flick Mother Tongue in This Interview
Sep 20 2023
Glenn Fraser and Amelia Foxton Unleash About Their Wicked Horror Flick Mother Tongue in This Interview
On this episode, Andrew chats with the filmmaking duo Glenn Fraser and Amelia Foxton about their latest film Mother Tongue, which screens at the upcoming A Night of Horror International Film Festival alongside Ursula Dabrowsky's The Devil's Work on September 28 2023. Mother Tongue tells the wickedly humourous tale of Alex (Chiara Gizzi) and Jade (Amelia Foxton), a couple who are trying to have a child, yet struggle to do so. After trying all manner of methods, and finding that biology is not on their side, they decide to turn to the realm of the occult with the assistance of suburban bloke Brian (Stephen Hunter) who works his mastery on bringing a baby - of some kind - into their lives. Told with a darkly comedic stretch, alongside a trio of excellent performances that makes the struggle that Alex and Jade are collectively going through all the more believable, Mother Tongue is a treat of a film. In the following interview, Glenn and Amelia generously discuss their working process together, outlining the importance of telling queer stories on screen, while also highlighting the need to tell varied stories about motherhood as well. They also talk about the creation of the Coastal Surge Film Festival and the support they've received from local governments to help create a busy film scene in their local region. To find out more about Mother Tongue, make sure to visit the films Facebook page.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.