Judging purely by the quality of the films I have seen, days five through nine at the Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) have been a marked improvement on my bumpy days one to four. With a combination of intriguing documentaries, moving dramas and one outrageous comedy, in the last five days I have seen six films, almost all of which have managed to live up to my [...]

Missed screenings and faulty projectors have ensured that my first few days at the Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) have gotten off to a bit of a rough start. Yet as I wearily type this at quarter-to-one in the morning, in full awareness that I have to get up in six hours so I can be on time to University, I rest assured in the knowledge that it [...]

From quirky independent comedies to austere arthouse dramas, socially important documentaries and shlocky cult splatter-fests, this years Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) will have you covered no matter what your cinematic tastes.  Celebrating its 60^th Anniversary in 2011, the festival will continue its rich tradition of highlighting some of the best new local and international films, from the relatively high-profile to the totally obscure. Kicking off Thursday July [...]

In this 15^th episode of our weekly movie podcast Film Spiel (and yes, Anders does have an issue pronouncing the word ‘fifteenth’) Anders and Dave tackle two of the biggest blockbusters about: X-MEN: FIRST CLASS and SUPER 8. And the non-problematic running time of X-MEN – 132 minutes – leads to a discussion of what exactly makes a movie [...]

On this packed installment of our movie podcast Film Spiel, Episode 14 to be exact, Anders and Dave kick off with another of the big blockbuster releases of late, THE HANGOVER: PART II, before Dave tackles GET LOW and CANE TOADS: THE CONQUEST. Then, as a change of pace, the lads discuss a movie currently available as either a free and legal download or on [...]

I’ve had a relatively uninteresting few days viewing-wise. To be honest, I haven’t actually seen anything. Friday brought about the press conference of the wonderful Drive, where I got to ask Nicolas Winding Refn a question. (Watch from 31:40; and apologies in advance for my bad camera angle.) I must say, it was pretty surreal later on looking up at the TV in the wifi room while working to [...]

Alongside the films in Official Selection, Cannes provides numerous initiatives to promote up-and-coming film-makers in both professional and amateur worlds. Village International and Marche du Film run alongside the festival for industry professionals to network and new film-makers to gain crucial contacts. The Short Film Corner also falls into this, with films in and out of Official Competition gaining critical exposure.

The Cinefondation Selection program looks towards promoting the work of [...]

Since Cannes is on the home stretch for another year, many festival-goers remain baffled as screenings of films within the Official Selection deliver mixed reactions. The biggest head-scratcher is why certain films are in certain areas; what differentiates films in Official Competition from those in Un Certain Regard? Do the powers that be view films different to the press and then differently again to the public?

The Festival de Cannes website [...]