In 1800s England, acclaimed but unrecognized fossil hunter Mary Anning (Kate Winslet) works alone on the rugged Southern coastline. With the days of her famed discoveries behind her, she now searches for common fossils to sell to tourists to support herself and her ailing mother. When a wealthy visitor entrusts Mary with the care of his wife Charlotte Murchison (Saoirse Ronan), she cannot afford to turn his offer down. Proud and relentlessly passionate about her work, Mary initially clashes with her unwelcome guest, but despite the distance between their social class and personalities, an intense bond begins to develop, compelling the two women to determine the true nature of their relationship.

** For tickets please go to https://banffaustralia.com.au/tickets/ ** The 2020 Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour is a 3 hour celebration of the mountain and adventure sport world. Sharing over 2 1/2 hours of the most exhilarating short films from explorers, mountain bikers, skiers, paddlers and climbers from around the globe. The tour is hot on the heels of the largest and most prestigious mountain festivals in the world, the Banff Mountain Festival, which takes place every November in the mountain town of Banff, in Canada. More than 300 of the world’s best mountain sport, culture, environment, adventure, and exploration films are shown during the week-long event. A selection of award winners and audience favourites then tours the globe, visiting 390 communities and 35 countries as part of the festival’s official world tour. This year, the Australian line-up features two-and-a-half hours of captivating short films shot in some of the most wild and remote corners of the world. The program is packed full of mesmerising cinematography, thought-provoking storylines and adrenaline-inducing action sequences. The original and the best mountain film festival is presented by World Expeditions, and will be screening at the Deckchair in Darwin. For more details visit www.banffaustralia.com.au The Banff Mountain Film Festival is exempt from classification, but all coarse language has been beeped out, there is no nudity or adult themes. *Adventure Reels does not take responsibility for any holidays, mountain bikes, ski gear, paddling equipment or adventure related purchases that result from attending the Banff Mountain Film Festival

A seriously ill woman tries to find her long-lost child with the help of a man in the middle of a burnout and a blind archivist.

Fundraiser for Razzle Basketball Club NT! No Free tickets to this movie. Four Jamaican bobsleighers dream of competing in the Winter Olympics, despite never having seen snow. With the help of a disgraced former champion desperate to redeem himself, the Jamaicans set out to become worthy of Olympic selection, and go all out for glory.

Writer/director Gabriel Le Bomin’s spectacularly-mounted biographical drama DE GAULLE stirringly depicts a crucial period in the life of one of modern French history's most famous figures. It is May 1940, where the war between Germany and its neighbours has intensified. Shockingly, the French army collapses, and Hitler seizes Paris. The government is in panic and considers accepting defeat, but recently promoted two-star General Charles de Gaulle (The Translators' Lambert Wilson), wants to change the course of history... His wife, Yvonne (Isabelle Carré), is his first support, but very quickly events spiral out of control and separate them - she and their children set out on the roads of exodus, as Charles travels to London to meet with Winston Churchill. He wants to make another voice heard: that of resistance. Matching the impact and scale of recent war dramas The Darkest Hour and The King’s Choice as it depicts crucial incidents in gripping tick-tock fashion, Le Bomin expertly mixes the historic and the Romanesque, charting both a military debacle and the eventual revelation of a destiny.

Writer/director Éric Besnard’s mouth-watering new historical comedy indelibly pairs Grégory Gadebois and Isabelle Carré as a gifted chef and his unlikely protégé, who must find the resolve to free themselves from servitude. In 1789 France, just prior to the Revolution, gastronomy is strictly the domain of the aristocrats; indeed, the prestige of a noble house is entirely dependent on the quality and reputation of its table. So, when the talented but prideful cook Manceron (Gadebois) serves an unapproved dish of his own creation at a dinner hosted by the self-entitled Duke of Chamfort (C’est La Vie’s Benjamin Lavernhe), the repercussions are brutal, and he is promptly dismissed. The wounded Manceron swears off his passion and retreats with his son to a regional inn visited only infrequently by travellers, and where vegetable soup is the common meal. But when a mysterious woman (Carré) arrives and offers to pay to become his apprentice, the stage is set for a wildly enjoyable tale of reignited passion, mentorship and revenge... and of the creation of France’s very first restaurant. Joining the ranks of films such as Big Night, Chocolat and Babette’s Feast in its joyous depiction of the preparation and love of fine cuisine, DELICIOUS is just that.

Darwin International Film Festival Take 2!! 2 - 9 May 2021 Program Launch 30 April 2021 Visit diff.net.au

17 year old Ellie is struggling to find the courage to ask her classmate, Abbie, to the formal. Luckily her Aunt Tara, a lesbian who died in the 80's has shown up as a "Fairy Godmother" to dish out advice, whether Ellie wants it or not.

A couple deals with the aftermath of an adoption that goes awry as their household falls apart.

Two men meet by chance while in Barcelona. What seems like a one-night encounter between two strangers becomes an epic, decades-spanning relationship, in which time and space refuse to play by the rules. Director's statement: “I started writing ‘End of the Century’ with the curiosity to confront a character in the present with the same character twenty years ago. The things that remained the same, the things that changed, and the things that he forgot he wanted. This exploration is presented in relation to another character with whom he has a sort of broken love story, twice. The remembrance of their first encounter (inexact and subjective as all remembrances are) pushes the main character to imagine a life lived together, placing memory and possibility in the same realm of the intangible.”

Firestarter marks Bangarra Dance Theatre’s 30th anniversary. Taking us through Bangarra’s birth and spectacular growth, the film recognises Bangarra’s founders and tells the story of how three young Aboriginal brothers — Stephen, David and Russell Page — turned the newly born dance group into a First Nations cultural powerhouse. Through the eyes of the brothers and company alumni, Firestarter explores the loss and reclaiming of culture, the burden of intergenerational trauma, and – crucially – the power of art as a messenger for social change and healing.

Fundraiser for Nightcliff Seabreeze Festival! No Free tickets to this movie. Set against the stunning landscapes of 1930s Arnhem Land, HIGH GROUND chronicles young Aboriginal man Gutjuk, who in a bid to save the last of his family teams up with ex-soldier Travis to track down Baywara—the most dangerous warrior in the Territory, who is also his uncle. As Travis and Gutjuk journey through the outback they begin to earn each other’s trust, but when the truths of Travis’ past actions are suddenly revealed, it is he who becomes the hunted.

Fundraiser for Sea Shepherd! No Free tickets to this movie. It’s the 1980s and the world of professional surfing is a circus of fluoro colours, peroxide hair and radical male egos. GIRLS CAN’T SURF follows the journey of a band of renegade surfers who took on the male-dominated professional surfing world to achieve equality and change the sport forever. Featuring surfing greats Jodie Cooper, Frieda Zamba, Pauline Menczer, Lisa Andersen, Pam Burridge, Wendy Botha, Layne Beachley and more, GIRLS CAN’T SURF is a wild ride of clashing personalities, sexism, adventure and heartbreak, with each woman fighting against the odds to make their dreams of competing a reality.

Fundraiser for St John Parap Cadets ! No Free tickets to this movie. In a time when monsters walk the Earth, humanity’s fight for its future sets Godzilla and Kong on a collision course that will see the two most powerful forces of nature on the planet collide in a spectacular battle for the ages. As Monarch embarks on a perilous mission into uncharted terrain and unearths clues to the Titans’ origins, a human conspiracy threatens to wipe the creatures, both good and bad, from the face of the earth forever.

Experiential cinema in its purest form, GUNDA chronicles the unfiltered lives of a mother pig, a flock of chickens, and a herd of cows with masterful intimacy. Using stark, transcendent black and white cinematography and the farm's ambient soundtrack, Master director Victor Kossakowsky invites the audience to slow down and experience life as his subjects do, taking in their world with a magical patience and an other worldly perspective. GUNDA asks us to meditate on the mystery of animal consciousness, and reckon with the role humanity plays in it.

Argentina, December 2001. A group of friends and neighbours pool together all of their savings to reactivate an agricultural cooperative and the economy of their small town. The day after they deposit the group’s money in the bank, Argentina’s banking system collapses, and they lose it all. But they soon find out that they are not only victims of the country’s crisis, they have been scammed by an unscrupulous lawyer and bank manager who were poised to take advantage of the situation. In a twist on the heist film, this small town group of everymen and women bands together and puts a plan into action to recover what’s rightfully theirs.

Flix in the Wet screens at Darwin Entertainment Centre. DFS Members can get their tickets here, for all other tickets go to www.yourcentre.com.au Set against the stunning landscapes of 1930s Arnhem Land, HIGH GROUND chronicles young Aboriginal man Gutjuk, who in a bid to save the last of his family teams up with ex-soldier Travis to track down Baywara—the most dangerous warrior in the Territory, who is also his uncle. As Travis and Gutjuk journey through the outback they begin to earn each other’s trust, but when the truths of Travis’ past actions are suddenly revealed, it is he who becomes the hunted.

Jacob lives in the city and dreams of becoming an architect like his busy dad. He spends a lot of time drawing buildings and daydreaming while his father is at work. One day dad needs to go away on business for longer than usual and Jacob has to spend the whole week with his bossy cousin Mimmi and her ex-pirate father Eagle in Riga’s historical suburb called Maskachka. As soon as Jacob arrives it turns out that the local park is about to be transformed into new skyscrapers by a greedy businessman. Jacob and Mimmi decide to stop the development. It turns out that they can only do it with the help of a pack of local dogs that... can talk!

From acclaimed writer/director Miranda July comes a profoundly moving and wildly original comedy. Con-artists Theresa (Debra Winger) and Robert (Richard Jenkins) have spent 26 years training their only daughter, Old Dolio (Evan Rachel Wood), to swindle, scam, and steal at every opportunity. During a desperate, hastily conceived heist, they charm a stranger (Gina Rodriguez) into joining their next scam, only to have their entire world turned upside down.

Teddy wakes up the morning after his wedding to discover that every few minutes he's jumping forward to the next year of his life.

The Alliance Francaise French Film Festival! Sparks fly between a pregnant woman and her boyfriend's cousin as they spend time together in the French countryside.

A young teacher in modern Bhutan, Ugyen, shirks his duties while planning to go to Australia to become a singer. As a reprimand, his superiors send him to the most remote school in the world, in a village called Lunana, to complete his service. He finds himself exiled from his Westernized comforts after an arduous 8 day trek just to get there. There he finds no electricity, no textbooks, not even a blackboard. Though poor, the villagers extend a warm welcome to their new teacher, but he faces the daunting task of teaching the village children without any supplies. He wants to quit and go home, but he begins to learn of the hardship in the lives of the beautiful children he teaches, and begins to be transformed through the amazing spiritual strength of the villagers.

A former beauty queen and single mom prepares her rebellious teenage daughter for the "Miss Juneteenth" pageant.

The much-anticipated new film by Academy Award®-nominated writer/director Philippe Falardeau ('Monsieur Lazhar'), MY SALINGER YEAR unites three-time Oscar®-nominee Sigourney Weaver and radiant new talent Margaret Qualley ('Once Upon A Time… in Hollywood') for a hugely enjoyable adaptation of Joanna Rakoff’s internationally bestselling memoir. It’s the mid-90s: idealistic twenty-something Joanna (Qualley) impulsively quits graduate school and arrives in New York to pursue her dream of becoming a published poet. She manages to get her foot in the door, landing a coveted role as assistant to Margaret (Weaver), a brusque and old-fashioned literary agent. Joanna’s life soon fluctuates between poverty and glamour – her days spent in plush, strangely anachronistic wood-panelled offices where dictaphones and typewriters still reign and agents doze after three-martini lunches – and her nights in the sinkless Brooklyn apartment shared with her socialist boyfriend (Douglas Booth). The agency’s most famous client is the notoriously reclusive writer J.D. Salinger, and Joanna’s principal responsibility is to process the voluminous fan mail that arrives for him daily from readers around the world. Her strict instructions are to reply with one of the office’s impersonal, pre-formulated responses, and destroy the letters, but she cannot help feeling deeply affected by some of the more heartfelt correspondence, and secretly starts answering them personally. As Joanna begins to discover her own voice, she puts everything else at risk. Keenly observed and wryly funny, with whip-smart performances from its two indelible leads, MY SALINGER YEAR is a memorable and compassionate depiction of a pre-digital world on the cusp of disappearance, the value of mentorship, and the lasting impact of self-expression in all its forms.

Following the economic collapse of a company town in rural Nevada, Fern (Frances McDormand) packs her van and sets off on the road exploring a life outside of conventional society as a modern-day nomad. The third feature film from director Chloé Zhao, NOMADLAND features real nomads Linda May, Swankie, and Bob Wells as Fern’s mentors and comrades in her exploration through the vast landscape of the American West.

NTTFF celebrates and showcases outstanding short film, television and video productions from the NT. The exciting program captures the stories, culture and landscape of our iconic region and the people that call it home. For more info on the tour and the people behind the films check out www.nttravellingfilmfestival.com

A woman disappeared. After a snowstorm, her car is discovered on a road to a small remote village. While the police don't know where to start, five people are linked to the disappearance. Each one with his or her own secret.

In this new imagining of the iconic classic, Matteo Garrone returns to the authentic roots of the Pinocchio story. With this ground-breaking live action film shot in stunning Italian locations, Garrone creates a rich fantasy world filled with luminous, funny and touching moments. Academy Award® winning actor Roberto Benigni plays Geppetto, an old woodcarver who creates a puppet. But something magical happens – the cheeky puppet begins to talk, walk and eat like any young boy. Geppetto calls him Pinocchio and brings him up as his son. English Dubbed version

Fundraiser for Rotary Club of Darwin South! No Free tickets for this movie. In remote Western Australia, two estranged brothers, Colin (Sam Neill) and Les (Michael Caton), are at war. Raising separate flocks of sheep descended from their family’s prized bloodline, the two men work side by side yet are worlds apart. When Les’s prize ram is diagnosed with a rare and lethal illness, authorities order a purge of every sheep in the valley. While Colin attempts to stealthily outwit the powers that be, Les opts for angry defiance. But can the warring brothers set aside their differences and have a chance to reunite their family, save their herd, and bring their community back together?

Inspired by remarkable true events, multi award-winning writer Emmanuel Courcol’s rousing, Cannes-selected directorial debut follows a dedicated out-of-work actor (indelibly played by the fabulous Kad Merad) whose career and life prospects unexpectedly change. Disillusioned and divorced middle-aged thespian Étienne (Merad) accepts an arts rehabilitation role, leading a theatre workshop group at a correctional facility, under the watchful eye of open-minded but cautious warden Ariane (Marina Hands). His program attracts a motley group, and Étienne, surprised by the raw talent he unearths, comes up with the idea of workshopping Beckett’s “Waiting for Godot”. To the surprise of many, the play’s existential themes prove to be a natural fit for the inmates, and the connection between the cast and their kind-hearted director grows stronger with every rehearsal... though not without exception, and some very unexpected ramifications. To spoil what develops would be criminal, but when the story of the real theatre troupe’s exploits went viral worldwide, Samuel Beckett himself commented: “That’s the best thing that happened to this play since I wrote it!”. Inscribed with intelligence and humour, THE BIG HIT was named Best Comedy of 2020 at this year’s European Film Awards. It’s a deeply empathetic celebration of camaraderie, faith in others (and oneself), and the liberating power of art.

Federal Agent Aaron Falk returns to his home town after an absence of over twenty years to attend the funeral of his childhood friend, Luke, who allegedly killed his wife and child before taking his own life – a victim of the madness that has ravaged this community after more than a decade of drought. When Falk reluctantly agrees to stay and investigate the crime, he opens up an old wound – the death of 17- year-old Ellie Deacon. Falk begins to suspect these two crimes, separated by decades, are connected. As he struggles to prove not only Luke’s innocence but also his own, Falk finds himself pitted against the prejudice towards him and pent-up rage of a terrified community.

Somewhere in Australia in the early 20th century outback, an Aboriginal man is accused of murdering a white woman. Three white men are on a mission to capture him with the help of an experienced Indigenous man.

Known as the Witch of Kings Cross, notorious artist Rosaleen Norton faced allegations of satanic rituals, obscene art and sex orgies in 1950s Sydney. But this new film from writer/director Sonia Bible (Recipe for Murder) asks ‘did the scandals mask her genius? Rosaleen Norton regularly hits the headlines throughout 1950s Sydney. She worshipped the God Pan and practiced trances and sex magic, inspired by the work of occultist, artist and poet Aleister Crowley. Eventually the relentless scandals lead to the downfall of her high society lover, Sir Eugene Goossens. Told ‘in her own words’, the film weaves stylized drama (Rosaleen is played by actress Kate Elizabeth Laxton) and erotic dancers with never-before-seen artworks, diaries and scrapbooks.

This was the first time we got to see David Gulpilil on screen. This screening celebrates both 50 years for Walkabout and five decades of prolific acting from this celebrated, multi-award winning Yolngu man. Under the pretence of having a picnic, a geologist (John Meillon, Crocodile Dundee) takes his teenage daughter (Jenny Agutter, The Avengers) and 6-year-old son (Lucien John, We Need To Talk About Kevin) into the Australian outback and attempts to shoot them. When he fails, he turns the gun on himself, and the two city-bred children must contend with harsh wilderness alone. They are saved by a chance encounter with an Aborigine boy (David Gulpilil, Storm Boy) who helps them survive, and in the process underscores the disharmony between nature and modern life.

With unfettered access to the Zappa family trust and all archival footage, ZAPPA explores the private life behind the mammoth musical career that never shied away from the political turbulence of its time. Alex Winter's assembly features appearances by Frank's widow Gail Zappa and several of Frank's musical collaborators including Mike Keneally, Ian Underwood, Steve Vai, Pamela Des Barres, Bunk Gardner, David Harrington, Scott Thunes, Ruth Underwood, Ray White, and others.