In a small island community, a troubled young woman falls for a mysterious outsider who empowers her to escape her oppressive family. When he comes under suspicion for a series of brutal murders she defends him at all costs and learns what she is capable of.

It’s the early 1970s, a time of great social upheaval as the struggle for civil rights rages on. Ron Stallworth (John David Washington) becomes the first African-American detective on the Colorado Springs Police Department, but his arrival is greeted with skepticism and open hostility by the department’s rank and file. Undaunted, Stallworth resolves to make a name for himself and a difference in his community. He bravely sets out on a dangerous mission: infiltrate and expose the Ku Klux Klan. Posing as a racist extremist, Stallworth contacts the group and soon finds himself invited into its inner circle. He even cultivates a relationship with the Klan’s Grand Wizard, David Duke (Topher Grace), who praises Ron’s commitment to the advancement of White America. With the undercover investigation growing ever more complex, Stallworth’s colleague, Flip Zimmerman (Adam Driver), poses as Ron in face-to-face meetings with members of hate group, gaining insider’s knowledge of a deadly plot. Together, Stallworth and Zimmerman team up to take down the organization whose real aim is to sanitize its violent rhetoric to appeal to the mainstream. Produced by the team behind the Academy-Award® winning Get Out, BlacKkKlansman offers an unflinching, true-life examination of race relations in 1970s America that is just as bracingly relevant in today’s tumultuous world.

Fifteen years ago, Mel (Madeleine Sami) and Jen (Jackie van Beek) discovered they were being two-timed by the same man. Bitter and cynical they became fast friends and formed The Breaker Upperers, a small-time business breaking up couples for cash. Now they’re in their late-thirties and business is booming. They’re a platonic, codependent couple who keep their cynicism alive by not getting emotionally involved with anybody else. But when they run into an old victim, Mel develops a conscience and their friendship is truly put to the test.

In the heartwarming live action adventure Disney’s “Christopher Robin,” the young boy who shared countless adventures with his band of lovable stuffed animals in the Hundred Acre Wood is now grown up and living in London but he has lost his way. Now it is up to his childhood friends to venture into our world and help Christopher Robin rediscover the joys of family life, the value of friendship and to appreciate the simple pleasures in life once again.

Set in the summer of 1959, when the impact of European migration and the rise of women’s liberation is about to change Australia forever, a shy schoolgirl (Lisa) takes a summer job at the prestigious Sydney department store, Goode’s. There she meets the “ladies in black”, who will change her life forever.

Beguiled and influenced by Magda, the vivacious manager of the high-fashion floor, and befriended by fellow sales ladies Patty and Fay, Lisa is awakened to a world of possibilities. As Lisa grows from a bookish schoolgirl to a glamorous and positive young woman, she herself becomes a catalyst for a cultural change in everyone’s lives.

Based on Madeleine St John’s best-selling novel The Women in Black, and featuring a brilliant ensemble cast, Ladies in Black will release in cinemas on October 18, 2018.

SPECIAL SCREENING - One Night Only!

Mandy is set in the primal wilderness of 1983 where Red Miller, a broken and haunted man hunts an unhinged religious sect who slaughtered the love of his life.

See Nicolas Cage at his very finest in this new film that is likley to be destined a cult classic!

Superstar soprano Anna Netrebko makes her Met role debut as Aida in this thirtieth-anniversary revival of Sonja Frisell’s production. Verdi’s drama is set in Ancient Egypt, where the Ethiopian Aida lives a life of slavery. She and the Egyptian warrior Radamès, sung by tenor Aleksandrs Antonenko, have fallen in love, although the princess Amneris—mezzo-soprano Anita Rachvelishvili—is an implacable rival for Radamès’s affections. Then, when Radamès goes into battle, he unwittingly captures Aida’s father as a prisoner of war. As Aida and Radamès face impossible choices between patriotism, passion, and paternal bonds, the stage is set for tragedy. With heart-stopping music and spectacular set pieces, including the famous Triumphal March, Verdi’s towering masterpiece opens the new Live in HD season with a bang.

Puccini’s gunpowder western returns to the stage where it premiered under Arturo Toscanini. Gold Rush, 1849. Bar owner Minnie looks after a crew of rough miners while fending off the unwanted attentions of the local sheriff. When a tall, mysterious stranger walks into the bar, it looks as if her life is about to change. But the newcomer is not what he seems, and Minnie gets drawn into deadly peril. Boasting gunfights, poker games, and stagecoach robbers, La Fanciulla del West combines the action of a great adventure with the emotional punch of Italian opera. Soprano Eva-Maria Westbroek sings the role of the gunslinging heroine, alongside Jonas Kaufmann as the outlaw who steals her heart. Marco Armiliato conducts.

Tony Award–winning director Darko Tresnjak gives Saint-Saëns’s biblical epic its first new Met production in twenty years. Blessed with immense physical strength, Hebrew leader Samson is sworn to defend his people and his faith from the Philistines. Though his body is strong, his heart is tender, though. When the Philistine Dalila sets out to seduce him, he is powerless to resist. The beautiful aria “Mon coeur s’ouvre à ta voix ” marks the climax of his seduction—and his betrayal. He reveals to Dalila the secret of his strength, and immediately, his fate is sealed. Imprisoned, blinded, and humiliated, how can Samson atone for his folly? Soprano Elīna Garanča and tenor Roberto Alagna sing the title roles, with Sir Mark Elder conducting.

MIFF - Travelling Showcase

Special Screening

Daniel Henshall stars as infamous Archibald Prize-winning artist Adam Cullen in this lyrical adaptation of Erik Jensen’s acclaimed biography.

When 19-year-old wunderkind journalist Erik Jensen (now editor of The Saturday Paper) was invited by bad-boy Australian painter Adam Cullen to write his biography, Jensen (Toby Wallace, Romper Stomper) jumped at the chance. Despite a turbulent relationship, the two formed a unique bond that lasted until Cullen’s death in 2012 aged just 46.

Shooting in the Blue Mountains where Cullen was based, Acute Misfortune spins Jensen’s award-winning book into a subtle, striking tale of two wildly different men. Making his debut as a feature film filmmaker, theatre director and actor Thomas M Wright (Top of the Lake, Balibo) delivers a portrait of the writer and of the artist as a troubled and troubling man.

MIFF - Travelling Showcase

Special Screening

Annie (Rose Byrne) is stuck in a long-term relationship with Duncan (Chris O’Dowd) – an obsessive fan of obscure rocker Tucker Crowe (Ethan Hawke). When the acoustic demo of Tucker’s hit record from 25 years ago surfaces, its release leads to a life-changing encounter with the elusive rocker himself. Based on the novel by Nick Hornby, Juliet, Naked is a comic account of life’s second chances.

MIFF - Travelling Showcase

Special Screening

The Coming Back Out Ball was a glittering red-carpet evening held in October 2017 to celebrate these pioneers and their achievements, and to combat invisibility for LGBTIQ seniors. Hosted by cabaret legend Robyn Archer and with a guest list including Carlotta, Deborah Cheetham, Gerry Connolly (as the Queen) and a who’s who of Melbourne’s elder LGBTIQ community, it was a night to remember!

Director Sue Thomson documents the process as All The Queen’s Men puts the event together and – most importantly – captures the stories of key elders being honoured at the Ball. The resulting film, supported by the MIFF Premiere Fund, is a life-affirming love letter to senior members of the ‘alphabet’ community, and to Melbourne, with an important message about the necessity of pride, acceptance, equality and dignity at all stages of life – and a whole lot of dancing!

A powerful, insightful drama about two people, both defined by their upbringing, bound by the social mores of another era centers on Florence (Saoirse Ronan, Brooklyn) and Edward (Billy Howle, Dunkirk), a young couple in their early twenties. Now on their honeymoon, they learn about the differences between them – their attitudes, temperaments and their drastically different backgrounds. Out on the beach on their fateful wedding day, one of them makes a major decision that will utterly change both of their lives forever.

BUBS SESSION - All welcome!

A powerful, insightful drama about two people, both defined by their upbringing, bound by the social mores of another era centers on Florence (Saoirse Ronan, Brooklyn) and Edward (Billy Howle, Dunkirk), a young couple in their early twenties. Now on their honeymoon, they learn about the differences between them – their attitudes, temperaments and their drastically different backgrounds. Out on the beach on their fateful wedding day, one of them makes a major decision that will utterly change both of their lives forever.

LIMITED RELEASE

One of the most important artistic minds of our era, Ryuichi Sakamoto has had a prolific career spanning over four decades, from techno-pop star, to actor, to Oscar-winning film composer. A constant innovator, Mr Sakamoto’s music has evolved in lockstep with his evolution as an artist and thinker.

Following the Fukushima nuclear disaster, Mr Sakamoto became an iconic figure in Japan’s social movement against nuclear power and an unofficial spokesperson for the fear, anger and anxiety of the Japanese people. As Mr Sakamoto returns to music following his battle with throat cancer, his haunting awareness of his own life crisis, as well as that of his country and the whole world, leads to a creation of a resounding new masterpiece.

Granted unprecedented access to Mr Sakamoto's life and work, Stephen Nomura Schible's sensitive and illuminating film stands not only as a portrait of an extraordinary career, but as one of the most intimate examinations of the creative process ever committed to film.

Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda is a gentle and reflective portrait of both the artist and the man.

In the summer 1993, following the death of her parents, six years old Frida moves from Barcelona to the Catalan province to live with her aunt and uncle, who are now her new legal guardians. The country life is a challenge for Frida – time passes differently in her new home and the nature that surrounds her is mysterious and estranging. She now has a little sister for whom she has to take care of and has to deal with new feelings, such as jealousy. Often, Frida is naively convinced that running away would be the best solution to her problems. Yet, the family does what it can to achieve a fragile new balance and bring normality to their life. Occasional family outings to a local fiesta or a swimming pool, cooking or listening to jazz in the garden bring them moments of happiness. Slowly, Frida realizes that she is there to stay and has to adapt to the new environment. Before the season is over, she has to cope with her emotions and her parents have to learn to love her as their own daughter.

In January, 2015, American rock climbers Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson captivated the world with their effort to climb The Dawn Wall, a seemingly impossible 3,000 foot rock face in Yosemite National Park, California. The pair lived on the sheer vertical cliff for weeks, igniting a frenzy of global media attention. But for Tommy Caldwell, The Dawn Wall was much more than just a climb. It was the culmination of a lifetime defined by overcoming obstacles. At the age of 22, the climbing prodigy was taken hostage by rebels in Kyrgyzstan. Shortly after, he lost his index finger in an accident, but resolved to come back stronger. When his marriage fell apart, he escaped the pain by fixating on the extraordinary goal of free climbing The Dawn Wall. Blurring the line between dedication and obsession, Caldwell and his partner Jorgeson spend six years meticulously plotting and practicing their route. On the final attempt, with the world watching, Caldwell is faced with a moment of truth. ...

2018 Academy Award Nominee - Best Foreign Language Film

The internationally acclaimed new film from multi award-winning writer/director Ziad Douieri, 2018 Oscar-nominee THE INSULT is a thrilling new legal drama centering on a minor disagreement that escalates into a nationwide controversy.

The present day. It’s a scorching hot afternoon in Beirut. Forty-something mechanic Tony already has a chip on his shoulder about Palestinians in Lebanon, so he’s less than welcoming when 60 year-old Yasser, the foreman of a construction crew working on the street outside, asks him to fix the faulty drainpipe on his balcony. Tony closes the door in his face, so Yasser replaces the pipe anyway, only for Tony to smash it to pieces. Passions boil over, each man digs in, and what should have been a trivial incident easily shrugged off escalates quickly into a dispute that reverberates through their families and communities. Eventually lawyers are called in and the men find themselves in the centre of a highly publicised trial – one that reopens historical and personal wounds on both sides.

Widely heralded at the Venice, Telluride and Toronto Film Festivals, Doueiri’s gripping and revealing film is reminiscent of such masterful socio-political dramas as A Separation and Incendies, daring to lay bare the divisions within contemporary society. Expertly depicting the shifting conflicts that take place within homes, neighbourhoods and in the courtroom, this thrilling and superbly performed moral fable serves as both a smart and thought-provoking piece of entertainment, and a deeply affecting plea for empathy and conciliation.

BUBS SESSION - All welcome!

Writer-director Annemarie Jacir’s multi-award winning comic drama explores the lives of Palestinians living in Israel, and stars real-life father and son Mohammad and Saleh Bakri. The title of Wajib translates as ‘duty’, and it’s duty that brings architect Shadi (Saleh Bakri) from Rome back to Nazareth, where his sister Amal (Maria Zriek) is to be married. Local tradition dictates that Shadi and his divorced dad, Abu Shadi (Mohammad Bakri), must drive around town delivering wedding invitations.

Friction is in the air even before the duo clamber into Abu Shadi’s beloved and beaten-up old Volvo. Shadi thinks the exercise is outdated and meaningless. For his father, it’s about maintaining important community rituals. Bakri and son Saleh are terrific and earthily funny as the bickering duo who meet colourful characters on their cross-city travels.

A Palestinian born in Bethlehem, raised in Saudi Arabia and educated in New York, Annemarie Jacir (Salt of this Sea, 2008; When I Saw You, 2012) brings a worldly, wise and witty eye to this hugely entertaining and illuminating slice of Palestinian life.

GREENS FUNDRAISER - All Welcome!

A father and his estranged son must come together to hand deliver his daughter's wedding invitations to each guest as per local Palestinian custom, in this rousing family drama from Annemarie Jacir (When I Saw You).

TICKETS AVAILABLE HERE:

https://www.trybooking.com/YCOO

Writer-director Annemarie Jacir’s multi-award winning comic drama explores the lives of Palestinians living in Israel, and stars real-life father and son Mohammad and Saleh Bakri. The title of Wajib translates as ‘duty’, and it’s duty that brings architect Shadi (Saleh Bakri) from Rome back to Nazareth, where his sister Amal (Maria Zriek) is to be married. Local tradition dictates that Shadi and his divorced dad, Abu Shadi (Mohammad Bakri), must drive around town delivering wedding invitations.

Friction is in the air even before the duo clamber into Abu Shadi’s beloved and beaten-up old Volvo. Shadi thinks the exercise is outdated and meaningless. For his father, it’s about maintaining important community rituals. Bakri and son Saleh are terrific and earthily funny as the bickering duo who meet colourful characters on their cross-city travels.

A Palestinian born in Bethlehem, raised in Saudi Arabia and educated in New York, Annemarie Jacir (Salt of this Sea, 2008; When I Saw You, 2012) brings a worldly, wise and witty eye to this hugely entertaining and illuminating slice of Palestinian life.

Fresh from MIFF - Damian Hill (PAWNO) returns with this local, heartfelt crowd-pleaser.

Separated from his family and caught in a cycle of gambling and debt, Jim has less than a day to repay a violent loan shark. His day is turned upside down when he must look after his young. Jim's relationship with his son is tested as his plans to pay back the loan fail. When his last desperate effort to repay the debt puts his son's life at risk, he must make a choice between his past and a second chance at life.

GREENS FUNDRAISER - All Welcome!

Separated from his family and caught in a cycle of gambling and debt, Jim has less than a day to repay a violent loan shark. His day is turned upside down when he must look after his young. Jim's relationship with his son is tested as his plans to pay back the loan fail. When his last desperate effort to repay the debt puts his son's life at risk, he must make a choice between his past and a second chance at life.

TICKETS AVAILABLE ONLINE:

https://www.trybooking.com/YCON