Big screen, bigger stories – APT10 Cinema is screening cinematic gems from Australia and beyond
Brisbane cinephiles will be well acquainted with The Australian Cinémathèque at QAGOMA, which provides locals an ongoing and unique program of film that you’re unlikely to see anywhere else. To correspond with QAGOMA’s current exhibition, The 10th Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art (APT10), APT10 Cinema is rolling film on a plethora of feel-good flicks, daring documentaries and excellent animation from around the world. Here are a few films to tick off your viewing list …
APT10 Cinema is a multi-strand cinema program feeding from APT10, QAGOMA’s must-see exhibition featuring a whopping 69 projects by emerging and established artists and collectives from across the globe. The popcorn-worthy program includes ‘The Magic Arts: Australian Animation from the 1970s to Now’, a stellar showcase of the last five decades of animation in Australia. One of the most expansive exhibitions of Australian animation to date, it celebrates the success of feature films such as the enchanting Ferngully: The Last Rainforest, the fever dream that is The Magic Pudding and the Academy Award-winning and sing-along-worthy Happy Feet. Bluey fans will be happy to hear that everyone’s favourite blue heeler pups will be celebrated in the program alongside the Logie Award-winning Little J and Big Cuz. The program also showcases the work of community-led projects such as PAW Media and Communications, a not-for-profit Aboriginal media organisation that uses clay, sand and 2D computer animation to tell Jukurrpa stories.
More homegrown goodness abounds in ‘Australian Next Wave’, which presents a selection of Australian debut feature films and documentaries made in the last five years, spotlighting works by artists who are at the top of the local independent filmmaking game. Aussie cinema enthusiasts will be able to deep dive into a program of true-blue flicks like Palazzo di Cozzo, an entertaining portrait of furniture mogul Franco Cozzo and Dark Place, an anthology film composed of five electrifying tales that take on post-colonialism from Indigenous perspectives. Motorsport fans can zoom in to Finke: There and Back, a captivating look into the storied Finke Desert Race, the annual motorsport event in which competitors race between Alice Springs and the Finke River.
You won’t have to travel far in search of awe-inspiring international movies, as APT10 Cinema is full to the brim with enthralling films from across the globe. Highlighting hidden gems from Asia Pacific regions that produce a very small number of feature films each year, ‘Under the Radar’ celebrates unseen cinema from the likes of Macau, Nepal, Afghanistan, Bhutan, Tibet, Samoa and Kyrgyzstan. A fascinating insight into the daily life in Papua New Guinea is shown in the gripping tale Aliko and Ambai, the dangerous working conditions of foreign workers is depicted in A Land Imagined, while It Must Be Heaven (directed by Palestinian auteur Suleiman) reflects on national identity and the intersection of cultures in a global world.
APT10 Cinema screenings take place on Wednesday and Friday nights and Saturday and Sundays matinees. To peep the full cinema program, hop over to the QAGOMA website.
Image one: Production still from Aliko and Ambai, 2017. Director: Mark Eby, Diane Anton. Image courtesy: Mark Eby, Diane Anton.
Image two: Production still from Lost & Found, 2018. Directors: Andrew Goldsmith and Bradley Slabe Stop motion, colour, 5.1 surround, 8 minutes, Australia, English. Image courtesy: Wabi Sabi Studios.
Image three: Production still from Under the Cover of Cloud, 2018. Director: Ted Wilson. Image courtesy: Bonsai Films.
Image four: Production still from Strange Colours, 2017. Director: Alena Lodkina. Image courtesy: Bonsai Films.
Image five: Production still from Centaur, 2016. Director: Aktan Arym Kubat. Image courtesy: The Match Factory.
This article was written in partnership with our friends at QAGOMA.
To find out more about what’s on in Brisbane, head to our Event Guide.
