South Australia’s vibrant screen industry is being celebrated on the international stage, with six locally made and funded films premiering at the world’s most prestigious film festivals in the coming weeks.
Supported by the South Australian Film Corporation (SAFC), feature films Talk to Me, Run Rabbit Run, The Survival of Kindness, Monolith and Limbo and short film Marungka Tjalatjunu/Dipped in Black have been selected for the programs for Sundance Film Festival, Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale) and South by Southwest.
The Survival of Kindness and Limbo will both compete for the Golden Bear for Best Film at the Berlinale, with the International Jury led by President, actor Kristen Stewart – the first time an Australian film has been invited to Competition since 2006.
Filmed across Adelaide and some of South Australia’s most unique regional landscapes, the films showcase destinations like the Flinders Ranges, Coober Pedy, Adelaide Hills and Riverland to an international audience.
The SAFC supported all six films selected for 2023 international film festival programs, with four of the films supported by the Adelaide Film Festival (AFF) where they received world premieres last October:
Sundance Film Festival (19-29 January, Utah, US)
- Danny and Michael Philippou’s Talk to Me (SAFC & AFF)
- Daina Reid’s Run Rabbit Run (SAFC)
Berlinale – Berlin international Film Festival (16-26 February, Berlin, Germany)
- Rolf de Heer’s The Survival of Kindness (SAFC & AFF)
- Ivan Sen’s Limbo (SAFC)
- Derik Lynch and Matthew Thorne’s short film Marungka Tjalatjunu/Dipped in Black (SAFC & AFF)
- Talk to Me (SAFC & AFF)
South by Southwest – SXSW (10-19 March, Austin, US)
- Matt Vesely’s Monolith (SAFC & AFF)
- Talk to Me (SAFC & AFF)
In addition to its world premiere at Sundance, Run Rabbit Run—written by award-winning South Australian author Hannah Kent and starring SA’s Sarah Snook (Succession)—has been acquired by Netflix and will begin streaming worldwide later this year.
SA Film Corporation CEO Kate Croser called this extraordinary level of international recognition for these South Australian films ‘a coup’, not just for the state’s screen industry but for the state as a whole.
“The South Australian Film Corporation is so proud to have supported the production of these incredible films,” she said.
“I congratulate all the creative teams behind these productions, and all the talented and highly skilled South Australian crew who worked on them, and look forward to their continued international success at these festivals and beyond.”
Adelaide Film Festival CEO & Creative Director Mat Kesting said that, given the enthusiasm these films were greeted with at their world premieres at Adelaide Film Festival last October, it comes as no surprise A-list international festivals have scooped up these productions.
“This is significant representation for South Australia on the world stage,” he said.
“AFF congratulates all the filmmakers.”
Visit the SA Film Corporation website to learn more about each film featured.
