Adelaide Film Festival: Ron enjoys some delights of the big screen in the Adelaide City region of South Australia
For Adelaide director Vicki Sugars, the screening of "Past Midnight" during the Adelaide Film Festival, marks the culmination of a life-long journey during which an idea slowly crytallised into the script for a short film.
As a child, Vicki - along with her Mum, Dad and sister - took a road less traveled to Port Parham on the shores of Gulf Saint Vincent north of Adelaide - where Vicki's father, a semi professional fisherman, would spend many a weekend.
Vicki Sugars: "We had a shack there when I was a child. I spent a lot of time there and the place had a great impression on me. It was always my idea to make a story or make a film about it."
For Vicki, Port Parham, with its seagulls, tidal flats and strange contraptions the locals called "jinkers" would live long in the memory. It's blend of knockabout fishermen with their top-heavy hybrid vehicles specially-designed to pick up fishing boats on the rising tide, struck her as the ideal place for a film short in duration but big in theme.
Ginny - a young woman battling with her own sense of self worth escapes a toxic relationship - and along with her dog "Midnight" takes a turnoff to Port Parham. Without cash - having lost her wallet - and without prospects, she slowly forms a bond while working with Shauna, one of the hard-bitten locals - who gives Ginny a quick lesson on life and self-reliance.
Ginny's life gets worse before it gets better - with drama for her and "midnight". But through adversity comes a realisation that she can handle life's ups and downs - and she can do it on her own - proof that Mother Nature has a reason for everything.
Vicki Sugars: "I'm sharing an emotion with the audience. If they can see something and feel something different when the credits are rolling then I've done my job."
Another all South Australian production screening for the first time at the Film Festival is The Marriage of Figaro - a lighthearted comedy about a well meaning biker who's life takes a wrong turn when he finally commits to marrying his longtime sweetheart.
It's been the two-year passion - or perhaps obsession - of writer/director and cameraman Chris Moon and a number of colleagues, many of whom have worked together for years at the ABC's studios in Collinswood.
Cinematographer Chris Moon has shot numerous local and national stories here in South Australia, often working with soundman Tony Hill - and later handing the vision to editor Bob Lawrence. Now all three have played their part in the making of a feature length film to be shown at the South Australian Screen Awards. They've been able to do it thanks to recent breakthroughs in technology like cheaper hi-definition cameras using memory cards.
Chris Moon: "You don't have any film costs, you don't have any videotape costs and you can edit on a laptop now. In fact a lot of the editing and post production was done on laptops because it was convenient."
In the film, Reginald Figaro or "Fig" to his mates does his best to avoid the "M" (marriage) word, but when his mother-in-law offers to pay for the big day - courtesy of a Division 2 X-lotto win, the die is cast.
In a low budget environment, the filmmaker relies on so many for inkind support and the makers of "Figaro" got plenty of that. But that's meant our city will now appear on our cinema screens and Chris Moon says there should be more of it, if our industry is to thrive.
Chris Moon: "You've actually got to make lots of films and foster a culture of film making and out of that will come the gems."
The Marriage of Figaro is screening at the Mercury Cinema on Wednesday February 25th at 9pm as part of the Adelaide Film Festival.
Past Midnight premieres at the Piccadilly Cinema and will be shown again on Thursday at The Palace.If you have any furhter questions please email info@postcards-sa.com.au
'The Marriage of Figaro'
Mercury Cinema
Morphett St City
Wed Feb 25th 9pm'Past Midnight'
Piccadilly Cinema
North Adelaide
Mon Feb 23rd 7pm
The Palace Cinema
Rundle Street East
Thurs Feb 26th 1pmAdelaide Film Festival
Feb 19 - March 1, 2009
www.adelaidefilmfestival.orgPublished 22nd February 2009
