SWIFF: Rewind
We’re all spending a little (or a lot) more time at home, and one of the big pleasures to be found in these uncertain times, is getting to indulge in even more movie watching. So we dug around in some past SWIFF programming, from 2015/16, 2017 and 2018 for some films that are in need of a revisit (plus can be easily found on streaming or to rent). So here’s our program for SWIFF: Rewind!
Check out the titles you’ve not seen yet, or revisit the couple that jump out at you! Host your own Opening Night with bubbles on the couch, or spend a cosy Sunday morning with a film or two. Do SWIFF Rewind your way – but let us know all about it on Facebook HERE!
Girlhood - SWIFF '15/16
Celine Sciamma’s third film Girlhood is a stunning, emotionally affecting film, part of a trilogy of coming-of-age films by Sciamma, partially inspired by her noting the lack of black women in French cinema. One of the highlights of our first SWIFF, featuring in the Girls on Film program, we’ve heard from Sciamma twice at SWIFF since, she wrote the family animation My Life as a Courgette, and of course 2020’s transfixing Portrait of a Lady on Fire. Streaming on Stan or Kanopy.
Girl Asleep - SWIFF '17
Surrealist, sweet and ultra-stylised, Rosemary Myer’s sparkling debut feature is wonderfully eccentric and unquestionably unique, modern fairytale of female adolescence, set over a 15th birthday party that goes down the rabbit hole. Created in Adelaide with a shining local cast, Girl Asleep (alongside many others) appeared in the list of sources on Soda_Jerk’s SWIFF’18 Opening video art mash-up icon Terror Nullius. Streaming on Kanopy or Netflix.
Lady Macbeth - SWIFF '18
Gothic, passionate, electric. The feature film debut from acclaimed theatre director William Oldroyd, Lady Macbeth is a Gothic tale of a young woman trapped in a marriage of convenience in 19th century England, whose passionate affair unleashes a maelstrom of murder and mayhem on a country estate. Announcing the arrival of Florence Pugh (Midsommar SWIFF’20 , Little Women) with a dynamic start. Streaming on Stan or Kanopy.
Tangerine - SWIFF '15/16
Bursting off the screen with energy and style, Tangerine is a wildly subversive film. A decidedly modern Christmas tale told from the perspective of transgender sex workers on the streets of L.A, the film defies expectation at every turn. Intimate and brilliantly shot, using an iphone5s (fitted with prototype anamorphic adaptors), Tangerine is a work of unapologetic matter-of-fact insight and wild humour. This screened at SWIFF with a video intro from director Sean Baker, whose next feature, The Florida Project, is also a favourite of the SWIFF Team. Streaming on SBS On Demand or Amazon Prime.
The Wolfpack – SWIFF 15/16
Director Crystal Moselle was struck by the appearance of the Angulo brothers, dressed on the street like characters from Reservoir Dogs. The discovery that they were raised completely isolated in a Manhattan apartment, raised in part by an archive of over 10,000 films to stave off their loneliness, the brothers recreate their favourite scenes. A testament to cinema, family and resilience that feels particularly poignant in the current situation. Streaming on Kanopy, DocPlay or Tubi.
Hell or High Water - SWIFF'17
Working from a searing, always quotable screenplay by Sicario scribe Taylor Sheridan, British director David MacKenzie introduces us to outlaw brothers Toby (Chris Pine) and Tanner (Ben Foster) as they embark on a spree of bank robberies, chased by racially insensitive Texas ranger Marcus (Jeff Bridges) and his Comanche-Mexican deputy Alberto (Gil Birmingham). A gripping action-thriller about family, crime and justice, Sheridan’s Wind River was also a highlight of SWIFF ’18. Streaming on Stan.
The Tribe - SWIFF 15/16
Let’s close with perhaps one of the more polarising films in SWIFF’s history. Winner of over 25 international film festival awards, including the Cannes Grand Jury Prize, The Tribe is a shocking cinematic experience, and isn’t easily forgotten. Set at a Ukrainian boarding school for the deaf, the film’s narrative unfolds purely through sign language without subtitles or voiceover. Sexually explicit, overtly violent, but utterly captivating, The Tribe is a defining, unique film experience that engages the audience on a near unbelievable level. Director Myroslav Slaboshpytskyi is currently completing a documentary focusing on the life of Oles Uljanenko, the Ukrainian author whose works were banned by the country. Streaming on Stan.