Director Cherien Dabis's auspicious debut feature, Amreeka, is a warm and light-hearted film about one Palestinian family's tumultuous journey into diaspora amidst the cultural fallout of America's war in Iraq.

Muna Farah, a Palestinian single mum, struggles to maintain her optimistic spirit in the daily grind of intimidating West Bank checkpoints, the constant nagging of a controlling mother, and the haunting shadows of a failed marriage.  Everything changes one day when she receives a letter informing her that her family has been granted a U.S. Green Card.  Reluctant to leave her homeland, but realizing it may be the only way to secure a future for Fadi, her teenage son, Muna decides to quit her job at the bank and visit her relatives in Illinois to see about a new life in a land that gives newcomers a run for their money.  Do they have what it takes to successfully occupy the heartland?

Dabis weaves an abundance of humour and levity into this tale of struggle, displacement, and nostalgia and draws an absorbing and irresistibly charming performance from actress Nisreen Faour as Muna, who stands at the heart of this tale.  Amreeka glows with the truth and magic of everyday life and signals the arrival of an exciting, new directorial talent.

Amreeka made its world premiere in dramatic competition at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival. It has since screened in Directors’ Fortnight at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival, where it was awarded the prestigious critics’ prize by the Fipresci International Federation of Film Critics.

Flickerfest 2010, the original Bondi Short Film Festival, launched its 19th annual programme with a screening of the Australian short film Franswa Sharl directed by local Bondi filmmaker Hannah Hilliard and funded by Screen .  It will screen from 8th to 17th January 2010 under the stars at the Bondi Pavilion before travelling to 23 venues around the country including a return to Noosa, capital centres, key regional areas and for the first time Nambour (QLD), Canowindra (NSW) and Dungog (NSW). 

Flickerfest has received an impressive 1600 entries in 2010 with only 100 of these short films making it through to the final competition.  This ever-growing number of entries affirms Flickerfest’s place as a breeding ground for fresh and innovative shorts from a cross-section of filmmakers throughout the globe.    

“For me short film is the most exciting place to be in the film industry today, with the freshest trends and the most creative and contemporary stories coming alive in the short film genre. With over 1600 entries, Flickerfest will again screen the cream of international and Australian short film to audiences both in Sydney and across the country in a showcase of short film amongst the best in the world”    Bronwyn Kidd Festival Director. 

VISIT THE WEBSITE FOR SYNOPSIS OF THE FILMS.

Set in London in 1818, Bright Star is the tender story of first love between John Keats, the romantic English poet and the girl next door, the stylish, headstrong Fanny Brawne.  Inspired by the actual love letters between the couple and Keats' sublime poetry, Bright Star reveals one of the world's great, untold love stories in this exquisitely beautiful and deeply moving film.

Masterfully written and directed by Academy Award winner Jane Campion (The Piano), it stars Australian actress Abbie Cornish in an extraordinary performance that evokes the giddy intoxication of romance, alongside British rising star Ben Whishaw.

Keats resides with his boorish friend and patron, Charles Brown (an excellent Paul Schneider) in one half of a Hampstead Heath cottage, neighbouring Fanny, who lives with her widowed mother, sister and brother.  To Brown, Fanny is a constant distraction to Keats' work, a feisty minx not afraid to speak her mind.  The infatuation that envelops Keats and Fanny in their early meetings grows into a sustaining and joyous love.

Bright Star is not a typical costume drama.  Jane Campion has created an enthralling piece of modern cinema, full of passion, wit, ideas and life.  Abbie Cornish is magnetic as Fanny, displaying both a mesmerising vitality and a heart-stopping grace.  Her chemistry with the superb Whishaw, is pitch perfect. Breathtakingly beautiful, it draws you irresistibly into its world, a world of rare emotional honesty and an unapologetic reverence for romantic love.  Bright Star is a triumph on every level, a superlative achievement.

Jane (Meryl Streep) is the mother of three grown kids, owns a thriving Santa Barbara bakery/restaurant and has—after a decade of divorce—an amicable relationship with her ex-husband, attorney Jake (Alec Baldwin). But when Jane and Jake find themselves out of town for their son’s college graduation, things start to get complicated. An innocent meal together turns into the unimaginable—an affair. With Jake remarried to the much younger Agness (Lake Bell), Jane is now, of all things, the other woman. Caught in the middle of their renewed romance is Adam (Steve Martin), an architect hired to remodel Jane's kitchen. Healing from a divorce of his own, Adam starts to fall for Jane, but soon realizes he's become part of a love triangle. Should Jane and Jake move on with their lives, or is love truly lovelier the second time around? It's... complicated.

GRANAZ MOUSSAVI is an Iranian/Australian, a celebrated poet in her country of birth, whose film MY TEHRAN FOR SALE was shot underground in Tehran for good reason because it focuses on the lives of young people in artistic circles whose activities fly in the face of the authorities.

The central character is Marzieh – Marzieh Vafamehr – an actress who is isolated from her family who is working, behind closed doors on a politically sensitive performance piece. Through her friend Sadaf – ASHA MEHRABI – she meets Saman – AMIR CHEGINI, an Iranian/Australian who’s come to Tehran to make money so he can clear his debts back home.

But all does not end well in that relationship and Marzieh is forced to reassess her life.

Willie (Rocky Mackenzie), who lives in Broome, loves beautiful Rosie (Jessica Mauboy) but can’t bring himself to approach her. Willie’s mother sends him off to a boarding school in Perth run by strict Father Benedictus (Geoffrey Rush) – but Willie runs away and heads for home accompanied by his uncle (Ernie Dingo).

Rachel Perkins’ exuberant adaptation of the 1990 stage musical is a lot of fun, despite the fact that it has a rather insipid hero. The energetic staging of the musical numbers is just one of the engaging elements in a film filled with unexpected delights, such as the performances of Missy Higgins and Deborah Mailman, who are both excellent.