THE LIST: EVERY PIXAR MOVIE – WORST TO BEST

From its humble beginnings within Lucasfilm to its boom years as an independent Hollywood force to its 2006 purchase by one-time competitor Disney, Pixar Animation Studios has always been a marketplace juggernaut. From their first feature, the groundbreaking Toy Story, to their 22^nd and most recent effort, the contemporary fairy tale Onward, Pixar have dominated the box office, the award seasons and the forefront of technology. 

So is every Pixar movie a masterpiece? Well, no. But under founder John Lasseter and with talent such as Andrew Stanton and Brad Bird on the lot, Pixar set themselves a high standard. So, if you had to rank the 22 Pixar films from worst to best, in what order might they fall….? (U.S. release dates; box office courtesy Box Office Mojo; # on Pixar’s box office chart) 

22. CARS 2 (Dir: John Lasseter) Released: June 24, 2011
Pixar’s second sequel (twelve years after Toy Story 2) was the first to leave the brand tarnished. At 39% on Rotten Tomatoes, John Lasseter’s soulless sequel is the most critically unpopular by a long way. First (but not the last) time that the studio greenlit a project with an eye on the black ink.
Global Box Office: US$559,852,396.00 (#12) 

21. FINDING DORY (Dir: Andrew Stanton) Released: June 17, 2016.
Peter Sohn’s The Good Dinosaur was proving a troublesome beast (see below), so Pixar fast-tracked this sequel to its hottest property to help meet profit projections. And it feels rushed, undercooked, manufactured, and manipulative. Thirteen years after Finding Nemo charmed the world, it’s waterlogged sequel tanked critically.
Global Box Office: US$1,028,570,889.00 (#4) 

20. MONSTERS UNIVERSITY (Dir: Dan Scanlon) Released: June 21, 2013
Lasseter and his team are five years under the Disney roof, and the new owners want to see some of that Pixar cartoon coin. So properties like Monsters Inc besties Mike and Sully are marketed to the max, led by this strained college campus comedy. A few laughs, but doesn’t make the grade. 
Global Box Office: $743,559,607.00 (#8) 

19. CARS (Dir: John Lasseter) Released: June 9, 2006
Car-nut Lasseter was wooed over to Disney when they agreed to throw their distribution might behind his passion project. But something was off-key. Cars don’t anthropomorphise like fish or toys or bugs; the world building and unappealing characters rang false, even when the colours popped.
Global Box Office: $461,983,149.00 (#17) 

18. CARS 3 (Dir: Brian Fee) Released: June 16, 2017
Promoted from within, director Brian Fee recaptures a little bit of that Pixar magic, albeit in the service of a formulaic hero’s journey. Bolstered by good racetrack sequences and a reduced role for the never-funny Mater, it’s ok.
Global Box Office: $383,930,656.00 (#18) 

17. ONWARD (Dir: Dan Scanlon) Released: March 6, 2020
By 2020, Hollywood animation has developed a certain aesthetic, drawn from years of trying to emulate Pixar’s style (and success). Onward, a road-trip brother-buddy story set in a contemporary fairy-tale world, represents the studio finally chasing it’s own tail; it feels like a competing studio’s Pixar rip-off.
Global Box Office: $74,395,049.00 (#22; still in release) 

16. TOY STORY 3 (Dir: Lee Unkrich) Released: June 18, 2010
Lee Unkrich’s first solo outing in the Pixar helming chair takes the deeper, sadder thematic subtexts of the previous franchise instalments and lays them on thick. Toy Story 3 is a miserable film, its dour colour palette and ‘existential dread’ narrative throughline a total bummer.
Global Box Office: $1,066,969,703.00 (#3) 

15. THE GOOD DINOSAUR (Dir: Peter Sohn) Released November 25, 2015
Pixar’s first official ‘troubled production’. Original creatives Bob Peterson and John Walker were walked late into production; the film was reworked extensively, with many of the cast recalled to voice new scenes. Disney shuffled the release - November 2013 to May 2014 to November 2015. The end result is a jagged but not unlikable adventure, filled with nice imagery. Lost heaps of money.
Global Box Office: $332,207,671.00 (#21)

14. INCREDIBLES 2 (Dir: Brad Bird) Released: June 15, 2018
Highly anticipated, and not without ambition, Pixar’s latest long overdue Part II (this time, 14 years) ultimately can’t escape the Pixar ‘sequel curse’. Brad Bird, the studio’s ‘Golden Boy’ after The Incredibles and Ratatouille, needed to bounce back from his costly George Clooney misfire Tomorrowland; he directs Incredibles 2 like there’s a gun to his head.
Global Box Office: $1,242,805,359.00 (#1) 

13.  TOY STORY 2 (Dir: John Lasseter) Released: November 24, 1999
Giddy with the success of Buzz and Woody’s landmark first adventure, Lasseter directs their new film with contagious glee. All colour and movement, with Hanks and Allen leading the best voice cast ever, Toy Story 2 is old-school family-friendly animation that doesn’t break new ground and has a lot of fun doing it.
Global Box Office: $487,059,677.00 (#16) 

12. BRAVE (Dirs: Mark Andrews & Brenda Chapman) Released: June 22, 2012
Much was made of ‘Merida’ being Pixar’s first female lead, and Brenda Chapman their first woman (co)director. And the first two acts of Brave deliver on the promise that pairing held – fiercely determined heroine, stunning visuals, strong narrative. It implodes in Act 3, when things turn a bit ‘Disney’-safe; well-documented ‘creative differences’ behind the scenes are obvious.
Global Box Office: $538,983,207.00 (#13) 

11. A BUG’S LIFE (Dir: John Lasseter) Released: November 25, 1998
The more buoyant, family-friendly of the two ‘animated insect’ movies (though Dreamworks’ Antz holds up better). In 1998, Pixar were still enjoying the ‘New Disney’ warmth from industry and audiences alike. A Bug’s Life comes very much from that mindset – colourful, sweet natured, witty and warm.
Global Box Office: $363,258,859.00 (#20) 

10. MONSTER’S INC (Dir: Pete Doctor) Released: November 2, 2001
Lasseter launched the brand, but arguably Pixar’s star director is Pete Doctor. He launched the first of his three Pixar classics in 2001 with Monsters Inc, a slice of near-perfect world building with two wonderfully ‘Odd Couple’ buddies out front of a deceptively moving story about friendship and innocence.
Global Box Office: $528,773,250.00 (#14) 

9. TOY STORY (Dir: John Lasseter) Released: November 22, 1995
It is easy to look at Pixar’s first feature and not recall what a shift in the animation sector paradigm it represented. Buzz and Woody are to the Pixar empire as Mickey (and, later, Beauty and The Beast) were to Disney. Only advancements in technology keep Toy Story from a Top 5 placing.
Global Box Office: $364,545,516.00 (#19) 

8. RATATOUILLE (Dir: Brad Bird, Jan Pinkava) Released: June 29, 2007
Much like it’s hero, a rat with Michelin-level kitchen skills, Ratatouille lives in a place on the Pixar roster that posits it as an underdog of sorts. It is more overtly adult in its story-telling and further enhanced the Pixar palette, with images as beautiful as anything the company has produced. It is adored, yet in an understated way usually reserved for works of art, which seems appropriate.
Global Box Office: $623,722,818.00 (#11) 

7. FINDING NEMO (Dir: Andrew Stanton) Released: May 30, 2003
Another company-defining title, in the same league, both critically and commercially, as Toy Story. A truly funny character comedy, immeasurably enhanced by lead voice-actors Albert Brooks and Ellen DeGeneres (who both polished their dialogue), it also soars as a study in family bonds, fulfilling a destiny and the joys of a broader worldview. Just keep swimming…   
Global Box Office: $871,014,978.00 (#5) 

6. WALL-E (Dir: Andrew Stanton) Released: June 27, 2008
One of the greatest…well, silent movies, space adventures, love stories, take your pick. Stanton’s masterpiece is Pixar’s most far-out adventure, from it’s deep space setting and lil’ leading man, yet speaks to environmental devastation and mankind’s role in making it happen like few contemporary films ever have. Somehow makes mountains of garbage breathtakingly beautiful.
Global Box Office: $521,311,860.00 (#15) 

5. TOY STORY 4 (Dir: Josh Cooley) Released: June 21, 2019
Plays with elements of dark and light – narratively, thematically, visually – like the richly developed, classical fairy tale it ultimately is. Not afraid to get spooky when it needs to (those dolls!) but doesn’t lose touch with the heart and humour that defined the franchise. New kid director Josh Cooley (who’d previously done voice work for Pixar) announces himself as a major storytelling force.
Global Box Office: $1,073,394,593.00 (#2) 

4. UP (Dir: Pete Doctor) Released: May 29, 2009
The opening frames of Pete Doctor’s bittersweet slice of sublime melancholia are already recognised as some of the greatest in modern American film. Ten minutes in, audiences emotions are primed for the next ninety, which deliver laughs (“Squirrel!”) and tears in equal measure. Incredibly, this is not Doctor’s best Pixar movie.
Global Box Office: $735,099,082.00 (#9) 

3. COCO (Dir: Lee Unkrich, Adrian Molina) Released: November 22, 2017
Detractors have occasionally pointed out that Pixar films have not always been the most ethnically diverse. Coco addresses that with a journey into a young Latino boy’s family history, a musical/fantasy odyssey that transcends its netherworld setting to convey the importance of legacy, creativity and spirituality. Is Remember Me the greatest ever Pixar movie song?
Global Box Office: $807,082,196.00 (#7) 

2. THE INCREDIBLES (Dir: Brad Bird) Released: November 5, 2004
The greatest super-hero movie ever made. Which ought to be praise enough, but Brad Bird’s thrillingly kinetic, retro-outfitted wonder is also a razor-sharp dissection of modern family dynamics, middle-class morality and gender redefinition. And it’s the greatest super-hero movie ever made.
Global Box Office: $631,442,092.00 (#10)

1. INSIDE OUT (Dir: Pete Doctor) Released: June 19, 2015
The premise is cute – a little girl’s emotions (Joy, Fear, Anger, Disgust and Sadness) must help through a family relocation. In Pete Doctor’s hands, Inside Out becomes one of American cinema’s most profound examinations of anxiety, isolation and depression. Yet as it breaks your heart, it still remains a joyous experience. Inside Out is the perfect Pixar film – a flight of vivid imagination, beautifully realised, yet intrinsically human in every aspect. 
Global Box Office: $857,611,174.00 (#6)

GEN-X INFLUENCE CLEAR IN OSCAR NIGHT TALENT ROSTER

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences suggested a changing of the guard as the 92^nd annual Academy Awards unfolded tonight in Los Angeles. From the bestowing upon a foreign-language film its ultimate accolade for the first time to letting an ageing rapper finally belt out his Oscar-winning tune from 17 years ago, the ceremony provided further evidence of a strengthening of Generation X powerbrokers within the AMPAS membership.

The headline story of the evening was the trophy haul won by writer/director Bong Joon-ho’s darkly funny, contemporary South Korean thriller Parasite, which managed to hide away four awards by evening’s end – Best Film, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best International Feature.

The year’s most acclaimed film, Parasite now holds the honour of being the first foreign-language production in Academy Award history to win Best Film. Twelve foreign-language classics have been nominated for the top honour previously, including such masterpieces as Le Grande Illusion (1938), Z (1969), Cries and Whispers (1973) and Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (2000).

Elsewhere, hot young stars from the 1990s were the key recipients of the four major acting gongs, signifying their transition into more stately industry standing. Lead actor and actress awards went to Joaquin Phoenix (Joker) and Renee Zellwegger (Judy) respectively (Phoenix emotionally quoted a passage written by his late brother, '90s icon River); supporting honours went to Laura Dern (Marriage Story) and Brad Pitt (Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood). The ageing ‘movie brat’ might of Martin Scorsese and his ensemble couldn’t secure The Irishman a trophy, while millennial poster-children Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson had to sit and watch with Marriage Story director Noah Baumbach as, Dern aside, others aced that film’s chances.

Perhaps the ultimate nod to the 40-55 year age bracket that held sway over the 2020 ceremony was the appearance of rap star Eminem. Unable to perform his hit song ‘Lose Yourself’ from Curtis Hanson’s 8 Mile when it won the Best Song gong in 2003, the singer, belted out the tune with power and energy before an enraptured audience who nodded heads in tempo and approval. Adding to the air of Gen-X authority was a movie-song montage that played like a love letter to '80s cinema.

The night’s supremely awkward attempts at being relevant to the under 25 demo were also typically Gen-X. Having Janelle Monae cold-open as 'Mr Rogers' then pound out a song-and-dance number featuring dancers in outfits from cooler films that weren’t nominated (Midsommar; Us) was a mistake that veered close to Rob Lowe/Snow White tackiness. A rapping-recap at the half way point from one of the young stars of the upcoming urban musical In The Heights left most bewildered.   

One generation’s love for the adventures of Woody and Buzz no doubt bolstered Toy Story 4 in the Best Animated Feature award, with Pixar’s mega-successful franchise entry beating out the more deserving Klaus and I Lost My Body. Also reflecting a more open-minded attitude than we’ve come to expect from the Academy was Taiki Waititi’s Best Adapted Screenplay win for the Nazi-themed satire, Jojo Rabbit. The love for brilliant international filmmaking did not extend to the Best Documentary Feature category, with American Factory beating the heartbreaking masterwork For Sama.

Technical categories skewed towards the industry’s older craftsmen, with 1917 (Visual Effects; Cinematography; Sound Mixing), Ford vs Ferrari (Editing; Sound Editing), Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (Production Design) and Little Women (Costume Design) sharing the below-the-line honours. Steven Spielberg introduced the In Memoriam montage, which included his mentor, Sid Sheinberg. The late Kobe Bryant was the first image, while Hollywood great Kirk Douglas was the last, the long list of those who have left us accompanied by a soulful Billie Eilish singing The Beatles’ Yesterday.

JOKER HAS LAST LAUGH WITH ELEVEN 2020 OSCAR NOMINATIONS

Who’s laughing now?

2019’s most talked-about anti-hero odyssey Joker emerged as the unlikely front-runner from this morning’s Academy Awards nominations announcement. A film that many analysts called dangerously subversive, split the critical community and caused a social media storm upon its release was welcomed with open arms by AMPAS voters, scoring 11 nominations including Best Picture, Best Lead Actor for Joaquin Phoenix and Best Director for Todd Phillips. Add the accolades to a $1billion global box office haul and there is a lot to smile about over at Warner Bros.

Also grinning from ear to ear are the team at Netflix, with the streaming platform leading the nomination tally with 24 Oscar mentions. Martin Scorsese’s The Irishman (pictured, right) with 10 nominations, Noah Baumbach’s Marriage Story with six and Fernando Meirelles’ The Two Popes with three are flying the flag for Hollywood’s new kid on the block – a kid that is redefining the ‘mini/major’ studio system of old.

In the mix with 10 nominations apiece are Quentin Tarantino’s revisionist LA buddy pic Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood and Sam Mendes’ WW1 epic 1917. Alongside Marriage Story with 6 nominations each are Taiki Waititi’s anti-hate charmer Jojo Rabbit, Greta Gerwig’s literary adaptation Little Women and, continuing its extraordinary surge towards Oscar glory, South Korean superstar director Bong Joon-ho’s foreign film ‘blockbuster’ Parasite. The blackly funny home invasion romp will vie for both Best Picture and Best Foreign Language Oscars.

Those hoping to wrestle the trophy from Phillips for Best Director are Martin Scorsese (The Irishman), Quentin Tarantino (Once Upon a Time…in Holywood), Bong Joon-ho (Parasite) and Sam Mendes (1917).

Vying for Lead Actor honours with Phoenix are Antonio Banderas (Pain and Glory; pictured, right), Leonardo DiCaprio (Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood), Adam Driver (Marriage Story) and this year’s bolter, Jonathan Pryce (The Two Popes). Those that missed out in a wildly competitive year include Golden Globe winner Taron Edgerton (Rocketman), Adam Sandler (Uncut Gems), Eddie Murphy (Dolemite is my Name) and Christian Bale (Ford vs Ferrari, which otherwise did well with four nominations, including Best Picture).

Lead Actress contenders stuck closely to recent award season form, with Renee Zellweger’s transformative turn as showbiz icon Judy Garland in Rupert Goold’s Judy considered the favourite. Also in the mix are Saorsie Ronan (Little Women), Charlize Theron (Bombshell), Cynthia Erivo (Harriet) and Scarlett Johansson (Marriage Story). Johansson is the ‘Golden Girl’ of this year’s Oscar season, earning a second nomination in the Supporting Actress category for Jojo Rabbit.

Those snubbed in this category point to a noticeable lack of diversity in this year’s nominations, with Golden Globe-winning Asian-American actress Awkwafina (The Farewell) and African-American star Lupita Nyong’o (Us) cast aside for their lead roles. Despite his film’s six nominations, Parasite leading man Kang-ho Song was left out, as was Latino superstar Jennifer Lopez for her supporting role in Lorene Scafaria’s Hustlers; across the four main acting categories, Cynthia Erivo (pictured, right) and Antonio Banderas are the only torchbearers for ethnicity. Little Women director Greta Gerwig was bumped from the Best Director race, despite her film earning six noms in total (she was nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay).

Other notable omissions from the nomination roster are Disney/Pixar’s animated blockbuster, Frozen 2, which lost its place in the cartoon category to Netflix’s surprise hit Klaus; Beyonce, who’ll be home in her jammies on Oscar night due to her original song ‘Spirit’ from The Lion King missing out; Robert De Niro, the once perennial Oscar nominee, for The Irishman (despite co-stars Al Pacino and Joe Pesci earning Supporting Actor shots); writers Emily Halpern, Sarah Haskins, Susanna Fogel and Katie Silberman, who penned the smartest teen film since Clueless, Olivia Wilde’s Booksmart; and, everyone but Supporting Actor nominee Tom Hanks for Marielle Heller’s brilliant but underseen gem, A Beautiful Day in Your Neighbourhood (pictured, above; Heller).

The complete list of 2020 Oscar nominations is listed below. The 92nd Academy Awards will be held Sunday, February 9:

Best Picture: “Ford v Ferrari” (Disney/Fox); “The Irishman” (Netflix); “Jojo Rabbit” (Fox Searchlight); “Joker” (Warner Bros.); “Little Women” (Sony); “Marriage Story” (Netflix); “1917” (Universal); “Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood” (Sony); “Parasite” (Neon)

Best Director: Martin Scorsese (“The Irishman”); Todd Phillips (“Joker”); Sam Mendes (“1917”); Quentin Tarantino (“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”); Bong Joon Ho (“Parasite”)

Best Actor: Antonio Banderas (“Pain and Glory”); Leonardo DiCaprio (“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”); Adam Driver (“Marriage Story”); Joaquin Phoenix (“Joker”); Jonathan Pryce (“The Two Popes”)

Best Actress: Cynthia Erivo (“Harriet”); Scarlett Johansson (“Marriage Story”); Saoirse Ronan (“Little Women”; pictured, right); Charlize Theron (“Bombshell”); Renee Zellweger (“Judy”)

Supporting Actor: Tom Hanks (“A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood”); Anthony Hopkins (“The Two Popes”); Al Pacino (“The Irishman”); Joe Pesci (“The Irishman”); Brad Pitt (“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”)

Supporting Actress: Kathy Bates (“Richard Jewell”); Laura Dern (“Marriage Story”); Scarlett Johansson (“Jojo Rabbit”); Florence Pugh (“Little Women”); Margot Robbie (“Bombshell”)

Adapted Screenplay: Taika Waititi (“Jojo Rabbit”); Steve Zaillian (“The Irishman”); Anthony McCarten (“The Two Popes”); Greta Gerwig (“Little Women”); Todd Phillips and Scott Silver (“Joker”)

Best Original Screenplay: Rian Johnson (“Knives Out”); Noah Baumbach (“Marriage Story”); Sam Mendes and Krysty Wilson-Cairns (“1917”); Quentin Tarantino (“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”); Bong Joon Ho and Han Jin Won (“Parasite”)

Animated Feature: “How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World”; “I Lost My Body”; “Klaus” (pictured, right); “Missing Link”; “Toy Story 4”

International Feature Film: “Corpus Christi”; “Honeyland”; “Les Miserables”; “Pain and Glory”; “Parasite”

Best Documentary: “American Factory”; “The Cave”; “Edge of Democracy”; “For Sama”; “Honeyland”

Best Cinematography: Rodrigo Prieto, “The Irishman”; Lawrence Sher, “Joker”; Jarin Blaschke, “The Lighthouse”; Roger Deakins, “1917”; Robert Richardson, “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”

Best Costume Design: Sandy Powell and Christopher Peterson, “The Irishman”; Mayes C. Rubeo, “Jojo Rabbit”; Mark Bridges, “Joker”; Jacqueline Durran, “Little Women”; Arianne Phillip, “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”

Film Editing: Michael McCusker and Andrew Buckland, “Ford vs. Ferrari”; Thelma Schoonmaker, “The Irishman”; Tom Eagles, “Jojo Rabbit”; Jeff Groth, “Joker”; Yang Jinmo, “Parasite”

Makeup and Hairstyling: “Bombshell” (Kazu Hiro, Anne Morgan and Vivian Baker); “Joker” (Nicki Ledermann and Kay Georgiou); “Judy” (Jeremy Woodhead); “Maleficent: Mistress of Evil” (Paul Gooch, Arjen Tuiten and David White); “1917” (Naomi Donne, Tristan Versluis and Rebecca Cole)

Original Score: Hildur Guðnadóttir, “Joker”; Alexandre Desplat, “Little Women”; Randy Newman, “Marriage Story”; Thomas Newman, “1917”; John Williams, “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker”

Original Song: I Can’t Let You Throw Yourself Away, “Toy Story 4”; I’m Gonna Love Me Again, “Rocketman”; I’m Standing With You, “Breakthrough”; Into the Unknown, “Frozen 2”; Stand Up, “Harriet”

Production Design: “The Irishman” - Production Design: Bob Shaw, Set Decoration: Regina Graves; “Jojo Rabbit” - Production Design: Ra Vincent, Set Decoration: Nora Sopková; “1917” - Production Design: Dennis Gassner, Set Decoration: Lee Sandales; “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” - Production Design: Barbara Ling, Set Decoration: Nancy Haigh; “Parasite” - Production Design: Lee Ha Jun, Set Decoration: Cho Won Woo

Sound Editing: “Ford v Ferrari” (Donald Sylvester); “Joker” (Alan Robert Murray); “1917” (Oliver Tarney and Rachael Tate); “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” (Wylie Stateman); “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” (Matthew Wood and David Acord)

Sound Mixing: “Ad Astra” (Gary Rydstrom, Tom Johnson and Mark Ulano); “Ford vs. Ferrari” (Paul Massey, David Giammarco and Steven A. Morrow); “Joker” (Tom Ozanich, Dean Zupancic and Tod Maitland); “1917” (Mark Taylor and Stuart Wilson); “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” (Michael Minkler, Christian P. Minkler and Mark Ulano)

Visual Effects: “Avengers: Endgame” (Dan DeLeeuw, Russell Earl, Matt Aitken and Dan Sudick); “The Irishman” (Pablo Helman, Leandro Estebecorena, Nelson Sepulveda-Fauser and Stephane Grabli); “The Lion King” (Robert Legato, Adam Valdez, Andrew R. Jones and Elliot Newman); “1917” (Guillaume Rocheron, Greg Butler and Dominic Tuohy); “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” (Roger Guyett, Neal Scanlan, Patrick Tubach and Dominic Tuohy)

Documentary (Short Subject): “In the Absence”; “Learning to Skateboard in a War Zone If You’re a Girl” (pictured, above); “Life Overtakes Me”; “St. Louis Superman”; “Walk Run Cha-Cha”

Short Film (Animated): “Daughter”; “Hair Love”; “Kitbull”; “Memorable”; “Sister”

Short Film (Live Action): “Brotherhood”; “Nefta Football Club”; “The Neighbor’s Window”; “Saria”; “A Sister”

PREVIEW: 2019 VETERANS FILM FESTIVAL

The experience of those who defend the shores and principles of their homelands will be honoured when the 6^th annual Veterans Film Festival unfurls in Canberra on November 6. The frontline realities lived by soldiers, survivors and first responders from 11 countries will comprise the 2019 program, with 18 short films and seven features to screen at such iconic venues as the Australian War Memorial and the National Film and Sound Archive.

In a major coup for the event, the Governor General of Australia, His Excellency General the Honourable David Hurley AC, DSC (Ret’d) and Her Excellency Mrs Linda Hurley have been announced as patrons of the Veterans Film Festival. This alliance continues a strong history of support between the festival and individuals and organisations representing the returned servicemen and women of Australia and their loved ones. On board in 2019 as Presenting Partner is The Australian Defence Force, with mental health advocacy groups Beyond Blue and The Road Home also providing support.

Opening night will see the Australian Premiere of Vladimir Potapov’s The Cry of Silence, an adaption of Tamara Zinberg’s bestselling story of survival set against the Leningrad Blockade of February, 1942. Shot for Russian television but exhibiting a scale and sense of time and place on par with the grandest theatrical features, it stars Alina Sarghina (pictured, above) as Katya, a teenage girl living alone in the war torn city, whose will to survive is rejuvenated when she finds an abandoned infant boy.

Direct from its Australian Premiere at the Melbourne International Film Festival will be the French animated drama, The Swallows of Kabul. Co-directed by Zabou Breitman and Eléa Gobbé-Mévellec, this stunning, deeply involving film recounts the romance between Mohsen and Zunaira in Kabul in the summer of 1998, when life was ruled over by the Taliban militia. The Closing Night feature will be the U.S. documentary The Interpreters (pictured, above) from directors Sofian Khan and Andres Caballero, an insider’s perspective on the Iraqi and Afghan nationals who work as ‘the voice’ of American forces in foreign combat positions.

Australian films will be represented by encore screenings of Kriv Stenders’ recent box office success Danger Close, the powerfully immersive re-enactment of The Battle of Long Tan; the A.C.T. Premiere of Storm Ashwood’s PTSD drama Escape and Evasion, starring Hugh Sheridan, Firass Dirani and Rena Owen; and, Tom Jeffery’s classic 1979 story of military mateship, The Odd Angry Shot, which has been lovingly restored by NFSA staff to coincide with its 40^th anniversary. Also screening will be a selection of episodes of the online documentary series Voodoo Medics, from director Kristin Shorten.

Four Australian shorts will screen, including Jason Trembath’s scifi-tinged drama Carcerem and Joseph Chebatte and Julian Maroun’s intense Afghan-set morality tale, Entrenched. Also screening will be four films from the U.S., amongst them the breathtaking animated work Minor Accident of War (pictured, right), based upon the true story of B-17 navigator Edward Field, and Brooke Mailhiot’s ode to the military canine, Surviving with Grief.

Indicating the truly global perspective that the Veterans Film Festival encompasses, other countries represented in the short film line-up include Iraq (Ali Mohammed Saeed’s Mosul 980; pictured, below); New Zealand (Pennie Hunt’s Milk); Russia (Irina Kholkina’s Carpe Diem; Sergey Bataev’s Old Warrior); U.K. (Max Mason’s Their War); Iran (Amir Gholami’s The Sea Swells); France (Raphaël Treiner’s Sursis); The Czech Republic (Tereza Hirsch’s Beyond Her Lens); India (Ashish Pandey’s Nooreh); and, Bulgaria (Iva Dimanova’s War Machine).

All films submitted are eligible for the Red Poppy Awards, which will be presented ahead of the Closing Night Film on November 9 at the Australian War Memorial. The award derives its name from a passage in the wartime poem ‘In Flanders Field’ which describes the flowers that grow quickly over the graves of the fallen. The lauded passage was written during the First World War by Canadian physician Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae after presiding over the funeral of friend Lieutenant Alexis Helmer, who died in the Second Battle of Ypres.

Inspired by 'In Flanders Fields', American professor Moina Michael resolved at the war's conclusion in 1918 to wear a red poppy year-round to honour the soldiers who had died in the war, a act of respect that has grown into a global movement today. Past winners of the Best Film Red Poppy include Joe Wright’s Darkest Hour (featuring Gary Oldmans’ Oscar-winning performance as Winston Churchill) and the LGTBIQ-themed documentary Transmilitary, from directors Gabriel Silverman and Fiona Dawson.

The VETERANS FILM FESTIVAL runs November 6-9 in Canberra. Full session and ticket iformation can be found at the official website.

SCIFI FILM FEST HONOUREES REFLECT A PLANET OF FUTURISTIC FILM VISIONARIES

The 6^th annual SciFi Film Festival wrapped in Sydney tonight with an informal award ceremony that honoured ambitious future visions from global independent cinema. Bestowing equal worth upon both feature- and short-film qualifiers, fifteen films from nine countries earned laurels in seven categories.

The German production Das letzte Land (The Final Land), a crowdfunded project written and directed by Marcel Barion, won Best Feature Film. The honour continues a successful festival roll-out for the gritty, thrilling deep-space two-hander, starring Milan Pešl and Torben Föllmer (pictured, above) as disparate personalities in a desperate situation; to date, the film has earned kudos at the Berlin Independent Film Festival and Italy’s Oltre Lo Specchio Film Festival.

The Best Short Film award went to Yohan Faure’s French-Canadian mini-feature Orage par ciel clair (Thunder From a Clear Sky), a riveting examination of the global existential crisis that one advanced civilization must consider when faced with an alien world similar to its own. Starring Fayolle Jean, Mathieu Lepage and Édith Côté-Demers (pictured, right), Faure’s richly cinematic, remarkably accomplished work is a thrilling commentary on media, morality and modern society.

Best Actress honourees went to two of the youngest leads in the 2019 festival lineup. As ‘Una’, the pre-teen adventurer determined to bring her family back together in the Croatian feature Moj dida je pao s Marsa (My Grandpa is an Alien), Lana Hranjec won for a warm, emotional portrayal that called upon her to appear in almost every scene of co-directors Marina Andree Skop and Drazen Zarkovic’s crowdpleaser. Australian actress Emma Wright earned top actress honours for Chris Elena’s short Audio Guide, her performance a largely silent one that captured bouts of wonder, glee, panic and dread with acute insight.

U.S. indie effort Norman, a time travel drama rich in complex narrative beats and DIY filmmaking bravado, was the night’s only double honouree. In his first motion picture lead performance, Stephen Birge took the Best Actor trophy as the title character, a desperate loner consumed with righting a multi-dimensional wrong

all his own doing. Fellow feature debutant Joel Guelzo, who spent more than seven years shepherding his passion project to the screen, earned Best Director, the filmmaker on hand to accept his bevy of local culinary delights in lieu of an actual gong.

Best Actor in a short film went to Yang Jin for his role as social agitator ‘Joe’ in Bo Wei bleak dystopic A.I. vision Ideal Homeland. Australian director Adrian Powers was named Best Director (Short Film) for the Indigenous-themed near-future thriller Brolga, which had its World Premiere on the Opening Night of the festival.

The hotly contested Best Animation category went to two diverse, left-field but richly deserving visions. Feature honours went to Eric Power’s paper-cut masterpiece Attack of the Demons, a giggly, gruesome reworking of the kind of 50s smalltown sci-fi tropes made famous by such B-classics as The Blob and Invasion of The Body Snatchers. Recognised in the Best Animated Short category was Spanish artist Diego Porral, whose caustic social commentary works Monsters Walking and A Day in The Park were highlights of Saturday evening’s Animation Showcase.

The technical categories rewarded works breaking new ground in their chosen field. Best Visual Effects (Feature) went to German auteur Daniel Raboldt’s exciting War of The Worlds-meets-A Quiet Place survival adventure A Living Dog. The VFX short film place-getter was too tight to call, with Luka Hrgović and Dino Julius’ Blade Runner-inspired practical effects spectacle Slice of Life splitting the honour with Alejandro Damiani’s Trump-takedown, M.A.M.O.N.

The mega-budgeted Japanese anime blockbuster Human Lost, from director Fuminori Kizaki, and Gonçalo Almeida’s mystical night-time canine odyssey short Thursday Night won feature and short-film honours respectively in the Best Sound/Music category.

The 2019 SciFi Film Festival was held September 6-8 at the Event Cinemas George Street complex in Sydney.