WATCHING SHORTS ON BONDI BEACH

The thriving Eastern Suburbs film community kicks off its local summer season with the 12th annual Bondi Short Film Festival. The event's director, Francis Coady (pictured, below), spoke to SCREEN-SPACE about the state of the industry for short filmmakers.

After 12 years, what have you seen change in the shorts that approach the Festival for consideration? Where do 2011 short-filmmakers differ from the ones from over a decade ago? 

In 2012, it is common to see shorts that don’t exactly ‘fit inside the box.’ Today, short-filmmakers are all about pushing the boundaries, showing off their creative ingenuity and expressing their personal voice. With less restraints, I‘d say the film makers in this day in age are definitely more liberated to speak their mind and shake things up a bit.  Also the overall production values of short films have increased dramatically due to reduced costs in production equipment and editing.

How does the iconic Australian setting infuse the Festival?

With Bondi’s surf, sun, sea, and sand, there is no better place for a short film festival. I am a firm believer that the surroundings and scenery of any event can really make an impact to the overall feel and atmosphere of it. So it’s quite hard to not have a good time at the Bondi Short Film Festival because you’ve got the best of both worlds. Fourteen of Australia’s finest short films set to the backdrop of Australia’s most iconic beach (pictured, right, director Brodie Rocca's Julia).

Are the current crop of short-filmmakers making work with a social conscience or are there a lot of gag-films and zombie comedies to wade through?

The work of the current crop of short-filmmakers is definitely geared towards themes of the social conscience. The shorts from this year’s finalists explore real life issues ranging from unhealthy and abnormal relationships, the struggles and pressures of performers and professional athletes to the everyday hardships of society. Some will make you shed a tear and some will make you laugh uncontrollably, but all in all each one will leave you with a new insight into the world around us.

Is there sufficient industry infra-structure and support for the short film sector? Are first time directors finding it harder or easier than when the Festival began?

There is support for young, emerging film makers in Australia through government funding bodies and scholarship programs. However, the majority of films that we screen and have reviewed over the last twelve years have been generated by extremely passionate and enthusiastic individuals or collaborative teams of film makers, who have done it on their own. Some years the major film schools will produce excellent short films and we support them accordingly. (pictured, left, director Christopher Kezelos' The Maker)