The film festival kicks off nationally with the heartwarming comedy, Here is Harold, which shows the journey of a bitter old man who seeks revenge by trying to kidnap the founder of IKEA. Other handpicked films include RAMS, which received the top prize of Un Certain Regard as well as a 10 minute standing ovation at Cannes; the thought-provoking, coming-of-age film, Young Sophie Bell; and the hilarious holiday drama featuring an award-winning performance from Bodil Jørgensen, All Inclusive.  The Scandinavian Film Festival wraps up with an eye-opening documentary on one of Hollywood’s most beloved imports, Ingrid Bergman: In her Own Words.

Another highlight of the festival is the guest appearance from multi-talented actress, Bianca Kronlöf, who appears in the biting drama, Underdog. Kronlöf will appear for the opening night screenings in Melbourne and Sydney for exclusive Q & A sessions on the 10th and 11th of July respectively. We spoke with the star about the festival.

“The program is fantastic I have to say. As a Scandinavian to come here and see all the films that they got together is amazing. I hope that I will have time to see as much as possible. It’s actually weird as a scandinavian to come to Australia and be like ‘now I can see all the good Scandinavian films, this is amazing!’ It’s like travelling back to my roots through Australia.”

Miss Kronlöf said that the fact that more Scandinavian films are heading abroad is testament to the growth of the Scandinavian film industry. She said their point of difference to mainstream Hollywood films is their focus on the characters and their relationships.

“In Sweden we don’t do these huge action things. Of course we have these boring, mainstream movies that don’t say anything about anyone that are just there for people to watch when you’re hungover, which is a good thing we need those movies as well. And then the smaller, underground ones. But to compare Swedish films to Hollywood mainstream I would say that it’s more relationship based and about the characters.”

The Swedish actress also added: “Everyone should go to the Scandinavian Film Festival because it’s such a good program. So if you go, you can be an expert about Scandinavian films right now, because the program is so exceptionally good.”

Head to the Scandinavian Film Festival website for more information on the films and to buy tickets.

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“The REELise came out of Rose Bay police station, a very passionate youth liaison officer Yasmin London who is always dealing with the impact of cyber bullying on young people. She wanted to create a youth empowerment program based around mobile phone film making on the basis that that was a handy tool in everyone’s pocket to provide access to filmmaking and also it was actually turning the table on an instrument often used by cyber bullies and making it into a positive tool for sharing stories and creating community.”

“This year’s theme of #nofilter is designed to encourage storytelling by young people about what it’s like growing up today in this age of digital narcissism. attracted a range of stories – facilitating travel stories from your lounge room by using your photo shop skills to more serious stories about the impact of bullying and the role of social media in creating unrealistic body images and perhaps even barriers to true connections with people. so there are quite a range of short films. our filmmakers this year have been quite creative in addressing that theme. so it’s going to be a fun afternoon of film.”

“The REELise Film Festival marks the first anniversary of Charlotte Dawson’s death,” Karen explained. They will thus be giving the Charlotte Dawson award to “someone who has positively impacted the lives of young people through film and media.” Karen said: “that’s our way of honouring Charlotte’s contribution to the REELise Film Festival about which she was very passionate, and it’s our way of continuing a legacy of speaking out in the space of youth empowerment and cyber bullying which was obviously an issue uppermost for Charlotte’s consciousness.”

The festival kicks off with a police electronic ensemble and also features workshops where budding filmmakers can learn from industry professionals as well as festival entertainment and a red carpet zone with Network Ten personality Scott Tweedie. The REELise Film Festival also includes a black light party where people can literally glow for a cause. Complete with glow in the dark face paint and a glow station, this is a novel and exciting way to show support for the anti-cyber bullying campaign.

Head to the REELise Film Festival website to book tickets to Sunday’s event, or for more information.

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The festival is predicated on the idea that multicultural Australia needs more exposure to Latin American culture and arts. The festival doesn’t represent a single Latino/a voice, but instead it promotes the broad identity of a huge continent. Guests can expect films from across the continent to reveal larger differences about Latin American cultures and reflect on their inter-continental relationships. As such, it’s a great experience to gain an understanding of the complex history and culture, as recounted by those within the culture.

This year’s program features the hotly anticipated, award winning documentary Behaviour as the festival opener. The Cuban documentary is seen in some corners as quite controversial, so it makes for a perfect companion to the opening night’s festivities. Cannes Award winners The Vega Brothers (the Latino Coen Brothers?) are also showing their film The Mute, a contemporary black comedy set in Peru. Mexican documentarian Nicolás Echevarría’s Echo of the Mountain is sure to be another festival favourite, with a lyrical, photographic style praised by film buffs the world over. Other films include Stones In The Sun, Mateo, Bad Hair and Uruguayan children’s favourite Anina.

The SLAFF will take place at the George Street Event Cinemas and runs from the 3rd to the 10th of September, 2014. Moviegoers are encouraged to book tickets online through Event or through the Festival’s own website. Over the past eight years, the dedicated organisers have managed to raise more than a hundred thousand dollars for their cause, so do yourself (and others) and favour and head in to this year’s SLAFF!

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