Tropfest - The World's Largest Short Film Festival

Top of the Trops 16 Finalists Revealed!

The most anticipated and world’s largest short film festival, Movie Extra Tropfest, has selected the 16 finalists to headline on Sunday February 22. The festival will offer audiences an eclectic lineup of films from homegrown talent and works from right around the world!

John Polson, Director/Founder of Movie Extra Tropfest, shares his tips on choosing the final sixteen:

“Every year I face the daunting task of choosing 16 films from the hundreds entered and each year the competition gets tougher. Since the festival’s conception, seventeen years ago, the entries have evolved to include stories from all types of filmmakers from all walks of life. The main things I look for in choosing which films will ultimately play at the on the night are strength of idea and how well that idea has been executed. Production values, budgets and famous faces are not deciding factors.”

Movie Extra Tropfest is proud to reveal the 16 finalists for the 2009 festival.

Bargain!
Director: Rachel Givney
State: NSW

Be My Brother
Director: Genevieve Clay
State: NSW

Being Carl Williams
Director: Abe Forsythe
State: NSW

Beyond Words
Director: Armand de Saint-Salvy
State: NSW

Blue
Director: Nathan Stone
State: WA

Dream What You Want
Director: Dimitri Ellerington
State: NSW

Fences
Director: Tim Dean
State: VIC

Jackie’s Spring Palace
Director: Matthew Phipps
State: SA

Left Unspoken
Director: Avi Lewin
State: QLD

Notes From A Scaresmith
Director: Scot Edwards
State: VIC

NYE
Director: Duane Fogwell
State: NSW

One in a Million
Director: Tom Vogel
State: VIC

Song for a Comb
Director: Sal Cooper
State: VIC

The Delivery
Director: Gerlee Scanlan & Rohan Jones
State: VIC

The Furry Cheque Book
Director: Bassett Dickson & Oliver Purser
State: VIC

The News
Director: Luke Shanahan
State: NSW

The winning filmmaker takes home prizes from a pool worth almost $200k!


1ST PRIZE
Qantas Scholarship Program: 2 return flights to LA, 6 nights accommodation and an opportunity to meet with film executives.
Presented by QANTAS AIRWAYS

A fully maintained Mitsubishi Lancer Sportback VRX on lease for 12 months
Presented by MITSUBISHI MOTORS AUSTRALIA

$5,000 Cash
Presented by KENNEDY MILLER MITCHELL

A Director's Attachment and an Associate Membership
Presented by AUSTRALIAN DIRECTORS GUILD

$7,000 Credit for Sound Edit & Mix
Presented by SONG ZU

$3,000 Worth of Lighting Hire
Presented by XYTECH AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Transfer of Winning Film to IMAX format*
Presented by HOYTS IMAX

Online Post services for the completion of the Movie Extra Tropfest 2010 Trailer (valued at $6,300)
Presented by THE LAB SYDNEY

Registration to the SPAA Conference OR SPAA Fringe 2009
Presented by THE SCREEN PRODUCERS ASSOCIATION OF AUSTRALIA

12 month subscription to FilmInk Magazine
Presented by FILMINK MAGAZINE

$1,000 Costume HireVoucher
Presented by ABC COSTUMES

6 cases of MadFish Wines
Presented by MADFISH WINES

1 Year Newspaper Subscription
Presented by THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD

* Conditions apply

For more information about other awards presented on the night, please go to www.tropfest.com/au 


Movie Extra Tropfest is a free, public event screened nationally to a live audience of more than 150,000 via simultaneous satellite broadcast in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Hobart, Canberra, Brisbane, Gold Coast and Perth (tape delay). 2009 marks the first live and national TV broadcast of the festival via the Movie Extra Channel, bringing the finalist film screening festival highlights direct to an audience of over 1 million Foxtel and Austar subscribers.

Live Festival Sites
Sydney: The Domain
Presented by Movie Extra Tropfest
Grounds Open 12pm

Not in Sydney?

Adelaide:
Rundle Park, Adelaide
Presented by the Media Resource Centre in partnership with the Garden of Unearthly Delights

Melbourne:
Sidney Myer Music Bowl
Presented by Movie Extra Tropfest and City Of Melbourne

Canberra:
Stage 88 Commonwealth Park, Canberra
Presented by the National Capital Authority

Brisbane:
Suncorp Piazza, Brisbane
Presented by QPIX

Perth:
Princess May Park, Fremantle
Presented by the Film and Television Institute

Hobart:
Salamanca Arts Centre, Hobart
Presented by SAC and Wide Angle Tasmania in association with Screen Tasmania

Gold Coast:
Circle on Cavill, Surfers Paradise
Presented by Surfers Paradise Alliance


Visit www.tropfest.com/au festival details, screening venues and regular updates on all things Trop!

• Please see attached document for finalist film synopses and biographies
• Finalist headshots and film stills available upon request


For further information on Movie Extra Tropfest and finalist interviews please contact:

Annaliese Zuzarte
Spin Communications
T. 02 9339 8354 / 0404 877 887
E. a.zuzarte@spin.com.au

Francesca Millena
Spin Communications
P) 02 9360 3377 / 0424 070 056
E) f.millena@spin.com.au



About Movie Extra Tropfest
Movie Extra Tropfest was founded by filmmaker John Polson at Sydney's Tropicana Cafe in 1993. What began as a small screening for friends and family is now regarded as the largest short film festival in the world. Tropfest is a free, public event that takes place nationally in February via simultaneous satellite broadcast in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Hobart, Canberra, Brisbane, and Perth – collectively attracting an audience of more than 150,000 people on a single night. The festival will also be broadcast live to more than 1 million Movie Extra subscribers this year for the first time. Thousands more attend Tropfest in New York City each year in July, as well as other smaller screenings in cities around the world. Films must be less than 7 minutes and contain the Tropfest Signature Item (TSI) which changes each year. The Movie Extra Tropfest 2009 TSI is “Spring”.

About Movie Network Channels
Movie Network Channels is the premium entertainment destination on subscription television, offering four distinct channels: MOVIE ONE and MOVIE TWO shine bright with blockbuster hits; MOVIE GREATS offers classics and library favorites; and MOVIE EXTRA delivers viewers a unique alternative to the Hollywood formula, including special events and original and exclusive series such as Mad Men, The Henry Rollins Show and Chandon Pictures. MNC is a joint venture company owned and operated by studio partners Warner Bros., MGM, Disney ABC Television and Village Roadshow, distributed via subscription TV platforms FOXTEL, AUSTAR, OPTUS, SelecTV, TransTV and Neighbourhood Cable.

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