Happy Friday! If you’re looking for something to do this weekend, how about catching a film at MIFF – the Melbourne International Film Festival? We caught High Rise a couple of weeks back, and this week we’ll be watching Chris Pine’s new western, Hell and High Water. Should be awesome. Check out the website if you haven’t for their program.
About MIFF
Established in 1952, the Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) is one of the oldest film festivals in the world and the most significant screen event in Australia. An iconic Melbourne event, the festival takes place annually in the heart of the city, presenting an acclaimed screening program alongside industry and celebratory events.
MIFF showcases the best in current cinema from around the world as well as retrospectives, tributes and discussion programs. Since its inception, MIFF has also been committed to local film: it is Australia’s largest showcase of new Australian cinema and is the country’s most vocal champion of emerging and established local filmmaking talent. The festival also hosts many celebratory world premieres of local films. View the festival archive here.
Complementing the screening program is MIFF’s renowned industry program that includes an investment fund (the Premiere Fund) and the director’s development program (Accelerator). MIFF’s finance market (37°South) brings the national and international screen industry to Melbourne during the festival and celebrates Melbourne as a centre for screen business.
In 2015 MIFF delivered almost $9.8 million into the local economy*.
If you’re a first timer to the film festival, remember, queue up early! Depending on how popular the film is, queues might start an hour before the show starts. Yes, the films are shown American-style: free seating. For High Rise, we went off to get a drink, and when we came back half an hour before the film started, the queue was already around the block. And if the tickets have already sold out for your favourite show: ah well, it’ll probably be on Netflix or mainstream release in a few months. The most popular films sell out very quickly, often before the festival even gets under way.