Get ready, Sydney. An impressive line-up of renowned filmmakers and global stars are about to descend on the Harbour City for the 71st Sydney Film Festival this June – and it's just been announced that none other than Golden Globe winner and Academy Award nominee Austin Butler is set to join them. The star of Baz Luhrman’s Elvis will attend the Australian premiere of his new film, The Bikeriders (which is one of our critic’s top ten picks for SFF 2024). Part of the Special Presentations strand of SFF, the red-carpet event will be held at the State Theatre on Thursday, June 6.
In this grungy new crime-thriller, Butler is a far cry from his turn as the eerily-beautiful-yet-terrifying hairless wonder he embodied in Dune 2 – channelling that Jimmy Dean daydream and Marlon Brando smoulder as a member of an outlaw motorcycle gang in 1960's Chicago. (Watch out for those baby blues, right?) Written and directed by Jeff Nichols (Loving, Midnight Special, Mud), the heavyweight cast of The Bikeriders also packs in Tom Hardy (Mad Max: Fury Road), Jodie Comer (Killing Eve), Norman Reedus (The Walking Dead), Michael Shannon, Mike Faist and Toby Wallace.
Other unmissable guests set to strut the red carpet at SFF 2024 include Aussie rock royalty, Peter Garrett and the whole Midnight Oil gang, who will walk the red carpet along with Australian director Paul Clarke at the Opening Night Gala for the brand new doco, Midnight Oil: The Hardest Line (Weds, June 5).
Award-winning filmmaker Gracie Otto will present Revealed: Otto by Otto, a documentary that attempts to capture the memories of her father, iconic Australian actor and artist Barry Otto (Sat, June 8). Director Jon Bell and members of the film team will also walk the walk at the Australian premiere of The Moogai, a chilling new horror flick with echoes of the Stolen Generations starring Meyne Wyatt and Shari Sebbens (Sat, June 8).
Sydney will also be paid a visit by New Zealand’s finest, in director/actor Rachel House (The Mountain) and acclaimed director Lee Tamahori (The Convert); legendary Australian directors Peter Weir (The Cars That Ate Paris) and Phillip Noyce (Rabbit Proof Fence), whose films are presented as part of the Classics Restored program; as well as award-winning international directors like Germany’s Matthias Glasner (Dying), Mexico’s Astrid Rondero (Sujo) and others.
Meanwhile, we’re excited to see director Jenny Hicks (The Stranger) and Australian contemporary artist Dale Frank at screenings of Dale Frank - Nobody’s Sweetie, an intimate portrait of hardworking artist and hermit – it’s an excellent accompaniment to Growers and Showers, a vibrant exhibition of Frank’s work showing at the National Art School until June 1.
Grab some popcorn, this is the big one. The 71st Sydney Film Festival runs from June 5–17, 2024. Find out more over here and book your tickets at sff.org.au.
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