Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) will return with more than 250 features, shorts, and XR experiences across the city, around Victoria, and online.
The 2024 line-up boasts a world-class roster of international features, world premiere local titles, and comprehensive shorts.
“Here it is – the big moment of our annual reveal, packed with anticipation, discovery, a celebration of all things cinema,” Artistic Director Al Cossar says. “This year’s MIFF programme features over 250 films, with more than 400 sessions across 18 days, bringing together incredible Australian filmmaking, world cinema, drama, comedy, horror, animation, bold experimentation – things you’ve been waiting months to see, and others you never thought you’d get a chance to.”
“The MIFF programme this year, like every year, is a multi-faceted festival of cinematic excess, designed to delight, and sure to bring out the best in your imaginations. We’re thrilled to welcome audiences back – come along and settle in for all too many movies at Melbourne’s favourite binge this winter.”
MIFF will host visiting creatives from Australia and around the world, to introduce and discuss their films at Q&As, panel events and other appearances.
Adam Elliot’s ‘Memoir Of A Snail’ will make its Australian premiere as the Opening Night Gala feature film. Adam returns to MIFF some 20 odd years since winning his Oscar for ‘Harvie Krumpet’.
A cavalcade of local stars, including Sarah Snook, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Magda Szubanski, Eric Bana and Jacki Weaver, lent their voices to the production.
Other special events include the MIFF Family Gala presentation of Robert Connolly’s ‘Magic Beach’; the Music On Film Gala showcase of Warren Ellis documentary ‘Ellis Park’ from Justin Kurzel; and the inaugural MIFF Premiere With Purpose, debuting Shannon Owen’s ‘Left Write Hook’.
The MIFF Regional Showcase will pop up in theatres statewide, bringing some of the festival’s must-see titles to audiences further afield. Plus, MIFF Online offers digital access Australia-wide to a selection of festival highlights.
The Headliners strand features a captivating selection of highly-anticipated new films from global cinema’s leading voices. These include ‘Megalopolis’ from Francis Ford Coppola, Payal Kapadia’s ‘All We Imagine As Light’, Sebastian Stan playing a wannabe actor in ‘A Different Man’, Guy Maddin’s audacious ‘Rumours’ starring Cate Blanchett, Alicia Vikander and Charles Dance, and more.
Internationally, audiences can expect poet and photographer Raven Jackson’s debut feature ‘All Dirt Roads Taste Of Salt’, Swiss filmmaking brothers Ramon and Silvan Zurcher presenting ‘The Sparrow In The Chimney’, Jane Squibb leading ‘Thelma’ as the 93-year-old grandma on a mission for revenge, ‘Some Rain Must Fall’ from Qiu Yang, and more.
Down under, an adaptation of Craig Silvey’s ‘Runt’ is set to make its world premiere at MIFF starring Jai Courtney, Celeste Barber, Jack Thompson and Deborah Mailman. Plus there’s ‘Twilight Time’, the gripping profile of Australian academic, agitator and surveillance expert Des Ball, and ‘Like My Brother’ from Danielle MacLeanh and Sal Balharrie, and more.
Music lovers can indulge in MIFF’s Music On Film programme, and those with an appetite for the quicker things can see number of films in the MIFF Shorts presentation. Of course, there’ll also be the MIFF XR offering and a number of restorations, talks, retrospectives and special screenings.
View the full programme.
Melbourne International Film Festival is on from 8-25 August.
