Made In Melbourne Film Festival 2016

Made In Melbourne Film Festival 2016

An international collaboration, Indigenous film making initiative, web series category and awards for the &lsquobest&rsquo of this year&rsquos Made In Melbourne Film Festival (MIM) has it all. Launched in 2009, MIM returns for its 8th year opening the festival with the feature film &ldquoThe Legend of Ben Hall&rdquo.  Launching on December 6th, the festival will showcase an additional four features including &ldquoCrime & Punishment&rdquo, &ldquoThe Trivialist&rdquo, &ldquoLazybones&rdquo and &ldquoInnuendo&rdquo. Running until December 11th, the festival provides an opportunity for Melbourne and indeed Victorian filmmakers to showcase their work.

&ldquoWe're proud to provide opportunities for filmmakers not only through the official festival program but by helping to organise a range of additional screenings for all entrants to the festival,&rdquo said Ivan Malekin, Festival Director, Made In Melbourne Film Festival.

Growing from a single night of films, the festival now runs for a week and boasts some of the best venues in Melbourne including ACMI, Palace Cinemas, QV Melbourne and Backlot Studios along with an impressive schedule of films and events. Supported by The City of Melbourne through the 2016 Arts Grant, the festival also this year worked closely with Women in Film & Television to increase submissions from female filmmakers. The City of Melbourne grant allowed the festival to create the web series category as well as the First Nations Script to Screen Initiative with Wadawurrung filmmaker Stephanie Skinner winning out over numerous applications. MIM produced her screenplay &ldquoHalf&rdquo and it will premiere at the festival on the 9th of December at MIM Moonlight at QV Melbourne.

&ldquoIt&rsquos amazing and a great opportunity to have been chosen,&rdquo said Stephanie Skinner, Writer. &ldquoThe film is about accepting who you are as a person, what you are, where you come from and making your decisions based on that&rdquo.

The Short Film Showcase will screen nine films on Wednesday 7th at Palace Cinemas Como in South Yarra from 9pm with genres including comedy, horror and drama. A highlight of this series includes &ldquoTelepathy&rdquo with Pia Miranda and Sitges Film Festival Winner &ldquoCurve&rdquo by Tim Egan. MIM Mix on Thursday 8th will bring together likeminded individuals from 5-9pm at Loop Project Space and Bar for a night of music video&rsquos, web series, audience choice awards, Q&A with filmmakers as well as a cultural exchange with the small Massachusetts (USA) town of Ashfield whom have been holding the Ashfield Film Fest for the past ten years. This year, the two festivals will collaborate to hold a &lsquobest of&rsquo exchange that will expand the culture and stories of both.

Friday the 9th presents MIM by Moonlight at QV Summer Cinema with an evening of short films including the premiere of &ldquoHalf&rdquo. Saturday Shorts Matinee will kick off at 3:30pm at The Blacklot Studios with the festival closing on Sunday with the High School Showcase at 2pm, a screening of &ldquoThe Trivialist&rdquo at 4.30pm and Closing Night Shorts at 8.30pm featuring standout &ldquoApprentice of the Year&rdquo with Shane Jacobson. With a huge line up of films, this year&rsquos festival is sure to wow and inspire the local filmmaking community.

Tickets on sale through www.mim.org.au and available now.