The 16 finalist films for the 2014 Tropfest Short Film Festival were announced today, with works from New South Wales dominating the pack. Ten in total herald from the state, some of them first-time directors, like Laura Hughes (You wanna order pizza?) and Millie Rose Heywood (Spirit Stones), an actress who has appeared on TV shows The Moodys and Paper Giants: The Birth of Cleo, and in the feature film Convict.
This year also sees the return of a few familiar faces. Director Michael Noonan (Evil Mexican Child) is back for a fourth time, while Toby Morris (A Lady & A Robot), Liam Conner (Inverse) and Julian Lucas (Granny Smith) are all making their second appearance in the final 16.
The event will take place on Sunday December 7, with SBS 2 broadcasting the event from 8.30pm and a live stream powered by SBS On Demand. Hosts Adam Spencer and The Feed’s Marc Fennell and Jeannette Francis will call the action throughout the night.
The first prize winner for the world’s biggest short film festival will take home $10,000 in cash, a new Toyota, a Nikon D810 camera with accessories, and a week-long trip to Los Angeles to champagne and campaign with several Hollywood film executives in the hopes of furthering their career abroad.
Without further ado, here at the 16 finalists:
A Bit Rich
Finalists: Gregory Erdstein, (VIC)
Synopsis: What would you do with a million dollars?
A Lady & A Robot
Finalists: Toby Morris, (NSW)
Synopsis: A young lady falls in love and elopes with her family's butler.
Cavity
Finalists: Jacobie Gray (NSW)
Synopsis: Love drives us crazy. Chocolate drives us crazier.
Evil Mexican Child
Finalists: Michael Noonan (QLD)
Synopsis: In the middle of the Mexican desert, an unsuspecting couple encounters a strange, abandoned child with terrifying powers.
FiXeD
Finalists: Codey Wilson (WA), Burleigh Smith (WA)
Synopsis: Jemimah wants Tilly to have puppies... at any cost.
Granny Smith
Finalists: Julian Lucas (VIC)
Synopsis: The Grandmother of excuses.
Here Today
Finalists: Joel Kohn (VIC)
Synopsis: A middle age man dealing with depression suffers a very different kind of mid-life crisis.
The Home Video
Finalists: Nhu Hoang Dang (NSW)
Synopsis: Filmed over 18 years following the Vietnam war, this is a true story about a family returning home.
Inverse
Finalists: Liam Connor (NSW)
Synopsis: What is the cost of a second chance?
Little Bondi
Finalists: Michael Demosthenous (NSW), Stephen James King (NSW)
Synopsis: Six Bondi residents collide in a farcical tale.
Red Nuts
Finalists: Jackson Mullane (NSW)
Synopsis: What would change about your life if you found out you were dying.
Shotgun Wedding
Finalists: Darren McFarlane (VIC), Rod Saunders (VIC)
Synopsis: When a distraught Bridesmaid discovers that her best friends, the Bride, slept with her ex-boyfriend – all hell breaks loose.
Spirit Stones
Finalists: Millie Rose Heywood (NSW)
Synopsis: A contemporary dreamtime story about the powerful and transcendent nature of love, and the importance of keeping Aboriginal culture and language alive.
Twisted
Finalists: Stuart Bowen (NSW)
Synopsis: The good, the bad and the inflatable.
Untitled
Finalists: David Karacic (NSW), Michael Karacic (NSW)
Synopsis: Ever looked in the mirror and got to know yourself?
You wanna order pizza?
Finalists: Laura Hughes (NSW)
Synopsis: Two stoners try to order pizza.
