Barossa International Film Festival's blog

The International Film Festival Australiasia - Barossa (aka "Barossa Film Festival") is a genre based international film festival which will be housed in the Barossa Valley wine region in the Australian state of South Australia from October 25 - 30 in 2011. It is one of the Planet Earth group of international film festivals. 

Overview

The “International Film Festival of Australasia – Barossa” (or, as we at home like to call it, “The Barossa film Festival) is a four day fun filled carnival of film, food and wine at which over 40 features and 60 short films will be screened free of charge at an iconic Barossa winery.

  

Vision

The festival’s vision is threefold:

• To establish a fun and exciting Barossa tourism event which marries film, food and wine.
• To establish an internationally recognised Australian festival that celebrates genre films.
• To establish a major Australian networking event for international emerging, genre, independent and underground filmmakers. 

 

Our Point Of Difference

Where most international film festivals held in Australia tend to centre on arthouse films and established filmmakers working within the Australian mainstream, the Barossa festival is focusing on:

 

·         Emerging filmmakers, in particular first and second time feature filmmakers

·         “Genre” filmmakers, who place audience entertainment front and centre, working in “non-arthouse” genres such as thriller, horror, sci-fi, fantasy, documentary, romance and comedy.

·         Independent and underground filmmakers working outside the system

 

We feel this is a valuable point of difference that will set us apart, not only to the Adelaide International Film Festival, but from other international film festivals held around Australia.

 

Target Audience

·         Barossan, South Australian, Australian and international filmmakers

·         Fun loving Barossans who love the thought of combining food, wine and film

·         Film lovers and film festival fans from Australian and beyond

·         Adelaidians who just love an excuse to party at Barossa events

·         Tourists looking for yet another reason to visit the Barossa.

 

Dates

The event will be held annually during the last week of October (a date carefully chosen to avoid clashing with the Adelaide and Clare film festivals and all other major events held in the Barossa).

 

The dates for the inaugural 2011 event will be: Wednesday Oct 26, Thursday Oct 27, Friday Oct 28 and Saturday Oct 29 (with a after-party “wind down” on Sunday, Oct 30)

 

Festival Headquarters

The festival headquarters and primary venue is the iconic Chateau Tanunda. On Saturday films will also be screened in outside venues, including Rolf Binder Wines and Kaesler Wines.

 

The Event’s Style and Program

Everywhere you look there will be sight sound and colour. Each day, from 10 until 6, films will be screening free of charge in three informal cinemas (imaginatively labelled Cinemas 1, 2 and 3) created out of the barrel hall, boardroom and long room. After each film, if the filmmakers are in attendance, we’ll be doing a Q&A. For those filmmakers who can’t make it, no problem – we’ll be doing live crosses via the magical wonder of Skype.

 

Out in the “Bar and Ballroom” more films will be screening on everything from retro TVs, or by being projected onto flags, banners, balloons, the ceiling and up against a brick wall. Each night, amongst the grapefields, there’ll be al fresco screenings on the croquet lawn. On Saturday two other barrel hall cinemas will be running, one at Rolf Binder Wines and one at Kaeslers.

  

The Cinemas Themselves

It’s carnival times folks! This is the Barossa, and here we like doing things differently. Instead of rows and rows of identical seats, the audience will be sprawled wherever, watching from beanbags, cushions, couches, on rugs on the lawn. Lean on a barrel, watch it from the bar, from the board room table, whatever takes your fancy. Want to sit in your own director’s chair? Sure. Bring one from home “Shakesphere in the park” style. (And get the filmmakers to sign it.) Eat, drink, yak as you watch, yell out at the screen... This is watching films with your mates. And that’s supposed to be fun.

 

The “Bar & Ball”

The Bar and Ballroom will be the “chill out” networking hub where filmmakers can chew the fat and discuss the latest offerings. As mentioned above, this area will be chock filled with light and colour. Multiple retro tube TVs will be playing a variety of trailers, video clips, student films, animations and shorts. (To that end, a “Don’t Throw Out You Old TV, We Want It” campaign will be running in the Barossa from June – August.) Voting slips will be available for those who wish to vote for their favourite movie trailer. The winner will be presented with “Peoples Choice” award on the Saturday Buzz Night/Awards Night. Greetings from interstate and international filmmakers, shot on their iPhone will also play around the clock.

 

Side Bar Festivals

The festival will also be screening “Best Of/Award Winning”” selections from two Sidebar festivals, being the Sexy International Film Festival and Trashorama. Festival directors Jason Turley and Dick Dale are already putting together their programs and are heavily cross promoting the event.

 

Celebrity Live Cross

At 6.00 each night there will be a live Skype or phone cross to an international celebrity filmmaker. (Our man in Hollywood is currently on the job tracking down these guests.)

 

Window to the World

Even those not at the festival can be a part. Before, during and after the festival there will be a free roaming stills photographer capturing the event and uploading images to the Bar and Ball screens and our facebook pages. A “Behind The Scenes” doco crew will also be out and about, here there and everywhere, capturing the excitement and uploading each night for all the world to see.

 

Showcasing Barossa Food, Beer and Wine

The bar will be open all day and night featuring wine from the Chateau and the Barossa Small Winemakers. There will also be beer from the local brewers. Food-wise there’ll be popcorn (naturally), gourmet pizza, tapas style grazing, as well as a more substantial meals in the traditional Barossa “gourmet yet casual” style. Food will come from a variety of Food Barossa providers Showcasing the best the Barossa has to offer. For those looking for more variety, Tanunda’s Mainstreet is a mere five minute meander. As is the Tanunda Club, one of the best spots in the valley to grab some pub grub.

 

Friday Long Table Lunch

Friday afternoon will feature the long table lunch – a “last Friday in the month” tradition at the Chateau. Filmmakers tourists and other guests will be able to rub shoulders with the local council, members of the wine and tourism industries, SA industry leaders and members of State parliament. We have been advised the Governor will be eager to attend if invited. In keeping with the spirit of the festival, this will be a high quality (yet affordable) Barossa gourmet affair, conducted in a casual atmosphere, with wine BYO and nosh around $50 a ticket.

 

Saturday Night, “Buzz Night”, Awards Night

On Saturday night there will be a “Buzz night” tiki torch party on the Chateau balcony. There will be food, wine, atmosphere and music. Films will screen on TVs. At 9:30 (or thereabouts) the award winners will be announced and trophy’s awarded to the winners of the various categories.

 

Recovery /After Party

Sunday will be the after party recovery day. This will be held at the Tanunda Club “Clubhouse” where filmmakers will get the opportunity reconnect and mingle with locals as they re-cap the week that was. A special gourmet BBQ will be on offer and Jack Ferret will be putting on his famous “Resiling Chicken”.

 

Other Wineries Involvement

As well as Chateau Tanunda, Kaesler and Rolf Binder Wines, other wineries will be able to be involved via cellar door screenings in the weeks leading up to the event and during the event itself. Cellar doors equipped with flat screen TVs will be able to screen compilation DVD of short films, music clips, trailers and celebrity iPhone greetings – the same that will be playing at the Chateau’s “Bar & Ball”. At each participating cellar door best trailer voting slips will be on hand to allow cellar door patrons to have a direct say in the peoples choice award.

 

Awards

Awards will be given for the best and most interesting film of the following categories:  

1.    Best student/children's film

2.    Best Australian short film

3.    Best International short film

4.    Best Australian feature

5.    Best International feature film

6.    Best of genre (Animation)

7.    Best of genre (Horror)

8.    Best of genre (Thriller)

9.    Best of genre (Sci Fi or Fantasy)

10.  Best of genre (Comedy or Romance)

11.  Best of genre (Arthouse or Drama)

12.  Best of genre (Documentary)

13.  Best music clip

14.  People’s choice for best trailer

15.  Judges’ prize (Encouragement Award)  

We plan to make the trophy a boxed glass and wine set.

Film Enteries

Entries have been pouring in with a number of award winning films already selected. We have received around 50 entries from all over the globe, including the USA, the UK, Austria, Australia, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Canada, South Africa, Namibia, South Korea, Japan, Serbia and Guadeloupe in the Carribian. Naturally South Australian films feature, as well as films created right here in the Barossa.

  

The Team

Planet Earth 

“The International Film Festival Australasia – Barossa” or “Barossa Film Festival” is affiliated with the Planet Earth international film festivals. Our sister festivals include:

 

·         Swansea Bay Film Festival

·         Heart of England International Film Festival

·         International Film Festival South Africa

·         International Film Festival Ireland

·         International Film Festival Thailand

·         International Film Festival Egypt

·         International Film Festival St. Lucia

·         International Film Festival London

·         Indian International Film Festival

·         International Film Festival of North America

·         International Film Festival Italy - Rome

 

The Local Team

Dave de Vries and Rob Kalemba are the local “men on the ground” who are driving the festival. Their team includes a number of Event Management professionals who are seasoned veterans at state, national and local levels at successfully staging this kind of event. The committee includes:

 

·         Dave de Vries – Festival Director

·         Rob Kelemba – SA & NT Business and Events Manager of Flight Centre

·         Dan Bradley – Clare Film Festival (consultant)

 

·         Matt McCulloch – Chateau Tanunda

·         Laura Moran – Chateau Tanunda

·         Sharon Geue – Chateau Tanunda

 

·         Randolf Bowen – sponsorship

·         Anita Bowen – sponsorship

·         Norm Harrison – sponsorship

 

·         Reid Bosward – Kaesler Wines

·         Rolf Binder – Rolf Binder Wines

 

Festival Director: Dave de Vries

The Deputy Mayor, former Chair of the BWTA and host of Triple Bfm’s “The Wine Show”, Festival Director Dave de Vries is one of the two Barossa based comicbook artists who led the Australian push into the international comic scene, writing and drawing for New York giants Marvel and DC comics on such icon titles as Phantom, Batman, Green Lantern, Star Trek and Mad Magazine. Now embroiled in the world of film and television, Dave’s first feature, Carmilla Hyde, is currently screening in film festivals all over the globe and has won nine awards. Dave also lectures at UniSA and is the course coordinator for the Advanced Production Project program for 3^rd Year Film & Television.

 

Support

The Barossa Film Festival has received strong support at a state and local level. Those who have already offered their help include: 

·         The Premier, the Hon Mike Rann

·         The Governor

·         Ivan Venning, Member for Schubert.

·         The Mayor, CEO and councillors of the Barossa Council

·         Brian Carr, CEO of District Council of Light

·         Sam Holmes, CEO of the Barossa Grape and Wine Association

·         Jaci Thorn, Marketing Manger of Tourism Barossa

·         Ann Maroney, CEO of Regional Development Australia  - Barossa

·         Graham Fischer, editor of the Barossa Herald

·         The hosts of Barossa Radio’s “The Wine Show” (and other Triple Bfm presenters)

·         Clare Tizard, Arts SA

·         Defrim Isai, SAFC

·         Shane McNeil, MRC

·         Andrei Gostin, senior technical officer of the UniSA school of film and television

·         Josh Pugh, indweb

 

Website, Email and Facebook

Josh Pugh of indweb is currently constructing the festival’s stand alone website. The plan is for it to be up on line in the first weeks of June. This will be back-linked to the Planet Earth festival site which, along with our two facebook pages, is our current website presence.

 

Anyone interested in getting in touch by email can contact us on: barossafilmfestival@gmail.com.

  www.barossaherald.com.au/news/local/news/entertainment/barossa-international-film-festival-in-the-spotlight/2165723.aspx