Dorothy and Toto ain't missin' out on Bondi's Flickerfest for nothin'.
Bringing more than 20 different short film programmes across a 10-day festival, held at the iconic Bondi Pavilion in Sydney celebrates great short films from Australia and abroad.
In a Flickerfest first, the official trailer of the long-running film festival features an all-Indigenous cast and crew. Dorothy, Scarecrow and the Tinman have swapped the yellow brick road for the golden sand of Bondi Beach and director Dena Curtis' re-imagined Wizard of Oz storyline leads them to securing a seat at Flickerfest.
The trailer stars Miranda Tapsell as Dorothy, Jeremy Ambrum as the Lion, Bjorn Stewart as the Tinman, Meyne Watt as the Lion, Alexis Lane as the Wicked Witch and a guest appearance from Christine Anu as the Good Witch.
Actor Bjorn Stewart told NITV that he was stocked to receive the role as the Tinman, because the heart-less metal man was always his favourite character.
"I was given the Tinman, but I would have auditioned if they wanted me to," he laughed.
"I loved making the trailer. Working with an all-Indigenous cast made everything really relaxed and comfortable. It was so much fun playing these iconic characters and we were able to really take on these fantasy roles and play everything up."
Festival Director, Bronwyn Kidd approached Dena Curtis about making an all-Indigenous production for the 2017 promotion after having so much Indigenous talent in the festival throughout the years,
"There have been so many terrific filmmakers like Wayne Blair, Rachel Perkins and Darren Dale and who have screened their films at Flickerfest and as the director of the festival, I wanted to celebrate and shine a spotlight on this incredible wealth of great talent," Kidd told NITV.
"We’re really lucky to have the trailer, because it’s fantastic. People have responded really well to it and audiences at the screenings will always laugh. It’s such a fun concept and done so well, we’re very proud that it’s now a part of the archives of Flickerfest."
The trailer is currently screening at 52 venues nationwide and will tour with the festival when it commences its national tour, promoting Indigenous talent.
Flickerfest 2017 has many short films featuring Indigenous actors including Gregory J. Fryer and Clarence John Ryan in and is screening '' by Brisbane-based Indigenous writer and director Dean Gibson.
