News

Written and directed by Alena Lodkina, Petrol arrives On Demand on October 15th, courtesy of Indican Pictures, and we have an exclusive preview, along with a look at the film's new poster.

"The chilling psychological drama, Petrol, will captivate audiences with its atmospheric and deeply reflective exploration of friendship, identity and the flimsy boundary between reality and imagination when it arrives On Demand on October 15 from Indican Pictures. Following her acclaimed debut Strange Colours, Alenda Lodkina once again delivers a visually arresting and psychologically charged indie film that offers a fresh, bold voice in contemporary cinema.

Petrol follows the story of Eva, a film student in Melbourne, whose fascination with the enigmatic artist Mia draws her into a world where the line between art and life begins to blur. As the two women’s lives intertwine, Eva’s journey becomes one of self-discovery, navigating the complexities of identity and the...

Petrol Review — Petrol (2022) Film Review from the 75th Annual Locarno Film Festival, a movie written and directed by Alena Lodkina and starring Nathalie Morris, Hannah Lynch, Daniel Frederiksen, Natalia Novikova, Alex Menglet, Ganda Marpaung and Intan Kieflie. There’s not a lot that one can learn in film school if one doesn’t already have [...]

Continue reading: Film Review: Petrol: A Thought-Provoking and Ambiguous Tale of Imagination [Locarno 2022]...

Tim Minchin and Milly Alcock in ‘Upright’

Lingo Pictures’ dramedy Upright starring Tim Minchin and Milly Alcock will premiere on Fox Showcase on Sunday December 1 at 8.30 pm.

The first co-commission between Foxtel and the UK’s Sky TV, the eight-parter will debut in the UK on Sky Atlantic and streaming service Now TV on November 28.

Created by The Chaser’s Chris Taylor and directed by Matt Saville, the series follows two misfits who meet by chance in the middle of the desert and form a bond in their quest to get a piano from one side of the country a to the other.

When Minchin’s family outcast Lucky Flynn learns that his mother is dying, he decides to drive to the other side of Australia to see her, packing nothing but an upright piano for the journey.

His plans are turned upside down when he meets the rogue teenager...

Milly Alcock and Tim Minchin.

Lingo Pictures’ eight-part series Upright, starring Tim Minchin and Milly Alcock, has kicked off production in South Australia.

Joining the actors in the Foxtel/Sky UK series are Heather Mitchell, Daniel Lapaine, Ella Scott Lynch, Daniel Frederiksen, Kate Box, Ningali Lawford, Sachin Joab, Luke Carroll and Rob Collins.

Created by The Chaser’s Chris Taylor, Upright follows Flynn (Minchin), a gifted pianist whose talent for music is matched only by his talent for self-destruction. When he learns that his mother has only days left to live, Lucky sets off in a hire car to drive the 4000 kilometres from Sydney to Perth to say goodbye to her, taking with him his only cherished possession in the world – a battered and scarred upright piano. But what should have been a straightforward drive across the Nullarbor soon becomes a test of Lucky’s emotional fitness, when he (quite...

Check out the first poster for Robert Connolly's Underground: The Story of Julian Assange, staring Rachel Griffiths, Anthony Lapaglia and Alex Williams. This is the Australian version of the poster for the film which we have no Stateside release date for. It hits Ausieland on October 7th with a cast also including Laura Wheelright, Jordan Raskopoulos, Callan McAuliffe, Ben Crudwell, Benedict Samuel and Daniel Frederiksen. Set in suburban Melbourne in the late 1980s, Underground follows a teenage Julian Assange and his gang of friends – the International Subversives – as they try to break into the computer systems of the world’s most powerful organisations. Hoping to uncover the inner workings of these groups, the boys wage battle from their bedrooms with the technologies, with each other, and with the Afp Detective who is charged with the tracking and shutting down their group.

Check out the first poster for Robert Connolly's Underground: The Story of Julian Assange, staring Rachel Griffiths, Anthony Lapaglia and Alex Williams. This is the Australian version of the poster for the film which we have no Stateside release date for. It hits Ausieland on October 7th with a cast also including Laura Wheelright, Jordan Raskopoulos, Callan McAuliffe, Ben Crudwell, Benedict Samuel and Daniel Frederiksen. Set in suburban Melbourne in the late 1980s, Underground follows a teenage Julian Assange and his gang of friends – the International Subversives – as they try to break into the computer systems of the world’s most powerful organisations. Hoping to uncover the inner workings of these groups, the boys wage battle from their bedrooms with the technologies, with each other, and with the Afp Detective who is charged with the tracking and shutting down their group.

Venue: Sydney Film FestivalSYDNEY -- Untangling the snarl of family ties proves the principal diversion in the melodramatic family saga “Ten Empty.” It’s the first film from Roguestar Productions, the company formed by fellow Aussie actors Brendan Cowell and Anthony Hayes. A terrific performance in a minor role shows again what a major talent Cowell is as an actor. It’s a pity the same can’t be said for his writing skills: The script, co-written with Hayes, who also directs, is an overcooked melange of familial disaffection, long-hidden secrets and mental illness, seasoned with some colloquial humor.

It’s hard to see domestic audiences being drawn in great numbers to yet another dark tale of suburban dysfunction when it opens locally in limited release on July 3.

Elliot (Daniel Frederiksen), whose character is largely defined by the fact he drinks pinot noir, returns to Adelaide with a city-slick veneer after 10 years in the “big smoke” of Sydney. He’s come back for his half-brother’s christening, reunited with the family he ran away from after his mother died.

In that time, Elliot’s belligerent drunk of a father (Geoff Morrell) has married his late wife’s sister (Lucy Bell). Elliot is to become godfather to the offspring of that union. His younger brother Brett (Tom Budge), meanwhile, has locked himself in his room and cowers among his dead mother’s belongings, including 10 empty painter’s canvases, refusing to speak.

The supporting cast, including Jack Thompson, Blazey Best and Cowell as Elliot’s larrikin mate, creates properly lived-in characters. Grim production design and Tristan Milani’s claustrophobic cinematography lend kitchen-sink realism.

Production companies: Yeah Right Films, Dragonfly Pictures. Cast: Daniel Frederiksen, Geoff Morrell, Tom Budge, Lucy Bell, Jack Thompson, Brendan Cowell. Director: Anthony Hayes. Screenwriters: Anthony Hayes, Brendan Cowell. Producer: Naomi Wenck. Co-producers: Anthony Hayes, Brendan Cowell. Director of photography: Tristan Milani. Production designer: Robert Webb. Music: Ollie Browne and Art of Fighting. Costume designer: Polly Smyth. Editor: Luke Doolan. Sales Agent: Icon Films. No MPAA rating, 95 minutes.