CINEMA REBORN - Seven newly-restored Australian films in the 2025 program.

 AUSTRALIAN FILM-MAKERS AT CINEMA REBORN 2025

Cinema Reborn 2025 will present seven films by Australian film-makers. All will be presented in the presence of the directors or in the case of the films of the late Anna Kannava, the producer. All have been restored by the film-makers themselves working in conjunction with renowned Australian director and director of photography Ray Argall and his company Piccolo Films. For information about session times, bookings and credits CLICK HERE

WHAT I HAVE WRITTEN (John Hughes, (1996) Cast: Martin Jacobs,Gillian Jones, Jacek Koman, Angie Milliken “In the hands of director John Hughes this material is transformed into a fragmented, cool film that utilises many techniques, associated with art cinema….an impressive film that provides many entry points for the viewer by supplying just enough character development and narrative motivation to engage on an emotional level.” Geoff Mayer, The Oxford Companion to Australian Film There are very few Australian films which draw their style and inspiration from European art cinema and the work of such masters as Alain Resnais and Chris Marker. What I Have Written, based on a novel by John Scott, is however such a film. It draws on those sources to present a twisting and complex narrative, intertwining two love stories – the first an erotic drama set in Australian academia, the second a story which draws on, using black and white photography and the Parisian setting, from Marker’s legendary La Jetée. John Hughes, otherwise a master documentary maker for close to fifty years, took a detour into fictional drama that resembles the literary work of Marguerite Duras and  Alain Robbe-Grillet. As such it stands almost alone in the Australian cinema. The world premiere of this 4K restoration will be both a unique experience and a reminder that the Australian cinema has occasionally been more than echoes of BBC drama, broad comedy and American genre re-treads. John Hughes will introduce his film at its Sydney and Melbourne screenings and take part in a post-film conversation HOW THE WEST WAS LOST (David Noakes, 1987) "will always be the best, most honest and most entertaining record of the 1946 Strike... It is an exhilarating, inspirational documentary that shows what people can achieve when they have vision, courage and solidarity." - Jerry Roberts, Pearls and Irritations On 1 May 1946, 800 Aboriginal station workers walked off sheep stations in the north-west of Western Australia, marking the beginning of a carefully organised strike that was to last for at least three years, but never officially ended. The strike was more than a demand for better wages and conditions. It was, in the words of Keith Connolly in the Melbourne Herald, 'a well-considered statement by a grievously exploited people, standing up for their rights and dignity'. How The West Was Lost tells the story of a shameful yet still largely unknown piece of Australia’s tangled history… David Noakes and Rose Murray will introduce this film at its Sydney and Melbourne screenings and take part in a post-film conversation. Rose Murray is a Nyangumarta woman whose family were part of the 1946 Pilbara Strike.  THE MINISKIRTED DYNAMO (Rivka Hartman, 1996) “Dora emerges as afascinating character… a very personal piece of film-making” – David Stratton “The Miniskirted Dynamo  is a lively, often hilarious, film as well asa moving personal document…This is not a film for those who believe in the mythof happy families – or perhaps it is the perfect film.” - Barbara Creed, The Age Rivka Hartman’s The Miniskirted Dynamo focuses on her mother, Dr Dora Bialestock, an extraordinary figure inMelbourne’s medical community. Dora studied Medicine at the University of Melbourne and published widely on her specialist research subjects . She became a figure of some controversy when she attacked the state government’s management of children in care. She was a public thorn in many sides of government. Hartman’s film is a remarkable autobiographical and biographical documentary about the intense and tangled relationship between the film-maker and her mother, both of whom had ambitions and goals that did not mix well. Rivka Hartman will introduce her film at its Sydney and Melbournescreenings THE BUTLER (Anna Kannava, 1997) + TEN YEARS AFTER…TEN YEARS OLDER (Anna Kannava, 1986) “I was very moved by The Butler, a portrait of Anna's brother, Nino. This film has one of those unexpected moments of grace that totally won me over – it brought tears to my eyes (not of sadness, but of happiness and liberation).” – Cristina Álvarez López “I was struck by the absolute coherence of her relatively small but impressive and enduring output.” – Adrian Martin Celebrating the filmmaking of Anna Kannava (1959-2011) with two remarkable autobiographical documentaries, recently restored in 4K. Born in Cyprus, Kannava migrated to Melbourne with her family in 1974. In the meditative Ten Years After…Ten Years Older, the director tenderly reflects on returning to her homeland after a decade away. In the deftly comedic and deeply affecting The Butler, Kannava impressionistically portrays the life she shared with her devoted younger brother Nino. These two key works reveal a gifted filmmaker deserving of widespread recognition. Anna Kannava’s films were produced by John Cruthers who has supervised their restoration. The films will be introduced by John Cruthers in Sydney.  BREAD AND DRIPPING (Vic Smith, Margot Nash, Elizabeth Schaffer,Wendy Brady and Donna Foster, 1981) Four women recount their lives during the bleak years ofthe Depression of the 1930s. Tibby Whalan, Eileen Pittman, Beryl Armstrong andMary Wright describe their struggles to survive and maintain families whenfaced with widespread unemployment, evictions and hardship. Bread and Dripping screens with How the West was Lost in Sydney and Melbourne. It will be introduced by Vic Smith and Elizabeth Schaffer in Sydney ON A FULL MOON (Lee Whitmore, 1997) This "poem to my mother", features memories of childhood and family lovingly animated frame by frame by pencil and pastel on paper.  On a Full Moon screens with The Miniskirted Dynamo  and will be introduced by Lee Whitmore in Sydney.