REALITY BITES

CLICK TO WATCH ON DEMAND 9-26 SEPT SHORT FILM SESSION REALITY BITES

BURIED NEWS

Bill Morrison | 2020 | 12:00 | USA In 1929, a bank manager in Dawson City, Yukon Territory buried hundreds of silent film reels in a defunct swimming pool, in an effort to dispose of them safely. Forty-nine years later, in 1978, the reels were uncovered. Four extremely rare newsreels from 1917 and 1920, are used in this film to reveal how race has historically been used as a tool in the USA to divide people for the commercial or political gain of those in power. Including the extremely rare, and heretofore believed to be lost footage of the siege of the Lexington, Kentucky courthouse in 1920.

CHESTY AND OPAL

Jack Truman | 2020 | 10:55 | USA Burlesque legends Chesty Morgan and Wild Star share memories from their dancing days in the 60's and '70's. A hilarious, eyeopening, shocking underground short film, CHESTY & OPAL opens the audience's eyes to a lost era.

DO YOU SEE WHAT I SEE?

Brad Abrahams | 2020 | 12:00 | USA About the unofficial artist of conspiracy theory culture, the controversial and recently departed David Dees. An artist for Sesame Street for 13 years, Dees was on the track to a lucrative career as a commercial artist in Los Angeles. Then, 9/11 happened, and he forever went down the conspiracy theory rabbit-hole. But is there a way out of the darkness?

DRUNK MOVIES - THE CLONE MAN

Tom Burgess, Lachlan Wilson | 2020 | 5.45 | AUS A mad scientist must stop his evil rival after finding out that he has taken one of his failed experiments, a defective clone, and plans to create a clone army.

FRANK DAFT IN NZ

Clint Cure | 2021 | 4:02 | AUS An interview with Australian Film Maker Frank Daft.

I HOPE THIS FEELING DOESN'T LAST

Marie Boulougouris | 2021 | 5:21 | AUS Starring Triple J alum Georgia Marley (she/ they), the project is an intimate and poetic documentary that presents itself as a moving commentary on the experiences of LGBT+ women in the Australian music industry.

A program of engaging, real-life narratives in short bitesized pieces, REALITY BITES presents the year’s very best documentary shorts. From cinema verité to essay films, to hilarious encounters with fascinating subjects to buried films and burlesque legends. At a time when truth is so often stranger than fiction, these films are not to be missed.

CLICK TO WATCH ON DEMAND 9-26 SEPT

LAST NIGHT AT THE STRIP CLUB

Nicole Bauzin | 2020 | 11:40 | CANADA After losing her job as a stripper due to the pandemic, Andrea Werhun is exploring a new frontier of contactless sex work. She’s launched “Hire A Muse” a.k.a. H.A.M., which offers clients a range of services from topless book-reading to collaborative comic-making. With her future at the strip club uncertain, Andrea’s balancing life as a “muse” for lonely men with her own creative dream: to become a full-time writer.

LOST BOYS OF WESTWAY

Luc La Rossa | 2021 | 15:48 | AUS LA deep dive into the controversial Australian band, ‘Sticky Fingers’, exploring their infamous rise to fame and their abrupt fall from grace. It shines a light on the serious allegations that the band had been caught up in that would see them blacklisted from the radio and ultimately outcast by the Australian music media.

NORMAL PORN FOR NORMAL PEOPLE

Amber Rose McNeill | 2020 | 3:47 | USA An appropriated media piece that offers a satirical commentary on the romanticising and normalization of violent imagery, while observing the link to commercial consumerism that exploits human sexuality, while simultaneously demonising it.

THE FATHER OF RODENTS

Bryn Chainey | 2021 | 14:03 | AUS A short documentary about the weird world of indie wrestling in Australia and a fine young man called Rat Daddy. This is not just for wrestling fans but for anyone interested in showmanship, finding your people, and having a dream you’re willing to bruise for.

THE GAYTRIARCHY AND WHY WE NEED PRIDE

TJ Narula | 2020 | 10:40 | AUS Through the eyes of Australia’s three leading LGTBQI+ activists, this documentary comments on the dogma and bigotry that take place in the name of religion as well as culture across oppressive countries and how it impacts the LGBTQI+ community. It aims to question the validity of purist versions of all religions and their application across the sexuality and the gender spectrum across conservative cultures.

WHEN LARRY MET STANLEY

Kate Darion | 2021 | 6:00 | USA In a beautiful moment of time, low-budget filmmaking legend, Larry Cohen (It’s Alive, The Stuff, Q, God Told Me To), has a chance meeting with legendary film master, Stanley Kubrick (The Shining, Dr. Strangelove, A Clockwork Orange). Larry, one of the greatest showbiz story tellers of all-time, delights us with this magical real-life tale.