Australian cinema is on show across the Spring Film Series at the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia (NFSA), including the much-anticipated re-release of The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. The NFSA also presents live performances by Robin Fox and the Rejoice Gospel Choir; partners with Canberra Art Biennial, SpringOUT Pride Festival and Canberra Writers Festival; and continues to host thought-provoking discussions and Q&As with esteemed creative industry guests, including Leah Purcell AM.
An arrival soiree opens the Priscilla re-release advance screening, with drag artists Blistered Sister performing in the NFSA courtyard, while Priscilla behind-the-scenes documentary Between a Frock and a Hard Place screens in the Mediatheque. Executive producer Rebel Penfold-Russell will introduce the film in Arc Cinema, reflecting on its 30th anniversary, and later join costume designer Tim Chappel, stage musical lead producer Gary McQuinn, and screen industry executive and former Screen Australia CEO Graeme Mason for a post-screening Q&A.
The NFSA will present a 50th anniversary screening of The Cars That Ate Paris, Peter Weir’s Australian New Wave classic, following the NFSA’s digital restoration this year through NFSA Restores. Other Australian classics screening in Spring include Grendel Grendel Grendel, Australia’s first animated film for adults, and The Castle, showing on Father’s Day – both held in the national collection.
The NFSA continues to expand its live performance offer, with Australian audiovisual artist Robin Fox presenting his latest work across two nights. An immersive marriage of electronic music and audiovisual mechanical synaesthesia, Triptych won the prestigious Prix Ars Electronica Isao Tomita Special Prize in 2023. Other live acts coming to the NFSA include Sydney’s Rejoice Gospel Choir, headlining a Sister Act double feature, and a glam rock performance by Pass/Fail to open the SpringOUT Pride Festival screening of Velvet Goldmine.
Spring sees the activation of the NFSA lawns as the NFSA continues to rejuvenate its Acton spaces and expand public programming across its heritage building. Bronte Cormican-Jones’ sculpture Of line, of light will be exhibited from
27 September to 26 October, complemented by screenings of Metropolis and Ghost in the Shell (1995) in collaboration with Canberra Art Biennial and Canberra Glassworks.
Book Club at the NFSA continues in partnership with Canberra Writers Festival (CWF), with guests including director Leah Purcell AM and author Cadance Bell. The NFSA and CWF will also jointly present a screening of Eureka Stockade, followed by a discussion with historian Professor Clare Wright OAM.
For families, the Spring Film Series includes Pizza and Pyjamas screenings of Toy Story and The Karate Kid, as well as a school holiday program featuring Australian favourite Babe, Red Dog, Peter Rabbit and FernGully: The Last Rainforest.
For cinephiles, the NFSA presents a four-film spotlight on the collaboration between acclaimed Spanish director Pedro Almodóvar and Oscar-winning actress Penélope Cruz. Titled Mothers & Melodrama, this showcase explores portrayals of motherhood that arise against the colourful backdrop of Almodóvar’s signature melodramatic style.
The Progress 1984 program continues to commemorate cultural and historical milestones in the year of the NFSA’s inauguration, as the institution marks its 40th anniversary in 2024. In Spring, the NFSA hosts a thought-provoking two-film Progress 1984: Abolishing the Death Penalty miniseries and Q&A, with special guest Associate Professor Mai Sato, who was the inaugural director of anti-death penalty project Eleos Justice.
The Spring Film Series also includes the continuation of popular partner series including the free Science. Art. Film. collaboration with the Australian National University; Cult Classics with Venus Mantrap, including a 40th anniversary screening of Ghostbusters; and Art Meets Film, a free program of screenings and talks presented in partnership with the National Gallery of Australia.
‘Our Spring Film Series showcases our rich audiovisual culture through multiple lenses, from Australian classics on the Arc Cinema big screen to visual arts, engaging conversations and live performance,’ said Chris Mercer, Chief Experience Officer at the NFSA. ‘We look forward to welcoming new and returning audiences to the NFSA to discover new perspectives and hear from leading artists, thinkers and innovators.’
Check out the program here: https://www.nfsa.gov.au/
