Directed by Rohena Gera, this gentle Indian drama focuses on Ratna, a young woman from a poor rural village who works as a live-in maid to a wealthy young man, Ashwin. Both seem lost with dreams that have been thwarted. But this is not a story about the docile, downtrodden Asian woman, although Ratna is quiet and guarded among the sophisticates of the Mumbai elite. Despite the careless disdain from Ashwin’s family and friends, she maintains her dignity and determination to make her own way in life. The film explores these two young people reaching through the stultifying barriers of caste or modern-day social class to the humanity and compassion they share. It is beautiful to watch.

India, France 2018 (96 mins)

This heartwarming documentary written and directed by Naina Sen tells the story of an unlikely cultural exchange that occurred when the newly revived Central Australian Aboriginal Women’s Chorus left their home in the Outback and flew overseas for the first time to sing ancient German Lutheran hymns in their own language at Lutheran churches throughout the German state of Bavaria.   In personal interviews conducted throughout the planning of the tour and during their travels, we get to know and admire these strong and resilient women who speak about the effects of colonialism on their traditional culture, including their ancestors learning these songs from Lutheran missionaries and passing them down through generations. The chorus members also speak of the strong relationships that bind them as women. Their love of the music and their angelic voices won the hearts of the German people who remembered the old hymns that their parents would sing to them.  Australia 2017 (84 minutes)

Please observe the film’s new date and time:

From Stephan Elliot, writer and director of “The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert,” comes this hilarious and raunchy comedy about growing up in a Sydney beachside suburb during the swinging 1970s. Guy Pearce who became a star playing a drag queen in “Priscilla” is this time cast as one of the parents, along with Aussie star Radha Mitchell (in person at the festival), attempting to raise their children in relatively privileged circumstances between wild partying and general outrageous behavior. For a couple of their teenagers their parents’ behavior is difficult to understand and makes coming of age all the more daunting. The teens are forced to deal with marital discord not to mention a beached whale. Clever nostalgic  references to the 70’s are a treat along with compelling character performances from the large cast including famous pop star and Australian TV icon Kylie Minogue and veteran actor Jack Thompson. Australia 2018 (97 minutes)

GUEST OF HONOR: RADHA MITCHELL
Australian actress Radha Mitchell will join us at the festival with two of her new films, which she will introduce and participate in a Q & A following the screenings. She stars in “Flammable Children,” as a parent trying to raise children in the wild 1970s in Sydney. In “Celeste” she gives a touching and vulnerable performance as a renowned opera diva who gives up her career for the man she loves and moves to a rainforest. Her films “Looking for Grace” and “The Waiting City” played in the Australian Spotlight section of the Mostly British festival. The critical success of “High Art,” one of her early Hollywood movies, gained her a wider audience. She has also worked in Hollywood on “Neverland” and “Melinda and Melinda.” Woody Allen hired her as the lead character Melinda without an audition on the strength of seeing one of her movies.

Introduction by Radha Mitchell followed by an explanation of Everything Australian by Mostly British board member Lachlan Welsh. Miss Mitchell will participate in a Q & A after the screening.

The Greta Garbo of India was a sultry Jewish actress named Ruby Myers. Known as Sulochana, she was a silent era superstar who faded from history. Now she’s back in the spotlight in this eye-opening documentary that explains how Myers, Esther Abraham, Rose Ezra and Florence Ezekiel left their mark on Indian cinema from the 1920s through the 1960s. Because Hindu and Muslim women refused to be on camera, actors were recruited from small but less strict Jewish communities that had been in India for 2,000 years. It’s a treat to see the rare footage showing the elaborate costumes and sets, not to mention some serious swooning. India 2017 (85 minutes)

Twenty-five year old Shubhashish Bhutiani makes his debut as a director with this impressive, soulful comedy/drama. Warmed by the amazing location cinematography, with wide shots of the Ganges, and rich, colorful backdrop of Varanasi, its people, boats and rituals, this is an end of life story. According to Hindu beliefs, people go to this holy city to die and attain salvation, and faced with his father’s wish to die there, his straight-laced accountant son struggles to meet this demand. India 2016 (102 minutes)

An interesting hybrid of documentary and fiction, this film is about a brooding stranger who arrives and unsettles an isolated Scottish town, disrupting the town by the mystery and darkness surrounding him. Bodkin, the stranger is played by a professional actor while everyone else is local, real people, playing themselves in all their quirky and unforgettable glory. Looking to build a new life, Bodkin secures a job, a group of friends and a girlfriend, but his dark past catches up with him. Winner, FIPRESCI Award, Rotterdam Film Festival. UK 2016 (79 minutes)

In the stunned aftermath of a fatal car accident, a directionless 16-year-old half-Maori runaway drifts, with unpredictable consequences, into the lives of strangers. The ruggedly beautiful landscapes of New Zealand’s isolated Otago region on the South Island provide the scenic backdrop to a story where relationships blur and boundaries are tested in a beautifully nuanced film about a teenager searching to belong. An assured and darkly powerful feature debut from Jackie van Beek–one of New Zealand’s most promising cinematic voices. New Zealand 2017 (80 minutes)