A Regional Premiere Screening
A film by DEAN FRANCIS – Screening followed by filmmaker DEAN FRANCIS in conversation with TOBIN SAUNDERS
Wednesday April 22nd – 6.30 pm
Event Cinemas Lismore
Corner of Keen and Zadoc Streets, Lismore NSW 2480
(02) 6622 4350
Tickets: $25 or $18 (Concession or Screenworks Members) available from Event Cinemas Lismore or online
In the cloistered world of competitive surf-lifesaving, an Australian hero is de-throned as champion by a younger, gay competitor. A booze-fuelled night out brings jealousy, homophobic fear and unrequited lust to a tragic and shocking climax.
“…Outwardly, Dean Francis’ Drown is a story about homophobia in sport through the scantily clad world of surf lifesavers in Sydney. Yet this gripping film goes much deeper to examine the tragic consequences of unchecked self-loathing in a heavily defined and hard drinking culture of mateship…
From the heat of the beach to the lights of Kings Cross and the seedier corners of Oxford Street, Drown captures the dynamic of young men wrestling with their inner demons and the improbable laws of attraction.”
Colin Fraser, FilmInk Magazine
With sell out sessions at the Sydney Mardi Gras Film Festival and the Melbourne Queer Film Festival, Lismore audiences are in for a treat at this regional premiere screening. Director Dean Francis will join Tobin Saunders at the conclusion of the screening to discuss the themes explored in the film as well as some of the unique challenges they faced in the making of the film.
Drown is an independently produced Australian film supported by crowd funding and distributed via an innovative cinema on demand model.
Starring Matt Levett, Jack Matthews, Sam Anderson and Harry Cook
This screening event is supported by Screen Audience Development funding from Screen NSW.
DEAN FRANCIS
Writer, Director, Producer, Editor, Director of Photography
Dean Francis is a multi-award winning director, producer and cinematographer. Francis’ first feature as director, the supernatural thriller Road Train (starring Sophie Lowe)was released in 50 countries and garnered critical acclaim on its 2010 Australian theatrical release. Francis has directed and shot over a dozen short films that have screened at more than a hundred international film festivals. Boys Grammar went viral on youtube and attracted national media attention for its graphic depiction of homophobic sexual violence. Dean holds a Master of Arts in Directing from the Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS) and is the owner of jj splice films.
Tobin is a freelance performer, writer, choreographer, dancer, actor, DJ and producer. Over the past 20 years he has been involved in theatre works, production and performance at Mardi Gras, in fashion parades, film and dance variety at Belvoir St Theatre. He also choreographed, hosted and performed at “Jamie & Vanessa” events in Sydney. Tobin is now working solo with his Vanessa Wagner character and is also freelancing as an actor. He appears on TV as a social commentator and contemporary icon.
TICKETS AVAILABLE HERE: