“The worlds that you see tonight are smashing together like they have in this country for quite a while.”
Ivan Sen addressed a sold-out crowd tonight at Sydney’s State Theatre during the opening of the 63rd annual Sydney Film Festival, featuring the world premiere of his fourth feature, Goldstone.
A successor of sorts to Sen’s earlier thriller Mystery Road, which opened the Festival in 2013, Goldstone revisits Indigenous Detective Jay Swan and his search for a missing girl in rural Australia.
“The question I’ve been getting from my friends in the media is why make a film about Jay Swan, and my initial reaction is, why the bloody hell not,” Sen told the crowd. “Then I started thinking about how I could explore his character… He (Jay Swan) is someone who walks along boundaries, walks between worlds.”
Festival Director Nashen Moodley kicked off the proceedings, stating, “We are really very proud to open the Festival with the premiere of Ivan Sen’s complex, stylish and intelligent Goldstone,” labelling it “a film that reflects Australia’s history with a compelling tale of its present.”
“We invite you into this annual celebration of cinema and hope that you find life-changing discoveries,” said Moodley. “Our program this year sees filmmakers engaging with some of the pressing issues of our time, there are films about refugees, about the impact of religious extremism on secular society, on the environment and on sexuality, and we have a number of very funny films too.”
“As we experience all these films at the Festival and celebrate the makers, I wish you an exhilarating and inspiring journey for the next 12 days.”
Star Aaron Pedersen (Jay Swan) was in attendance, as were cast members David Gulpilil, Tom E. Lewis, Max Cullen and Michelle Lim Davidson. Goldstone also stars Jacki Weaver, David Wenham and Cheng Pei-pei.
For more information and for tickets head to the Festival website
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