By Travis Johnson
West of Sunshine, the debut feature film from award-winning Melbourne director Jason Raftopoulos, will screen in the Orizzonti section of the 74th Venice Film Festival this September, competing for the The Orizzonti Prize and The Special Orizzonti Jury Prize. It will be the film’s world premiere.
Based on Raftopoulos’ short film Father’s Day, West of Sunshine was shot entirely on location in the streets of Melbourne over 18 days using a combination of professional and non-actors. Damian Hill (Pawno) stars opposite his real life step-son Tyler Perham, with support from Kat Stewart (Offspring) and Tony Nikolakopoulos (Head On).
As Raftopoulos explains, “West of Sunshine is a metaphor for Jim’s life. It’s a place where the sun never sets, the place in your mind where family is, where love is, where hope and the future resides, I’m humbled and honored that a film inspired by Italian neorealist filmmaking will have its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival. This film was made with sheer passion, a love for cinema, and the generous collaboration of those who believed in the project. I want to thank the selectors of the Venice Film Festival, Screen Australia and the talented people who worked on and supported the film.”
Raftopoulos, Hill, Perham, and producer Alexandros Ouzas will attend the festival to present the film.
Congrats. When will Melbourne audiences get to see ‘West of Sunshine’?