By Travis Johnson
The Death and Life of Otto Bloom will open the 65th Melbourne International Film Festival [MIFF] at the Arts Centre’s Hamer Hall on Thursday, July 28, 2016.
The feature directorial debut of Cris Jones, Otto Bloom is the story of a man (Xavier Samuel) who experiences time in reverse, remembering the future and experiencing the past anew. A fantastical love story, the film also features Matilda Brown and Rachel Ward.
Jones has a long-standing association with MIFF, having come up through their Accelerator program.
“I think our relationship goes back to 2003 when they screened my VCA graduation film, Excursion.” he recalls. “They very kindly invited me to attend the inaugural Accelerator program which is an amazing series of workshops and talks for emerging filmmakers. That was a really amazing experience and there were some really gifted emerging filmmakers there who eventually emerged a lot quicker than I did! I learned a lot, had a lot of fun and ever since then I just kind of feel that when MIFF comes around it’s like having a home away from home – the festival lounge is my lounge room, and that’s where you’ll find me.
“Being invited to open such a terrific festival, which is so supportive of local filmmakers, is just a dream come true. It is the best possible start that our film could have and it’s just going to be really fun and exciting.”
For full details and tickets, head over to the MIFF official site.
