Melbourne International Film Festival

MIFF was originally launched as the Olinda Film Festival in 1952 after a group of delegates to the 1951 Australian Council of Film Societies suggested that a film event be established in the eponymous tourist town. It was renamed the Melbourne Film Festival in 1953 and held this title over many decades before transforming into the Melbourne International Film Festival.^[3][4] Appointed in 1956, Erwin Rado was the festival’s first director, holding the role until 1979 and returning for a single-year stint in 1983;^[3] the Australian Dictionary of Biography notes that he shaped the film event’s character with his “uncompromising drive for excellence”.^[5]

Following Rado, the festival was headed up by Geoffrey Gardner (1980–1982), Paul Seto (1984), Paul Coulter (1985), Santina Musumeci (1986–1987), Tait Brady (1988–1996), Sandra Sdraulig (1997–2000), James Hewison (2001–2006), Richard Moore (2007–2010), Michelle Carey (2011–2018) and current artistic director Al Cossar (2019–present).^[4][6]

MIFF’s annual program boasts around 300 titles spanning feature films, short films and XR (virtual reality, augmented reality and mixed reality), alongside a suite of galas, special events, activations and talks. In 2022, the festival screened 260 features, 111 shorts, 12 XR works, and 10 galas and special events, representing 82 countries of origin and 75 languages.^[1]

MIFF’s short film competition, established in 1962,^[4] is accredited by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the British Academy of Film and Television Arts and the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts.^[7] Its inaugural award was ‘Best Short Film’, but the title was changed to ‘Grand Prix for Best Short Film’ in 1965. Since 1985, the Grand Prix has been presented by the City of Melbourne.^[8]

In 2022, this was complemented by a feature-length competition for first- and second-time directors, the Bright Horizons Award (presented by VicScreen), whose winner receives a A$140,000 prize; as well as the Blackmagic Design Australian Innovation Award, which recognizes an outstanding Australian creative with a A$70,000 cash prize. As of 2023, the MIFF Awards slate has been expanded to also include the First Nations Film Creative Award, which recognizes an outstanding Indigenous Australian creative with a prize worth $45,000; the Audience Award, as decided by public voting; and the MIFF Schools Youth Jury Award, crowning the best title from the student-focused MIFF Schools program.^[9]

• Bright Horizons Award
• Blackmagic Design Australian Innovation Award
• First Nations Film Creative Award
• Audience Award
• MIFF Schools Youth Jury Award

In 2023 Campari was the Shorts Awards Presenting Partner, and the Venue Partner ACMI. The Shorts Awards are all accredited by Academy Awards, and the 2023 winners of the Best Short Film, Best Australian Short Film, Best Documentary Short Film, and Best Animation Short Film awards were eligible to submit their films for the 96th Academy Awards in 2024. The MIFF Shorts program is also BAFTA-Qualifying; any British film screened in the 2023 festival was eligible for entry in the British Short Film and British Short Animation categories of the 2024 BAFTA Film Awards. The 2023 awards were as follows:^[10]

• City of Melbourne Grand Prix for Best Short Film
• VicScreen Erwin Rado Award for Best Australian Short Film
• Award for Emerging Australian Filmmaker
• Award for Best Fiction Short Film
• Award for Best Documentary Short Film
• Award for Best Animation Short Film
• Award for Best Experimental Short Film

As of 2019^[update] awards for short films were:^[11][12]

• City of Melbourne Grand Prix for Best Short Film – $7,000 cash prize (Academy-accredited Award)
• Melbourne Airport Award for Emerging Australian Filmmaker – $5,000 cash prize + airfare to Berlinale
• Film Victoria Erwin Rado Award for Best Australian Short Film – $5,000 cash prize
• Cinema Nova Award for Best Fiction Short Film – $3,000 cash prize (Academy-accredited Award)
• RMIT University Award for Best Animation Short Film – $3,000 cash prize (Academy-accredited Award)
• RMIT University Award for Best Documentary Short Film – $3,000 cash prize
• MIFF Award for Best Experimental Short Film – $3,000 cash prize (Academy-accredited Award)

In 2000, MIFF's rejection of a feature film written and directed by Richard Wolstencroft led him to form the Melbourne Underground Film Festival (MUFF). In subsequent years, MUFF has attracted controversy by criticising the content of MIFF, as well as its management, specifically the leadership of former directors. MUFF sees itself as a space for exciting and edgy Australian cinema that may not be played at MIFF.^[13][14]

In June 2009, Ken Loach, Paul Laverty (writer) and Rebecca O'Brien (producer) pulled their film Looking for Eric from the festival because the Israeli Embassy was a sponsor and the festival declined to withdraw their sponsorship. Moore compared Loach's tactics to blackmail, stating that "we will not participate in a boycott against the State of Israel, just as we would not contemplate boycotting films from China or other nations involved in difficult long-standing historical disputes".^[15]

During the 58th festival in 2009, the film The 10 Conditions of Love (2009), which documents the life of the exiled Uyghur leader Rebiya Kadeer, was screened despite many attempts by the Government of China to have the film withdrawn from the festival. Chinese filmmakers withdrew their films from the festival two days before it opened on 24 July 2009.^[16] Former MIFF director Richard Moore refused to remove the film from the festival program,^[17] despite the hacking of the festival website and attempts to hack its online ticketing system from IP addresses of Chinese origin. Later, both pro-Chinese and pro-Uyghur activists attempted to disrupt ticketing due to the media coverage.^[18][19][20] The Chinese Government contacted Robert Doyle, the Lord Mayor of Melbourne asking him to intervene,^[21] but he refused. Australia's Ambassador to China Geoff Raby was summoned by China's Deputy Foreign Minister Zhang Zhijun to express displeasure about Kadeer's attendance at MIFF.^[22]

Victoria Police was placed on alert during the screening of the film and Pro-Uighur demonstrators also gathered outside the Melbourne Town Hall,^[21] and the Dalai Lama sent a message of support via Michael Danby, the MP for Melbourne Ports:^[23]

• Film festival
• List of film festivals
• List of short film festivals
• St Kilda Short Film Festival
• Cinema of Australia

• Official website