Y2GAY showing in LONDON

G'Day London ol' cobbers, ol' mates! Yes that's right! Stone the crows and flame the.. [insert jingoistic Australian joke here]! Tickets are now on sale to the 17th London Australian Film Festival. It's on 5-12 May at The Barbican.

As part of the Festival, this year's Tropfest Finalist Films will be showing, including Y2GAY, a film that Dan Ilic and I co-wrote and directed. This is your chance to go check out what all the hype was about, secretly form your own opinion that said hype was unwarranted, and then lose all respect for me as a human being.

Now I know that many London-based Australians are traditionally strapped for cash, especially those struggling away as banking sector lawyers and accountants, but there's no need to worry. The night is completely FREE!

So whack on your hipster Ray Ban sunglasses and best skinny jeans and head on down to The Barbican on 12 May for a night-time celebration of Australia's emerging and not-so-emerging film talent.

And if you're not Australian, there's no reason why you should miss out! Get on down there! Don't be shy! I've even provided you with some typical Aussie conversation fillers so that you'll blend in on the night. If you're ever in a tight spot, just rip out one of these beauties, and you'll be considered more Australian than Cathy Freeman riding Pharlap up Anzac Cove.

1 - "I just paid 6 pounds for a VB!! What the fuck!"
2 - "The refugees wouldn't be rioting if we'd stopped the bloody boats in the first place. Don't you reckon?"
3 - "These films are shit! You know, I had a way better idea for a Tropfest film..."
4 - "I went back home for Easter. Guess where I had my drinks? Opera Bar!! Yes! How did you guess?!"
5 - "I love London. You know, coke is so cheap here that I hardly bother drinking anymore."
6 - "Do you have a spare couch I could crash on?"
7 - "What the fuck is going on with orthodontic treatment in this country?!"
8 - "Julia Gillard blah blah blah ginger blah blah blah woman. Blah blah blah since Gough Whitlam and Paul Keating."
9 - "Tony Abbott blah blah blah bigot blah blah blah racist. Blah blah blah dick stickers."
10 - "Mum reckons I have an English accent now, but I well don't."

Film synopsis :

Y2GAY. Yep, it’s real. The gays are getting married. In 2011, The Australian Government has decided to legalise gay marriage and Mick is not happy. He’s convinced that everything will change for the worse once the gays get married because, well, “they’re weird”. So it’s time to dust off the Y2K bunker and head back down there with his wife Sharon and his best mate Gary.

In this comedy we get a first hand look at the inside of Mick’s anti-gay bunker. Everything in it is straight. There’s straight water, straight non-perishables, and Mick’s straight DVD set, including Spartacus, which Mick says is “definitely not gay” and Ricky Martin’s greatest hits, who as Mick says, “the lady’s love”, so you can’t argue with that. Mick’s wife Sharon is there as well, because that’s not gay, and so is his best mate Gary, because Mick thought he’d need someone to talk to while Sharon was busy cooking and cleaning the bunker.

We all remember how bad Y2K was. Well, reinforce your steel doors with concrete and stock your cupboards with anti-gay spray, because it’s happening all over again. There’s always something to be scared of. And this year, it’s Y2GAY.

Adelaide - March 2011

Pulling on the Red Chord

I recently discovered this wonderful site Moshcam which allows you to watch gigs that have been filmed at different venues around Sydney over the past couple of years. There are hundreds of bands to choose from - from Ben Harper to 78 Saab. I was drawn to a concert given by The Frames at The Metro in 2007.

The below video is the final song of their set. Look at the shining eyes of those in the crowd. In particular, check out the guy around 6:43 just standing there with his arms in the air letting the song wash over him. Look at Glen actually stopping playing to applaud the crowd and then jumping up and down like an excited child. It looks like an utterly religious experience. The rawness with which he treates the lyrics, "that pulls you back to me lord. YEAH!" - it gives me shivers. Check it out.



And just in case you thought it was a fluke, check out Glen creating the magic all on his lonesome, just him and a guitar. The guy is so talented it makes me want to give up now!



By way of postscript, Glen left school at 13 to start busking on the streets of Dublin. He did that for five years before getting The Frames together. It would be another 15 years until his big commercial break, the film Once, would come out. That is one hard slog. Imagine if he'd given up. We wouldn't have this man's beautiful, spellbinding music to spur us all on, to lift us all up.

SC

Silver Cinder show available online

Silver Cinder played at Sin-é at Café Lounge in Surry Hills last night. It was loads of fun. Thanks to everyone who came down to support us. It was nice to have the place packed out! Award for most committed fan has to go to Becci Franklin who came along even though she was due to give birth... YESTERDAY!!! I know right?! That is awesome!

If you didn't make it down, don't worry! (I know! You were stressing right?!) Well no need! You can watch a video of the show in the comfort of your own home! Check it out below.



Thanks very much to the lovely people at Neonhearts for organising and producing the live stream and photos. Go visit the Neonhearts website now to see all the good work they do supporting independent music in Sydney.