The closing ceremony of the 66th Sydney Film Festival culminated in an award to Korean Director, Bond Joon-Ho whose prevailed over twelve other competition films.
“Parasite has an outrageous disregard for genre conventions – it is tender and brutal; beautiful and harsh; funny and tragic and a masterwork in its exploration of class.” describes Jury President, John Maynard as he announced the winner at the Closing Gala at the State Theatre.
Accepting the award, Bong Joon-ho said: “This Festival is really amazing, especially the audience… really special and extraordinary. This is the most meaningful prize for me – in this beautiful city and beautiful theatre, and one of the most beautiful audiences in the world.”
“Since the 2009 increase in NSW Government support, this truly impressive cultural event has grown by over 80% in attendance and scale to become one of the leading international Film Festivals operating around the world today. Across the past 12 days, we have supported 22 titles shown: from Opening Night’s Palm Beach, Judy and Punch, Lambs of God through to the Screenability shorts.” says Don, Harwin, Minister for the Arts. “One of the great things about this Festival is that it lives on across regional centres over the course of the year ahead. Through the Travelling Film Festival, this year eight NSW locations will enjoy highlights as part of the tour, starting in Newcastle next weekend. We will also add five additional locations in 2020. It’s all part of the NSW Government’s expanded $5 million funding commitment over the next four years,” he said.
As Sydney Film Festival experienced the highest attendance of 188,00 since its inception, may sold out sessions made way for additional screenings across select venues.
Bong Joon-Ho pots a spotlight on the thriving Korean film industry which is being celebrated nationally to mark the 10th anniversary of the upcoming Korean Film Festival (KOFFIA) in the following cities:
- Sydney (22-31 Aug) – Dendy Opera Quays
- Canberra (22-25 Aug) – Palace Electric Cinema
- Brisbane (5-8 Sept) – Elizabeth Picture Theatre
- Melbourne (5-12 Sept) – Capitol Theatre
Check ou the inaugural IGTV Film Festival:
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SYDNEY FILM FESTIVAL FEATURE & COVERAGE