Afire

Summer arrives and two friends embark on a much-needed retreat at a family holiday house to focus on their artistic pursuits. Go-with-the-flow Felix (Langston Uibel) seeks out inspiration for his photography project while self-important writer Leon (Thomas Schubert) sets the summer aside to work on the manuscript for his second novel. Upon arriving, they discover an unexpected guest in family friend Nadja (Paula Beer) who has arrived early and already taken a lover in local lifesaver Devid (Enno Trebs).

While the others take advantage of their summer idyll, Leon withdraws from the group, dishing out petty passive-aggressions. With resentments on the rise, wildfires skirt around the periphery, slowly edging closer day by day.

Considered one of the best films of the year, Afire premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival where it won the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize.

Screening exclusively at ACMI in Melbourne.