A large window with red neon signage displaying the words CENTRAL CINEMA, with people milling around outside the cinema and in the background.

24 Jul

The Melbourne Salon: Screening France in Australia

This Melbourne Salon brings together two self-avowed cinéphiles with extensive academic and industry experience. James Hewison is the former Executive Director of the Melbourne International Film Festival, and Andrew McGregor is Associate Professor in French Cinema Studies at the University of Melbourne. Together they explore the impact of French cinema on Australian audiences, critics, filmmakers, actors, and crews across more than a century.

From the Lumière brothers’ first screenings at the turn of the 20th century to the French New Wave, and the enduring success of the Alliance Française French Film Festival – the largest French film festival outside France – they’ll reflect on pivotal moments in French-Australian film history. The conversation will also cover cross-industry collaborations, how France portrays itself through cinema, its role as a cultural defender of film, and what Australia’s industry might learn from the French example.

Ticket includes a light refreshment.