(2022 / Rolf de Heer / Australia / 96 minutes / Rating: 18)
UK PREMIERE
Director: Rolf de Heer
Writer: Rolf de Heer
Producers: Rolf de Heer, Julie Byrne
Cast: Mwajemi Hussein, Deepthi Sharma, Darasan Sharma, Gary Waddell, Natasha Wanganeen
The sixth London Australian Film Festival opens with THE SURVIVAL OF KINDNESS, a powerful dystopian drama that marks the long-awaited return of master-filmmaker Rolf de Heer (Ten Canoes, Bad Boy Bubby, Charlie’s Country).
When BlackWoman – played by Congolese refugee, and first-time actor, Mwajemi Hussein – is abandoned in an outback cage, her escape precipitates a journey through pestilence and persecution, from desert to mountain to city.
Winner of the FIPRESCI Prize at the 2023 Berlin Film Festival, this stunningly quiet meditation on identity and belonging sees de Heer taking dual inspiration from Black Lives Matter and the Covid pandemic to craft a gripping, almost wordless parable of epic proportions.
This opening gala screening will be followed by a pre-recorded Q&A with the film’s director, Rolf de Heer (TBC). Australian snacks and sweets will be on sale, and a raffle will be held before the screening.
With thanks to Fandango and Vertigo Productions.
“A singular vision of cool, fierce intensity from a filmmaker who shows he has plenty of innovative ideas to explore in his creative arsenal yet.” – The Canberra Times (Jane Freebury)
