A showcase of the best Australian films in the world today.

AUDIENCE AWARDS:
Best Feature Film: MEMORIES OF MY FATHER
Best Short Film: MAD MAN MADDOX
Best Micro-Short Film: GUIDE DOGS
Best High School DOC: THE GHOST ON THE HILL
Best Story: MIRACLES EVERYWHERE
Best Experimental DOC: LEAVES ARE WEIRD
Best Environmental DOC: LEAVES ARE WEIRD
Best Political DOC: THE KING’S COURT
Best Sports DOC: THE ART OF THE THROW
Best Society DOC: HUNTING FOR THE SHAMAN

THE GHOST ON THE HILL, 5min., USA
Directed by Sean Garland Findley
Beckett, a high schooler whose house burned down in the Palisades Fire, visits the remains of his former home on a mission to find a work-in-progress art piece that he held dearly to his heart.

https://www.instagram.com/seanfindley11

GUIDE DOGS, 5min., USA
Directed by Samuel Mateo Barnhoorn
We see the adorable progression of Guide Dogs through being a puppy till the end of their training and the lives they impact doing so.

https://learningwithjoy4life.wixsite.com/guide-dogs-movie

MAD MAN MADDOX, 19min., USA
Directed by Justin Lee McClure
Mad Man Maddox is an intimate documentary portrait of Dorian, a local professional wrestler navigating life between the spectacle of the ring and the quiet weight of his past. Through training sessions, performances, and moments away from the crowd, the film explores how wrestling personas become shields and tools for survival expression and control. As Dorian confronts trauma insecurity and ambition the film examines identity as something both performed and deeply personal revealing how one man uses performance to make sense of who he is and who he hopes to become.

MEMORIES OF MY FATHER, 52min., USA
Directed by Jack Frye
After the sudden death of his father, filmmaker Jack Frye turns to decades of home videos and photographs to make sense of his father’s life. Anchored by a mountain climb they shared in Colorado, Memories of My Father moves between archival footage and present-day reflection to revisit a family history shaped by faith, fatherhood, and a love of the outdoors. In looking back, Frye considers what it means to preserve memory and how to carry it forward.

LEAVES ARE WEIRD, 9min., USA
Directed by Mar Nester
Viewers learn about the incredible process of photosynthesis from a professional botanist, a puppet, a leaf, and a song!

https://www.instagram.com/its.me.marmar

THERE’S NO PLANET B!, 3min., USA
Directed by Katy Coakley

https://www.instagram.com/katie_on_the_map

HUNTING FOR THE SHAMAN, 14min., USA
Directed by Liu Sihan
Nepalese culture on the plateau is equally worthy of documentation. Shortly after completing our filming and returning home, conflict erupted in Nepal. Witnessing the turmoil in the news, I often found myself reflecting—remembering those Nepalese friends, contemplating the value and meaning of life. When I arrived at Mount Kailash, on a pilgrimage yet uncertain of the path ahead, a shamanic voice always seemed to echo within me. Perhaps the very path beneath our feet is the meaning of existence itself—a gift from destiny.

THE ART OF THE THROW, 14min., USA
Directed by Caleb Daniel Weaver
From knowing almost nothing in the disc golf world to knowing pretty much everything. The story will follow Isaiah, telling how he got into disc golf and how he got into tournaments. From practicing and dreaming about playing in tournaments to actually playing in them.

https://www.instagram.com/fairwoodstudios

MIRACLES EVERYWHERE, 7min., USA
Directed by Daniela Múnera Ángel
“Milagritos de Dios” is a documentary about Don Mario Aguinada, a man who transformed his life through perseverance, faith, and gratitude. Born in the remote mountains of El Salvador, he grew up without formal education or material resources, but surrounded by love.

THE KING’S COURT, 6min., USA
Directed by Murilo dos Santos
The Founding Fathers of the United States condemned King George’s defiance of the principle of equal treatment under the law. Nearly 250 years later, the nation faces a judicial crisis as the actions of its most powerful figure repeatedly test the rule of law. Through analysis from conservative and liberal legal scholars, former judges, prosecutors, and journalists, these experts warn against the testing of the rule of law—and the consequences it may have for public trust and American democracy.