What to see at this year’s Melbourne International Film Festival

The movies are back.

Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) is officially back for another year. One of the oldest running film festivals in the world (sitting alongside Cannes and Berlin), the 18-day celebration will take place from August 6 to 23.

Spanning Melbourne’s CBD to regional Victoria, this year’s program will feature a line-up of 25 films and events, including some of the year’s most anticipated films fresh from Cannes, Berlin and Sundance.

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It marks the premiere of several films, including The Airport Chaplain (featuring Australia’s very own The Pitt star, Shabana Azeez), as well as the feature documentary, Digby and Camille. You’ll also find rediscovered camcorder footage documenting the 1995 Australian Summersault festival in The Best Summer, while The Sun Never Sets follows a love triangle starring Dakota Fanning set in the Alaskan wilderness.

Whether you’re a dedicated film buff or casual movie-goer, MIFF is the perfect chance to romanticise winter and support the arts. Although you’ll have to wait until July 9 to see the full MIFF program, here are nine films we’d suggest keeping on your radar.

Mad Rush

Melbourne’s laneways and street corners become a “gauntlet of dread” in Maddelin McKenna’s Mad Rush. A micro-budget project, the story unfolds over 18 hours as Madisha is sent on a mission across the city after receiving a call from what appears to be the Australian Taxation Office about fraudulent bank activity.

The Sun Never Sets

Shot on 35mm film, The Sun Never Sets is the latest project from filmmaker Joe Swanberg (of Drinking Buddies). A heartfelt ‘dramedy’, it follows a love triangle between a woman (Dakota Fanning), her older divorced boyfriend and her ex partner.

Queen at Sea

Starring Juliette Binoche and Tom Courtenay, Queen at Sea is an emotionally charged drama about a woman struggling with her mother’s dementia. It marks the first feature in 18 years from writer and director Lance Hammer, known for his award-winning film, Bellast.

Extra Geography

Extra Geography is a feature debut from BAFTA-winning TV director Molly Manners. Set in an English boarding school, the funny yet bittersweet coming-of-age story is about two best friends grappling with all the challenges of girlhood  – from friendship and school, to their summer project of falling in love.

Guided by Horses

Western Australia’s Kimberley region is widely considered among the most stunning landscapes in the world, yet it’s also home to one of the world’s highest youth suicide rates. In Guided by Horses, Australian filmmaker Sean O’Reilly documents the work of Aboriginal researcher Professor Juli Coffin, who runs an equine-assisted learning (EAL) program designed to provide trauma-informed, culturally secure support to Aboriginal children and young people.

Digby and Camille

Digby and Camille tells the love story of Archibald Prize-selected painter Digby Webster and trainee chef Camille Collins. Having first met in a Sydney pub eight years ago, it builds a portrait of a couple in their thirties living with Down syndrome who are dreaming of marriage, children and a home of their own.

The Best Summer

Held in the summer of 1995 to ’96, Summersault was once considered Australia’s biggest music festival. In recently rediscovered camcorder footage from filmmaker Tamra Davis, The Best Summer documents the event, featuring exclusive footage of Beastie Boys, Pavement, Sonic Youth, Foo Fighters and Kathleen Hanna.

The Airport Chaplain

MIFF will also mark the world premiere of SBS television drama, The Airport Chaplain. Starring Hugo Weaving, Shabana Azeez (The Pitt) and Thomas Weatherall (Heartbreak High), the drama unfolds amid the chaos of Melbourne’s own Tullamarine airport.

Sweet Milk Lake

Sweet Milk Lake is a debut feature from Australian-British filmmaker Harvey Zielinski. Set in a remote country town, it follows a young trans man navigating life, identity and relationships. The story draws on Zielinski’s own experiences, and he stars in the lead dual roles of Jake and his cisgender twin.

Get your tickets to MIFF here.