Sinead O’Connor, John Cale, Robert Lepage, Jack Charles, Hotel Pro Forma, Michael Clark Company, Thomas Adès, Toneelgroep Amsterdam, Akram Khan Company, The Black Arm Band & Beck’s Festival Bar

The 25th Melbourne Festival, and the second under the artistic direction of Brett Sheehy, announces a dynamic and emotive program of work from some of the finest creative minds of our times. Over 16 days, from 8 to 23 October, the Festival presents an unparalleled feast of music, dance, theatre, opera, visual arts, multimedia and outdoor events from renowned and upcoming Australian and international companies and artists.

Festival highlights this year include free outdoor aerial spectacular K@osmos; Hotel Pro Forma’s awe inspiring, large-scale operatic spectacle, Tomorrow, in a year, featuring the groundbreaking music of electro-pop masters The Knife; world renowned recording artists Sinead O’Connor (in her exclusive Australian performance), John Cale and Meshell Ndegeocello; one of Australia’s most highly regarded performers in his one-man show, Jack Charles V The Crown; the residency of British composer, Thomas Adès, the most inventive contemporary composer of his generation. As part of the Melbourne International Arts Festival: Beck’s Festival Bar at the Forum Theatre, will be featuring some intriguing acts: Boredoms (Japan), Low (USA), Ponzu Island (Australia), The Drones (Australia), Dead Meadow (USA) and more.

Boredoms

Ponzu Island

The Festival features two Australian premieres. come, been and gone, the bold new dance work from the world renowned Michael Clark Company featuring the music of the legendary David Bowie with Lou Reed, Iggy Pop and Brian Eno and internationally revered director, film maker and actor Robert Lepage’s  magical journey to modern China with The Blue Dragon, a heart-wrenching love story told with Lepage’s trademark striking theatrical vision.

Come, Been and Gone, Simon Williams, Photography: Jake Walters

The Festival closes with a one-off spectacular finale, Seven Songs to Leave Behind, a unique concert featuring international music legends Sinead O’Connor, John Cale, Meshell Ndegeocello and Rickie Lee Jones, with award winning Indigenous artist Gurrumul Yunupingu and festival favourites Black Arm Band and Orchestra Victoria at the Sidney Myer Music Bowl on Oct 23.

For more info see the festival site here

During September in select cinemas around Australia, Madman presents REEL ANIME 2010, showcasing five of the freshest anime feature films this side of Tokyo.

Following the sold-out success of the 2008 Showcase, which featured ‘The Girl Who Leapt Through Time’ and ‘Appleseed: Ex Machina’, this latest crop of films has something for everyone: from the rebuild of the Evangelion universe, ‘Evangelion: 2.0 You Can [Not] Advance’ and ‘Evangelion: 1.0 You Are [Not] Alone’; the masterful storytelling of ‘Summer Wars’ (from the director of ‘The Girl Who Leapt Through Time’); the adrenaline fueled ‘Redline’; and the thrilling ‘King Of Thorn’.

Summer Wars, Reel Anime 2010

Redline, Reel Anime 2010

King Thorn, Reel Anime 2010

Evangelion: You Can [Not] Advance, Reel Anime 2010

See more at Madman

AWARD, Australia’s pre-eminent creative industries body, has announced changes to its 2011 awards programme. AWARD, the Australasian Writers and Art Directors Association, counts some of the finest creative minds from Australia, New Zealand and South East Asia amongst its members. It is a non-political, non-profit organisation that aims to set standards of creative excellence, to promote creativity in the business arena, and to educate and inspire the next creative generation.

“As champions of commercial creativity, AWARD aims to raise standards of creative excellence across a range of disciplines – emerging as well as established,” said Craig Davis, AWARD Chairman.
“In the annual AWARD show, we can create more space and opportunity to recognise and celebrate great creative work, reflecting how the marketing and communications industries have evolved and are evolving.”

Accordingly, several new categories have been created for 2011, including music video, applications, social media, environmental design, and branded content. As well, a new award for Creative Innovation will challenge entrants to contribute a solution that defies convention. It is anticipated that the award will draw unexpected ideas from industries both connected to, and beyond, advertising.

“Creativity is a prerequisite of commercial success and of prosperity,” said Craig Davis. “We believe it is the single most valuable asset for business today, and that through inclusiveness and collaboration, that value can only increase.”

The AWARD 2011 Call for Entries will be launched in coming days. The AWARD show will take place on March 11, 2011, as part of the Creative Festival taking place from 9-11 March.

See the AWARD site for more information.

The Australian Centre for the Moving Image, in association with the Goethe-Institut, presents - Berlin on Film
Thursday 4 November – Monday 8 November 2010

To coincide with the Berlin Dayz cultural festival and the twentieth anniversary of the reunification of Germany, the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI) presents a program of films devoted to the country’s capital in Berlin on Film this November.

Berlin has a unique rhythm which infuses its architecture, its culture and its citizens. This filmic celebration of the historical city brings together six documentaries; from the challenges of a country divided, to the process of reunification and the infinite possibilities of a Berlin without borders.

ACMI Film Programmer Kristy Matheson, with the assistance of the Goethe-Institut, has composed a program which reminds us of the challenges Berliners overcame and the sense of euphoria of reunification. “With a remarkable and catastrophic history, Berlin has played many roles throughout the 20th century, emerging in the new millennium as one of the world’s most fascinating and enduring cities,” she said.

The program opens with Rhythm Is It (2004), directed by Thomas Grube and Enrique Sánchez Lansch, which intertwines music and contemporary dance in an ambitious project by Conductor Sir Simon Rattle, the Berlin Philharmonic, choreographer Royston Maldoom and 250 young Berliners from disparate ages and backgrounds. Their performance of Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring is a joyous and inspired tale of triumph over adversity. The screening precedes the Berlin Philharmonic’s visit to Australia this November.

Rhythm Is It (2004), ACMI: Berlin on Film 2010

Former East German model turned director Marco Wilms presents an exciting portrait of youth in revolt and subversive creativity in East Berlin in Comrade Couture (2009). Inspired by new wave and punk fashions from the West, East Berliners took to crafting their own fashions – turning their limited materials to an advantage and parading avant-garde creations made from plastic, bed sheets and disused medical supplies. As one of East Germany’s most daring stylists, Frank Schäfer, puts it in the film; “A tiger in a cage is much wilder than a tiger that is free to roam.” Drawing on personal memories, interviews and extensive archival research, Wilms offers a unique view of this heady artistic outpouring under ever watchful Stasi eyes.

Wilms’ earlier Berlin Vortex (2003) taps into the wave of euphoria among youth in the Eastern block prompted by the reunification of Germany in 1989. With the wall down and capitalism still at bay, young Berliners occupied empty residences and began preparing for their futures bringing change through art and social programs. Featuring celebrated choreographer Sasha Waltz, Jochen Sandig, Christian Lorenz of ‘Rammstein’ fame, social workers and still struggling artists, Wilms’ discovery of what became of five citizens and their utopian dreams for the new Berlin is as fascinating and diverse as the city itself.

The director of Comrade Couture and Berlin Vortex, Wilms will be in Melbourne for the season.

Scored by Einstürzende Neubauten and featuring internationally acclaimed architects, Rem Koolhaas, Renzo Piano and I.M. Pei, Berlin Babylon (2001) offers a rare glimpse into an international city, under construction. In a post-wall era, Berlin found itself as a metropolis in great need of physical change to fully realise the promise of reunification and to repair the destruction the 20th century had wreaked upon it. With its astonishing aerial photography and subtle verite style, Hubertus Siegert’s film has a dreamlike quality that allows the viewer to float above and wander through of one of the world’s great cities as it transitions into the future.

A heartfelt declaration of love to a city and its people, In Berlin (2009) traces the changes that have taken place in the twenty years since the demolition of the Berlin Wall. Featuring a vast array of Berliners including, actor Angela Winkler, Alex Hacke of Einstürzende Neubauten, architects, fashion designers, performers and store owners, long term Scorsese cinematographer Michael Ballhaus and co-director Ciro Cappellari have crafted a visually stunning and engaging portrait of one of the world’s most lively and creative hubs.

In Berlin, Rhythm Is It, Berlin Babylon and special guest director Wilms’ films Comrade Couture and Berlin Vortex, will all be introduced by Berlin-based film critic and radio journalist, Carsten Beyer.

The bustling streets of 1920’s Berlin are writ-large in the entrancing Berlin: Symphony of a Great City (Berlin: Die Sinfonie der Grosstadt) (1927). Like other famous ‘city films’ such as Man With the Movie Camera, director Walter Ruttmann’s portrait of Berlin is a dynamic mix of man and machine, social norms and daily life, a captivating vision of Berlin between the wars. This black and white silent treasure will enjoy a free screening on the big screen in Melbourne’s Federation Square.

Berlin: Symphony of a Great City (Berlin: Die Sinfonie der Grosstadt) (1927), ACMI: Berlin on Film 2010

Berlin on Film is programmed as part of Berlin Dayz, the German-Australian Festival coordinated by the Goethe-Insitut in celebration of the 20th Anniversary of Germany’s reunification. Berlin Dayz events will be held across Australia throughout October and November to coincide with the official Day of German Unity (Tag der Deutschen Einheit) on 3 October, this year being hosted by Bremen in the country’s North West. Operating from its Melbourne base, Berlin Dayz events are designed as a dialogue between two cultural capitals: Berlin and Melbourne.

Berlin on Film will screen at ACMI from Thursday 4 to Monday 8 November, 2010
More here

Semi‐Permanent a celebration of all things art and design is back in 2010 to inspire Melbourne’s thriving creative community yet again. While some may think it’s the forum where design nerds gather to fight against the evils of Comic Sans, Semi‐Permanent offers an eye‐opening insight into the broad streams of design, and where those varying crafts can take you.
Designed to inspire and educate, renowned artists and specialists in their field will come together at the Melbourne Convention Centre on Friday 17 September and Saturday 18 September to share their knowledge and passion for their work. Semi‐Permanent Melbourne 2010 boasts a line‐up of 12 speakers including newly announced Simon Allen from Academy Award winning animators Pixar, photographer Claire Martin, Art Director for Girl Skateboards Andy Jenkins, UK post production house Framestore, Melbourne based visual artist Leif Podhajsky and creative agency and artists representatives Big Active.

Buck, Semi-Permanent 2010

Brought to life by Sydney’s Design is Kinky, Semi‐Permanent is a conference which unites exceptionally talented artists and designers to speak at a conference which sits within a broader program of side events including exhibitions, workshops and parties. “It’s not only our speakers that make the event special. It’s the atmosphere and spirit that the audience brings with them,” said Design is Kinky’s Andrew Johnstone. “It’s a casual atmosphere where new friends are made and new colleagues discovered. It’s this that sets Semi‐Permanent apart from other conferences, a shared feeling that you belong to a community.”

Now in its eighth year and with 22 conferences under it’s designer belt, Semi‐Permanent is the internationally acclaimed conference of its kind, year on year, proving an exciting line‐up of talented speakers spanning the art, film, motion graphics, illustration, photography, and visual effects disciplines.

Framestore, Semi-Permanent 2010

Semi‐Permanent is on at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre on Friday 17 September and Saturday 18 September 2010. The official program is yet to be released but for regular updates and tickets check here

New interactive music video for ‘Neon Bible’ by Canadian band Arcade Fire, directed by Vincent Morisset. Users can click and drag images to control the movement of singer Win Butler’s head and hands, as well as discover other ‘Easter Egg’ like clickable hidden features. http://www.beonlineb.com

Held in a former glass factory in Sydney, Cloud Formation: a forecast of dream shapes featured multimedia work by artists Morgan Veness (Japan), Haruka Kokubu (Japan) and Malou Dunkley (Australia), architects German Perez Tavio (Spain) and Didier Ryan (UK) and designers Patrick Santamaria, Sam Painter and Billy Ryan (Australia).

Babekuhl: Black ink white paper

Kate McCurdy

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Held in a former glass factory in Sydney, Cloud Formation: a forecast of dream shapes featured multimedia work by artists Morgan Veness (Japan), Haruka Kokubu (Japan) and Malou Dunkley (Australia), architects German Perez Tavio (Spain) and Didier Ryan (UK) and designers Patrick Santamaria, Sam Painter and Billy Ryan (Australia).

Over two days in the informal, underground setting for the unofficial Biennale event, contributors and guests were invited to participate in lively group discussions, making the exhibition not only a showcase of multimedia work, but also a productive and provocative cross-media forum.

The Cloud formations theme was not only reflected in the work of the artists, but also the presentation of the exhibition itself. This was shown in the way the works were overlaid into a ‘diffuse, cloudy form, allowing site specific relationships to evolve and engage viewers’.

Cloud formation: a forecast of dream shapes

The artistic backgrounds of the artists ranged from textile design to photography, architecture, graphic design, product design and visual arts.

The work of artists Morgan Veness & Haruka Kokubu was characterised by mythical and imaginary figures in floating, dreamlike states. Veness used bold, energetic forms to reveal a myriad of pulsating elements in the details. His technique combined fine pen drafting with soft brush painting to build deep visual fields. Kokubu used textiles and painted fabric to construct ‘Dream cap’ a mythical device for carrying children into the dream world. The space was shrouded in painted quilts with scenes from the journey.

Morgan veness: 'boom, Boom treasure hunter's 7'

Babekuhl Productions designed a meditation space using a psychedelic cloud pattern from their recent Black Ink and White Paper publication, presenting their book and forthcoming vinyl toy Babucloud. Featured designs from the book showed subliminal emblems such as Smile and Wolf in dog’s clothing in which friendly silhouettes revealed more sinister compositions.

Undercurrent architects presented a recent project; a design influenced by Sydney’s outdoor lifestyle and the desire to integrate with the environment. The building responds to the landscape using an architectural language of cloud, rain, tree, leaf, branch and fire and defines an ethereal and heavenly space used as a garden studio.

Undercurrent architects: Sydney Studio Roof

Malou Dunkley produced a photographic series on the relationship of the building and garden, focusing on shadows, reflections, superpositioning and its atmospheric qualities.

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This multimedia exhibition will feature work by architects, artists and designers: Morgan Veness, Haruka Kokubu, Didier Ryan, German Perez Tavio, Malou Dunkley, Patrick Santamaria, Billy Ryan, Sam Painter.
Described as a ‘forecast of dream shapes from concept to reality’ which will explore ‘evolving shapes, surreal qualities, elevated perceptions and floating sensations’, the exhibition will include contributions from Australia, Japan, Spain and the United Kingdom.

Further information
Private viewing, RSVP to cloud4m@gmail.com for details of the event and location.