In its second year and already five times the size of last year, the Dungog Film Festival has ambitions to become a major national event, attracting thousands to the rural NSW town over four days.
Matthew Newton, Joel Edgerton, Noni Hazlehurst and Gracie Otto were some of the Australian talent that roamed the streets over the weekend, attending premieres, parties and live script readings, among the paddocks and pastures of the Barrington ranges.
Festival director and founder, Allanah Zitserman says there were 80 films playing this year, making it the largest showcase of Australian film in the world.
She says the picturesque yet isolated nature of Dungog made it a perfect place to hold a film festival.
“This just has the ingredients necessary,” Zitserman told Livenews.
“Like a Telluride, like a Sundance, outside of the cities, outside of the hustle and bustle.”
Noni Hazlehurst, star of “Bitter and Twisted”, a film making its Australian premiere at the festival, thinks it’s a great way to raise the profile of Australian films.
“For us to have this perception that Australian films are crap, and they're not making any money, and no one is going to see them is really destructive.”
