2007 Triumphant Refugees’ Short Film Festival

Australia’s inaugural refugee film festival commenced with screenings in the heart of Sydney’s communities as part of 2007 National Refugee Week. Following the successful Liverpool and Bankstown screenings in June, a further screening was held in Canberra in September with the assistance of Canberra’s Sudanese community. Beyond the capacity attendance of 300, over 150 missed out on attending due to overwhelming interest. Not to be outdone, the unlikely location of Cairns attracted over 130 people including members of several of that city’s growing African communities. All up over 700 people of all ages and from all communities attended the festival. Many new people were exposed to the triumphs, tragedies, challenges and opportunities that refugees in Australia have face, and continue to face.

In 2007, over 20 short film entries were entered into film festival. A panel of refugee judges then selected their top entries from an impressive selection. Entries were judged on their originality, artistic merit and capacity to present a compelling story as well as entertain. See this program from our Liverpool screening for the type of films entered last year. Two of these films, An Unforgettable Journey and Economy Class were written and directed by refugees.

Importantly, tremendous support for a refugee film festival in the first year has been crucial in encouraging volunteers to put on a bigger, better festival in 2008. Our hope is that this will be come a regular fixture on the annual event in Sydney, Cairns and beyond.

Thank you to our contributors and partners

Triumphant! International express a massive thanks to our film contributors, partner organisations and sponsors who made the four screenings of the 2007 Triumphant Refugees’ Short Film Festival possible.

Liverpool, Sydney on 23 June 2007 – Special thanks to Liverpool City Council, the Foundation for Young Australians and Australian Ethical Investment; View photos from our Liverpool screening.

Bankstown, Sydney on 27 June 2007 – Special thanks to Bankstown City Council.

Canberra on 20 September – Special thanks to the United Nations Association of Australia, Yarrh Wines, Xibit Printers, Blue Sky Clinic and the ACT Sudanese Community Organisation.

Cairns, 1 December – Special thanks to End Credits Film Club and Migrant Settlement Services; View photos from our Cairns screening.

Media Coverage

In our first year, many local and community media outlets provided strong support and valuable publicity for the festival. In particular we received good coverage from the ABC including:

Radio coverage from ABC Radio’s World Today program - http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/content/2007/s1961623.htm; and
A television feature piece on ABC TV’s Stateline before the Canberra screening - http://www.abc.net.au/stateline/act/content/2006/s2034530.htm