72nd Sydney Film Festival
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Opening filmTogether
by Michael Shanks
by Michael Shanks
Closing filmSplitsville
by Michael Angelo Covino
by Michael Angelo Covino
LocationSydney, New South Wales, Australia
Founded1954
| Opening film | Together by Michael Shanks |
|---|---|
| Closing film | Splitsville by Michael Angelo Covino |
| Location | Sydney, New South Wales, Australia |
| Founded | 1954 |
| Festival date | 4–15 June 2025 |
| Website | sff |
The 72nd annual Sydney Film Festival took place from 4 to 15 June 2025. This edition of the Sydney Film Festival opened with supernatural body horror film Together and closed with Michael Angelo Covino's comedy film Splitsville.[1][2]
The following were named as members of the festival jury:[3]
- Justin Kurzel, Australian film director – jury president
- Rachel House, New Zealand director and actor
- Mélita Toscan du Plantier, French producer
- Winnie Tsang, Hong Kong producer and distributor
- Thomas Weatherall, Australian actor
Official Selection
In competition
The following films were selected for the main international competition:
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
|---|---|---|---|
| All That's Left of You | اللي باقي منك | Cherien Dabis | Germany, Cyprus, Palestine, Jordan, Greece, Qatar, Saudi Arabia |
| The Blue Trail | O Último Azul | Gabriel Mascaro | Brazil, Mexico, Netherlands, Chile |
| DJ Ahmet | Georgi M. Unkovski | North Macedonia, Czech Republic, Serbia, Croatia | |
| It Was Just an Accident | یک تصادف ساده | Jafar Panahi | Iran, France, Luxembourg |
| The Love That Remains | Ástin Sem Eftir Er | Hlynur Pálmason | Iceland, Sweden, Denmark, France |
| The Mastermind | Kelly Reichardt | United States | |
| Miroirs No. 3 | Christian Petzold | Germany | |
| My Father's Shadow | Akinola Davies Jr. | United Kingdom, Nigeria | |
| Romería | Carla Simón | Spain, Germany | |
| The Secret Agent | O Agente Secreto | Kleber Mendonça Filho | Brazil, France, Netherlands, Germany |
| Sorry, Baby | Eva Victor | United States | |
| Together (opening film) | Michael Shanks | Australia, United States | |
- Highlighted title indicates Sydney Film Prize winner.
Late Announce
The following films were added two days before the festival started:[4]
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eagles of the Republic | Tarik Saleh | Denmark, Finland, France, Sweden | |
| It's Never Over, Jeff Buckley | Amy J. Berg | United States | |
| The Little Sister | La Petite Dernière | Hafsia Herzi | France, Germany |
| Magellan | Lav Diaz | Portugal, Spain, France, Philippines, Taiwan | |
| The Plague | Charlie Polinger | United States, Romania | |
| Sentimental Value | Joachim Trier | Norway, France, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, United Kingdom | |
| Sirāt | Óliver Laxe | France, Spain | |
| Splitsville (closing film) | Michael Angelo Covino | United States | |
| Two Prosecutors | Sergei Loznitsa | France, Germany, Netherlands, Latvia, Romania, Lithuania | |
| Young Mothers | Jeunes mères | Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne | Belgium, France |
Documentary Australia
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deeper | Jennifer Peedom | Australia | |
| Ellis Park | Justin Kurzel | ||
| Floodland | Jordan Giusti | ||
| The Golden Spurtle | Constantine Costi | Australia, United Kingdom | |
| Joh: Last King of Queensland | Kriv Stenders | Australia | |
| Journey Home, David Gulpilil | Maggie Miles, Trisha Morton-Thomas | ||
| The Raftsmen | Chadden Hunter | ||
| Songs Inside | Shalom Almond | ||
| The Wolves Always Come at Night | Gabrielle Brady | Australia, Mongolia, Germany | |
| Yurlu | Country | Yaara Bou Melhem | Australia | |
First Nations Award
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
|---|---|---|---|
| Emily: I Am Kam | Danielle MacLean | Australia | |
| The Haka Party Incident | Katie Wolfe | New Zealand | |
| Marlon Williams: Two Worlds – Ngā Ao E Rua | Ursula Grace Williams | ||
| Nechako: It Will Be a Big River Again | Lyana Patrick | Canada | |
| Remaining Native | Paige Bethmann | United States | |
| Seeds | Kaniehtiio Horn | Canada | |
| Wilfred Buck | Lisa Jackson | ||
Special Presentations
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Ballad of Wallis Island | James Griffiths | United Kingdom | |
| Blue Moon | Richard Linklater | United States, Ireland | |
| Dreams | Michel Franco | Mexico, United States | |
| Enzo | Robin Campillo | France, Belgium, Italy | |
| How to Train Your Dragon | Dean DeBlois | United States | |
| Lesbian Space Princess | Emma Hough Hobbs, Leela Varghese | Australia | |
| One to One: John & Yoko | Kevin Macdonald | United Kingdom | |
| Orwell: 2+2=5 | Raoul Peck | France, United States | |
| Pike River | Robert Sarkies | New Zealand | |
| Prime Minister | Lindsay Utz, Michelle Walshe | United States | |
| A Private Life | Vie privée | Rebecca Zlotowski | France |
| Slanted | Amy Wang | United States | |
| Twinless | James Sweeney | ||
Features
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alpha. | Jan-Willem van Ewijk | Netherlands, Switzerland, Slovenia | |
| Birthright | Zoe Pepper | Australia | |
| BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions | Kahlil Joseph | United States | |
| Bring Them Down | Christopher Andrews | Ireland | |
| Ciao Bambino | Edgardo Pistone | Italy | |
| Come Closer | Tom Nesher | ||
| Daughter's Daughter | 女兒的女兒 | Huang Xi | Taiwan |
| Death of an Undertaker | Christian Byers | Australia | |
| Dreams (Sex Love) | Drømmer | Dag Johan Haugerud | Norway |
| Eighty Plus | Restitucija, ili, San i java stare garde | Želimir Žilnik | Serbia, Slovenia |
| The End | Joshua Oppenheimer | Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Italy, United Kingdom, Sweden | |
| The Friend | Scott McGehee and David Siegel | United States | |
| Fwends | Sophie Somerville | Australia | |
| Happyend | Neo Sora | Japan, United States | |
| Harvest | Athina Rachel Tsangari | United Kingdom, Germany, Greece, France, United States | |
| The Heart Is a Muscle | Imran Hamdulay | South Africa, Saudi Arabia | |
| Islands | Jan-Ole Gerster | Germany | |
| January 2 | Január 2. | Zsófia Szilágyi | Hungary |
| Kontinental '25 | Radu Jude | Romania | |
| Late Shift | Heldin | Petra Volpe | Switzerland, Germany |
| The Legend of the Vagabond Queen of Lagos | The Agbajowo Collective | Nigeria, Germany, South Africa, United States | |
| The Life of Chuck | Mike Flanagan | United States | |
| Love | Kjærlighet | Dag Johan Haugerud | Norway |
| Lurker | Alex Russell | United States, Italy | |
| The Mohican | Le Mohican | Frédéric Farrucci | France |
| Moon | Mond | Kurdwin Ayub | Austria |
| The Mother and the Bear | Johnny Ma | Canada, Chile | |
| Mr Burton | Marc Evans | United Kingdom, Ireland | |
| Nineteen | Diciannove | Giovanni Tortorici | Italy, United Kingdom |
| Olmo | Fernando Eimbcke | United States, Mexico | |
| On Becoming a Guinea Fowl | Rungano Nyoni | Zambia, United Kingdom, Ireland | |
| On Swift Horses | Daniel Minahan | United States | |
| One of Those Days When Hemme Dies | Hemme'nin öldüğü günlerden biri | Murat Fıratoğlu | Turkey |
| Pooja, Sir | Deepak Rauniyar | Nepal, United States, Norway | |
| The President's Cake | مملكة القصب | Hasan Hadi | Iraq, United States, Qatar |
| Saba | Maksud Hossain | Bangladesh | |
| Somebody | 침범 | Kim Yeo-jeong, Lee Jeong-chan | South Korea |
| Spirit World | Eric Khoo | France, Japan, Singapore | |
| State of Statelessness | ས་མཐའི་ལས་དབང་། | Tenzing Sonam, Ritu Sarin, Tsering Tashi Gyalthang, Sonam Tseten, Tenzin Tsetan Choklay | India, United States, Vietnam |
| Stranger Eyes | Yeo Siew Hua | Singapore, Taiwan, France, United States | |
| The Things You Kill | Alireza Khatami | France, Poland, Canada, Turkey | |
| Tiger's Pond | Vaghachipani | Natesh Hegde | India, Singapore |
| To Kill a Mongolian Horse | Xiaoxuan Jiang | Malaysia, Hong Kong, United States, South Korea, Japan, Singapore | |
| Twelve Moons | Doce lunas | Victoria Franco | Mexico |
| Went Up the Hill | Samuel Van Grinsven | New Zealand, Australia | |
| What Does That Nature Say to You | 그 자연이 네게 뭐라고 하니 | Hong Sang-soo | South Korea |
| Yunan | Ameer Fakher Eldin | Canada, Germany, Italy, Jordan, Palestine, Qatar | |
International Documentaries
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 Meters to Andriivka | Mstyslav Chernov | Ukraine, United States | |
| Agatha's Almanac | Amalie Atkins | Canada | |
| All I Had Was Nothingness | Je n'avais que le néant | Guillaume Ribot | France |
| Always | 从来 | Deming Chen | United States, France, China, Taiwan |
| André Is an Idiot | Tony Benna | United States | |
| Assembly | Rashaad Newsome, Johnny Symons | ||
| Beat the Lotto | Ross Whitaker | Ireland | |
| Blue Road: The Edna O'Brien Story | Sinead O'Shea | Ireland, United Kingdom | |
| Chain Reactions | Alexandre O. Philippe | United States | |
| Come See Me in the Good Light | Ryan White | ||
| Cutting Through Rocks | اوزاک یوللار | Sara Khaki, Mohammadreza Eyni | Iran, Germany, United States, Netherlands, Qatar, Chile, Canada |
| Exergue – on documenta 14 | Dimitris Athiridis | Greece | |
| Folktales | Heidi Ewing, Rachel Grady | United States, Norway | |
| A Frown Gone Mad | Omar Mismar | Lebanon | |
| How Deep Is Your Love | Eleanor Mortime | United Kingdom | |
| How to Build a Library | Maia Lekow, Christopher King | Kenya, United States | |
| Lowland Kids | Sandra Winther | Denmark, United States | |
| Make It Look Real | Kate Blackmore | Australia | |
| Mistress Dispeller | Elizabeth Lo | China, United States | |
| Mr. Nobody Against Putin | David Borenstein | Denmark, Czech Republic | |
| Only on Earth | Robin Petré | Denmark, Spain, Sweden | |
| The Perfect Neighbor | Geeta Gandbhir | United States | |
| Predators | David Osit | ||
| The Shadow Scholars | Eloïse King | United Kingdom | |
| The Shepherd and the Bear | Max Keegan | United Kingdom, United States, France | |
| Silent Observers | Eliza Petkova | Bulgaria, Germany | |
| Speak. | Jennifer Tiexiera, Guy Mossman | United States | |
| Tokito: The 540-Day Journey of a Culinary Maverick | Aki Mizutani | Japan | |
| Twiggy | Sadie Frost | United Kingdom | |
| Unwelcomed | Si vas para Chile | Amilcar Infante, Sebastian Gonzalez Mendez | Chile |
| Videoheaven | Alex Ross Perry | United States | |
| A Want in Her | Myrid Carten | Ireland, United Kingdom, Netherlands | |
| Writing Hawa | La vie de Hawa | Najiba Noori, Rasul Noori | France, Netherlands, Qatar, Afghanistan |
| Yalla Parkour | Areeb Zuaiter | Sweden, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Palestine | |
Focus on Nishtha Jain
The program highlighted the work by Indian director Nishtha Jain.[5]
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gulabi Gang (2012) | Nishtha Jain | Norway, India, Denmark | |
| The Golden Thread (2022) | Paat Katha | India, United Kingdom, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Norway, Netherlands | |
| Farming the Revolution (2024) | Inqilab di Kheti | India, France, Norway | |
Sounds on Screen
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marlon Williams: Two Worlds – Ngā Ao E Rua | Ursula Grace Williams | New Zealand | |
| Move Ya Body: The Birth of House | Elegance Bratton | United States | |
| Once Upon a Time Michel Legrand | Il était une fois Michel Legrand | David Hertzog Dessites | France |
| Selena y Los Dinos | Isabel Castro | United States | |
Flux: Art+Film
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ancestral Visions of the Future | Lemohang Jeremiah Mosese | France, Germany, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Lesotho | |
| Gods of Stone | Deuses de pedra | Iván Castiñeiras Gallego | Spain, France, Portugal |
| Invention | Courtney Stephens | United States | |
| Listen to the Voices | Kouté vwa | Maxime Jean-Baptiste | France, Belgium, Guyana |
| The Unshakeable Destiny | Nikki Lam | Australia, Hong Kong | |
Freak Me Out
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dangerous Animals | Sean Byrne | Australia | |
| The Home | Hemmet | Mattias J. Skoglund | Sweden, Estonia, Iceland |
| It Ends | Alexander Ullom | United States | |
| Obex | Albert Birney | ||
| Redux Redux | Kevin McManus, Matthew McManus | ||
| Straight On till Morning | Craig Ouellette | ||
| The Wailing | El Llanto | Pedro Martín-Calero | Spain, France, Argentina |
EUROPE! Voices of Women+ in Film
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ari | Léonor Serraille | France, Belgium | |
| Deaf | Sorda | Eva Libertad | Spain |
| Hanami | Denise Fernandes | Switzerland, Cape Verde, Portugal | |
| I Shall See | Ik zal zien | Mercedes Stalenhoef | Netherlands |
| Little Trouble Girls | Kaj ti je deklica | Urška Djukić | Slovenia, Italy, Croatia, Serbia |
| Têtes Brûlées | Maja-Ajmia Yde Zellama | Belgium | |
Screenability
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life After | Reid Davenport | United States | |
| Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore | Shoshannah Stern | ||
| Racewalkers | Kevin Claydon, Phil Moniz | Canada | |
Family
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
|---|---|---|---|
| How to Train Your Dragon | Dean DeBlois | United States | |
| Night of the Zoopocalypse | Ricardo Curtis, Rodrigo Perez-Castro | Canada, France, Belgium | |
Jafar Panahi: Cinema in Rebellion
The retrospective program highlighted the work by Iranian director Jafar Panahi.[6]
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
|---|---|---|---|
| The White Balloon (1995) | بادکنک سفيد | Jafar Panahi | Iran |
| The Mirror (1997) | آینه | ||
| The Circle (2000) | دایره | Iran, Italy, Switzerland | |
| Crimson Gold (2003) | طلای سرخ | Iran | |
| Offside (2006) | آفساید | ||
| This Is Not a Film (2011) | این فیلم نیست | Jafar Panahi, Mojtaba Mirtahmasb | |
| Closed Curtain (2013) | پرده | Jafar Panahi, Kambuzia Partovi | |
| Tehran Taxi (2015) | تاکسی | Jafar Panahi | |
| 3 Faces (2018) | سه رخ | ||
| No Bears (2022) | خرس نیست | ||
| It Was Just an Accident (2025) | یک تصادف ساده | Iran, France, Luxembourg |
Elaine May: Urbane Legend
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
|---|---|---|---|
| A New Leaf (1971) | Elaine May | United States | |
| The Heartbreak Kid (1972) | |||
| Mikey and Nicky (1976) | |||
| Ishtar (1987) | |||
Classics Restored
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
|---|---|---|---|
| Angel's Egg (1985) | 天使のたまご | Mamoru Oshii | Japan |
| The Mahabharata (1989) | Peter Brook | France, United Kingdom, United States | |
| Mullet (2001) | David Caesar | Australia | |
| Muriel's Wedding (1994) | P. J. Hogan | ||
| Somersault (2004) | Cate Shortland | ||