Transitions Film Festival Returns to Sydney this April

TRANSITIONS FILM FESTIVAL PRESENTS VISIONS FOR A BETTER WORLD

Dendy Newtown, Sydney 1 - 4 April 2019

After a high impact 8th year in Melbourne, The Transitions Film Festival returns to Sydney this April with an inspiring selection of 8 world-changing films.

Focusing on documentaries that explore the forces and innovations shaping our lives and the solutions to our greatest collective challenges, the festival aims to inspire audiences to engage with the issues ideas that matter most for our shared future.

Showcasing local and international documentaries uniquely focused on empowering audiences to build a better world, the films in this year's program cover a broad range of themes including: creative and technological innovation, regenerative agriculture, climate change, youth activism, social justice and the revolutionary power of artificial intelligence.

The festival tour opens with Serengeti Rules, a visual masterpiece about the discovery of a scientific law that governs all life and offers hope for humanity, and closes with Metamorphosis, a beautiful visual poem about the history and future of our planet by international award-winning director Velcrow Ripper (Occupy Love).

Other highlights include Accelerate, which follows one of the world's most recognised and respected environmentalists, Bill McKibben, as he inspires Australians to act on climate change, Youth Unstoppable, which gives an 8 year, fly-on-the-wall insight into the global youth climate movement, Dirt Rich, which shows us how regenerative farming can reverse global warming, and More Human Than Human, which sees Tommy Pallotta (Waking Life) attempt to create an artificially intelligent robot to replace himself as a filmmaker.

Featuring a stellar line-up of powerful films and inspirational guest speakers, the Transitions Film Festival runs from the 1st until the 4th of April at Dendy Cinemas Newtown.

PROGRAM

April 1, 6:30 - Serengeti Rules (NSW Premiere)

Academy Award-winning Passion Pictures and HHMI Tangled Bank Studios present one of the most important but untold science stories of our time"”a tale with profound implications for the fate of life on our planet. Exploring some of the most remote and spectacular places on Earth, five pioneering scientists make a surprising discovery that flips our understanding of nature on its head, and offers new hope for restoring balance in our world.

April 1, 8:30 - It Will Be Chaos (NSW Premiere)

It Will Be Chaos is an eloquent, cohesive mosaic of a crisis that is global in scale, and features two unforgettable refugee stories of human strength and resilience that bring a deeply personal perspective to the ongoing political crisis.

April 2, 6:30 - Accelerate + Q&A

A collaborative effort between Emma Hudson (Director), Blair Palese (CEO of 350.org AU), and John Collee (Master and Commander, Happy Feet), Accelerate follows one of the world's most internationally recognised environmentalists, Bill McKibben, on his 2018 tour of Australia, where he passionately attempts to inspire government, business and community to accelerate action on climate change.

Screening with the NSW premiere of Home Front, a new short film by the Director of Breakthrough and The Sustainable Living Festival (Australia's Largest Sustainable Living Festival).

April 2, 8:30 - Impact Shorts

A diverse selection of inspiring shorts exploring the state of our world and the future we want. Films in this year's shorts program engage with topics including: regenerative agriculture, climate change, tiny homes and the effects of plastics on marine ecosystems.

April 3, 6:30 - More Human Than Human

More Human Than Human investigates what it means to live in the age of intelligent machines. Featuring fascinating interviews with AI experts, researchers and artists, this engrossing documentary explore the threats, challenges and opportunities of Artificial Intelligence and the robotics revolution.

April 3, 8:30 - Dirt Rich (NSW Premiere)

Dirt Rich showcases the revolutionary new tools and techniques that can help reverse the effects of runaway climate change.

April 4, 6:30 - Youth Unstoppable + Q&A (Presented by the High Commission of Canada) (NSW Premiere)

Youth Unstoppable follows award-winning filmmaker Slater Jewell-Kemer on her 8-year documentation of the Global Youth Climate Movement.

April 4, 8:30 - Metamorphosis (Presented by the High Commission of Canada) (NSW Premiere)

Metamorphosis takes the pulse of our Earth and bears witness to a moment of profound change: the loss of one world, and the birth of another. Through a tidal flow of stunning images, Metamorphosis carves a path from the present to the future, and offers a bold new vision for humanity and the world.

"The world is waking up to the scale and urgency of the challenges we face and there is a growing movement of people actively trying to make positive changes in the world. The films in this year's program connect us to what matters and inspire us with the knowledge that the solutions exist and there is a thriving, global movement of changemakers actively working to turn the ship around". Daniel Simons - Festival Director.

"The Festival's main aims are to showcase cutting-edge ideas and innovations from across the globe as well as to create a space where like-minded communities can connect and inspire each other to continue creating positive change". Daniel Simons - Festival Director

"Serengeti Rules is one of the most visually stunning films we have ever screened. The Melbourne audience loved it, it has a vital message about the world we live in, and we are excited to share it with Sydney". Daniel Simons - Festival Director