Top film and TV stars on show

Sunshine Coast’s best and brightest in film and TV talent will be on show at the Showdown Showfest film festival on June 21-22.

The two-day red-carpet event will premiere six winning short films, locally-produced by the Sunny Coast Showdown team, as they compete for the festival’s prize gong, the Gold Yewwy award.

The event will also premiere director Chris Sun’s acclaimed comedy short film, Loophole, starring Hugh Parker (The Family Law, Elvis) and Libby Munro (Troppo, Wild Woman,).

The Hello Sunshine ‘Light, Camera, Lunch!’ story-telling event will host Showdown co-founders and Showdown winner Emma Morgan. 

Sunshine Coast Council is supporting Showfest via the new Emerging Events Fund and have been proudly supporting the Sunshine Coast Screen Collective and Sunny Coast Showdown for a number of years.

Another highlight of Showdown Showfest is a new international partnership with Film Fiji for the inaugural Pacific Islands Filmfest, which celebrates and features award-winning short films from the Pacific region.

The film festival is an offshoot of the Sunny Coast Showdown, a not-for-profit film event that provides mentoring, funding and support to local filmmakers and helps them produce their film and TV projects. 

The Sunny Coast Showdown also provides training and opportunity for more than 100 local cast and crew. 

Kate Atkinson.

Showdown productions this year attracted some of Australia’s best actors in Darren Gilshenan (Harrow, Colin from Accounts), Rhys Muldoon (House Husbands, Bay of Fires), Kate Atkinson (Wentworth, Underbelly), Claire Weller Price (Boy Swallows Universe, Apples Never Fall), James Patrick Reed (Blue Heelers, Mission: Impossible) and Rory Williamson (Home and Away, Paper Giants).

The Sunny Coast Showdown previous winning films have garnered and won more that 60 international and domestic film festival awards to date, including gongs at the Toulouse Short Film Festival in France, the Los Angeles Film Awards, the Twin Cities Film Fest in Minnesota and the London World-Wide Comedy Short Film Festival.