Perth Voice Interactive

THE first films for this year’s Revelation Perth International Film Festival in July have been announced.

Opening the festival on July 3 will be feature drama Kid Snow which was shot in Perth and Kalgoorlie and is set in the 1970’s sweat-drenched world of boxing.

The film stars UK actors Billy Howle (Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker) and Tom Bateman (Death on the Nile) as well as local talent Phoebe Tonkin (Boy Swallows Universe, Westworld).

Paying tribute to the iconic New York video store that inspired a generation of cinephiles before it mysteriously closed its doors and sent its film archive to a small Sicilian village for “safekeeping” is gonzo documentary Kim’s Video. Director David Redmon sets out to investigate the fate of the collection.

Mogwai: If The Stars Had a Sound, follows a cult post-rock Scottish band as they cut their 10th studio album at the height of Covid, while You Should Have Been Here Yesterday is a poetic homage to Australia’s early surf culture featuring Tim Winton, Wayne Lynch, Bob McTavish and more on lovingly restored 16mm footage.

A slapstick absurdist American comedy about a 19th century drunken applejack salesman who must go from zero to hero and become North America’s greatest fur trapper by defeating hundreds of beavers, the silent black-and-white feature Hundreds of Beavers is completely bonkers and brilliant at the same time, masterfully mixing modern fast paced comedic sensibilities with old fashioned physical humour.

Sticking true to Revelation’s reputation of boundary pushing cinema, is Bruce La Bruce’s low-budget romp The Visitor. Set in contemporary London against the backdrop of racist politics, the film pays homage to Pier Polo Pasolini’s sexually provocative last feature Terorema. 

The cheeky Canadian writer/director is renowned for employing conventional storytelling narratives into his sexually explicit, avant-garde films, and this one is no exception.

Locally made animation Pencilhead’s Kids Club – Safari So Good offers up something for younger audiences and is based on the educational online series and colour books. 

The Pencilhead gang is a special group of friends featuring the voices of Peter Rowsthorn, Gina Williams and is co-written by Greg Page, the original Yellow Wiggle.

The festival closes with the annual celebration of WA’s talented emerging filmmakers at Get Your Shorts On, along with the City of Vincent Film Project and Life in Pictures on Sunday July 14.

Festival director Richard Sowada said he was proud of what Revelation stood for and its place in Aussie screen culture.

“For close to three decades we’ve looked beyond celebrity and into the heart of the independent creative community to commission new works, platform emerging voices and champion critical perspectives that make a difference to individuals, communities and artforms. This festival is a rare breed, and we can’t wait to bring it to screens across Perth and Fremantle,” Mr Sowada said.