Continuing on from the success of Antenna Selects in 2020 – a curated selection of physical screenings and events, replacing our scheduled 2020 festival – we’re thrilled to announce the second half of our program, bringing Sydney audiences even more of the best international documentary premieres right through to May 2021.

 

We believe films should be seen on the big screen and we are very excited to bring people together again for a shared experience, but we are also committed to keeping you all safe. We wish to reassure you that, in cooperation with Palace Cinemas, all Antenna Selects screenings will follow the latest Government social distancing guidelines and cinema operating procedures to ensure the comfort and safety of our audiences.

 

Tickets for each session can be found on individual film pages below. To save on the cost of watching 5, or 10 films, you can purchase a festival multi-pass here.

MAYOR + Q&A

THE PAINTER AND THE THIEF + Q&A

After an artist’s two most famous paintings are stolen from an Oslo gallery, she meets – and unexpectedly befriends – the drug-addicted man who took them, resulting in this twisting, edge-of-your-seat study of the complicated and compelling duo.

WELCOME TO CHECHNYA + Q&A

A searing look at the current anti-LGBTQ persecution in the Russian Republic of Chechnya, focusing on the survivors and the brave LGBTQ activists who risk unimaginable peril to rescue victims from a targeted campaign of torture and brutality.

GUNDA + Q&A

Through encounters with a mother sow named Gunda, two ingenious cows, and a scene-stealing chicken, master filmmaker Kossakovsky movingly recalibrates our moral universe, reminding us of the inherent value of life and the mystery of all animal consciousness, including our own.

BRAZEN HUSSIES + Q&A

Interweaving freshly uncovered archival footage, personal photographs, memorabilia and lively personal accounts, Brazen Hussies tells the story of the bold women of the Women’s Liberation Movement, who re-ignited the feminist revolution in Australia.

DOPE IS DEATH + Panel Discussion

Radical politics meets community health when Dr. Mutulu Shakur – Tupac’s stepfather – and fellow Black Panthers, viewing both heroin and methadone rehab as “chemical warfare” on the poor, launch America’s first acupuncture detox program in the 1970s.

COLLECTIVE + Q&A

Screened at Venice, TIFF, and Sundance to sterling reviews, Collective follows a team of Romanian journalists who untangle an intricate web of unchecked systemic corruption in the wake of a devastating nightclub fire that killed 27 people and injured 180.

STRAY + Q&A

Meet the indomitable Zeytin, a stray dog treated with both disdain and mercy. Through his eyes we gain a unique and artfully-captured perspective on the lives and experiences of Istanbul’s outsiders. When Zeytin’s journey intersects with that of homeless Syrian teenagers, Stray becomes a poignant exploration of what it means to live without status or security.

ZAPPA

Trippy, critical lyrics and a boundless musical sense of adventure were two of the basic elements of Frank Zappa’s artistic universe. Director Alex Winter has been given unique access to Zappa’s personal treasure trove of an archive, and what he has found has been turned into a hugely entertaining and wildly inspiring film, for devotees and new fans alike.

THE MOLE AGENT + Q&A

When a family grows concerned about their mother’s wellbeing in a retirement home, a private investigator hires Sergio to go undercover to gather intel. But Sergio is 83, not 007. And while he’s keen to learn the skills necessary for his new role as spy, he struggles to balance his assignment with his increasing involvement in the lives of the other residents.

FAITH + Q&A

Where does the line between spirit and body lay? Between dedication and obsession, prayer and combat, a religion and a cult? Valentina Pedicini’s extraordinary immersion into a unique group that fervidly blurs such boundaries reveals our capacity both for extreme passion and disturbing obedience.

EPICENTRO + Q&A

An immersive and metaphorical portrait of post-colonial, “utopian” Cuba, in Epicentro director Hubert Sauper explores a century of interventionism and myth-making together with the extraordinary people of Havana – particularly its children, who he calls “young prophets” – to interrogate time, imperialism, propaganda, and cinema itself.

OECONOMIA + Q&A

Antenna Selects is supported by City of Sydney, Create NSW, Screen Australia, AFTRS, and Palace Cinemas.