PRESS RELEASE
CinefestOZ today announced four unique Australian films – including two made in Western Australia (WA) - are in the running to win Australia’s richest $100,000 film prize at the 2025 CinefestOZ Film Festival, which will be held in WA’s spectacular Margaret River wine region August 30 – September 7.
The 2025 Film Prize finalists are:
- We Bury The Dead – A gripping WA-made horror written and directed by Zac Hilditch, starring Daisy Ridley (Star Wars), Brenton Thwaites (Titans), and Mark Coles Smith (Mystery Road).
- Birthright – A sharp and hilarious WA comedy written and directed by Zoe Pepper, featuring Travis Jeffery (Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes), Maria Angelico (Strife), and Linda Cropper (Offspring).
- Songs Inside – A moving and inspirational prison documentary written and directed by Shalom Almond.
- One More Shot – A time travelling comedy and MIFF@CinefestOZ film, directed by Nicholas Clifford, written by Alice Foulcher and Gregory Erdstein, and starring Emily Browning (American Horror Stories), Ashley Zuckerman (Succession), Pallavi Sharda (The Twelve), Sean Keenan (Barons).
CinefestOZ Board Chair, Margaret Buswell said: “I'm thrilled to share our four finalists for the 2025 Film Prize, which recognises excellence in filmmaking from an Australian feature film.”
“Each of the films showcase distinctive Australian stories brought to life through clever and compelling storytelling and exceptional talent, both in front of and behind the camera,” said Ms Buswell.
“We are delighted that these standout films will have their WA premiere at CinefestOZ, where audiences can enjoy them alongside visiting film talent and the official Film Prize Jury. The 2025 $100000 Film Prize winner will then be announced during the spectacular Film Prize Celebration on Saturday September 6.”
Comment attributed to Creative Industries Minister Simone McGurk:
The Cook Government has provided $620,750 in Funding for CinefestOZ 2025, to attract the best of Australian filmmaking talent to the South West region.
“It is a fantastic opportunity to promote WA’s screen industry, and an important industry event to showcase our State as a filming destination.
“We’re committed to growing local talent, building creative career pathways and attracting international investment.
“It’s part of our plan to make more events, productions, screen opportunities and creative jobs in Western Australia.”
Early Bird tickets are officially on sale today including exclusive access to screenings, filmmaker Q&As, afterparties, and the festival’s highly anticipated InConversation dining events, which pair great cinema with the exceptional food and wine of the Busselton region. The full festival program will be unveiled on 17 July.
Early Bird tickets include:
- Each of the four Film Prize red carpet screenings at the new Reading Cinemas in Busselton, and after parties next door at the fabulous Busselton Pavilion.
- In Conversation dining events at Hilton Garden Inn (We Bury The Dead), Shelter (Birthright), Inara, Busselton (Songs Inside), and Hally’s Bar (One More Shot).
- Film Prize Jury Breakfast at Shelter Brewing Co and the Film Prize Celebrationon Saturday 6 September.
About the Film Prize Films
We Bury The Dead
From acclaimed writer/director Zak Hilditch (1922, These Final Hours), We Bury The Dead is a gripping and emotional thriller set after a military experiment decimates the people of Tasmania. Daisy Ridley stars as Ava, a desperate woman who joins a "body retrieval unit" in the hopes of finding her husband alive. Ava's search takes a chilling turn, however, when the corpses she's burying start showing signs of life... Starring Daisy Ridley, (Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens), Brenton Thwaites and Mark Coles Smith, We Bury The Dead delivers unexpected twists that will keep audiences on the edge of their seats. We Bury the Dead had it’s world premiere at SXSW in Texas earlier this year.
Songs Inside
A group of incarcerated women sign up to learn an instrument and write their own songs as part of a music program inside the Adelaide Women's Prison. The women - who come to the program low in confidence and self-worth - are quickly thrown into a world of creativity and blossoming self-determination. But the process also opens up deep scars around trauma and addiction, threatening a once-in-a-lifetime prison performance alongside the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra. Written and Directed by Shalom Almond. Songs Inside comes to CinefestOZ fresh after winning Sydney Film Festival's $20,000 Documentary Australia Award.
One More Shot MIFF@ CinefestOZ
On New Year's Eve, 1999, with Y2K anxieties in the air and 'Coco Jamboo' on the radio, glum anaesthetist Minnie jumps at the chance to attend a party with her ex, Joe, whom she still hasn't gotten over. But everything goes wrong when she realises that Joe is there with a new girlfriend and plans to propose. One swig from a bottle of tequila after midnight and, in the blink of an eye, Minnie has travelled back in time to the beginning of the party — a process that, she discovers, repeats with every drink she takes. Each do-over presents a new opportunity to fix her mistakes or compound them further. But will any of them allow her to win back Joe's heart, or understand what it means to live with the consequences of her actions?One More Shot is a Melbourne International Premiere Funded film.
Birthright
Evicted and jobless, Cory and his pregnant wife are forced to stay with his parents. As the younger couple's stay extends the parents' become worried that their disappointing son will never leave the house. Desperate to prove himself, the edges of Cory's reality slip away and he finds an unexpected path to success that detonates the family. Birthright has been celebrated at Tribecca in New York and Sydney Film Festivals. It was supported through Screenwest’s West Coast visions fund for debut directors.
CinefestOZ thanks our Presenting Partner, DLGSC, Premium Partners City of Busselton and Screenwest, and acknowledges strong support from Lotterywest and Screen Australia.