PRESS RELEASE
From outrageous animation and genre-defining horror to poetic coming-of-age tales and restored cinematic landmarks, the 2025 Revelation Perth International Film Festival has announced its full program, running 2 – 13 July at Luna Leederville, Luna on SX and The Backlot.
Boasting a lineup of over 45 features and documentaries and more than 100 short films, this year’s program delves into diverse narratives, innovating storytelling and cinematic artistry, offering a platform for both established and emerging filmmakers and confirming Rev’s place as one of the most daring and diverse film festivals down under.
“As usual we’ve gone all the way in bringing the very best new and classic international cinema to WA audiences,” says Festival Director Richard Sowada. “This year’s program features everything from sweaty punk realism and psychedelic cult journeys to iconic restorations to animations exploding with colour and power and some of the most acclaimed films direct from the international festival scene. Its global conversation told through the language of film.”
Feature films range from deeply intimate stories to genre-bending visual spectacles.
A standout in this year’s lineup, EDDINGTON – a contemporary Western black comedy from director Ari Aster – arrives fresh from Cannes. Set in fictional Eddington, New Mexico, during the CV19 pandemic, the film explores themes of political polarization, misinformation and societal unrest, starring Joaquin Phoenix, Pedro Pascal, Emma Stone and Austin Butler.
Another poignant highlight of this year’s program, MR BURTON is a British biographical drama delving into the formative years of Welsh actor Richard Burton, starring Harry Lawtey and Toby Jones.
The directorial debut of Ariane Labed, known for her roles in The Lobster and The Souvenir: Part II, and adapted from Daisy Johnson’s novel Sisters, SEPTEMBER SAYS, delves into the complex and unsettling bond between two sisters grappling with isolation and psychological tension, the narrative unfolds with surreal and gothic undertones that have drawn comparisons to the works of Shirley Jackson and Stephen King.
Other feature films include:
Science fiction comedy U ARE THE UNIVERSE, which tells the story of Andriy Melnyk, a space trucker who becomes the last human in the universe after Earth’s unexpected explosion. Rev will officially open with a screening of U ARE THE UNIVERSE on Wednesday 2nd July at Luna Cinemas Leederville. Tickets available online.
The Norwegian animated musical comedy SPERMAGEDDON which follows two sperm, Simen and Cumilla, on their journey to fertilize an egg. The film is an audacious exploration of sexual consent, safe sex practices and reproductive rights.
A post-apocalyptic musical drama directed by Joshua Oppenheimer, THE END, which is set in an underground bunker two decades after the world’s end and follows a wealthy family whose daily life is disrupted by the mysterious appearance of a young woman.
THE LAST FIRST TIME, a coming-of-age film about 18-year-old from a small town in Mexico experiencing love and self-discovery during a trip to Guadalajara which offers a candid portrayal of queer desire and the complexities of identity.
There’s the genre-bending TRANSCENDING DIMENSIONS from director Toyoda Toshiaki, which shifts through science fiction, fantasy, crime and drama, creating a psychedelic and spiritual cinematic experience. And Rev wouldn’t be Rev, without a movie about making a movie – enter MICRO BUDGET, a sharp and irreverent comedy in which a soon-to-be-father moves himself and his nine-months pregnant wife from Iowa to Los Angeles to make an indie film he hopes to sell to a streaming platform.
Genre-bending horror PATER NOSTER AND THE MISSION OF THE LIGHT follows a young record store clerk who discovers a rare vinyl LP and is drawn into the world of a 1970s hippie commune; visually striking and emotionally charged SCARLET BLUE follows a woman grappling with depression and schizophrenia who undergoes mystical hypnosis to uncover repressed memories and Aussie indie-punk film from Western Australian director Richard Eames, SKELETON GIRLS. A KIDNAPPED SOCIETY, gives a modern and unflinching examination of modern society’s fractures.
Rev marks the 40th anniversary of award-winning FRAN, starring Noni Hazlehurst as the titular heroine, and brings the 1988 feature film SHAME starring Deborra-Lee Furnessback to the big screen, both titles originally filmed in Western Australia.
Rev celebrates Wim Wenders’ 80th birthday, presenting a rare opportunity to experience three of the German auteur’s most influential works on the big screen including:
ALICE IN THE CITIES (1974) – Beautifully restored in 4K, this poetic black-and-white road movie is considered Wenders’ first “real” film and a cornerstone of his career; and
THE AMERICAN FRIEND (1977) – A cult adaptation of Ripley’s Game, starring Dennis Hopper and Bruno Ganz, featuring cameos from Nicholas Ray, Sam Fuller and other directorial legends. This screening is presented in collaboration with Rev’s Book to Film arm.
REV welcomes another octogenarian to the program in ROME OPEN CITY (1945), the harrowing Italian drama set during WWII back in cinemas in a 4K restoration.
As always, Rev presents a compelling documentary program, rich with diverse voices, and poignant themes. From intimate personal journeys to wide-reaching cultural inquiries, these films explore the many facets of our world – past, present, and speculative.
Leading the charge is ABEBE: BUTTERFLY SONG, a musical and cultural odyssey that follows artist David Bridie as he uncovers the origins of a song that changed his life. This spirit of discovery is mirrored in BLUE ROAD: THE EDNA O’BRIEN STORY, which offers a vivid portrait of the legendary Irish writer, tracing her battles with censorship, her groundbreaking feminist work, and her enduring literary legacy. Similarly concerned with influence and impact, CHAIN REACTIONS delves into the far-reaching cultural consequences of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, as seen through the lens of five contemporary artists. Rev also presents late night screenings of the cult classic.
The speculative and philosophical meet in EIGHT POSTCARDS FROM UTOPIA, a visually arresting exploration of the fragility of idealism assembled exclusively out of post-socialist Romanian advertisements. That poetic edge flows into ENO, a filmic experiment as unpredictable and inventive as its subject, Brian Eno. Each screening of ENO is unique - an ever-changing documentary designed to evolve, just like the artist at its centre.
From Spain comes EXORCISMO, which tells the incredible true story of a film movement that rocked Spanish culture, changed the face of genre films and explores the eye-opening history behind Classificada S.
THE EXTRAORDINARY MISS FLOWER brings a strikingly personal narrative to life through a fusion of archival love letters and contemporary performance, unveiling the secret romantic life of an otherwise forgotten woman, including narration by Nick Cave, Richard Ayoade and Sophie Ellis-Bextor. Equally intimate is MARLON WILLIAMS: TWO WORLDS – NGA AO E RUA, which follows the celebrated musician as he reconnects with his Māori heritage and navigates the pull of two cultural identities.
Music also drives PAULINE BLACK: A 2-TONE STORY which chronicles the remarkable life of the trailblazing singer and actress, placing her at the heart of a vibrant and politically charged cultural movement, and BIG MAMA THORNTON: I CAN’T BE ANYONE BUT ME tells the legend of one of the greatest blues singers ever, Alabama-born Willie Mae – famous for the original Hound Dog and her song Ball & Chain.
PAVEMENTS, a joyously entertaining and endlessly fascinating hybrid work challenging the limits of the “rock documentary,” follows the beloved American indie band, documenting the creation of ‘Range Life’ (a big budget feature film length biopic of the band), the creation of ‘Slanted! Enchanted!’ an off-Broadway jukebox musical and the opening of the Pavement Museum. Part spoof, part serious, it’s a worthy tribute to the Stephen-Malkmus-led band.
Gender, identity, and resilience shine through in S/HE IS STILL HER/E, a powerful and creative meditation on the life of artist, musician, painter, magician and occult experimenter Genesis P-Orridge, followed by WA-made SCHOOL OF HARD KNOCKS, which tells the story of Mana The Polynesian Warrior’s career and life. Family and emotional legacies are explored in SEPARATED, a hard-hitting documentary about the southern border policy under the first Trump presidency, a dark chapter in American history which saw children taken from their parents and caged.
In STARMAN, Oscar nominated and Revelation veteran Robert Stone, returns with a documentary focusing on the life of 82-year-old NASA robotics engineer and best-selling science fiction author Gentry Lee who has spent his life considering the ultimate question – are we alone in the universe?, while STELARC: SUSPENDING DISBELIEF invites audiences into the radical world of body performance art, questioning where humanity ends and machinery begins. The complexity of cognition takes centre stage in THE THINKING GAME, a thoughtful reflection on AI decision-making and the fragile mechanics of the mind.
Drawing on many hours of home movie footage, alongside newsreel footage, director Andrei Ujica constructs and experimental documentary of the Beatles in New York during one summer weekend in 1965 in TWST: THINGS WE SAID TODAY.
Archival footage and bold visual sequences run through VELVET VISION – THE STORY OF JAMES BIDGOOD (AND THE MAKING OF PINK NARCISSUS), which delves into James’ attempt to return to filmmaking – tracing a personal journey from drag performer and window dresser to underground icon, this is not just a documentary about an artist: it’s about the cost of beauty, the endurance of vision and the creative madness that sustains it.
A looser, more playful energy runs through WHOOPEE BLUES, which dives into the story of brothers Mic and Jim Conway who have been playing together since they were at school, cofounding the Jellybean Jug Band, which became the Captain Matchbox Whoopee Band – a joyous celebration of twenties and thirties ragtime, vaudeville and jazz that became an unexpected success in the seventies.
A film about the not-making of a film, ZODIAC KILLER PROJECT, rounds out the lineup with an investigative lens turned toward myth, media, and America's most infamous unresolved mystery, and a compelling documentary about a story of independent Russian journalists and activists facing the risk of being labelled ‘foreign agents’ under laws introduced by Putin, OF CARAVAN AND THE DOGS is fly-on-the-wall filmmaking at its best.
Together, these documentaries offer a kaleidoscopic view of the human condition – questioning, celebrating, and confronting the truths that shape us.
Short films remain at the very heart of Rev, and in 2025 the festival presents its most expansive program to date, with over 100 short works (including close to 40 from Australian filmmakers) screening across thematic showcases and as companions to feature presentations. These films span a diverse range of genres, styles, and voices, offering bite-sized cinematic experiences that are bold, urgent, and fiercely creative.
For those seeking the avant-garde, the Experimental showcase pushes form and convention to their limits, featuring works that challenge how we perceive image, sound, and narrative. The Horror and Sci-Fi line-ups plunge into the realms of fear and imagination, delivering everything from tight psychological thrillers to cosmic journeys through space and time. Meanwhile, Short Docs offer powerful real-world snapshots—personal, political, and often poetic.
Revelation’s commitment to platforming local stories is stronger than ever, with Western Australian content threaded throughout the program and spotlighted in signature events like The Great Kimberley Wilderness VR Audio Experience at the WA Museum, Westralia Day, Get Your Shorts On! and the City of Vincent Film Project – a collaboration that nurtures and celebrates emerging filmmakers. First Nations voices take centre stage in a dedicated First Nations showcase – honouring storytelling traditions and contemporary experiences through a wide array of compelling lenses. And Wimmin’s Work, a new collection of audio, audio-visual and photographic stories documenting Western Australian women, by early career and re-emerging female creatives, captures the historical and contemporary experiences of women living and working in WA as part of a paid content and mentoring opportunity in partnership with Women in Media WA, and thanks to the support of the Department of Communities Women’s Grants for a Stronger Future.
Families and animation lovers can look forward to the return of the International Family Animation Explosion, a vibrant collection of animated shorts from around the globe designed to delight audiences of all ages with whimsy, colour, and unexpected emotional depth. Lovingly created by the team behind the Melbourne International Film Festival and screening at the State Library of WA, the International Family Animation Explosion sessions are completely free.
Whether you're drawn to deeply personal storytelling, groundbreaking form, local gems or international visions, the short film program at Revelation offers a rich and rewarding entry point into the future of film. Each session is a testament to the power of the short form – and a reminder that some of the biggest ideas come in the smallest packages.
The full program is online at www.revelationfilmfest.org.