JACK THOMPSON A.M.
Australian Patron of the 2009 ANZ Australian Film Festival
One of Australia’s most loved and respected actors, Jack has appeared in numerous Australian and American films including “Wake In Fright” in 1969, the classic “Sunday Too Far Away” in 1975, “Breaker Morant” in 1980 for which he won an award at both the AFI awards and the Cannes International Film Festival, “The Sum Of Us” , “Midnight in The Garden Of Good And Evil”, “Star Wars - Ep. II” ,“The Assassination Of Richard Nixon”, “December Boys”, “The Good German”, “Leatherheads”, “Australia”, “Mao’s Last Dancer” and “Don’t Be Afraid”
Jack is a Goodwill Ambassador for U.N.H.C.R., an ex-director of the Film Finance Corporation, a foundation member of the Council for the National Museum of Australia, and a Life Member of the Stockman’s Hall of Fame .
In 1986 Jack was awarded Membership of the Order of Australia for his services to the Australian film industry.
In 2009 Jack was awarded the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers Lifetime Achievement Award for Services to Australian Film and Television.
Melanie Coombs, Producer of Mary and Max
Melanie Coombs founded Melodrama Pictures in 1999 and over the last decade has produced award winning shorts and television documentaries; including Harvie Krumpet, winner of the 2003 Academy Award for Short Film - Animation.
Melanie’s first feature, Mary and Max, written and directed by Adam Elliot, opened the 2009 Sundance Film festival, won the 2009 Grand Cristal at Annecy and has been released in Australia, Croatia, Russia, Hungary, France, New Zealand, Czech Republic, Slovenia and the USA in 2009 and Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Taiwan and Greece in 2010. Most recently it won the highest accolade in film in the Asia Pacific region, winning Best Animated Feature Film at the Asia Pacific Screen Awards.
Melanie is developing a diverse range of feature films including an animated adaptation of the Australian children’s classic The Bunyip of Berkeley’s Creek, a psychological horror film Pearly, a car caper film XCELR8 and a historical melodrama By Any Other Name.
www.melodramapictures.com