Oscar Winner Adam Elliott To Deliver Lecture

9 June 2009

Academy Award winning director and internationally celebrated animator, Adam Elliott will be the keynote speaker at this year's Sir John Monash Community Lecture.

His earlier films include 'Uncle', 'Cousin', 'Brother' and 'Harvie Krumpet'. After years of hard work and dozens of rejections, in 2004 Mr Elliot won the Oscar for Best Animated Short for 'Harvie Krumpet', beating the work of Salvador Dali & Walt Disney, Pixar and Twentieth Century Fox.

"It wasn't easy to get it all happening in the beginning. We were trying to finance a project that wasn't market friendly - a half hour, adult, claymation film with no Santa Claus or Easter Bunny, featuring an illiterate immigrant, a story about cancer, assisted suicide, lightening striking and Alzheimer's," said Adam.

Adam's universally loved films balance humour and pathos, and his simple and endearing characters touch a nerve with people from all walks of life. His passion for human observation translates into highly personal and detailed explorations of the human spirit in film. He has won five Australian Film Institute Awards out of six nominations - more AFI Awards than any other Australian director.

Francis will talk about his experiences in being involved with 'The Family', a 32-minute short film, written and directed by 25 year-old Sudanese migrant Bijenj Ret Chol.

'The Family' was ten months in the making and the storyline follows an African family who migrated to Australia to escape war in their homeland. It explores universal themes including migration, family and culture.

The Sir John Monash Community Lecture will be held from 6.30pm to 8.30pm on 8 July, at the Mount Waverley Youth Centre, 45 Miller Crescent, Mount Waverley. Entry is free and light refreshments will be provided.

Bookings are essential. Phone 9518 3636 by Friday, 3 July to reserve your seat.

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Published: 9 June 2009

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