This morning Matt, Megan (our lovely intern) and I battled through terrible peak hour traffic and still managed to arrive at Thomas Patterson School on time! Success!
 
Set up this time around was even easier (we are old hats now) and the screening got off to a great start. All the kids had been given a bag of popcorn as a special treat and the enthusiastic munching sounds were adorable.

The films were a hit, especially Triple Concerto in D Minor, which had one of the students air-violining during the orchestra performance scene, and The Greatest Moment in the History of the Universe…Ever!  Because “it was a bit rude” – and had the kids in hysterics!

Afternoon tea followed, fruits and water for the students and tea and cakes for us…YUM! And we got to have a great chat with some of the teachers about the films, the way they are captioned and got some great first hand feedback on the program.
 
Off to Alice Betteridge School tomorrow (which is also part of the Royal Institute for Blind and Deaf Children, where we were today). Really looking forward to it!

And I’m off to practice my air triangle!
 Karina

Today was the first day of Access All Areas Film Festival 2009 and let me tell you, it was a cracker!

Our first stop on this year's tour was St Gabriel's School For Hearing Impaired Children in Castle Hill, screening 6 Australian short films for kids.

Battling through an early start and sweltering humidity we arrived ahead of time to set up the equipment for the screening and got to meet some of the staff and students.

Everyone was so lovely and excited, they even made the school's public notice sign into a welcome for the festival (check out the photo!!) and the children were really intrigued as we set up for the screening...

After lunch and everyone was seated the principal, Diane, introduced Matt, Marianne and myself and we kicked off the screening with "Tin Can Heart" - a beautiful short film that is also up for an IF Award in the next few days! Keep your eyes on that one!

Following the film we were delighted to have Rod March, the director, at the school for a question and answer session with the kids, who all loved the film and gave him a huge round of applause, after quizzing him on the film and how it was made, of course! 

Following the rest of the program we had an afternoon tea of delicious biscuits and juice and got to mingle and talk about the films with the kids, as well as chat to the teachers about access to films and cinema in Australia, what's going on and what needs to be done, it was fantastic to hear their feedback, one of the main aims of the festival!

Students and teachers alike (and us as well) were thrilled at how today went and I can't wait until tomorrow.

What a great start to the festival!
Better get some sleep for the early morning start tomorrow :)

See you then,
AAAFF Team

ACCESS ALL AREAS FILM FESTIVAL will visit venues across NSW from November 16 to December 3rd 2009. The event will feature free screenings of acclaimed Australian films, which will be made accessible to people with a disability. 

This unique event is accessible to all with free entry to all screenings and special accessibility services for those who need them. All films will be audio-described for people with vision impairment, captioned for the hearing impaired and wheelchair accessible. Screening intros and Q&A’s will be Auslan interpreted.  

The touring festival will visit Castle Hill, North Rocks, Griffith, Wagga Wagga and Orange, finishing its run at Sydney’s Dendy Opera Quays on December 3rd 2009 to mark International Day of People with a Disability. The Sydney screenings will run alongside a panel discussion on the subject of increasing access to film and festivals for people with a disability. 

From the Oscar-nominated director of Shine, Scott Hicks, and inspired by a true story, THE BOYS ARE BACK is a deeply moving, wryly confessional tale of fatherhood, which intimately evokes the fragility and wonders of family life. It stars Clive Owen as a sportswriter who, in the wake of his wife’s tragic death, finds himself having to cope as a single father.  

From the director of the acclaimed Look Both Ways comes MY YEAR WITHOUT SEX, an entertaining, charming comedy about a family dealing the big questions… and even more of the small ones. Set over one messy year, Ross and Natalie, parents of two, navigate nits, faith, Christmas, job insecurity, footy practice, more nits, and whether they will ever have sex again. 

A program of new short films for children – including the IF award nominee TIN CAN HEART - will also visit schools for the deaf and blind in Western Sydney. Selected filmmakers from around the country will be traveling with the Festival to present their work and chat with audiences. 

ACCESS ALL AREAS FILM FESTIVAL is a flagship event of the 2009 Don’t DIS my ABILITY campaign to celebrate International Day of People with a Disability. Tickets are available from the box office 30 minutes prior to the start of the screening, or can be booked in advance by calling the Festival office on 02 9281 5608. 

ACCESS ALL AREAS FILM FESTIVAL is presented by the NSW Department of Ageing, Disability and Home Care and The Festivalists. Red Bee is the event’s major sponsor, with supporting partners including Cochlear, Media Access Australia, the NSW Film & Television Office and the City of Sydney.