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With a subject as complex as monitoring the effects of smartphone use, Alex Lykos’s film could have paid more attention to sourcing and methodology

It’s digital detox time for film-maker Alex Lykos, as he attempts to go cold turkey on his phone and other devices for 30 days for this documentary belonging to the lower-budget end of the sub-genre of personal challenge films; previous entries include the likes of Super Size Me (man eats lots of fast food) and America Unchained (man tries to travel across America without giving any money to multinationals).

Lykos begins his offline odyssey with a fun potted history of the mobile phone, starting with a 1973 model which is heavier than a four-pint carton of milk. (This comparison is illustrated by Lykos walking along holding said carton of milk to his ear.) The film is strongest in these lighter sections which lean into Lykos’ naturally upbeat high-school science teacher vibe.

Toronto – Korean Fund Established

The Toronto International Film Festival, Cj Cultural Foundation and the Korean Film Council (Kofic), have unveiled the Cj & TIFF K-Story Fund. It is an initiative to foster, support and champion Korean Canadian and American filmmakers looking to develop their first or second feature film.

It will have an annual budget of $30,000 for a three-year period and support three creative teams. Applications begin in November, with the recipients set to be announced in 2024. In addition to receiving the development prize, the selected participants will each receive direct one-on-one mentorship on story development with Cj Cultural Foundation.

TIFF chief programming officer, Anita Lee, called the fund, “a groundbreaking initiative providing support for filmmakers from diasporic communities.”

“It is our hope that this fund helps filmmakers in North America who are of Korean backgrounds, unleash their creative potential,” said Heekyung Jo Min, head of corporate social responsibility at Cj,...

‘2040’.

Five months into the year, 18 Australian films and feature docs released in cinemas since the start of the year, plus holdovers, have racked up a modest $14.3 million.

That compares with $37.6 million generated in the same period last year, led by Peter Rabbit’s $26.4 million, Breath’s $3.6 million in four weeks (finishing with $4.6 million) and Sweet Country’s $2 million.

Shawn Seet’s Storm Boy is the top title with nearly $5 million, a creditable result. But almost certainly that would have been rather higher if Sony Pictures had been able to use Geoffrey Rush in the publicity campaign.

Wayne Blair’s Top End Wedding has grossed $4.7 million through Sunday, its sixth weekend, and could finish with $5.5 million.

Anthony Maras’ Hotel Mumbai collected $3.3 million, knee-capped by the dreadful co-incidence of opening on the same weekend as the Christchurch massacre.

Damon Gameau’s 2040 has earned $568,000 after its second weekend and, buoyed by word-of-mouth, distributor...

Toby Wallace in ‘Acute Misfortune.’

Robert Connolly’s strategy of staging event screenings around the country is paying off for Acute Misfortune, first-time director Thomas M. Wright’s biopic of troubled Sydney painter Adam Cullen.

Meanwhile producer-director-writer Alex Lykos launched his comedy Me & My Left Brain on five screens last weekend, self-distributed by his company Panoramic Pictures.

Wright hosted sell-out Q&A screenings in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, Canberra and Hobart.

Daniel Henshall, who plays the gun-toting, abusive and alcohol and drug-addled Cullen, returned from the Us to participate in four of those Q&As.

Erik Jensen, who penned the source novel Acute Misfortune: The Life and Death of Adam Cullen and co-wrote the screenplay with Wright, also attended four.

Toby Wallace plays Jensen, who was an ambitious 19-year-old journalist at the Sydney Morning Herald when he was commissioned to write a profile of Cullen. He spent four years...

‘Me & My Left Brain’.

Used to the quick turnaround of theatre production, Alex Lykos purposely crafted comedy Me & My Left Brain, released in cinemas today, as a low budget film that could be financed and produced quickly.

That was in part due to his frustration with the fact it took more than six years for his previous film, Alex & Eve – which he wrote based on his stageplay of the same name – to get to screen.

“The process was so slow, long and filled with so many setbacks. I went away, and thought for me – someone who has Adhd – I need to find a model to tell a story on film that could be a little bit more efficient,” Lykos tells If.

Me & My Left Brain is also based on a Lykos stageplay – ‘The Long Night’; he wrote the screen adaptation, moved into the director’s chair for the first time,...

‘Top End Wedding’.

It’s been a quiet start for the year for Australian films at the national box office, particularly compared to last year when Peter Rabbit and Sweet Country were drawing crowds.

However exhibitors are very optimistic about the outlook for the rest of the year, including Wayne Blair’s Top End Wedding which opened yesterday, Rachel Ward’s Palm Beach and Kriv Stenders’ Danger Close: The Battle of Long Tan (both August 8) and Rachel Griffiths’ Ride Like a Girl (September 26).

Ten new releases plus holdovers collectively racked up $9.06 million through April 30, according to the Motion Picture Distributors Association of Australia.

That’s way below the first four months of 2018, which generated $32 million, with Will Gluck’s Peter Rabbit making $25.4 million en route to a final total of $26.7 million and Warwick Thornton’s Sweet Country $2 million.

Shawn Seet’s Storm Boy pocketed nearly $5 million, not a bad result,...

"I don't subscribe to the modern day transient attitude towards relationships." How dating has changed. Panoramic Pictures has debuted an official trailer for an indie romantic comedy from Australia titled Me & My Left Brain, the second feature film made by filmmaker Alex Lykos (creator of Alex & Eve previously). Described as a "Woody Allen style rom-com", the film imagines the "inner critic" (the "left brain" hence the title) of a middle aged man as another man who constantly confronts him in his daily life. Alex Lykos stars as Arthur, and Malcolm Kennard plays his left brain, with a cast including Chantelle Barry, Natalia Ladyko, Rachael Beck, Simon McLachlan, and Laura Dundovic. This looks somewhat amusing, with a few funny lines, worth a look if you're interested. With an all-jazz score by Cezary Skubiszewski. Have fun. Here's the official Australian trailer (+ poster) for Alex Lykos' Me & My Left Brain, from...

Director Peter Andrikidis probably never dreamt his name would appear in the same sentence as Steven Spielberg, but that was before he knew their films would open in Australian cinemas on the same day.

It was a mismatch in budgets, scale of release and advertising campaigns but Andrikidis. Alex + Eve and Spielberg.s Bridge of Spies both had respectable debuts in another lousy weekend for ticket sales.

Spielberg.s highly entertaining Cold War mystery/drama starring Tom Hanks, Mark Rylance, John Scott Shepherd and Amy Ryan drummed up $1.8 million on 300 screens including previews.

Pro-rata, that is a bit better than the $US15.3 million debut in the Us, where the Fox/DreamWorks release dropped by a modest 26 per cent in its second weekend, scoring $32.5 million so far - probably a pointer to its holding power here.

Andrikidis. romantic comedy based on Alex Lykos. play, which stars Richard Brancatisano and Andrea Demetriades,...

Director Peter Andrikidis and writer Alex Lykos have produced a winning family comedy, with a top cast and a scene-stealing Tony Nikolakopoulos

Veteran director Peter Andrikidis has had a big impact on Australian television, a quiet achiever whose approach to storytelling puts plot and performances well ahead of a distinct authorial style. Andrikidis’s CV spans over three decades and during that period he has collected nine AFI/Aacta awards, which makes him one of the most gong-studded Australian directors in history.

Related: Director Peter Andrikidis: All Australians should see themselves represented on screen

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Richard Brancatisano.and.Andrea Demetriades

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Director Peter Andrikidis was bowled over by the audience reactions to his romantic comedy Alex & Eve when it screened at the Greek Film Festival at Palace.s Norton Street Leichhardt cinemas on Sunday.

It was the first time he.d seen the film with a paid audience and he marvelled at their rollercoaster of emotions, from laughter to tears to laughter.

After several decades in the business Andrikidis knows not to get carried away - festival patrons don.t always reflect mainstream tastes - but the omens are favourable in the lead up to the opening this Thursday. After all, Oddball shows broad. Aussie comedies can resonate effectively.. .

.I am optimistic but you never know,. says the director, acknowledging that some of what he regarded as his best TV works did not succeed while programs he was less happy with did so.

Exhibitors are supporting...