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Merry-Go-Round

Blaze

Del Kathryn BARTON

Australia2022101min Korean Premiere

Synopsis

Blaze, a young teenager, is the sole witness to a woman being violently attacked, Left catatonic with shock, she struggles to make sense of what she saw. She retreats into imaginary worlds, where the shimmering magic dragon who has been her companion since childhood, allows her to activate her own rage and ultimately find renewal. And while her childhood is shattered forever, she is finally able to walk into the future unafraid.

Program Note

Del Kathryn Barton’s debut feature deals with the trauma of a young teenager (Julia Savage) who was the only witness of a horrific crime. Struggling to understand what she saw, the girl finds refuge in an imaginary world where a dragon gives her solace. In the real world meanwhile, her relationship with her father (Simon Baker), who feels helpless, becomes increasingly strained. The film could have focused on the investigation and the perpetrator, but instead it refreshingly focuses primarily on the teenager’s journey through adolescence and confronting the horror of what she saw. Here, refraining from dialogue, much of this journey is conveyed through the colorful imagery that reflects Barton’s work as an acclaimed and award-winning artist. (Jason BECHERVAISE)

Diretor

Del Kathryn BARTON

Del Kathryn BARTON is an Australian artist well known for her hybrid decorative paintings. Barton also makes drawings, prints, sculptures, installations, textiles, videos, and films. Her short animation Oscar Wilde¡¯s the Nightingale and the Rose (2015) was screened at Berlin International Film Festival in 2015. Later, she directed the short film Red (2016). is her feature-length debut.

Credit

Producer
Samantha JENNINGS
Screenplay
Del Kathryn BARTON, Huna AMWEERO
Cinematographer
Jeremy ROUSE
Editor
Dany COOPER
Sound
Sam PETTY
Music
Sam PETTY, Angel OLSEN
Production Design
Alex HOLMES
Cast
Julia SAVAGE, Simon BAKER, Yael STONE