a day of hard work of listening to many artists talk about their art - some with passion and love and real inspiration and others with an edge of unnecessary cool that leaves a sour taste in one's mouth. i hung out with my crew and listened to their funny stories of dropping the microphone on the head of a six foot six actor's head, and debating about our favourite tom waits songs. we drank lots of coffee and rearranged a nice but plain room many times to try and make it look ok for tv. not sure we succeeded, but we had fun nonetheless.
then off to a function honoring the contribution of an important filmmaker - who had stumbled into the cab with me and my colleague last night and whom we had driven to the door of her hotel and made sure she was home safely, and whom had seemed so drunk in an unseemly and vulnerable way and then whom when i saw her today didn't acknowledge me. i love the australian film industry... i was feeling a little exhausted and ignored as i stood waiting for the speeches, and it was only after the event, that i stood in this lovely courtyard with the likes of the moma man and our very own bob ellis discussing the importance of good art, while we all sipped on nice wirra wirra in the afternoon sun that i relaxed a little and started to appreciate where i was and what i was doing.
then off to a film. one we had all been talking about since we arrived. the buzz was electric. i hoped that i wouldn't be let down because of the hype and the friends involved with the making of this quietly anticipated masterpiece. but believe me i wasn't.
Samson and Delilah deserved the standing ovation that grew out of the rapturous emotional applause after it's world premiere here in adelaide. it is powerful and moving, so simple and yet so layered and complex. an eternity of a people discarded and left to fend for themselves combined with the delicateness of a new romance and in the end i was moved to tears, shell-shocked, distraught with the state of the world, but also strangely, somehow uplifted. i haven't felt like this about a film in ages. there was moments in the middle of the film where i felt despair and heartache that came from so deep down that i thought i would crack and fall apart. then i was confused and then i smiled. it was a beautiful, beautiful experience to have in a room full of people. the kind that reminds you why seeing a film in a cinema can be so much more than a dvd at home on the couch.
i would have been happy to go home to bed, the idea of the after party was mildly appealing, but the thought of struggling to convey the effect the film had on me while standing in a room full of industry folk didn't do it for me. plus we had dinner reservations.
auge - with the accent on the a and the cute italian waiters - was delicious... my figs divine - wrapped in proscuitto and with baked gorgonzola, the lighting too dark to photograph them, then followed by garfish and eel baccala and bortaga and a salad of fennel and cucumber was all also amazing.
i am happy. satiated. delighted. and now the couple next door are having loud sex and it feels like all is right with the world.
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