This scheme is open to people of diverse cultural and non-English speaking backgrounds that have a story to tell.

Supported by the NSW Film and Television Office four storytellers from NSW are offered equipment, facilities hire, stock, post production facilities, and a $2,000 budget. In addition, each filmmaker is mentored by an industry professional.

All you need is a story idea and the vision and commitment to make it into a five minute film.

Previous films have explored topics including:
• cultural conflict and drama of stereotypes
• issues surrounding sexual attraction between white people and people of colour
• beliefs and notions of 'truth', history and memory
• ideas around the term ‘people of middle eastern appearance’
• ideas around the topic of ‘Australian Values’

Applicants are selected on their idea, relevant skills and how the process will impact their careers. People with experience in other artforms and practices are also encouraged to apply.

For information about the Multicultural Mentor Scheme please contact Metro Screen’s Project Manager, David Opitz on 02 9356 1818 or d.opitz@metroscreen.org.au

To apply in 2008 please download all three pdfs:

COVER LETTER >>

GUIDELINES >>

APPLICATION FORM >>

AWARD WINNING SHORT FILM MAKER FLORDELIZ BONIFACIO TALKS ABOUT HOW SHE GOT STARTED  Flordeliz Bonifacio has just won two international awards for her second short film ‘'Deluge' made with an FTO YFF grant. However she cut her teeth at Metro Screen where she made her first film Orange Season through the Multicultural Mentor Scheme [MMS]. image> still from "Deluge"

How did you hear about the MMS?
I received a flyer in the mail. At the time, I had only just joined Metro Screen as a new member, and was keen to make my first film, so the opportunity couldn't have come at a better time.  

Can you describe your film?
The action of Orange Season takes place in the backyard of a Filipino household in the western suburbs.  While in their yard, the three children of the family become easy targets for a group of neighbourhood boys, who sling them with oranges and racial slurs.  One of the boys becomes attracted to the eldest of the children, a beautiful adolescent girl.  The story looks at the conflict between desire and racism.  

Where did the idea for your film come from?
I find myself drawn to exploring familial relationships in a domestic setting.  There are spaces from my own childhood, such as suburban backyards (and, in the case of my second film, local swimming pools) that I feel are fertile ground for unearthing ideas that communicate to audiences at a personal level. 
Metro Screen provides an agreed amount of equipment and post-production facilities, however everyone has to work to a very tight budget and shooting schedule -how did you cope with that?
I was very fortunate to have had a very supportive mentor and a team of talented cast and crew, many of whom were not “professional” in the formal sense of the word, but were nothing less than professional when it came to being responsible for their respective roles.  For many of us, the actors in particular, it was a labour of love.

Who was your Mentor through the scheme and how did they contribute to your film?
My mentor was writer/director Donald Crombie, whose wealth of knowledge and experience I was able to draw upon.  While crew members advised me on technical matters on the day of the shoot, Donald was there from the very beginning, right through to the end – a much-needed constant in the at-times stressful business of planning a production.  I valued his input greatly, and admired his ability to gently guide me through the process without imposing his own sense of style upon the film.  I feel very fortunate to have had someone whose commitment to the project matched, and complimented, my own.     

What was your highlight through making the film?
Although there were many breakthrough moments during the making of this film, I would have to say the highlight of the whole experience was having the opportunity to work with my wonderful cast of young, untrained actors.  There were eight actors in all, ranging in age from seven to seventeen, and their enthusiasm, natural talent and resilience as first-time actors was an inspiration to me, a first-time director.  In this regard, we were all in the same boat, and I think this sense of empathy helped us to relate with an ease, spontaneity and professionalism that was evident both on and off the set.

Have you had any success with your film?
Orange Season screened at two non-competitive festivals and at Metro Screen's Kaleidoscope.  As it was my first film, I measured it’s success by the lessons I learned as a filmmaker, rather than how prolific it was. 

How has the MMS impacted on your confidence as a writer/director?
Had I not had the chance to explore my style of storytelling through the MMS, and made the mistakes I needed to make in order to learn and do better next time, I would not have had the level of understanding, hindsight and preparation as a writer-director that was so important to the success of my second film, Deluge.  Funded by the Young Filmmakers Fund, Deluge has been well-received by the international festival circuit.  Having made its festival debut earlier in the year, it’s public life is still in its early stages.  In February of this year, it screened at the Clermont-Ferrand Short Film Festival where it won the Special Jury Prize for International Competition, and was recently awarded the Best Director's Prize at the Granada Short Film Festival in Spain.  It has been invited to dozens more festivals around the world, and sold to Arte for France and Germany, with further sales offered.  So, for me, the Multicultural Mentorship Scheme was a springboard to bigger and better things.

Metro Screen is a community-based, non-profit organisation with a long-standing commitment to providing training and support for the development of Multicultural screen media.

Media inquiries:
02 9356 1818 or marketing@metroscreen.org.au

If you require further information about the Multicultural Mentor Scheme, please contact:
David Opitz on
P: 02 9356 1818 F: 02 9361 5320 E: d.opitz@metroscreen.org.au