Sydney Film Festival Reveals First Part of its Killer 2016 Program

It's beginning to look a lot like Sydney Film Festival time — or, the start of the official countdown period, at least. The first big capital city cinema showcase of the year might not kick off until June 8, but their initial announcement of titles will have you marking down the days in your diary (there's 34 sleeps until the full program is released, and 62 until opening night, just in case you were wondering).

Given the batch of 26 flicks SFF has just dropped upon eager cinephiles in the lead up to the 63rd fest, excitement and enthusiasm is the natural, understandable reaction. Kicking everything off on opening night at the State Theatre will be the world premiere of acclaimed Indigenous filmmaker Ivan Sen's Goldstone, the sort-of sequel to his 2013 film Mystery Road. Described as "outback noir", the Australian film follows the same character, detective Jay Swan, as he investigates the disappearance of a Chinese girl in the remote settlement of Middleton. It includes a stellar cast of Aaron Pedersen, Jacki Weaver and David Wenham, with Sen himself having directed, written, shot, edited and scored the film. Those who caught Mystery Road at 2013's festival will be making a beeline for this one.

Maggie's Plan, a rom-com with Ethan Hawke, Julianne Moore and Greta Gerwig; comic drama Demolition, starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Naomi Watts; and Everybody Wants Some!!, Richard Linklater's spiritual sequel to 1993's Dazed and Confused, are all certain to top everyone's must-see list. And you thought last week's news about the fest's David Stratton-curated Martin Scorsese retrospective was big.

The Commune, Thomas Vinterberg's return to his Dogme 95 roots, also joins the feature slate, alongside Sing Street, a charming '80s-focused offering from Once filmmaker John Carney. So does the Academy Award-nominated coming-of-age effort Mustang, as well as Angry Indian Goddesses, which is essentially India's answer to Bridesmaids. Francofonia combines fiction and documentary to explore the Louvre during and after World War II, while Venezuelan character study Desde Alla (meaning 'from afar') comes direct from winning the Venice Film Festival's prestigious Golden Lion. Genre fans, you're taken care of too, courtesy of heavy metal horror flick The Devil's Candy, Aussie director Sean Byrnes' follow-up to The Loved Ones. Plus, Tehran-set supernatural spookfest Under the Shadow will also be screening, which had Sundance and SXSW audiences buzzing.

SFF, with its dedicated award for Australian documentaries, has always done well in the factual realm. While the titles competing for the prize are yet to be announced, the first glimpse of the ripped-from-reality selection is impressive. Heart of a Dog presents artist and musician Laurie Anderson's expressionistic ode to her pet pooch, late mother, and partner Lou Reed, while Janis: Little Girl Blue uncovers the real rock, blues and folk legend. Sticking with all things music-oriented, Sonita tells the story of how a gutsy Afghani refugee's love of rap music changed her life.

And then there's Werner Herzog's dulcet tones narrating his internet doco, Lo and Behold: Reveries of the Connected World, the Sundance-winning sexting scandal chronicle that is Weiner, and Chantal Akerman's personal mother-daughter portrait, No Home Movie — the late Belgian filmmaker's final feature. Basically, if you can't find something that you want to see, you're not looking hard enough. Of course, the best news is yet to come, because this is just a sneak peek of SFF's complete 250+ roster of movie wonders.

The 2016 Sydney Film Festival will run from June 8 to 19. Feast your eyes on their currently announced titles by checking out the festival website. The full program will be released on May 11.

Updated: April 21, 2016.