If you've seen a man in the moon, the Virgin Mary in a grilled cheese sandwich or a monkey in the callus of a tree, do you know there's a word for what you've been experiencing? It's 'pareidolia', which the Collins Dictionary defines as "the imagined perception of a pattern or meaning where it does not actually exist". In his notebooks, Leonardo da Vinci wrote that the phenomenon inspired great art: "If you look at any walls spotted with various stains or with a mixture of different kinds of stones ... you will be able to see an infinite number of things which you can then reduce into separate and well-conceived forms." Google is now taking pareidolia to a whole new level. Combining facial recognition software and Google Maps, Google Faces can identify human features on the Earth's surface. Given that the aforementioned cheese sandwich sold for $US28,000, we can only begin to imagine what the discovery of Jesus's visage in someone's backyard might do for property values. Google Faces is the brainchild of Onformative, 'a studio for regenerative design', based in Berlin. They have created an algorithm that, in combination with Facetracker, scans the satellite images provided by Google Maps, honing in on geographical elements that resemble an eye, nose, mouth or forehead. So far, the programme has circumnavigated the world twice, and it'll continue its journey over the next few months, gradually zooming in on the Earth to access new perspectives. Via io9.
When you want to multiply your thrills on the Central Coast, there's a former cinema complex that ticks all the boxes for a nostalgic night on the town. It has a weekly rotation of cult classics on the big screen, vodka shots and Napoli-style margherita pizzas coming thick and fast from the kitchen, and a reliably fun roster of DJs spinning throwback floorfillers every Saturday night. The 1950s Long Jetty movie theatre operated for 20 years before closing for four decades — and its revival as a hub for good-old-fashioned good times has been welcomed by locals and visitors alike. Plan your trip for a Thursday or Sunday night to catch one of more chilled film screenings — think Pulp Fiction and School of Rock — or head in on a busier night for jugs of Beetle Juice and platters of 'retro dips' brought to your theatre-style seat. Movie tickets start from $12.64 and are available via Eventbrite.
In the late 60s, a decade after first slinging slices in America's midwest, Pizza Hut started taking the second part of its name seriously. Thanks to a design by architect Richard D Burke, who agreed to a $100 fee for each location that opened — a hugely lucrative deal, it turned out — everyone knows the fast-food chain's famous silhouette. From 70s, 80s and 90s childhoods in particular, that angular roof instantly brings to mind family feasts, birthday parties and all-you-can-eat pizza specials that gave Sizzler a run for its money in Australia, dessert bar included. Brooklyn-based Aussie filmmakers Matthew Salleh and Rose Tucker, who previously made Barbecue and We Don't Deserve Dogs, are well-are of this history. In fact, they've made a documentary that's partly about it: Slice of Life: The American Dream. In Former Pizza Huts. They're equally cognisant of the nostalgic feeling that old Pizza Huts bring. "I kept thinking back to the soft-serve machine. As a kid, I was just drawn to that machine. I just wanted the soft serve with the sprinkles, the coloured sprinkles on top — my Pizza Hut dream was the soft-serve machine," Tucker tells Concrete Playground, chatting about the film that'll premiere at 2024's SXSW Sydney in October. Audiences will indeed remember their own experiences in Pizza Hut's distinctive buildings while watching Slice of Life. Craving pizza comes with the territory, too. Salleh and Tucker haven't tucked into Pizza Hut while making the movie, purely "because they're not in New York", Salleh advises, but they still understand the urge. "Occasionally we're editing and we'll see shots of pizzas, and I'll be like 'we need pizza'. Luckily, living in Brooklyn, you only have to walk about 150 metres to find some pretty awesome pizza. So if anything, it's just made me eat a lot more pizza in New York," he continues. Recalling times gone by for a global chain is just one of this doco's ingredients, however. Consider it a topping; at its heart, this film's main focus is right there in its title. While they weave in the Pizza Hut origin story, and that of those huts known around the planet, Salleh and Tucker are interested in how such immediately recognisable structures have lived on in new guises in the US once the brand left plenty of those buildings. Be it a Texan karaoke bar, a LGBTQIA+ church in Florida or a cannabis dispensary in Colorado, what made-over former Pizza Huts say about the pursuit of the American dream today is also as pivotal to their documentary as dough is to the world's most-beloved Italian dish. The pair boast a tried-and-tested approach, as their first two feature-length films also capitalised upon. Take one thing — barbecue cooking, canines, ex-Pizza Huts — then dive deep, building a portrait of what humanity's interaction with said subject explains about the world, people in general and/or a specific country. All three titles have also enjoyed a relationship with SXSW. Barbecue premiered at SXSW Austin in 2017, and was picked up by Netflix as a result. Then, We Don't Deserve Dogs was selected for the pandemic-affected US event in 2020. Now, after being one of the first films announced for this year's lineup, Slice of Life will bow at SXSW Sydney's second year. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Urtext Films (@urtext) If there's a spark of familiarity to Salleh and Tucker's latest concept, that's because the Used to Be a Pizza Hut blog has also been operating in this territory. It was a helpful resource for them, with its founder Mike Neilson among their interviewees. Wondering if the duo ever thought of expanding their remit beyond US Pizza Huts, as the site covers? They've dubbed their American focus "geographical discipline". Explains Salleh: "this is our documentary version of the great American road movie, I guess. We were tempted to to make this thing global, but then we knew we'd be probably making it for the next 20 years." Adds Tucker: "we really could, they built these things all over the place." What does having SXSW's support mean to the pair? "It's amazing. As an independent filmmaker, it's really, really tough to even get into a festival, so to do it with SXSW now three times is pretty special," says Tucker. "We're basically independent DIY, and so to be able to go to a festival that also has a little bit of a market and business side to it as well, and tries to bring those elements together is, I guess, what we try to do on a daily basis — bringing together the business of what we do and the creativity of what we do. So it's been a good fit over the years," advises Salleh. When you hone in on a specific topic per documentary, where does inspiration come from? Also, how do you know that you're onto a winner of an idea, and then get your subjects onboard? From the way that they handle to on-the-road projects to finding their former Pizza Huts and what they learned about America while making Slice of Life, we chatted through the details with Salleh and Tucker. On Where Salleh and Tucker Find Inspiration Rose: "I guess you could say we're just chronic people-watchers, and we're just interested in things that people get passionate about. So with Barbecue, that one's a fairly obvious one: people get really fired up about cooking and gathering with their family. There's a little bit of patriotism involved in that as well — everyone thinks they have the best barbecue — so it's a thing that gets people talking and gets people passionate. And similarly with dogs. People love their dogs and that's a global phenomenon." Matthew: "We have a scribble board of hundreds of ideas, and it's a survival of the fittest. It's when we can see that an idea will play out in a in a whole film, rather than be a short or something like that. I often say there's a taxi or Uber driver test, where an Uber driver will ask what you do for a living and you explain the film you're making, and they go 'ohh you have to go interview my best friend' — or if they know someone or if they can tell their passionate story. It was a similar thing with this new film, we would talk about it with people and they go 'ohh back in my town, the old Pizza Hut used to be ...'. There was either nostalgic remembrance of what it used to be or 'ohh now it's a mattress store', 'now it's a Hertz car rental' or any sort of interesting thing. So it seems to have really gotten people interested in talking passionately. And it's interesting as well, because there's a lot going around at the moment with people re-examining pop culture nostalgia and stuff like that. But then it just presented this amazing opportunity for us where we were actually able to go 'well, here's something pop culture and nostalgic, but it still exists in this strange way now'. So it was a way that we could combine the nostalgic memories of old Pizza Huts with this entrepreneurial spirit of people starting up businesses potentially in buildings they never thought they would, but making it work somehow." View this post on Instagram A post shared by Urtext Films (@urtext) Rose: "There's this idea of community that flows through these buildings. So when they're a Pizza Hut, they're a community hub. And it would be a really big deal if your small town got a Pizza Hut. It was a big, big deal. Then when they close down, that hub goes away. But now they're sprouting up again in these second, third, fourth, fifth lives, and those places are now similarly hubs for the community. They're the places that we were really focusing on trying to find — those places that still are that gathering point, or that third place that that people are drawn to and want to spend time with people in." Matthew: "And in a world where those sort of places are dying away, making this film coming out of the pandemic, where we had to eliminate that third place, those gathering places in the community‚ and even the fact that a lot of these businesses survived through some of those tougher times so that they can flourish now — that was very much part of our mind when we were making this. It's places where people can just get together, whether it's a church or whether it's a restaurant …" Rose: "Or a karaoke bar." Matthew: "… and just be part of their community." On Finding Slice of Life's Old Pizza Huts in Small Towns Across America Where Having the Chain in Town Was Originally a Source of Pride Rose: "We were actively seeking small towns. The most-rural town we visited is Walsenburg, Colorado — and that is in the middle of the country, small town, and it was a big deal. From memory, I think that the only other fast food they currently have is a Subway." Matthew: "Much less romantic." Rose: "But it was a huge deal to get this big building, this big Pizza Hut, that was right on the edge of town — it was a massive deal. And it was where all the sports teams would go on the weekend after finishing their game, it's where kids would go after their prom for their after party. Like, this was the place." View this post on Instagram A post shared by Urtext Films (@urtext) Matthew: "And I think it was this idea that the town over didn't get the Pizza Hut — we got the Pizza Hut. We're all very hip and cosmopolitan now, we might almost chuckle a little at a chain store having meaning, something important to a community — but back in the 60s, 70s and 80s, when towns, especially towns across America, were trying to grow and trying to be something, these were the test of having made it, as it were. So that seemed to be a big part of it. And then there's also a practical consideration, because we basically had to become world experts in these old Pizza Hut buildings — and they survive more in small towns, because I think the ones that were in big cities have just gotten levelled with the passage of time." Rose: "Or they were never built in the first place. This is a building that worked in suburbia and out on the highways. I don't think there were any traditional Pizza Hut buildings built within New York City, where we live at the moment. So you're not going to find one here. But you go out a little bit, you go down into Long Island, suddenly they start popping up." On Salleh and Tucker's Two-Person Approach to Filmmaking Matthew: "The main thing is the incredibly small footprint. It's basically just myself and Rose, and we do pretty much the whole movie. So I direct and Rose produces. I do the shoot. I do the cinematography. Rose does the sound. We both edit it. We do a surround-sound mix and picture work on the film in our one bedroom apartment." Rose: "In the room we're sitting at now." Matthew: "We just basically do the whole film from a technical point of view by ourselves. And, one, it makes it cheaper and more versatile — but the most-important thing is that versatility in that we don't need to have bosses that we get approval from when we come up with an idea, and we can just stay in a place until we get the story, and we can move around and be this very intimate film crew. When we film, it's not this giant truck with 20 people turning up. It's me and Rose and a backpack. And that familiarity that people have with us it just gives a gives our film something else, I hope." On How Having Such a Small Filmmaking Footprint Helps Get Subjects Onboard Rose: "We love the intimacy that we can create with it just being the two of us. The fact that we're a couple as well, I think a lot of the people we're working with, a lot of people running these businesses are little husband wife teams as well. So there's definitely a connection that we just have. We run our own business. We understand the challenges of running a small business, and we like to think we're quite entrepreneurial as well. I think we have a lot in common with the people who we are filming with." View this post on Instagram A post shared by Urtext Films (@urtext) Matthew: "When you run your own business, when you want to be sustainable and have your arts career that works as a business, you have to know as much about cinematography as you do about filing tax returns. We met with a lot of people that had a passionate thing they wanted. I think instantly of Ed running Big Ed's BBQ, who had this passion for barbecue and then instantly realised he was in over his head — and that very much resonated with me as a person that got way in over my head when I decided to start a film company however many years ago. That part of the storytelling also reminds me of my dad, who started his own business after working in government for many years. I think everyone that knows someone that's an entrepreneur, a sort of self-starter, it's a sort of crazy type of person. It was a lot of fun to hear those stories." Rose: "But we definitely had to win people over. And we'd always have a few conversations over the phone before we turn up with cameras and really explain what we were trying to do. I think particularly in this day and age, people can be a little hesitant with documentary, like 'ohh, are you making fun of me or is this a hit piece?'. And we would have to assure people that was not the case." Matthew: "Something we weren't sure about: people operate their businesses and lives out of these former Pizza Huts, and it's kind of a humorous concept. I'm like 'do they think it's humorous as well?'. And they certainly did. I remember our first phone call with everybody from the church in Boynton Beach that we filmed, and the first thing they wanted to tell us is that they'd given themselves a nickname of the Church of the Pepperoni. They think it's very funny as well. There's something about that sense of humour, it's a little wry smile when they know that they run out of an old Pizza Hut. But then you go beneath that and you go look through the window, effectively, and there's these amazing lives, and these really powerful and interesting people. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Urtext Films (@urtext) I would say that with a lot of pop culture and nostalgia, people try to remember the old thing. But for us to be able to actually go into those buildings, it was fascinating that you have a really diverse set of people — and America's an incredibly diverse country — and all of these people had one thing in common: the floor plan of their businesses were exactly the same. And it was kind of odd. A few months into filming, we'd be walking into like the fifth Pizza Hut and there'd be this weird déjà vu that would kick in — and I'd be like 'ohh, in Colorado, they put the door over that side, but I see you guys put it over here'. And there's this one bit where some of the old Pizza Huts, they always leak in the same spot — and they all go 'oh yeah, the leak'. Maybe there's something comforting in knowing that people around the world might have a common experience with you, even though you will never meet them. So that was very powerful for us." On the Research Process and Criteria for Picking the Former Pizza Huts Featured Matthew: "There were a couple that we'd heard about. You start Googling, and lots of people have documented a lot of these old buildings. But only the building. It was hard to know anything more about it. So we'd start with that process — it just started with conversations." Rose: "I would dive in and take a look at a business. You can tell a lot from their social media and things like that. You can tell when a place is a community hub, and they were the places we were looking for. And honestly, I would just shoot them a message or an email, and get on the phone and chat. I remember we called the owner of the Bud Hut in Colorado, and we talked to her for I think two hours. She was just so clearly so passionate and cared so much about her community, and we were like, 'well, that's an instant yes'." Matthew: "This is something that we've always believed as a core part of the films we make, that everyone's got an interesting story to tell. So in a way, I wasn't even really worried, because I'm like 'well, everyone's got an interesting story to tell'. Our job is to listen and find those stories. We try not to have too many preconceptions. We had ideas — as soon as we heard that there was a church down in Florida, we're like 'well that sounds amazing'. So there's ones like that. One of the interesting ones was Taco Jesús, a Taco restaurant in in Lynchburg, Virgina — not necessarily a place known for its Mexican cuisine. But funnily, that restaurant didn't even exist when we started shooting the movie. We only shot that a few months ago because we were looking back over some notes, and one of them was something that was closed down." View this post on Instagram A post shared by Urtext Films (@urtext) Rose: "I have a list of addresses and every few months I would sweep through them just to see if a new place had popped up. I was looking at this place in Lynchburg, Virginia, which, after it was a Pizza Hut, it was a another pizza restaurant — and I noticed they were permanently closed. And I was like 'that's interesting, I wonder who's going in there?'. I did a little online research and realised it was going to be this brand-new taco restaurant, and it looked beautiful." Matthew: "I think we saw a story that Jesús and his father-in-law were running it together, and I'm like 'there's a story that'. Then just your journalistic instincts kick in and you go 'oh, there's something interesting there'. I think, to be honest, as we spoke to people, it confirmed more than anything that all these are really fascinating stories that we have to capture." Rose: "There'll always be a few on the wishlist that we didn't get to, mainly just because we felt like we had a complete film. But there's always be the long list of places that maybe we could have visited — like there is a funeral home in Texas which would have been pretty interesting." Matthew: "There's actually two." Rose: "We could've kept filming forever." View this post on Instagram A post shared by Urtext Films (@urtext) Matthew: "It's interesting when we talk about when you're completely independent and you've got to do it yourself, how do you get started — but how do you finish? That's almost as much the challenging question and it's usually, with us, through exhaustion. Usually it's desperately editing into the night. I remember with We Don't Deserve Dogs and a little bit with this film, you just stop eventually and go 'I think the movie is finished'. And you almost don't want to admit it's finished, because then you've got to work out what to do next. You've got to distribute and market the film, and all the rest of it. But this one was definitely one where we had a lot of the film down, and then we took a bit of a break. Then we went and filmed with Taco Jesús, and we just slotted that in." Rose: "It was the missing thing." Matthew: "It was the different side of the story that brought it all together. So it's nice, it's been a lot of fun, because at the moment we're doing all the technical stuff, the sound and the music and all of that, and it's really lovely to be able polish up this thing that we've been putting together for a few years now." On What You Learn About the US Today on a Cross-Country Road Trip That Examines How an Incredibly Nostalgic Symbol Has Been Reborn Rose: "I think we managed to capture a pretty hopeful version of humanity. I'd like to think that. I think you realise that if you watch the news a lot …" Matthew: "Which we all do." Rose: "… which everybody does, there's maybe an impression of America and what middle America is like, and I think we wanted to challenge that expectation a little bit. There definitely are, I think, more good people than bad everywhere we went. We were met with open arms in communities of all shapes and sizes and political persuasions." View this post on Instagram A post shared by Urtext Films (@urtext) Matthew: "And we're just a bunch of hipsters from New York, so they should be very guarded. But no, to be serious, I think it's this thing where we came in to listen and hear their story, and so we didn't come in with this ulterior motive of 'we want to set up the story'. That's been a really important thing about the films we do. We film with multiple subjects, multiple locations and people, and we don't have this scribbled-out script that we want to fit. We go where the story takes us. If the story revealed a much angrier America, then we would have gone 'okay, well, what is that story?'. But for us, everyone was quite hopeful, quite proud — quite proud of being American, quite proud of their entrepreneurial side — which, by focusing just on that, was really interesting. We had this criteria for this movie: we want to meet people from all across America, but they have to be operating out of an old Pizza Hut restaurant. That limits you a little bit, and yet we found such diversity, such different people, different opinions, different lives, different stories. So it was nice, even with such limitations on your sample size, you can still find a very diverse America." View this post on Instagram A post shared by Urtext Films (@urtext) Rose: "I think Mark from the Yupp's Karaoke in Fort Worth, Texas, puts it best: 'our diversity is our strength'. And this is coming from a bartender in Fort Worth, Texas. It's pretty beautiful stuff. " Matthew: "I must admit that Yupp's Karaoke Bar was a lot of fun to film." Rose: "It was raging on a Tuesday night. It was just packed. And from what I understand, they now have lines on Saturdays — you can't get in. They are going absolute gangbusters." Slice of Life: The American Dream. In Former Pizza Huts. premieres at SXSW Sydney 2024, which runs from Monday, October 14–Sunday, October 20 at various Sydney venues. Head to the SXSW Sydney website for further details.
Sydney's cocktail scene is about to heat up this winter as popular Spanish liqueur Licor 43 is partnering with five top South American and Spanish restaurants to introduce the Carajillo 43. This twist on the classic Carajillo (kah-rah-HEE-yoh) cocktail combines fresh espresso with Spanish liqueur, known for its sweet, citrusy flavours, which come from a secret blend of 43 ingredients. For a limited time, from July 19, the first 43 amigos to order a meal can score a complimentary Carajillo 43 when they mention this promotion at each venue. Keep reading to find out where and how you can join the fiesta.
It could've been stickier than a marmalade sandwich. After directing the first two Paddington movies so delightfully, and either writing or co-writing both 2014's Paddington and 2017's Paddington 2 as well, filmmaker Paul King opted to dance with another beloved pop-culture character instead of making a third date with a certain adored Peruvian-in-Britain bear. Wonka, starring Timothée Chalamet (A Complete Unknown), as the chocolatier, was also a gem. With Dougal Wilson making his feature helming debut, Paddington in Peru has turned out charmingly as well. Wilson has been behind the lens for decades on music videos, short films and advertisements. If you've seen the clips for 'Fit But You Know It' by The Streets, 'Take Me Back to Your House' by Basement Jaxx, Dizzee Rascal's 'Dream', Jarvis Cocker's 'Don't Let Him Waste Your Time', 'Psyche' by Massive Attack, Goldfrapp's 'Happiness' and 'Life in Technicolor II' from Coldplay — among other vids — then you've seen his work. He's received Grammy, MTV Europe Music Awards and UK Music Video Awards nominations for his efforts, but taking over a big bear hug of a cinema franchise that's adored by audiences of all ages (and, in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, by the one and only Nicolas Cage) is quite a task. Was it daunting? How did Wilson approach it, knowing how much viewers have warmed to all things Paddington on the silver screen over the last decade — and knowing, of course, the character's history on the page, where the Michael Bond-created critter first popped up in 1958, too? "You try not to make the pressure make you have a nervous breakdown, really," he tells Concrete Playground with a laugh. While he was new to the series, he was "surrounded by a very good team who all worked on the previous films", which assisted. "I had the same cinematographer, Erik Wilson [who also lensed Better Man], as the first two films. Same producer, Rosie Alison [Wonka], who is fantastic. Mark Burton [an Aardman Animations veteran, including Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl] was one of the writers who worked on the first two films. And James and Jon, two of the other writers, Jon Foster and James Lamont [the creators of animated series The Adventures of Paddington], they'd also contributed to some of the writers' rooms on the first two films. Then I had the director of animation Pablo Grillo [The Little Mermaid], who was a huge part the first two films." "So I had a really good team to help me, who could, if not reassure me — because it's not something you should be reassuring yourself, but it's hard to work on that, and you just have to chip away and keep working and craft it as best you can — but they had been there before, so they were a great team to work with," Wilson continues. For the franchise's third instalment, Wilson, his veteran Paddington colleagues, plus a cast still led by Ben Whishaw (Black Doves) turning in a lovely and lively vocal performance, all have new terrain to traverse. Although Paddington hails from Peru, he's one of London's most-famous animal residents, and so the first two movies largely set their narratives in the UK. With a roster of actors that's added Emily Mortimer (The New Look) as Mrs Brown, taking over from Sally Hawkins (The Lost King) in the first two pictures, and also enlisted Olivia Colman (Wicked Little Letters) as the singing Reverend Mother at the Home for Retired Bears and Antonio Banderas (Babygirl) as riverboat captain Hunter Cabot, the third film unfurls as an adventure in the South American jungle. Paddington and the Browns (including The Agency's Hugh Bonneville, Houdini and Doyle's Samuel Joslin and Man Down's Madeleine Harris) arrive to visit Aunt Lucy (Imelda Staunton, Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget), then find themselves searching for her — and El Dorado. The job for Wilson, then, wasn't just stepping into a heartwarming saga that King had established and then furthered so wonderfully — it was also upping the stakes, playing with a new location, taking inspiration from Buster Keaton and Werner Herzog, and more. We also chatted with the filmmaker about how he came to make his feature directorial debut with a Paddington flick, what excited him most about the job, balancing the slapstick and emotionally resonant elements of the movie (and others), the importance of Whishaw's voicework, the cast's new big names, how his music-video background assisted and more. On How Wilson Came to Make His Feature Directorial Debut with a Paddington Movie "Well, I was quite happy doing short things. They're great fun and they're very distracting. I had made various attempts to start on a longer-form thing, but I'd always haver about whether I got the story right or get paranoid that it wasn't. And then another short thing would come along and it would be more of a delay before the long thing ever got made. But I was working on another thing — a much-smaller long thing. Then this opportunity came up and I thought 'well, unlike other attempts I was making with features, I knew this would definitely happen' — because they really wanted to make a third film. And while it wasn't what I anticipated the first thing I would maybe try to do in long-form, I realised it was a great opportunity, and as did lots of my friends. They said 'oh, it's Paddington, you've got to do that'. Also I really admired what Paul had done on the first two films. Paul was off doing Wonka, so wasn't going to do the third one. And I really admired the style. I thought the way he told those stories, the way he coordinated the world and created the character Paddington himself, and the tone of the scriptwriting was so good. And that the humour was great. It had this lovely, quite unique modern-British comedic sense. And, despite being a family franchise, he'd really made it quite smart, and you could be any age to enjoy it. So I admired all these things and I thought 'well, I should probably take this opportunity'. But I was really scared because the first two films are really cherished and really good — and very well done. And I was under no illusion that this would be easy. We had to work on the script quite a lot with the writers as well, and develop that. And then it's a real technical challenge — and we were taking Paddington out of the environment in the first two films and taking him somewhere completely new, where he'd only been fleetingly in the first two films. So yeah, it was terrifying. But I felt I had to try." On What Excited Wilson the Most About Diving Into Paddington's World "I find the first two films really funny, but also quite emotionally powerful, and I was excited to try — I guess, as well as being terrified, I was excited to try to create something that if it was at least half as good as those two films, then I felt like I would have been really happy. So that was exciting knowing that we were aspiring to make something that could be good. Specifically, I was very excited by the mixed-media approach that Paul had started in the first two films. Using animation for some parts, I loved that in my short-form work. I was really excited about how intricately and brilliantly the action sequences were done in the first two films. I was keen to get my teeth into the slapstick sequences in this film. I was very excited by the approach to the design of the cinematography and the heightened style which we were going to try to continue. It's challenging because we were in London, and London is a big character in those first two films. And it does really, the locations and buildings in London really contribute to the style. But we are obviously in a natural environment in Peru. So it was a challenge, but I was also excited to try to continue the style of the first two films in an environment that was novel to them. We tried to that by setting it within an Incan labyrinth that sort of became our stand-in for how the National History Museum works in the first film, or Hunter's riverboat becomes the same as the train in the second film. It was just trying to find proscenium arches for certain scenes that continued he style of the first two films in a way that was as fun and as intricate as they did." On the Juggling Required to Make a Warmhearted, Globe-Crossing, Treasure-Hunting Mystery Adventure That's Also About Identity, Acceptance and Kindness "If you don't have both, then it will feel quite one-dimensional. So while Paddington will always mess things up or get himself in quite serious spots of bother, it's all because he means well and it's all because he's trying to do the right thing. So that does guide you in the script-development process. Also, we were completing the circle of the trilogy, which was basically the story of an immigrant who's looking for a home, who's trying to find their home — and then in the second film, someone who becomes part of a wider community but loses that place and has to fight to get it again, and in doing so finds out finds out a bit more about himself. And in the third film, it's about the experience of an immigrant who has to ask themselves where their home really is and what home means. So there was a deeper theme lying behind all the fun and the action, and we had to bear that in mind the whole time. And it obviously comes into focus towards the end of the film where Paddington finds out something about how he ended up in that river in Paddington 2 and where he might really be from. So there was always the undercurrent of that guiding us, and Paddington's outlook on life guides us. Even in the smallest details, like there's a scene where he tries to drive the boat and ends up — spoiler alert — ends up sinking the boat by accident, and that's all just because he wants to help. He wants to do the right thing. And so it often steers you, his outlook on life. It's not gags for the sake of gags. It's gags because he's trying to do the right thing at that moment." On the Scene in Paddington in Peru, Amid the Film's Many Visually Imaginative Sequences, That Wilson Is Most Pleased About "There's a few, but the one I thought was very ambitious but hopefully we carried it off was the finale chase at the end of act three — where Paddington's being pursued by the character Hunter, played by Antonio Banderas, around an Incan labyrinth by an Incan citadel, which is very inspired by Machu Picchu. During the research and location-scouting phase of the project, I went to South America for two months and I saw a lot of Incan architecture. And I went to Machu Picchu twice and explored those ruins, and I realised that would be a great place for a chase and for all sorts of interesting physical comedic moments to develop. In the same way as Paul drew on Chaplin in Paddington 2, I'm an enormous fan of Buster Keaton, and we worked in some Buster Keaton — there's a literal homage to the famous moment where the wall falls on Buster Keaton in Steamboat Bill, Jr within this chase. Then there's references to Raiders of the Lost of the Ark. There's nods to Aguirre, Wrath of God and Fitzcarraldo. But that particular chase around the Incan ruins, that was really fun to do because we had to work out a sequence of comedic moments within a chase that we could then apply to an Incan citadel, and it just felt like a very good expression and condensation of the idea of Paddington in Peru. It's like, let's take Peru and put Paddington inside and hopefully fun will ensue." On Not Really Needing to Guide Ben Whishaw's Vocal Performance — or Imelda Staunton's as Aunt Lucy "They're somewhat old hands at this now, because they've both done two films already. And they're also just brilliant actors. So I often don't really have to tell them really much to do. I just, we get the first few performances, we might develop it, get some options — because sometimes you also don't quite know in the recording session with them exactly what will feel right within the edit, until you get the recordings back to the edit suites and then play those performances off against the other cast or the particular cut you have. But no, they really inhabit those characters. Ben is the heart and soul of Paddington. And when you hear his voice — because we didn't have his voice right at the start, we started just with scratch dialogue. You do a read-through with stand-ins. And often in the edit, it's sometimes my voice doing Paddington's voice, just because we needed Paddington to say something in particular we don't happen to have as a recording. So in the later stages of the edit, we start doing the voice sessions with Ben and with Imelda, and then those voices go in. And also, you don't have Paddington's animation to begin with. You just might have some — again, sometimes it's my incredibly crude drawings, which my editor Úna Ní Dhonghaíle [Young Woman and the Sea] had to up with. She had to do chase sequences where it's just this frozen awful drawing of Paddington. But then when you put Ben's voice on it, somehow it absolutely comes alive and the emotion sings through. And the same with Imelda. I think we got her voice quite late in the day and suddenly the scene just came alive when we put it on. I don't have to tell them to do very much. It's very, very easy with those actors because they are just so expert." On How Crucial Whishaw's Voice Is as Paddington, Especially Given That Colin Firth Was Initially Cast for the First Film "There's a magic to Ben's performance and it just shows you that it's very difficult to put your finger exactly on what it is that that really works when you see that animation combined with that voice. And I think it was very hard thing to predict. He wasn't originally the voice of Paddington, and it was switched during the editing of the first film, I believe — and then once you hear it, you think 'well, how could that ever have been a different choice?'. I think the fact that it maybe wasn't obvious when Paul and his team were making the first film, who Paddington's voice should be, is part of the magic of why Ben works. And it's quite hard to articulate why he works. He just has this — there's an element of wisdom to his voice, but there's also an element of childish innocence to his voice. It's a lovely, subtle, slightly contradictory combination. And there's a real intimacy to his performance. And also you really believe the character and you believe he cares. That's just something interwoven in the fabric of Ben's performance. What exactly, how exactly he does that, I don't know. That's the magic." On Adding Olivia Colman and Antonio Banderas to the Cast "We needed an amusing British nun who just felt like she was in a Paddington film. And as soon as someone mentioned Olivia Colman, we couldn't really think of anyone else, so that just seemed to click together. Then we sent her the script and asked if she wanted to do it, and within the same day we got a response: 'love to, I'm already learning the guitar'. So that was it. It was pretty simple. Antonio was equally keen on the project. We needed a charming Spanish riverboat captain who was quite swashbuckling, and of course your mind immediately turns to Antonio Banderas. So they just seemed the right, obvious choices for two archetypal roles. And luckily, they were very, very into it." On the Sense of Responsibility That Comes with Making a Heartwarming, Joyous Film That Offers Viewers an Escape — But Also Have Some Darkness in It "It's a big responsibility. And it's lovely to see the reactions of people who've seen the film and have found joy in it and found their spirits lifted by it. That's a wonderful thing to do. Obviously they're joyful, but you have to have the dark moments as well in order for the joy to work. And also you can't slap the joy on in too saccharine a manner, otherwise they won't feel authentic. But yes, they have a very positive outlook on the world and that all just emanates from Paddington's character, which he has an optimistic view of the world. He always looks for the good in people, and he always believes that if we are kind and polite, the world will be right. So the joy from the films, I think it all emanates from Paddington's worldview and his ability to change people. He often doesn't change that much himself, but he can change other people for the better. He'll find the good in people and change them." On Why the Paddington Films Have Struck Such a Chord with Audiences "I think basically because Paul got it right. He managed to get the character right, managed to get the tone of the humour right and managed to get the execution right. It could have been done differently, but it was just very, very smartly done. And again, you mentioned Ben Whishaw — Ben Whishaw just inhabits Paddington. And then the animation, the director of animation on all the films has been a brilliant guy called Pablo Grillo, and the combination of the way Paddington is designed and moves and animates and emotes with Ben's voice is just something, there's something magical there, and it was to the credit of all the team on the first two films that they just managed to make that resonate. So, I can't take the credit for that myself. I think that's just something that I inherited and I did my best to continue." On How Wilson's Background in Music Videos Helped with Directing His First Feature "That format of filmmaking, short-form, especially short-form set to music, is — well, the way I've done it, is there's a lot of attention to detail because you only get a short amount of time to show stuff. I also try to put stories into these pieces of videos. And I love it when the pieces are as packed as possible and as intricate as possible. So I really enjoyed applying that to the sequences in Paddington. I also thought, for the first two films, they do feel very carefully crafted and every moment seems to count. So it didn't seem too different a style for this film. Although, story is king and the story comes from the script, so I very much had to respect the scenes where the actors have to deliver a story — but I love trying to entwine that with style and design, and how it was directed and how the shots slotted together. Then it really came into its own when I was doing an action sequence or a slapstick sequence, or even a musical sequence, obviously when the Reverend Mother sings a song. So it really helped, but it was also a good new experience to do long scenes with actors performing and delivering great performances. That was maybe something that I hadn't experienced as much when I did short-form of stuff, but I really enjoyed it. I really enjoyed attacking that sort of scene as well." Paddington in Peru released in Australian and New Zealand cinemas on Wednesday, January 1, 2025.
There are wine tastings – and then there's the Penfolds immersive wine experience. This extraordinary event, which is making a comeback to Sydney in May, brings together tastings with visuals, lighting, sounds and storytelling. Your 45-minute adventure will give you the chance to sample drops from Australia, the USA and France, soundtracked by the voice of senior winemaker Steph Dutton. And the finale? As you might have guessed, it's a rare chance to try Penfolds Grange. But before you try the coveted bottle, you'll be thoroughly prepared, with a palate cleanser created by Magill Estate Restaurant Director and Chef Scott Huggins, in collaboration with Penfolds' Chief Winemaker Peter Gago. We can't ruin the surprise by giving you the exact details, but we do know it draws inspiration from Penfolds and Thiénot Rosé Champagne. All this will take place in Sydney Arcade at 400 George Street from Friday, May 2 to Sunday, May 11. Multiple sessions will happen daily and tickets – at $150 – are available online.
Edible wallpaper, rivers of chocolate, gigantic jelly babies. Willy Wonka’s insane creations are no longer confined to the pages of Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (or various creepy movie versions), the team at Ananas are letting you gorge on Wonka inventions in Sydney. The Rocks’ hardcore brunch enthusiasts Ananas Bar & Brasserie are hosting Willy Wonka’s Champagne Brunch, an undoubtedly Instagrammable wonderland of edible treats on Sunday, August 23. Whether you'll be surrounded by Oompa Loompas or have to keep Violet Beauregard away from the Extra remains to be seen. Fuelled by sparkling glasses of bubbly, you’ll be feasting away on Ananas’ Wonka-inspired delights, including a recreation of the chocolate river that sucked up Augustus Gloop (probably on a smaller scale). There’ll be desserts like golden macaroons, giant jelly babies, salted caramel lollipops, giant chocolate eggs, rainbow candy sweets, and a liquid nitrogen ice cream station. Plus, you can lick your way to glory with that edible wallpaper. But it’s not all sugary goodness at this Sunday brunch. There’ll be a seafood grazing station with fresh crab, oysters and house-smoked salmon, house-made charcuterie, parfaits, rillettes, terrines and ballotines. Then things get rich — there’s going to be a carvery station serving roasted pork belly with caramelised apples and crackling, roasted beef rib and Yorkshire puddings. Willy Wonka’s Champagne Brunch is happening at Ananas Bar & Brasserie on Sunday, August 23 from 11am-5pm. Tickets are $69 per person, with optional two-hour Champagne package $55 Bookings are essential over here.
Talk about a big hook: while shark movies and serial-killer films comprise their own unnerving genres, each swimming with ample must-see viewing, Dangerous Animals combines the pair into an entertaining thriller mashup. The Gold Coast-made and -set picture boasts marine predators aplenty. The real monster in the hierarchy, however, lives on land and is very much human. Indeed, in a post-Jaws world — June 2025 marks five decades since Steven Spielberg's blockbuster sparked many a permanent case of galeophobia — one of The Loved Ones and The Devil's Candy filmmaker Sean Byrne's aims with his third feature, and first in ten years, is to do justice to rather than villainise the feared toothy fish. His new antagonist: Tucker, Dangerous Animals' shark-obsessed murderer. The victim of an attack in his younger days, he's now in the cage-diving business. As viewers learn early on, tourists frequenting his boat to swim with the ocean's creatures get more than they bargained for. From Jai Courtney (American Primeval) in the part, the movie receives exactly what it needs, though: an unforgettably terrifying performance, bringing to life a figure that's charismatic from the outset, while equally unsettling from the get-go as well. Tucker charms his customers, but there's aways an edge to him. He's menacing and obsessive, and also believable and fleshed out — and a little vulnerable, too. When Dangerous Animals introduces American-in-Australia Zephyr (Hassie Harrison, Yellowstone), everyone watching knows that the dedicated surfer is bound to paddle into Tucker's orbit, even as the solo traveller is making a rare connection with local real-estate agent Moses (Josh Heuston, Heartbreak High). The screenplay by first-timer Nick Lepard obliges — but this isn't the type of film where foreseeing such a turn of events kills the tension and suspense. Although Tucker abducts Zephyr to indulge his sadistic shark-feeding ritual, she knows the true threat and isn't afraid to sink her own teeth into fighting back. An engaging big-screen experience results, as does a movie that earned a rare endorsement on its way to cinemas Down Under. At 2025's Cannes Film Festival, Dangerous Animals became the first shark film to ever grace the event's program. "To be the first shark film to be officially selected for Cannes was kind of mindblowing," Byrne tells Concrete Playground. "And to be in Directors' Fortnight as well, which traditionally is a very film-literate sidebar — but it was a great vote of confidence that, I think, the selection committee saw this as a subversion of the traditional shark film." [caption id="attachment_1009141" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Belinda Rolland © 2025.[/caption] "What I loved the most was, the Cannes experience, that was the first time that an audience had seen the finished film," Byrne continues. "So I was terrified. And because it is a very film-literate audience over there, I was thinking 'how are they going to perceive this?'. But they absolutely understood that this is just a fun, unhinged night at the movies, and really responded to that, and laughed and gasped. And we got a ten-minute standing ovation. So, yeah, it was incredibly gratifying. But to begin with I was petrified, because it was the first time that an audience had seen the finished film and on quite a big stage, so the stakes felt high." Playing Tucker, the stakes are raised for Courtney, too. It's a complex role — and one that Byrne has likened to Kathy Bates in Misery, Jack Nicholson in The Shining and Christian Bale in American Psycho. The Australian actor, making his second homegrown flick in succession after the immensely different, family-friendly Runt, hasn't shied away from playing the bad guy across his career so far. Here, the IRL true-crime fan was excited about the many layers to his Dangerous Animals part, as he adds to an on-screen resume that began two decades back in short Boys Grammar — and has spanned the likes of Jack Reacher, A Good Day to Die Hard, Terminator Genisys, the Divergent movies and two Suicide Squad entries in Hollywood. Is a willingness to get dark behind the range of antagonistic parts to Courtney's name? "I think it's just something that's started to happen. You find things that are in your wheelhouse," he advises. "And I'm not afraid of that or necessarily in search of it, either. It's just that, I guess, things that tend to be the stuff that come my way, that meet up with where my interests are, happen to be that way. But the goal for me is just to try and shake it up whenever I can. And fortunately films like Runt come along and I get to play a loving father of two, and completely depart from this world whatsoever. As long as I pepper a few of those in here and there, hopefully I'm not pigeonholed too heavily." A premise like Dangerous Animals' is a rarity, no matter how common both shark and serial-killer fare are separately. Yes, for both Byrne and Courtney, that's a drawcard. Respecting the film's sea-dwelling creatures, complete with using real animal footage as much as possible, was another key element for its director. So was the fact that this is as much a movie about the importance of love, and the power that someone believing in you can give. For its star, Tucker's dance sequence to Steve Wright's 'Evie' wasn't a motivating factor — but it's one of the film's most-memorable moments in a flick filled with them. We also chatted with Byrne and Courtney about the above, unpacking Australian larrikins and ideas around Aussie masculinity, how starring in a shark picture leaves you feeling about them and their career journeys as well, among other subjects. On the First Reaction When a Horror Movie About a Shark-Obsessed Serial Killer Stalking the Gold Coast — and About Man Being the Real Monster, Too — Comes Your Way Jai: "I think I read something that felt really original. It was a great story and had really strong characters at the centre of it, which is a sort of immediate way in — because I think with something like this, you get a loose logline before you're about to crack it open and it's like 'okay, it could go either way'. But Nick Lepard, who wrote our script, had really done a lot of work in giving these characters maybe a bit more depth than you'd come to expect from a film of this nature. And I think that's what made it a bit of a unique experience, and certainly made it appealing to me to want to get involved with. I think Tucker, he's so much more than the shark-obsessed serial killer. And we don't get to explore tons of his backstory, but there is a lot of colour to him, and I think seeing a chance to bring all that to life with this undertone of his morally ambiguous intentions was what really attracted me to it. And then, just speaking to Sean and kind of getting on common ground as far as what we thought was necessary for him. I didn't want this character to feel like a broad-strokes-washed-over-evil-intentions guy. If that was the movie he was trying to make, I don't think I would have been there. But I think we both wanted him to feel like there was a sort of deception there. And it had to feel fun. I wanted it to feel familiar and uniquely Australian, but also the genre speaks to the world, and we play into all the classic tropes that you might expect. It also does a good job of not taking yourself too seriously. There's a few winks to the audience in this film, where I think if you get onboard — it's why it's so important to see it with an audience, too, I really believe, because there's an energy to it that when you're sharing the space with others who are on the same ride, it becomes really palpable." Sean: "I tend to write my own scripts, much to the frustration of my agent and manager. And then this crossed my desk, and immediately I was just struck by the high-concept of serial killer film meets shark film. And I thought 'why hasn't anyone done this?', especially when you had the fact that this is the first shark film where the sharks aren't really the antagonist — man is. So I felt like Nick Lepard had actually kind of cracked the code. Because, Jaws masterpiece though it is, has done such a disservice to the sharks, where the same formula has been followed over and over again to the point that sharks are beginning to become an endangered species — because it was so culturally seismic. And so to get this shark film that was unlike any other shark film, but also had a conservation angle — but on top of that, was just a wild, fun night at the movies — it was just irresistible.' On Exploring Tucker's Layers — Including His Childhood Shark Attack and the Physical Scars It Left, Plus the Trauma, Vulnerability and Emotional Damage — All While He Remains a Shark-Obsessed Serial Killer Jai: "You just have to find the quiet moments and allow them to be there without trying to sell it too hard. The camera is an interesting thing, because it sees things that are saved for the audience for later. It's not like on set — you can't kind of like sell it all for the people that are in the room. And I think Tucker, there's an opportunity with him sometimes — where even just his response to certain comments made by Zephyr, or questions he's asked by Heather [Ella Newton, Girl at the Window] in the start of the film, there's things that can be quite potent. I just wanted to find opportunities with him to reveal a bit of his tenderness. And I think that's the thing that, for me, was like the gateway into figuring out who he was — is like this wound. We don't get to hear a lot about it in the film. There's one moment that sort of touches on it. But there's a bit of arrested development. He's stuck in a place where he was abandoned as a kid, and this somewhat otherworldly encounter touched him, and that's by way of being victim of an attack. But it almost made him feel chosen in a way. And so a lot of that is really just figuring out the path for yourself, where you're going 'alright, here's this bloke who's got this gaping wound in him, this trauma, but feels this immense connection to the animal'. All of that is just sort of say that he's found a crusade for himself that feels real. And it might be misguided, but he has a true belief in it. And so there you have the building blocks of who he might be, and then the fun part is stacking on the colourful bits on top. Even just costume and makeup and finding his look, finding the shape of his body — I mean, that for me, it's all part of building who Tucker is, and I wanted him to feel like a real salty, kind of born-out-of-the-marina, familiar Australian figure." On Courtney's Chance to Turn in a Horror Performance That Aims to Be as Memorable as Kathy Bates in Misery and Jack Nicholson in The Shining Jai: "Oh no, I didn't really approach it with any of that in mind. I just approached it with a goal to just do something that was dynamic and big, and get to explore all the corners of this human, really. And I think Sean and I were onboard with each other, and there was an immediate trust. And I think he let me — I was kind of like 'you help me with the temperature, and the volume of where we're pulling moments up and down and in and out, and I'll take care of sending it as hard as I think it needs to'. I mean, the material is there. But that stuff is a blueprint, it's not prescriptive. Every actor is going to come and do that with their own instincts. I saw a version of it in my head when I first read it, and I felt like that was the version that would work for the film. And fortunately I was given the chance to do it, and I'm proud with what we came up with." Sean: "I think any kind of horror film that stands the test of time, the antagonist haunts the audience's nightmares well after they've left the cinema. But I wanted it to be a great time as well. You think of Hannibal Lecter, and as disturbing as he is, he's fun. And Kathy Bates in particular, that character is just so wonderfully goofy, and she doesn't swear. And there's a certain theatricality to antagonists in commercial horror films, and we really wanted to aim for that and keep it fun. But also, the great thing about Jai is he's such a great character actor. I knew he would bring emotional nuance to the character where it was required — and capture the broken child inside the man, and point to this shark attack that he'd had as a child and capture all that. But also, he was also Captain Boomerang. He's got this wild charisma that reminded me of kind of Eric Bana in Chopper. And that's how the spider catches the fly, with charisma and letting tourists, they let their guard down. And finally, he's physically really intimidating and genuine — he could kill you with one punch. So I just thought combining the charisma with the kind of character actor that he is and the physical intimidation would be a really electric mix, to the point that I thought that this was the role that he was born to play. And so I was so thankful that we got him." On What Goes Into a Good Dance Sequence for Courtney, Given That He's in Quite the Unforgettable One in Dangerous Animals Jai: "God, I couldn't even tell you. I was daunted by that whole thing, because I'm by no means a dancer and it should never be filmed when I'm dancing. But we knew what it wanted to feel like. It's completely unchoreographed and just improvised. Tucker's kind of having this wrap party for his own little film that he's made, and it's a private look at this person in a light that we don't really get to spend a lot of time with them outside of that moment in the film. That needle drop of 'Evie' was written into the script. I know that song very well. I could already see it and hear and feel it. And I didn't plan any of it. I just had to go in, get in that mindset that he's in that night and just go for it. I think we did it in two takes. We did one, and we just ran it again from a different angle, and it was just me and Shelly [Farthing-Dawe, In Vitro], our cinematographer, with a handheld camera in the space. It was kind of like 'what we get is what we get'. And fortunately it turned out to be something really fun." On Unpacking Australian Larrikins and Ideas Around Aussie Masculinity Through Tucker Sean: "I think we've all had that kind of tour-guide experience. It doesn't necessarily need to be a shark-diving boat, but we're always in the hands of the tour guide. So yeah, there was that, but also he's almost an outdated representation of the kind of masculinity or toxic masculinity that I think the film works as a Trojan horse to say that this is something that needs to be kind of defeated. And Moses, in many ways, is the anti-Tucker. But I think it's inherent in the title. It's called Dangerous Animals. He is definitely more dangerous than what's in the water. But ultimately, I think Zephyr is the most-dangerous animal — and the allegory is she needs to defeat this. This is something that needs to be defeated. His philosophy needs to be destroyed." On Whether Being a True-Crime Fan Helps When You're Portraying a Serial Killer Jai: "I think so. I think I leant on my curiosity for people that are capable of things that we can't quite understand. And yeah, I do just have a fascination with it. It's one of those things where I think it's easy to judge that and feel like for some reason you're excusing these behaviours, or we're glorifying it or whatever — but I don't know, I've just always been fascinated by how close we might get to people that are capable of these crazy things without even knowing it. And that's interesting to me. You know, you don't really know who you're sitting next to on the bus or in a pub or whatever, and for some reason that doesn't terrify me — it intrigues me. There's not a story you could tell me that's too dark. I'm kind of here for it in a strange way. So yeah, I guess it led me in a little bit. But even with Tucker, the experience of shooting it, there were moments that hit a limit. There's a night we had where Ella Newton, who plays Heather, is strung up in the harness over the open water in the middle of the night, screaming for her life — and everyone was squirming, honestly, after a few minutes. We were all kind of, the whole crew, myself included, we're just like 'can we make this stop? This is too much'. And it's a testament to her performance and what she was giving it. But yeah, when your disbelief is suspended somewhat, even as a performer, you know you're stepping into wild territory." On the Importance of This Being Not Just a Killer Shark Flick and a Serial-Killer Movie, But Also a Survivalist Thriller, Plus a Film About Love and Finding Someone Who Helps You Believe in Yourself Sean: "Oh absolutely. I'm so glad you said that, because I think that's almost a central theme — that it's about love, or the difference that love can make in a life, and what an absence of love can do to a person as well. And I think it's this collision course between these two broken people that have had to learn to survive on their own, which actually sharks do. They're birthed in the shallows, and then they're left on their own to survive. So in many ways, Zephyr and Tucker know each other better than anyone else on the planet does — in a similar way to De Niro and Pacino doing Heat. Even though they're opposites and they're trying to kill each other, it's like, well, they actually understand each other as well. I think ultimately, Zephyr uses the ocean to ease her loneliness, and she uses it in a way that's about solace — whereas Tucker takes advantage of the ocean, ultimately, and it comes back to bite him." On How Making a Film About Sharks — Even When They're Not the Villain of the Movie — Leaves You Feeling About Them Afterwards Jai: "Sharks are scary. Let's get one thing straight, right: I don't think anyone's not scared of sharks. Maybe there are people out there that have a completely different affinity with them, but I don't need to come closer than anyone should. I would love to cage dive with whites. I've been in a tank, in a cage with some sharks, but they weren't exactly maneaters, so, you know, I wasn't in fear of my life. But there's something so incredible and mythical about giant beasts that could consume humans, that I think it's rare — that's sort of a rare quality on this earth. You think of big cats and maybe bears, and other than that, there's things that will kind of poison you. But sharks are a very unique threat, and they live in a world that we really can't get too close to or understand. So I think there's always going to be this quality to that that keeps people in fear. But they're beautiful. And nature is beautiful. And it's just the nature things. There's a line in the movie about it not being the shark's fault, Tucker references his own, being the victim of his own attack, and yeah, that is the case — it isn't." On How Crucial It Was to Use Real Shark Footage, Including to Dispel the Notion That They're Villainous Creatures Sean: "I feel like shark films recently have become so reliant on CGI, just because you can have lots of them in the shot. And they tend to be super sleek and more like a video game. But since Jaws, there's been so much overfishing of sharks. And they carry scars the same way that we do. And so I wanted to present them in a kind of documentary, real light — because our scars as humans are a big part of our personality. So I wanted to depict that with the sharks and show them as the majestic creatures that they truly are. And the only way to do that is treat them with the respect and show them for real. So 80 percent of the sharks that you see are real. Everything underwater is real. It's all taken from 4K footage that our shark researcher sourced to match storyboards and photographic references. The only CG is the fins above the water, because it's pretty much impossible to cover the intricate shark blocking with real shark fins. And all the shark photography really happens underwater because no one ever captures fins. So that was a necessity. But yeah, it just felt like I hadn't seen that in a shark film for such a long time, just real sharks in their element and appreciating them in all their beauty." [caption id="attachment_804997" align="alignnone" width="1920"] The Suicide Squad[/caption] On How Courtney's Franchise Experience in Everything From Die Hard and Terminator Flicks to the Divergent Series, Jack Reacher and Suicide Squad Helps on a Film Like Dangerous Animals Jai: "Filmmaking is weirdly all the same. Your experience of it might change because the budget is different, but that's really not — you're just telling different stories. It doesn't really get better or worse. Maybe some people wouldn't like to work on a film of this size and give up a few basic luxuries, but that doesn't really — having more money to spend on screen doesn't make something more fulfilling to make. Sometimes it's just the bare-bones stuff where the story is as good as it gets and the character's really well rounded out and you're working with a phenomenal director, and it can be a really contained drama, but it's just as alive to shoot because of what we do as storytellers, as people that play dress ups. And it's all make believe. It's nice to put a big costume on sometimes and jump around on huge stunt rigs, and get to be involved with epic crash sequences or whatever. It's a lot of fun. But I enjoy the intimate, small stuff just as much. I guess I'm fortunate to be able to shake it up and operate in many different spaces." On What It Means to Courtney to Be Able to Come Home and Make Films That Are as Diverse as Runt and Dangerous Animals Jai: "It's everything. I hope that never ever ends. Australia's such a great place to work. I love the crews there. I've been fortunate to be part of some really special films — and I don't think it'll ever change. As long as we keep telling stories, I'll keep wanting to be involved." On Byrne's Journey From The Loved Ones Through The Devil's Candy to Dangerous Animals Sean: "I think it's probably a perception out there that if you do something that a lot of people end up seeing and gets some kind of cult status, that there's going to be money on tap. And the unfortunate reality is if you write original films about humans hunting other humans, they're not that easy to get off the ground. That's why there's more supernatural films than there are serial-killer films, because it's easier to blame the devil. In fact, I kind of had to do that in The Devil's Candy to get the money. So I've written constantly in the years between The Loved Ones and The Devil's Candy, and The Devil's Candy and Dangerous Animals, and optioned all of my scripts. But then Hollywood is so risk-averse, that that's why they want something that can mitigate the risk and justify their decision. Hence it's got to be either IP-driven or a sequel, or kind of supernatural — and that's why I was so thrilled when this crossed my desk. I had another film that was a lower budget that actually got the money at the same time as Dangerous Animals. So after all that time, it was like an embarrassment of riches. But Dangerous Animals felt the most-commercial choice, just because it's a shark film that has a very loyal following, plus it's a serial- killer film. And I was really happy to have that safety net that I could explore the extreme nature of man, but have the loyal shark fans to hold it up." On How Courtney Sees His Path From His First Screen Acting Role Two Decades Back, Through Huge Hollywood Franchises, Comedies, Local Fare and Much In-Between Jai: "I don't know. I'm still figuring it out, I think. Just trying to stay engaged with the material that I'm choosing nowadays. I'm a big believer in it all being part of the story, and there's some elements of that that you can control and a lot you have none over. So, I don't know, man. It gets tough out there. I'm just really grateful to get to do this for a living. There's nothing else I would be doing or ever will. [caption id="attachment_884171" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Kaleidoscope. Cr. Courtesy of Netflix © 2022.[/caption] And I really am in touch with that gratitude when I'm working. It's a real pleasure to get to do this. So I'm just trucking along, trying to keep growing as an artist — and try to hopefully do stuff that I'm thrilled to roll out of bed and get to involve myself in." Dangerous Animals opened in cinemas Down Under on Thursday, June 12, 2025.
Back in the late 90s, there was a period when every second film was a disaster film, or so it seemed. Independence Day, Daylight, twin volcano flicks Dante's Peak and Volcano, Hard Rain, duelling death-from-above movies Deep Impact and Armageddon: they all kept unleashing chaos upon the earth on the big screen. Also among them, and proving a whirlwind box-office hit: Twister. Come July 2024, that tornado-chasing picture starring Helen Hunt (Blindspotting) and Bill Paxton (The Circle) will no longer be a once-off. Cue Twisters, a sequel that arrives 28 years after the initial feature to turn it into a franchise — because everyone knows that if this followup swirls up huge audience interest, more will likely follow. Alongside Deadpool & Wolverine and Wicked: Part One, Twisters unveiled its first trailer during the 2024 Super Bowl, introducing Glen Powell's (Anyone But You) character as a "tornado wrangler" in the process. There's also twin twisters, plenty of chasing them and a whole heap of fellow familiar faces getting swept up in the action Story-wise, the film follows an ex-storm chaser played by Where the Crawdads Sing's Daisy Edgar-Jones, who has to join forces with a cavalier colleague (Powell) thanks to an intense season that sparks weather that no one has seen before. They each have teams by their side, and both end up on a path to central Oklahoma, where the bulk of the chaos looks set to converge. Also featuring on-screen: Anthony Ramos (Dumb Money), Kiernan Shipka (Totally Killer), Sasha Lane (How to Blow Up a Pipeline), Daryl McCormack (Bad Sisters), Brandon Perea (Nope), Nik Dodani (Atypical) and Maura Tierney (The Iron Claw). The fact that Lee Isaac Chung is behind the lens is no small detail, either, marking the filmmaker's first feature since Minari, which nabbed him Oscar nominations for Best Director and Best Original Screenplay. Check out the trailer for Twisters below: Twisters will release in cinemas Down Under on July 18, 2024.
It's been a long time between drinks for Sydney dance floors and, if you regularly parked yourself in front of the DJ in your pre-COVID-19 life, you might be on the hunt for a dance-filled night now that restrictions have been rolled back. The Lansdowne has you covered with its weekly indie dance nights courtesy of party collective All My Friends. In recent years, All My Friends has hosted club nights across Sydney. Most recently, it had found its home at The Bank's upstairs space Waywards for weekly nights — pre-pandemic, that is. Now, the club night has now found a new berth at The Lansdowne. To kick things off, it returns this weekend for eight hours of good music and even better dance moves. Expect to hear tunes from the likes of The Chemical Brothers, Tame Impala, Robyn, Glass Animals, Phoenix and Rufus. Obviously, that list goes on. The dance floor will be open and tunes will be blaring from 9pm–5am on Saturday, April 3 — and entry is free. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J294A-R1Cjk
Winning the GABS Hottest 100 Aussie Craft Beers poll for 2023, Mountain Culture's Status Quo Pale Ale is living up to its name. The tipple from the New South Wales brewery in the Blue Mountains was also anointed 2022's top drop. So, from that ranking to the just-announced new countdown — which was unveiled on Saturday, January 27, 2024 — the existing state of affairs has indeed been maintained. When the end of January rolls around in Australia, folks get a-counting — and brews sit alongside tunes. The nation loves working through the top 100 songs of the past year thanks to Triple J's huge annual music poll, and has for decades. And, it loves celebrating the beers that everyone is likely sipping while listening to that countdown, which is where GABS' ranking of Aussie craft beers has come in for 16 years now. This yeasty poll does for beer what the other Hottest 100 does for bangers, and it loves repeat winners. In both 2020 and 2021, Canberra's Bentspoke Brewing Co did the honours with its Crankshaft American IPA. In 2022 and 2023, that brew came in third instead. Mountain Culture also bested 2017 and 2018 winner Balter Brewing Company for the second year running, with its Balter XPA notching up second position in 2022 and 2023. And, it beat out Your Mates Brewing Co, which nabbed fourth place this year. In fifth: Bridge Road Brewers' Beechworth pale ale. The rest of the top ten includes Gage Roads Brewing Co's Single Fin Summer Ale in sixth, Coopers Brewery's Original Pale Ale in seventh and Stone & Wood Brewing Co's Pacific Ale — the winner of the 2011, 2015, 2016 and 2019 polls; 2020's second-place getter; and 2021 and 2022's fourth beer on the list — in eighth. Young Henrys sits ninth with Newtowner, while Pirate Life Brewing came in tenth with its South Coast pale ale. Mountain Culture, which is run by husband-and-wife team DJ & Harriet McCready, also placed 22nd with its Cult IPA, 41st with its Be Kind Rewind NEIPA and 46th with its Summer Pale Ale. Obviously, it made more than a little company. 2023's hottest 100 was whittled down from 436 vote-receiving breweries and 1877 of their beers. From that hefty list of contenders, 63 different breweries scored a spot on the full list of 100 brews. That covers 27 beers from NSW, 24 from Queensland and 22 from Victoria, plus 11 from Western Australia, and eight each from the ACT and South Australia. 2023's rundown saw quite the turnover in tipples, too, with 28 of 2022's top brews dropping out and being replaced in 2023's rundown. Held by GABS — or the annual festival also known as the Great Australian Beer SpecTAPular, which returns for 2023 this May and June — the countdown is a people's-choice poll decided by booze lovers around the country. If you're thinking "less background, more beer", here's what you've been waiting for: the rundown of the best beverages from the past year that just keep tempting tastebuds. Working your way through the whole 100 isn't just a great way to show your appreciation for locally made brews, either — consider it research for the 2024 countdown. GABS Hottest 100 Aussie Craft Beers of 2023: 1. Mountain Culture Beer Co — Status Quo Pale Ale 2. Balter Brewing — Balter XPA 3. BentSpoke Brewing Co — Crankshaft 4. Your Mates Brewing Co — Larry 5. Bridge Road Brewers — Beechworth Pale Ale 6. Gage Roads Brewing Co — Single Fin Summer Ale 7. Coopers Brewery — Original Pale Ale 8. Stone & Wood Brewing Co — Pacific Ale 9. Young Henrys — Newtowner 10. Pirate Life Brewing — South Coast Pale Ale 11. Philter Brewing — XPA 12. Black Hops Brewing — G.O.A.T. 13. Little Creatures — Pale Ale 14. Beerfarm — Royal Haze 15. Capital Brewing Co — Coast Ale 16. Range Brewing — Disco 17. 4 Pines Brewing Company — Pacific Ale 18. 10 Toes Brewery — Pipeline 19. The Grifter Brewing Co — Grifter Pale 20. Rocky Ridge Brewing Co — Jindong Juicy 21. Coopers Brewery — Sparkling Ale 22. Mountain Culture Beer Co — Cult IPA 23. Balter Brewing — Eazy Hazy 24. Stomping Ground Brewing Co — Gipps St Pale Ale 25. Moffat Beach Brewing Co — Passenger Pale Ale 26. Mountain Goat Beer — GOAT Very Enjoyable Beer 27. Better Beer — Better Beer Zero Carb 28. Blackflag Brewing — Rage Juicy Pale 29. Heads Of Noosa Brewing Co — Japanese Style Lager 30. Blackman's Brewery — Juicy Banger IPL 31. Green Beacon Brewing Co — Wayfarer Tropical Pale Ale 32. Heaps Normal — Quiet XPA 33. KAIJU! Beer — KRUSH! Tropical Pale Ale 34. CBCo Brewing — CBCo Pale Ale 35. Matso's Broome Brewery — Mango Beer 36. Feral Brewing Co — Biggie Juice 37. Hawkers Beer — West Coast IPA 38. Bright Brewery — Alpine Lager 39. Brick Lane Brewing Co — One Love Pale Ale 40. One Drop Brewing Co — We Jammin' 41. Mountain Culture Beer Co — Be Kind Rewind 42. Balter Brewing — Hazy 43. BentSpoke Brewing Co — Barley Griffin 44. Capital Brewing Co — Capital XPA 45. Balter Brewing — Cerveza 46. Mountain Culture Beer Co — Summer Pale Ale 47. James Squire — One Fifty Lashes 48. Your Mates Brewing Co — Sally 49. Gage Roads Brewing Co — Side Track All Day XPA 50. Little Bang Brewing Co — Sun Bear 51. Hop Nation Brewing Co — Rattenhund Classic Pilsner 52. Hiker Brewing Co — Cloudscapes 53. Bodriggy Brewing Company — Speccy Juice 54. Akasha Brewing Co — Super Chill Pacific Ale 55. Hop Nation Brewing Co — J-Juice Hazy IPA 56. Range Brewing — Lights + Music 57. Seeker Brewing — Mystic NEIPA 58. Heads Of Noosa Brewing Co — Black Japanese Lager 59. White Rabbit — Dark Ale 60. Bridge Road Brewers — Bling IPA 61. Coopers Brewery — Australian Lager 62. The Grifter Brewing Co — Serpents Kiss 63. Dainton Beer — Blood Orange NEIPA 64. Moon Dog Craft Brewery — Old Mate 65. Hawke's Brewing — Hawke's Patio Pale 66. Shout Brewing Co — Mullet Pale Ale 67. Modus Brewing — Modus Cerveza 68. Deeds Brewing — Juice Train 69. Coopers Brewery — XPA 70. Kosciuszko Brewing Co — Kosciuszko Pale Ale 71. Black Hops Brewing — East Coast Haze 72. Balter Brewing — Captain Sensible 73. 4 Pines Brewing Company — Japanese Lager 74. Stone & Wood Brewing Co — Hinterland Hazy Pale Ale 75. BentSpoke Brewing Co — Sprocket 76. Capital Brewing Co — Hang Loose Juice Hazy IPA 77. Little Creatures — Rogers 78. Sunday Road Brewing — Cryotherapy 79. Rocky Ridge Brewing Co — Rock Candy 80. Margaret River Beer Co — In the Pines 81. Big Shed Brewing Concern — Boozy Fruit 82. Blackflag Brewing — Affinity Tropical Pale 83. Lord Nelson Brewery Hotel — Three Sheets Pale Ale 84. Brouhaha Brewery — Strawberry Rhubarb Sour 85. Helios Brewing Co — Dionysus Oat Cream DIPA 86. Banks Brewing — Cake Eater 87. Coopers Brewery — Best Extra Stout 88. 4 Pines Brewing Co — Hazy Pale Ale 89. Fixation Brewing Co — Fixation IPA 90. Little Creatures — Little Hazy Lager 91. Bad Shepherd Brewing Co — Peanut Butter Porter 92. CBCo Brewing — CBCo IPA 93. Yulli's Brews — Amanda Mandarin IPA 94. Stone & Wood Brewing Co — Cloud Catcher 95. Moffat Beach Brewing Co — Moff's Summer Ale 96. Capital Brewing Co — Trail Pale Ale 97. Young Henrys — Hazy Pale Ale 98. Wolf of the Willows Brewing — Wolf PUP Hazy Pale Ale 99. Range Brewing — Dripping in Green: Citra 100. Your Mates Brewing Co — Macca For more information about the GABS Hottest 100 Aussie Craft Beers of 2023, head to the GABS website.
Take a must-visit Paris art museum, an acclaimed Victorian gallery, an iconic French painter and one of the world's most influential architects, mix them all together, and Australia's latest huge exhibition is the end result. So is something unsurprisingly stunning: the world premiere of Pierre Bonnard: Designed by India Mahdavi at the NGV International in Melbourne. The National Gallery of Victoria's revolving door of blockbuster exhibitions shows no sign of slowing, with this exceptional meeting of creative minds gracing its halls from Friday, June 9–Sunday, October 8. When the temperature dips each year, the Melbourne Winter Masterpieces series kicks in — and, as created in collaboration with the Musée d'Orsay, home to the world's largest collection of Bonnard works, this ode to Bonnard and Mahdavi is the current centrepiece. On display: more than 100 pieces by the famed French artist, but seen through a fresh lens. Helping provide that new perspective is scenography by internationally renowned architect and designer Mahdavi, in a major showcase that was originally slated to debut in 2020 before the pandemic did its thing. An icon of late 19th- and early 20th-century art, and a good mate of Henri Matisse, Bonnard is known for his colourful, textural depictions of French life, offering stylised yet subtle glimpses of intimate domestic scenes, urban backdrops and natural landscapes. Pierre Bonnard: Designed by India Mahdavi includes a hefty collection of the artist's own paintings, drawings, photographs, prints and other decorative objects, alongside works from his contemporaries — including Édouard Vuillard, Maurice Denis, Félix Vallotton and cinematic pioneers the Lumière brothers. Attendees can expect to step through Bonnard's early artistic days in the 1890s, highlighting his focus on Parisian street life; his evolution from there, including when he started focusing on more domestic scenes as inspired by his relationship with his companion Marthe Bonnard; and his love of landscape, especially from 1910 onwards, and as influenced by his fellow pal Claude Monet. Numerous pieces are on loan from the Musée d'Orsay, as well as other museums and private collections in Europe, Australia and the USA. The NGV's own collection also includes significant works, however, including Bonnard's 1900 painting La Sieste (Siesta). Considered one of the world's most influential architects, multi-award-winning Mahdavi has been commissioned to help bring the historic pieces to life via her scenography, tasked with creating a setting that complements Bonnard's signature use of colour and light. The results aren't just spectacular — they're dreamy. Images: Installation view of Pierre Bonnard: Designed by India Mahdavi, on display from June 9–October 8, 2023 at NGV International, Melbourne. Photos: Lillie Thompson.
The weather outside may be frightful, but the banter with your mates is always delightful. It's well past time to invite your favourites over for a catch-up and a tipple. Want to impress your mates with your cocktail prowess? Check out these twists on classic cocktails — an ideal way to elevate your evening in. Pick your spirit and let's get mixing. TEQUILA — TEQUILA AND CHILL Instead of the classic paloma or tequila mockingbird, surprise your guests with a sophisticated spin on both with the addition of Chambord to your tequila of choice. Ingredients - 45ml Herradura Plata Tequila - 15ml Chambord - Cranberry juice - Lemonade/lemon soda - Mint leaves - Fresh lime Method Add Herradura Plata, Chambord, mint leaves and two squeezed lime wedges to a tall or highball glass. To increase the mint flavour, clap the leaves in your hands first — you might look silly, but it works. Fill the glass with ice and top with equal parts cranberry juice and lemonade. Stir to combine and garnish with a sprig of fresh mint, rosemary and lime wheel or go the extra mile with a dehydrated lime wheel. To make the dehydrated lime wheel, either use a dehydrator (obvious) or place lime wheels in a low-temperature oven for a few hours until all the juice has evaporated and you're left with a crisp garnish. GIN — EURO SUMMER Everyone seems to be jetting off for their European summer. Bring a taste of the Mediterranean to your chilly apartment with this cocktail. The secret is using a gin that is made with botanicals that evoke tastes of the Italian coastline. Gin Mare fits the bill as it uses olives, basil and other fresh herbs for its botanicals. Pair with some bruschetta and tiramisu and rug up with your blanket and imagine you're summering in Europe with your mates. Ingredients - 60ml Gin Mare - 30ml Lemon juice - 20ml Sugar syrup - Fresh basil and rosemary Method Grab your cocktail shaker and add all the ingredients. Shake and strain using a fine mesh strainer into a chilled glass filled with ice. Garnish with a sprig of fresh rosemary and enjoy. RUM — WINTER SWIZZLE Rum is a dark spirit that showing up more and more on drinks lists in the city. It's a sweet alternative to peaty scotch or fragrant gin and is perfect for cooler nights. You could go for a classic dark 'n stormy or Moscow Mule, but if you want to elevate your evening, try this spin on a swizzle. Ingredients - 60ml Diplomático Rum - 10ml sugar syrup - Two dashes of aromatic bitters - 15ml cloudy apple juice Method Rum Swizzle recipes vary, but most have three ingredients in common: rum, fruit juice and a sweetener. To make this wintry version, add all ingredients to a chilled rocks glass, add ice and stir to combine. Top with fresh ice and a twist of orange peel or cinnamon stick. WHISKY — SCOTCH CITRUS SODA Sometimes the answer isn't a hot toddy, although they are always a good call when the winter chill sets in. If you have a scotch in your collection that you've been looking for a nice way to enjoy, why not opt for this citrusy take on a whisky soda? Perfect for cooler arvos on your (or your mate's balcony). Ingredients - 45ml Glendronach 12 yo - Fever Tree Clementine (orange tonic water) - Two dashes of aromatic bitters Method Get your highball glass and add ice. Pour in your scotch, orange tonic water and a couple of dashes of bitters. Stir to combine and garnish with a fresh orange slice. Go a step further and pair with baked brie with marmalade and walnuts. BOURBON — CANDY CANE Bourbon is a great cocktail base. Arguably some of the best and classic cocktails came from the States and so it isn't a surprise that their spirit is perfect for the practice with its smooth vanilla notes and slightly sweet characters. Instead of going down the savoury cocktail route, ramp up the sweetness and toast to your mates with this tasty, fruity and sweet spin on a whisky sour. Ingredients - 45ml Jack Daniel's Bonded - 15ml Chambord - 30ml lemon juice - 20ml sugar syrup - 15ml egg white or aquafaba (aka the juice from a can of chickpeas) - Two dashes of chocolate bitters Method Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker without ice and shake vigorously to get the egg white or aquafaba nice and foamy. Add ice and shake again. Strain through a fine strainer into a rocks glass filled with fresh ice. Garnish with a dehydrated lemon wheel, or amp up the berry flavours of the Chambord with fresh raspberries. Top Image: Gin Mare.
Following a multi-million-dollar transformation, Western Sydney's much-loved Carousel Inn has been reborn as The Woodstock, a sprawling, family-friendly destination designed to be a new community hub for Rooty Hill and the city's fast-growing northwest. At the heart of the new-look pub is a Mediterranean-inspired bistro serving generous, crowd-pleasing dishes. Expect woodfired pizzas, dedicated burger and schnitzel selections — including a veal schnitty cooked on the bone — plus desserts like a classic lemon tart and a chocolate and cherry bomb for two. All dishes on the kids' menu are priced at $12 and include a free drink, making it a welcoming spot for families any night of the week. Beyond the bistro, The Woodstock features a range of new spaces to suit just about every mood and occasion. The Garden Bar is a sun-drenched outdoor spot for after-work drinks and weekend catch-ups, while the Sports Bar comes kitted out with big screens, high-top seating and a lively game-day atmosphere. There's also a purpose-built events space on-site, accommodating up to 250 guests and designed for a range of events, from weddings and milestone birthdays to community gatherings. With seating for up to 600 people, earthy terracotta tones, lime-washed finishes and warm timber details, The Woodstock has been thoughtfully designed to feel like a true local. Add in a sprawling kids' playground with slides, climbing walls, talking tubes and a games corner, and you've got a failsafe Western Sydney go-to for all-ages dining and entertainment.
After expanding south to Melbourne late last year, Camperdown's Acre Eatery has ventured north and opened a sprawling plant-filled restaurant on Sydney's lower north shore. Spread across 2000 square metres with 400 seats all up, Acre Artarmon is designed to educate and inspire its visitors, while putting them back in touch with the terroir of their food. That said, it's not just a restaurant, either. It's also a bakery, cafe, terrace bar and greenhouse-style functions space, surrounding by sprawling indoor and outdoor gardens. First up is the Atrium cafe and bakery, which is serving up all of the usual suspects — croissants, pastries, country-style pies and sausage rolls — alongside salads and baguettes for lunch. Cuppas by Sydney's Gypsy Coffee Roasters are also on offer, as is house-made gelato (in flavours like pavlova and banana dulce de leche). Italiano restaurant, which is opening this Friday, November 6, features dishes made using sustainably sourced produce. For starters, think local burrata, salmon crudo and peach prosciutto. There's also a pizza oven slinging a three simple Neapolitan-style pies — margherita, prawn and prosciutto — and a lineup of seasonal pasta dishes, which currently includes spanner crab linguine and bucatini carbonara with zucchini flowers. Larger plates feature whole john dory in a brown butter, lemon and caper sauce, spicy woodfired eggplant with pine nuts and ricotta, and a cotoletta to share, made using ethically raised chicken that's been stuffed with fontina and finished with burnt sage from the kitchen garden. If you want to try a bit of everything, the banquet menu will sort you out. The cocktail list is also Italian-inspired, with barrel-aged negronis and seasonal spritzes (think native flavours like lemon verbena) sitting alongside less popular tipples. Those include the garibaldi — which uses gin from neighbouring distillery Finders, plus Campari and freshly squeezed orange juice — and the sgroppino (vodka, prosecco, lemon sorbet and fresh mint). You can enjoy these drinks in the restaurant or the adjoining greenery-filled terrace. Designed by Sydney interior design studio Etic (Barangaroo House), the spaces are filled with curved planter banquettes surrounded by banana trees and a water fountain that doubles as seats, as well as greenery aplenty, with bougainvillea, fruit trees and vertical planters all making the cut. Apart from Acre's gardens, the space features a chicken coop, worm farm, community compost area and kids' playground. Guided tours, chefs' demonstrations, long lunches and meet-the-maker events will all be on the docket as well. Find Acre Artarmon at 1 Frederick Street, Artarmon. The cafe is open from 7am–5pm Monday–Saturday and 7am–3pm Sunday, and the restaurant and terrace are open 4.30–10.30pm Thursday, 12–11pm Friday–Saturday and 12–4pm Sunday.
In 2013, 300 people danced to Kate Bush's 'Wuthering Heights' in a field — and in 2022, the idea is back and bigger than ever. Yes, The Most Wuthering Heights Day Ever is happening in Sydney again from 12pm on Saturday, July 30. Yes, everyone should be dressed as Kate Bush, complete with a red dress, red stockings and black belt (men, that means you as well). On the day, a clowder (that's the collective noun for Kate Bushes, just FYI) will descend upon St Peters and copy Bush's swaying, kicky dance in unison just for the pure joy of it. Support for this weird and wonderful outing has been widespread, and Kate Bush fans from around the world have been inspired to create events in their home cities. So get your gear together (dressmakers are usually flooded with orders for the day) and ready yourself to roll and fall in green, out on the wily, windy moors of Sydney Park. If you need an incentive — other than the event itself, of course — it's now 44 years since the song was first released. Also, this year's celebration of all things Kate Bush is taking place on the British musician's birthday. And, if you've watched the first seven episodes of Stranger Things' fourth season, you're probably now a Kate Bush obsessive if you weren't already before. Running up that hill beforehand (whichever hill you like) isn't compulsory, but it feels fitting. And yes, when it comes to Kate Bush worship, she sang it best herself : don't give up.
When Ben & Jerry's wanted to call for action on climate change, it stuck to its strengths, releasing a new ice cream flavour to draw attention to the topic. When it wanted to specifically target the Australian Government's support for fossil fuels, it did the same as well. But, in its latest effort to support renewables, the dessert brand has decided to branch out. Its new release won't just satisfy your sweet tooth — it'll also quench your thirst. For a limited time, Ben & Jerry's beloved choc chip cookie dough flavour is no longer just something that you eat. You can now drink it, too, thanks to a collaboration with 4 Pines. The brew tempting your tastebuds: a new Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Nitro beer. And yes, like ice cream, it's best served as cold as possible. When you crack open a can — which can be bought individually, in four-packs and in 24-tin cartons from Monday, May 17 — you'll then sip a lactose-infused brown nitro brew. Expect a decadent and creamy taste, as well as plenty of colour thanks to the nitro infusion. You'll also find the beer on tap at selected venues, and on the menu at the GABS Craft Beer and Cider Festival in Melbourne and Brisbane — and if you start hankering for dessert afterwards, well, that's understandable. When 4 Pines was in the brewing stage, the new beer was made with energy sourced from solar and wind — which powers the brewery's main Brookvale site and headquarters. But that's not the only way that the ice cream-inspired brew is drawing attention to renewable energy. Teaming up with community-owned power company Enova Community Energy, Ben & Jerry's and 4 Pines are contributing funds from the beer project to Enova to use to install solar panels for a community group. So, your next brew can help a worthy party do their bit to help the planet. Ben & Jerry's and 4 Pines' Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Nitro beer hits bottle shop shelves on Monday, May 17. You'll also find it on tap at selected venues, and at the GABS Craft Beer and Cider Festival in Melbourne and Brisbane.
Hopping on a boat is no longer the only thing to do at White Bay Cruise Terminal, all thanks to Sydney's newest electronic music venue. At Terminal 4, you'll be able to dance the night away to local and international acts while peering out over the water. And if you do want to combine a visit with a cruise, heading by either pre- or post-voyage, you'll be kicking off or ending your trip in quite the style. Forget the dark and sweaty rooms that often come to mind when anyone mentions dance parties and raves. Forget the term 'underground', too. While this site sports a strong industrial aesthetic, it's all about soaring ceilings and views out over Glebe Island and Port Jackson. While you're making shapes, you'll also score a vantage across Darling Harbour's waterways, over to the Harbour Bridge. While exactly when the venue will launch and what it'll open with hasn't yet been revealed, Terminal 4 will start welcoming in dance music fans sometime this summer — but it'll host events year-round. When the beats start dropping, the focus will be on top-notch acts, and on providing Sydney with an inclusive, progressive and multi-sensory space that's all about electronic music first and foremost. Terminal 4 is the latest venture from Untitled Group, who are also behind the Beyond the Valley, Pitch Music & Arts, Grapevine Gathering and Wildlands music festivals, plus Melbourne electronic music hub XE54. Here, Untitled has teamed up with Niche Productions, who've previously toured Jon Hopkins, Bonobo and Odesza to our shores. Find Terminal 4 at the White Bay Cruise Terminal, 2041 James Craig Road, Rozelle. To keep an eye out for events at the venue, head to its Facebook and Instagram pages. Images: Jordan Mumms.
The NSW Government is urging everyone who visited or worked at the Crossroads Hotel between Friday, July 3 and Friday, July 10, to immediately self-isolate for 14 days and get tested, even if they have no systems. The public health alert comes as nine positive COVID-19 cases have been directly linked to the Casula pub in Sydney's southwest, but none of those are believed to be the source of infection. Those who have tested positive so far include an employee of the pub, a woman who dined at the pub on July 3 and a Blue Mountains man — who also dined at the pub on July 3 — whose three household contacts have also been confirmed COVID-19 positive. NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant said in a statement: "While investigations are continuing, it is vital people get tested so we can try and establish the source of infection at the hotel. I encourage people to access a number of clinics at local hospitals at Campbelltown, Fairfield and Liverpool so people are tested as quickly as possible." A pop-up testing clinic has also been set up at the Crossroads Hotel. https://www.facebook.com/NewSouthWalesHealth/posts/1342931869239484?__tn__=K-R Dr Chant said that those who visited the pub between July 3–10 must self-isolate for 14 days since they were last at the pub, get tested, get retested if any respiratory symptoms appear and stay in isolation for 14 days even if they receive a negative test. It can take up to 14 days from exposure to the virus for symptoms to first appear, which is why the 14 days of self-isolation are recommended. NSW has also closed its border with Victoria — for the first time in 100 years — and discouraged Sydneysiders from visiting towns near the border as Victoria's positive cases numbers continue to spike. In the 24 hours leading up to 8pm on Sunday, July 12, NSW recorded five new cases of COVID-19, with two of those returned travellers in hotel quarantine and three the aforementioned close contacts of the Blue Mountains man who visited the Crossroads Hotel. For more information about the status of COVID–19 in NSW and to find your closest testing sites, head to the NSW Health website.
Strap yourself in for a creative feast of fusion flavours at Darlinghurst's modern Asian eatery Restaurant Moon. Like its contemporaries, Chin Chin and Long Chim, Restaurant Moon has moved beyond the cheap and cheerful format to create a more refined offering. In this case, it's European meets Thai with a moon dust sprinkling of molecular gastronomy. For an entree, start of with a serving of house smoked ocean trout pate with duck fat and crispy breads or cooked scallops on cows cows perl with nori, mushroom, garlic chips and Thai kom kha veloute. The crab fried rice with shallots and bean sprouts and pickled chilli sauce is the perfect complement. If you thought that dish was daring, wait until you try the Surf and Turf — a sirloin and confit baby octopus stir-fry. Like a ring around a planet, the dish sees a soft fried egg surrounded by a halo of beef strips and tender tentacles, topped with crispy holy basil leaves. Puncture the yolk and fold all the lusciousness together. A cross between a chilli basil stir-fry and a steak tartare, the flavours and textures actually come together nicely. The diamond clams are another must have, with siracha cream, raw amaebi prawns and salmon roe. Desserts are inventive and visually stunning. For a refreshing finish, go the matcha mousse with vanilla cream and chocolate and passion fruit sorbet, which is light, sweet and cooling to the palette. It may not be what you're used to, but an exploratory mission to Restaurant Moon is sure to be rewarded.
Peering through the front window on Pittwater Road, you could easily mistake The Herring Room for a fine dining haunt. But the reality is quite the opposite. Once the space of a former surf shop, the boards and bathers may be gone, but the laidback northern beaches vibe certainly remains. What caused this confusion was the attention to detail that was paid to both the fit-out and the menu. Tactically accented by exposed brick walls, polished floorboards, candlelight and dark leather chesterfields, the space is polished but still warm and homely — complete with a prize herring mounted proudly over the fireplace. In the kitchen, you'll find a trio of chefs and a mix of culinary skills that clearly shine through on the seasonal menu. And while each of The Herring Room's influences takes a leading role at different points, there is one constant: its focus on seafood. A signature French dish is a squid ink spaghetti with a sea urchin butter emulsion and shaved bottarga, which makes for a deliciously rich but well-portioned combination. Making up the Aussie contingency is a dish of baked NSW Snowy Mountains rainbow trout with little neck clams, fennel, shallots and crushed peas and slow-cooked, braised lamb shank with red wine jus, rosemary and white polenta, among others. Switching to South Asian flavours try the Vietnamese-inspired beef tartare with cos, pine nuts, crispy shallots, chilli, coriander and mint leaf. When it comes to dessert — which you'll want to save room for — try the dulce de leche fondant with salted macadamia ice cream and fresh banana brûlée or the crepe Suzette with orange and caramel sauce and vanilla chantilly. They're both great desserts in their own right, but here they make for an epic partnership. The Herring Room is actually a much larger space than you would initially imagine, and the best seats in the house are in the courtyard out the back. Surrounded by high walls adorned with succulents, this little garden oasis epitomises the chilled-out nature of northern beaches dining culture. Images: Lauren Vadnjal.
Named sommelier of the year in 2012, Stu Knox — owner of Wine Bar + Restaurant — is known as the wine whisperer. Whenever a sommelier is searching for a new wine or even wants to be re-introduced to a grape variety they might have forgotten (like Stu's dedication to cabernet franc during winter), they head to Fix Wine Bar + Restaurant. You'll see him running the floor in his signature red sneakers, pouring tasters of curios out of a fancy contraption called a coravin which allows him to give you a taste of wine without actually opening the bottle. In all seriousness though, he's actually the first to remind you not to take wine too seriously, because first and foremost vino is meant to be fun. Located in the heart of the city, Fix Wine Bar + Restaurant has everything a good wine bar needs: delicious wine served by someone who loves talking about it and is happy to guide you through new experiences. The venue boasts a modest 60 seats and serves lunch and dinner with a focus on quality seasonal produce. Think classics like a veal shnitty, cheeseburger and a selection of premium steaks.
Icy poles and booze — they're the two staples of a long, hot Aussie summer. And now they've come together as one, in the form of Calippo-style Champagne icy poles. They're the genius creation of POPS, a UK brand that has been keeping folks stylishly cool since 2014, when it launched its first frozen Champagne treat — apparently supermodels like Kate Moss and Bella Hadid are on board, if that's something to sway you. The Champagne pop (called The Classic) contains half a glass of Champers (wahee!), and the range has since expanded to include another grown-ups-only creation: the Bellini, which blends hibiscus flowers, blood orange juice, peach Schnapps, and half a glass of Prosecco. Plus, there are a couple of all-ages products too, which see the alcohol swapped out for real fruit. The frozen delights are arriving in our eskies just in time to be eaten in front of the fan (or, y'know, in the sun) this summer. They'll launch in Melbourne first, with a series of pop-up events, and festival appearances aplenty. No word yet if you'll be able to buy a box for the freezer, but let's hope. POPS will launch in Melbourne soon. For more info, visit wearepops.com.
If we asked you to imagine a sophisticated, old-school barbershop, you'd likely conjure up something like The Barberhood. You'll find this classy looking spot in Martin Place and it looks like something directly out of the early 20th century: deep walnut timber panelling, plush leather seating, retro subway tiles and the staff sharply dressed in suits, ties and aprons. The Barberhood provides a premium service adhering to traditional techniques. So, what does that mean exactly? Well, you can expect scented hot towels, traditional tools and a straight razor clean up on the neck for every cut — but the style will be completely tailored to suit you. If you have facial hair that needs attending to, the barbers can offer a traditional wet shave, with hot and cold towels, straight razors and products, plus beard styling, shaping and treatments, and moustache trims. Whatever you get done, the team here is dedicated to ensuring you leave feeling (and looking) damn fine. Given its location — smack bang in suit land — this spot can get pretty busy, so booking is highly recommended.
Put down your So Fresh CD. Crack open your teenage piggy bank. Keep practising your Janet Jackson shimmy. Because a full-blown R&B frenzy is set to sweep the nation this November as live party tour RNB Fridays returns for five mammoth shows. Descending on Giants Stadium in Sydney Olympic Park on Saturday, November 16 (no, not a Friday), the event has managed to pull a pretty serious lineup of international music legends straight from the 90s and early 2000s. Last year, the event saw tens of thousands of people snap up tickets to see Usher, Salt-N-Pepa and T-Pain. Heading the bill this time around is none other than singing, songwriting, dancing royalty Janet Jackson, in what will be the 30th anniversary of her award-winning album Rhythm Nation. Expect to hear bangers such as 'That's The Way Love Goes' and 'Got 'Til It's Gone'. She'll be joined by Brandy, who will be belting out 90s and 00s hits such as 'Never Say Never', 'Wanna Be Down' and, of course, 'The Boy Is Mine'. Then there's Grammy Award-winning group The Black Eyed Peas, 'In da Club' rapper 50 Cent, plus Jason Derulo, Keri Hilson, J-Kwon, Fatman Scoop and Sisqo — who will be performing his 90s smash hit 'Thong Song'. All of them. Together. In one show. RNB FRIDAYS 2019 LINEUP Janet Jackson Brandy The Black Eyes Peas 50 Cent Jason Derulo Keri Hilson Sisqo J-Kwon Hosted by Fatman Scoop Image: Mushroom Creative House.
Sydney has no shortage of speakeasies. Some of the city's best bars are hidden in basements, down unmarked laneways or behind decoy shopfronts. What sets the secret 1920s-inspired hotel bar Brooksy apart is the opulence that it lavishes upon those lucky enough to find it — this is a speakeasy so glamorous, it could make a Gatsby blush. Parquet floors, marble countertops and deep-pile velvet upholstery. Chevrons, curves and polished wood finishes. A palette of corals, umbers, moss greens and midnight blues. Add them all together and Brooksy's luxurious decor is a full-throated love song to the art deco and bauhaus movements, down to the last draped curtain and brushed-brass light fixture. Hidden on the ground floor of the Amora Hotel on Jamison Street in the CBD, it's a space that summons the spirit of the Roaring Twenties, with just a little 21st-century license. And the decadence doesn't stop with the fitout. The cocktail list, designed by award-winning bartender Brendon Hill, is an ode to the golden age of travel — a time when globetrotting socialites crossed continents in search of adventures. Each concoction marks a stop on a grand global itinerary, taking in Australia, Asia, Europe, North and South America, and even the Caribbean. For example, the Uluru (a blend of green grapes, lemon, Campari, gin and white vermouth) seeks to evoke the wonder of exploring the outback, while the Amalfi Coast-inspired Saluti hopes to whisk you away on an Mediterranean retreat via a mingle of house-made citruscello, peach granita and prosecco. Sticking with the theme of 1920s excess, you'll also find absinthe fountains, a roving premium whisky cart and oysters shucked tableside on the menu. The theatrical flourishes continue with the bar's entertainment offering, with live music performances and palm readings by fortune tellers on the billing. If all that excitement has helped you work up an appetite, executive chef Hemant Dadlani's menu of bar snacks is at the ready. It also takes its cues from Hill's international concept, with yuzu scallops with zippy hits of ikura and wasabi, Glacier 51 toothfish served shiro miso and cucumber salsa, and fiery Jamaican jerk chicken sliders among the dishes on offer. A thirst for discovery underpins any speakeasy experience, but Brooksy is upping the ante with the cryptic promise of "hidden offerings and giveaways throughout the bar for those looking closely for clues." And yet, for all its OTT extravagance and luxury trappings, this 70-seat venue is compact enough to still feel intimate and cosy. Find Brooksy at 19 Jamison Street, Sydney, open 5pm–late Tuesday–Saturday — head to the venue's website for more details. Images: Chad Konik.
You've heard the old adage that it's the little things in life that make us happy, right? Well, something as simple as a cheap but damn fine coffee certainly fits that bill — and given that new cafe Little Evie Redfern roasts theirs in house and charges an affordable $3 per cup, they must agree. Setting up shop on Bourke Street, the inner west's latest boutique coffee spot will satisfy your daytime caffeine cravings every day or the week. They'll also serve up homemade cakes to go with it, because taking care of business on the premises is what this new eatery is all about. Fancy a just-baked peanut butter cookie with your fresh-roasted cuppa, anyone? If you're after something more substantial food-wise, expect banana bread with ricotta and strawberry, breakfast bruschetta with horizon and haloumi, and lemon myrtle-cured salmon with scrambled eggs on Little Evie's all-day brekkie menu. Lunchtime options include sandwiches, salads, burgers and soups, aka the perfect kind of homemade fare. And if you're not a coffee fiend — because they do exist — then jugs of house-made soda, six types of cold-pressed juices, a range of shakes and smoothies, a sizeable wine and choice of four Aussie beers should satisfy your thirst.
We love a spontaneous adventure as much as the next person, but sometimes it pays to plan ahead. Case in point: Canberra. Sure, there are plenty of excellent ways to fill an impromptu jaunt to the capital — from hiking and mountain biking to blowing a few weeks' income in the Braddon boutiques. But if you're willing to do a little forward planning, you can secure your spot on some tours and take that trip to the next level. On such adventures, not only will you get to meet some locals (both humans and animals) and uncover some of the city's hidden gems, but you'll also avoid spending the entire time staring at Google Maps trying to navigate your way around. And, in the interest of saving you time now — and to save you from any internet rabbit holes — we've picked seven unexpected experiences you can have on your next Canberra vacay. Please stay up to date with the latest ACT Government health advice regarding COVID-19.
For one magnificent spring day, Surry Hills will turn itself over to its beloved annual festival on Saturday, September 22. You can expect the usual explosion of creativity and buzz, with performances, laneway installations and hidden pop-up bars complementing all-day live music and markets in Shannon Reserve and Ward Park. And it's all free, free, free. Music-wise, the bill includes something for everyone. There's pop in the form of Chymes, funk from The BIG ILCH, folk courtesy of Microwave Jenny, garage rock via Crocodylus, soul from King Tide and a bit of everything from Joyride. Rackett, Pirra, Iluka and Jackie Brown Jr round out the bill, which will be MCed by Gavin Ivey from Koori Radio and Emily Nicol of NITV — with yet-to-be-announced DJs spinning tracks at the after party. Better yet: as well as a whole heap of beats, roving art performances and plenty of food stalls, all funds raised on the day go to the Surry Hills Neighbourhood Centre. The festivities actually kick off on September 13 with the ten-day Spring into Surry Hills program. It will see artists curate a trail of projections and installations along Devonshire Street around the theme of 'flower power' to celebrate the birth of the Centre. This will finish up on the Sunday after the festival. Updated July 21.
A fish and chipper that nails the brief — fresh, tender fish; hot, golden chips — is something to cherish. Although, they can be difficult to pick out of a lineup. From experience, there are a few tell-tale signs to watch out for: queues (obviously), a family-run vibe and a vibrant lineup of salads on display. Proving this formula correct is Johnston Street's Fat Fish. Keep it simple and lunch on a seafood basket ($14.90) filled with fish cocktails, rings of calamari, chips and more; or, get creative and pick and choose from your standard F&C offering (seafood sticks, Chiko rolls, pineapple fritters) and the more elevated (Greek-style barbecued octopus, garlic prawn skewers, beer-battered New Zealand mussels). Image: Unsplash, Yulia Karnavushanka
If you've been searching for a semi-adventurous bite without compromising on flavour, Chebbo's Burgers is serving up a fresh take on the beloved classic. The burger joint is the locally loved smash burger-slinging outpost hidden in Sydney's Inner West. Head over to Chapel Street, and you'll find the food truck's humble abode with its exteriors decked out in the instantly identifiable purple and yellow colours it's known for. Led by viral TikTok sensation and food content creator Chebbo, the burger joint serves up the much-loved dish with a twist. Each burger features a thinly smashed patty paired with the food truck's coveted special sauce — the combination of which has gained a cult following. [caption id="attachment_915401" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Chebbo, owner of Chebbos Burgers[/caption] Initially, the burger joint started as a passion project inspired by an experimental burger trend from the US, dishing out a simple range of offerings from Chebbo's very own backyard. As Chebbo's TikTok career began to take off during the COVID lockdowns, so too did Chebbo's Burgers, which, with increasing popularity, went from a monthly pop-up to a local staple, and now is welcoming its first flagship venue in Marrickville — much like its local food truck counterpart, Duo Duo. The joint has gained so much popularity that you'll even spot a Chebbo's Burgers pop-up at this year's Spilt Milk festival. Tossing up between the five-burger selection? The classic burger has all the goodness you'd expect to find, with a juicy beef patty, crisp lettuce, tomato, onion and Chebbo's special sauce sandwiched between a toasted milk bun. Prefer something even simpler? Its cheeseburger is another reliable classic that ranks up there with some of the best in Sydney. For the more adventurous, you can opt for the most experimental burger on the menu —the fried onion burger. It features the familiar smashed patties but is paired with creamy mustard, heaps of onions and the special sauce, all on a potato bun. Plus, every burger available can be upsized if you're in the mood for more, or you can customise your order to be gluten-free, vego-friendly, or however else you like it. This burger joint has ad-ons for days. And there's no shortage of sides. For the ultimate pairing, pick up a side of the sauced-up loaded fries featuring crispy hot chips topped with a healthy dose of Chebbo's signature chicken salt, the special sauce and divinely crunchy red onions which are a must-try. Otherwise, you can opt for the standard freshly cooked hot chips without toppings. To top it all off, you can hit up Chebbo's Burgers for a flavour-filled meal, then venture a little further down the road to the conveniently located Duo Duo Roselands outpost to round out your meal with a sweet treat. Appears in: Where to Find the Best Burgers in Sydney for 2023
UK aerial theatre company Ockham's Razor will be strutting their heart-stopping stuff at this year’s Sydney Festival. Described as “daring yet refined acrobatics”, they present a triple bill of three distinct theatrical pieces exploring themes of reliance, isolation and interconnectivity. The first piece, Arc, fuses circus and storytelling to investigate the complexities of human relationships, with performers interacting on a life raft structure suspended in mid-air. In Memento Mori, audiences are treated to a staggeringly agile pas de deux (mid-air, naturally) and in Every Action, four strangers affect each other on an elevated set of scales. Ockham's Razor formed in 2004 as the brainchild of Alex Harvey, Charlotte Mooney and Tina Koch — three friends who met whilst training at Bristol's Circomedia. They've gained a reputation for being a young, risk-taking, highly expressive company. This is bound to be an exciting show for anyone interested in the future of physical theatre and circus.
You won't have to wait much longer for the reopening of a Sydney stalwart, as the all-new crew behind Redfern pub The Bat and Ball Hotel has dropped an official opening date. The resurrection of the legendary local made news back in May of this year, and it has now been confirmed that the Cleveland Street spot will return just in time to close out those final weeks of winter, with the opening slated for smack-bang in the middle of next month on Thursday, August 15. An all-star team is behind the reopening, with Sydney hopso heavyweights Rachael Paul, Cameron Votano, Zachary Godbolt, Daniel McBride and Dynn Szmulewicz all be putting their plethora of expertise in the industry to use. The Bat and Ball Hotel's resurrection is a passion project for the group, whose experience spans from The Sunshine Inn, BTB Kirribilli and DOOM JUICE to Enmore Country Club and The Little Guy. While the revival of the beloved watering hole will feature an energised yet laidback fitout, exact details regarding its new look and offerings still have yet to be announced. The Bat and Ball Hotel crew have announced, however, that the Sydney haunt is expected to host a massive grand opening party on its second day of trade. [caption id="attachment_891666" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Enmore Country Club.[/caption] You can head to the venue on Friday, August 16, from 4pm to boogie from dusk until nearly dawn — the party will see the likes of Mickey Kojack and Reenie on the decks until 2am, alongside an array of top tipples and stellar bites. "It's going to be electric, the process has already been extremely fun," said Godbolt, the Creative Director and Co-Founder of Enmore Country Club and natural wine brand DOOM JUICE. "[It's been] lots of hard work but we can't wait for that first beer when the doors open." The Bat and Ball Hotel will be open from Thursday, August 15, at 495 Cleveland Street, Redfern. Head to the venue's Instagram page to keep up with further updates. Image credit: Angus Bell Young and Brewcasa Creative.
After almost a decade in Paddington, Tequila Mockingbird has come to an end. But that doesn't mean the story is over. Housed in a heritage-listed, 19th-century terrace, the venue won countless fans throughout the years with its Latin American share plates and innovative cocktails. Plus, it offered one of the city's most comprehensive tequila and mezcal lists. Yet Michael Fegent, owner and Director of Atticus Hospitality, isn't one to rest on his laurels, delivering a dream concept that's been years in the making — tqm. Opening on Thursday, May 8, the old restaurant has undergone a full-scale refurbishment. Leading the culinary revolution is newly appointed Atticus Hospitality Executive Chef Jose Garcia — a Michelin-rated chef who last served as Executive Chef of Fogón Asado in Buenos Aires, which was ranked the 36th best steak restaurant in the world, according to the respected World's 101 Best Steak Restaurants list. With Fogón Asado also renowned for its theatrical flourishes, tqm guests can expect a similar playfulness on the menu. Garcia has placed several of his signature dishes on tqm's menu, including XO prawns rice, fried green plantain with smoked fish, and blood sausage croquette. Meanwhile, smaller dishes, like grilled haloumi and tomato salad, and sweet potato puree with nut dukkah, are long-standing recipes of the renowned chef. With each dish inspired by an aspect of Garcia's life — from road trips across Venezuela with his dad to his mum's love of seafood — an upbeat personality will ripple through tqm's food. "My inspiration comes from multiple past experiences, from my favourite chefs, and from my Latin and family roots. Every time I have the chance to highlight something my mum or grandmother taught me, I try to do it," says Garcia. "Since I was a kid, I've loved cooking, eating, and being in the kitchen. From the age of 13, I knew I wanted to be a chef. And when I started studying, one of my goals was to be part of the group of chefs who have worked to showcase and elevate Venezuelan cuisine and flavours around the world." With Tequila Mockingbird renowned for its cocktails, a host of new creations will carry on this legacy at tqm. For instance, the Grande Chartreuse Colada features green Chartreuse, Bacardi, pineapple and coconut, while the Caribbean Queen combines Plantation pineapple rum, Rhubi and Averna with fresh strawberry and pineapple. The new venue will also debut its first-ever collection of house wines, with red, white and rosé varieties made in collaboration with two distinct winemakers in the Hunter Valley and McLaren Vale. As for the refurbed decor, things are looking a little brighter. The facade now dazzles in bright yellow, speaking to the restaurant's Venezuelan connection. This golden hue is also used extensively across the bar, dining room and lush courtyard. For Fegent, it's all about bringing home the culinary passion he encountered in South America a decade ago. "Over the course of many trips, where I visited 30-plus local restaurants, Jose's restaurant Fogón Asado was the absolute standout… I can't wait to showcase his extraordinary, world-class cooking from our little part of Sydney and give our customers something truly unique and special." tqm will open Tuesday–Thursday from 4.30pm–late and Friday–Saturday from 12pm–late at 6 Heeley St, Paddington. Head to the website for more information.
Ever since Gigi switched to their plant-based menu and stopped serving bases adorned with dairy delights, inner west cheese fiends have been looking for a new place to get their pizza slice fix. Now that Rosso Antico has opened it's doors, they're in luck. White tiles and exposed brick walls paired with simple low lighting characterise this new Italian eatery, with the only splash of red a mosaic pizza oven at its cosy heart. The simple menu reflects the pared back space — antipasto, pizza and pasta — while the drinks menu is a little more extensive, showcasing a selection of international and locally sourced beers and wines (though it's hard to pass up the trusty Aperol Spritz or the Rosso Antico). On one of the walls, the words "Pe' fa' e cose bone ce vo' tiemp" are scrawled in black, a statement that roughly translates as "All good things take time". It's a cute sentiment when applied to, say, painting a masterpiece, but not when you're hungry. It's a good thing pizza production only takes the chefs three minutes, because there's only so much politely watching other people devour pizza slices that is physically possible. The quality of a good pizza lies predominantly in its base — and the bases at Rosso Antico are super legit. They have that prefect crispy, chewy balance only true Italians seem to be able to produce, and the toppings that amply adorn those base are on point. We particularly enjoyed the Norma ($19), with generous caramelised slivers of roasted eggplant, tangy sauce, islands of salted ricotta and a generous amount of fior di latte. The Zucchini ($20) — with crispy pancetta, roasted zucchini strips and melted fior di latte and scamorza — was equally cheesy. We found the middle of our pizzas were a little wet in the centre, and we were left with no choice but to eat the pizza folded in half to make up for the lack of structural integrity, which wasn't really an issue because it makes you feel like you're in the movies. The pasta dishes left a little to be desired. Although the house-made fettuccine ($19) was cooked perfectly, the ragu was heavy on the tomato sauce, and we counted only five chunks of the melt-in-your-mouth pork and veal scattered on top. It was also served without the required pile of grated parmesan, which was a shame. It's the one part of the menu you can feel free to pass up. If you've got room for dessert, the Nutella calzone ($13) with its molten chocolate and strawberry centre served with a generous scoop of vanilla gelato is enough to satisfy a party of three, while the Pastiera Napoletana ($9), a traditional baked ricotta tart, is more manageable for one. Images by Diana Scalfati. Appears in: Where to Find the Best Pizza in Sydney
The interwar years in Europe were a remarkable time, not least in Germany, where a new democratic Republic arose from the ashes of the First World War, replacing the old monarchy, and exploding with utopian ideas and a never-before-experienced freedom of expression. The artistic and intellectual developments of this period helped to lay the foundations of modernity as we know it, and it’s no coincidence that the movement is referred to collectively, as modernism. The Mad Square - Modernity in German Art 1910–37 brings together over 200 works of art from the modernist period to the AGNSW and, short of buying a plane ticket to Europe, this may be your only chance to see an exhibition of this calibre. Covering the Expressionism, Dada, Constructivism, Bauhaus and New Objectivity, it features artists such as Max Beckmann, Otto Dix, George Grosz, Hannah Höch and El Lissitzky. The accompanying Berlin Sydney programme of events running alongside is quite astonishing in its breadth and depth, and offers a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see some of the most pivotal art works of the twentieth century in the context of the culture and society from which they emerged. Do not miss out.
Waverley's Wholegreen Bakery is the only place in Sydney that you can get gluten-free croissants, fruit danishes, eclairs and sausage rolls alongside gluten-free baguettes and loaves of olive and rosemary sourdough. The bakery's goods can be tracked down outside of the eastern suburbs, too — at some cafes, and at Carriageworks Farmers Market and the North Sydney Produce Market — but most gluten-free Sydneysiders make the journey to Waverley to pick up a haul. However, soon they might be able to load up on their lunch break, when Wholegreen opens a second gluten-free cafe in the CBD. The venue — which is due to open on Clarence Street in early March — will, like its Waverley counterpart, be 100 percent gluten-free. This is important because those that suffer from coeliac disease have a sensitive reaction to even a small trace of gluten and, this way, there is no chance for cross-contamination. But, unlike the original cafe, this one will be way bigger with room for 60 diners. While it's all gluten-free, Wholegreen will be catering to all city workers as a place to grab a coffee and something to eat. It'll be baking all of its bread and pastries each morning, meaning that you'll be able to get your hands on one of its golden croissants, pain au chocolats or even a loaf of sourdough to take home. The bakery also does a wide range of cakes and sweets, including lemon tarts, banana bread and frangipane tarts. Plus, there will be some dairy-free, vegan and sugar-free options. It'll also pump out some lunch items worthy of walking a few blocks for, including spinach and feta pasties, sausage rolls, toasties and fresh rolls stuffed with ham and salad. It'll also be licensed, so wines and gluten-free beer will be on the menu if you're eating in. Cherie Lyden, Wholegreen's owner, got into gluten-free when her daughter was diagnosed as coeliac and needed to eliminate gluten from her diet. She quickly found she was "disappointed with what was available on the market" and, in an effort to lift the — sometime dismal — standards of gluten-free products, she started doing what no one else was doing at the time: making actually good gluten-free bread. She's operated the wholesale side of the business for six years now, and the Waverley cafe for four. Both cafes are 100 percent gluten-free, and are currently in the process of getting accreditation from Coeliac Australia. Wholegreen Bakery's new CBD venue is set to open on Clarence Street in early March, 2020, and will be open Monday to Saturday. We'll keep you updated when we know more details.
Fans of Australian mysteries, page-to-screen crime tales, Eric Bana (Dirty John) getting sleuthing and all things Aaron Falk, you'll have to wait a bit longer for your most-anticipated Aussie film of 2023. With the SAG-AFTRA strike currently in effect, and Bana a member of the union, Australian and New Zealand distributor Roadshow Films — in consultation with the filmmakers — has decided to push back The Dry sequel Force of Nature: The Dry 2 from its planned August release. "It is with some regret, but a large amount of conviction, that we have decided to postpone the release of Force of Nature: The Dry 2. I'm incredibly proud of this much-anticipated Australian film and want to be able to do it justice by promoting it thoroughly," said Bana in a statement. "Due to the SAG-AFTRA strike, of which I am a longstanding member, it is not possible to do that at this time. Just as we did with The Dry, our plan is to be face to face with the cinemagoing public through event screenings, Q&As and press appearances at the time of release. I stand in support of the changes that SAG-AFTRA are fighting for on behalf of all working actors. I apologise for any inconvenience it causes anyone who has pre purchased tickets to our already soldout Q&A sessions. Thanks for your understanding. See you at a cinema soon," Bana continued. When the Aussie star stepped into Falk's shoes in The Dry, more movies were always bound to follow. On the screen, the film became a massive Australian box-office hit in 2021 thanks to its twisty mystery, determined detective, stunning scenery and spectacular cast. It was capitalising, of course, on the story's proven success on the page. And, to the delight of movie producers and audiences, the beloved novel by author Jane Harper was just Falk's first appearance. Accordingly, throw that formula together again and you now have Force of Nature: The Dry 2, the big-screen sequel that no longer has a release date — with exactly when it'll hit cinemas now yet to be confirmed. This follow-up sees the core duo of Bana and writer/director Robert Connolly (Blueback) return, with the latter again investigating a case. This time, as both the movie's initial teaser and full trailer explore, Falk is looking into the disappearance of a hiker from a corporate retreat attended by five women. Alongside fellow federal agent Carmen Cooper (Jacqueline McKenzie, Ruby's Choice), Falk heads deep into Victoria's mountain ranges to try to find the missing traveller — who also happens to be a whistle-blowing informant — alive. Also featuring in Force of Nature, which has a powerhouse list of Aussie talent just like its predecessor: Anna Torv (The Last of Us) as missing hiker Alice Russell, plus Deborra-Lee Furness (Jindabyne), Robin McLeavy (Homeland), Sisi Stringer (Mortal Kombat) and Lucy Ansell (Utopia). Richard Roxburgh (Aunty Donna's Coffee Cafe), Tony Briggs (Preppers) and Kenneth Radley (The Power of the Dog) pop up, too, while Jeremy Lindsay-Taylor (Heartbreak High) is back in the role of Erik Falk. Reteaming not just after The Dry, but also fellow 2023 release Blueback, Connolly and Bana make quite the pair when it comes to Aussie crime cinema — with Connolly the producer of one of the best local crime movies ever made, aka 1998's unnerving The Boys, and Bana famously the star of the similarly excellent Chopper. It's likely that this won't be the last big movie that's delayed due to the current actors' strike, with Hollywood talents fighting against diminishing residual payments for performers, and to establish firm rules about the future use of artificial intelligence in the industry. When they took action in mid-July, SAG-AFTRA's members joined their counterparts in the Writers Guild of America, who've been striking since May. Check out the full trailer for Force of Nature: The Dry 2 below: Force of Nature: The Dry 2 doesn't currently have a release date for Australian and New Zealand cinemas — we'll update you when one is announced. Read our full review of The Dry. Images: Narelle Portanier.
A little further north in Narrabeen, Mexicano head chef Sean Prenter and his team showcase their fresh take on modern and street-style Mexican. Sean takes pride in sourcing fresh, quality and local produce so you can take comfort in your food being some of the tastiest and most authentic around. All the tortillas are traditionally hand rolled and pressed daily using wheat and corn masa flours. Must-try tacos are the Mexican fish taco, with battered local fish of the day and a spicy chipotle mayo ($16 for three) and the chipotle beef brisket ($16 for three) or for a hearty vegetarian option, go the roasted winter taco (pumpkin, eggplant, zucchini and local cheese, $13 for three). We also hear a little whisper that the owners are opening up a new taqueria-style venue, MX, in Mona Vale soon.
Wandering through a delightfully heated gallery, musing haughtily over the eccentricities of an abstract work, then mulling over a peppery glass of Malbec in the gallery cafe has to be one of the more indulgent, undeniably snooty but nevertheless excellent ways to spend a wintry Sydney hour. Time is of the essence this month, with a smattering of exhibitions concerned with the past, present and (especially) the future taking over Sydney galleries in August. You can also see the latest painting series by two artists known for their emotional insight, visit a group show starring your new favourite female photographers and take in a seriously exhilarating survey exhibition of Australian artist David Griggs.
It’s always exciting when two people you love get together, like Seth and Summer on The OC or you and Johnny Depp in nightly dreams. But no pairing has excited us more than Morgan McGlone of Belle’s Hot Chicken and Monty Koludrovic of Icebergs Dining Room and Bar who are finally giving in to all that crazy culinary tension and bringing us a massive pop-up party at Harpoon Harry this long weekend. Morgan and Monty (aw so cute) are concocting a bespoke menu of wings, hotdogs and moonshine shakes for the shindig. You read that correctly, moonshine milkshakes. Morgan is cooking up a spin on Belle’s famous hot chicken with a Barbacoa flavour. And Monty has invented what may possibly be the most perfect hotdog in existence: handmade spiced pork and beef frank, wrapped in a soft bun with mustard, pickles and chilli. And while we’re a wee bit sceptical about the moonshine milkshakes (made with Morgan’s homebrew moonshine and fior de latte gelato), love does make people do crazy things. Of course, we'll give it a try. This isn’t the first time Belle’s Hot Chicken has taken over Harpoon Harry’s either. They did a pop-up several months ago and are back already because apparently Sydney can’t get enough of what Belle’s got. Happily for us, they’re not into monogamy and are working with a horde of hospitality legends to provide bevs and tunes. The boys at Young Henry’s are bringing tinnies, DRNKS are cracking open their vino and Kali from Picnic Social will be soundtracking the evening. Where else would you be this long weekend than at a moonshine shake shindig? Morgan and Monty’s Wings + Dogs + Moonshine Shakes pop-up is happening Sunday, October 4 from 5pm. Find ‘em at Harpoon Harry, 40-44 Wentworth Ave, Surry Hills.
Aussies love a good crumble and Newtonians are lucky enough to get a dessert bar dedicated to the stuff. Crumble Top just opened along King Street as the newest concept in the Sydney dessert scene. The cafe runs on the 'create your own' principle and, unlike the Sara Lee version, your crumble is made fresh, right in front of your eyes. Now that's crumble devotion. Owner Luke Stack is the man bringing this glorious treat your way. He has worked in restaurants overseas for years and recently returned to Australia with a passion for crumbles. "I love making crumbles, they're very satisfying and I love the idea that people could design their own creations," he says. It's a simple gig — pick your crumble filling, topping, sauce and ice cream. The seasonal menu is anything but standard with crumble toppings of lemon myrtle and coconut/ginger, sauces of lemon curd and orange/nutmeg and ice creams including lavender and cardamom. They've also got vegan options across the board, making this joint in good company with its Newtown neighbours like Gigi, Bliss and Chips and Blue Gelato. "We didn't want to make a regular menu, we wanted different, spiced choices so each creation has a completely unique flavour," says Stacks. If you're looking for tips on where to start, take one from the pro — Stack's personal favourite is granny smith apples and peanut butter crumble with a vanilla sauce and lemon curd ice cream. This is some mouthwatering goodness we can't wait to get in our bellies. Crumble Top is located at 125 King Street, Newtown. Open Tuesday through Thursday from noon to 9pm and Friday through Sunday from noon. Image: Photopin
Thinking about work-life balance when January hits is an annual tradition. The Christmas break has been and gone, everyone is making resolutions for the new year, and better dividing your time between your professional and personal realms becomes a goal for most. Come January 2025, the subject will get a bigger push via a hugely anticipated TV returns — and so will how work-life balance can weigh on your mind, or not. Capitalising on perfect timing, Apple TV+ will finally end the wait for more Severance, the sci-fi mindbender where disconnecting from your job come quittin' time — and giving your gig 100-percent of your focus during your daily grind — has become literal in a nightmarish way. At Lumon Industries, employees agree to undertake the titular procedure, which splits their memories between work and home. That tale will continue from Friday, January 17, 2025, a date that no one will want surgically removed from their head between now and then. This news calls for a waffle party, an egg bar or a melon bar. In the upcoming second season of the series — which was one of the best new shows of 2022 — more celebrations must be on the way based on the first sneak peek at new footage from back in June. Apple TV+ has now added to that initial glimpse with a first proper teaser trailer for Severance's second season. It's still brief, putting most of its emphasis on the elevator that Lumon's workers take to its labyrinthine workspace, as well as the verbal agreement that the show's key characters gave to having their recollections severed. If you missed season one, its dive into the kind of scenario that Black Mirror might've dreamed up, and technology that could've been used if Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind was about punching the clock instead of romance, pushed Macrodata Refinement division employee Mark S (Adam Scott, Loot) to the fore. He willingly signed up for severance, all to help process his grief over the death of his wife. And he's happy with the situation until his work BFF Petey (Yul Vazquez, The Outsider) leaves suddenly without saying goodbye, then new staff member Helly (Britt Lower, American Horror Stories) comes in to replace him — and instantly starts questioning the insidious setup, the rules and restrictions needed to keep it in place, and why on earth her "outie" (as the outside versions of Lumon employees are known) agreed to this in the first place. In season two, Mark and his work pals will attempt to dig deeper into the consequences of the severance procedure, and trying to escape it. There isn't much more detail in the trailer, but the mood is disquieting — in typical Severance fashion. Tramell Tillman (Hunters), Zach Cherry (Fallout), Jen Tullock (Perry Mason), Michael Chernus (Carol & the End of the World), Dichen Lachman (Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes), John Turturro (Mr & Mrs Smith), Christopher Walken (Dune: Part Two) and Patricia Arquette (High Desert) also star — and season two newcomer Gwendoline Christie (Wednesday) also pops up in the sneak peek. Ben Stiller (Escape at Dannemora) is back as a director on five episodes, and executive producer across the whole season, with ten episodes on the way. Apple TV+ will drop instalments through until Friday, March 21, 2025. Check out the first trailer for Severance season two below: Severance returns for season two on Friday, January 17, 2025 via Apple TV+.
A glass of bubbly is always a pleasure, but the return of World Champagne Day provides ample excuse to add a little more sparkle to your upcoming weekend. Taking over QT Hotels & Resorts across Australia from Friday, October 24–Sunday, October 26, the brand's lineup of luxe off-beat stays have teamed up with true-brut style Perrier-Jouët for a cork-popping experience. To mark the occasion, guests are invited to double-down on their love of champagne, as your first flute purchase scores a second pour of top-quality champers on the house. Just swing through any of QT's signature restaurants — like Gowings & Parlour at QT Sydney, Pascale Bar & Grill at QT Melbourne and Yamagen at QT Gold Coast — to toast yourself with a fizzy encore to match.
When Godzilla first crawled out of the ocean and into cinemas, the famous movie monster made its debut appearance in the shadow of the Second World War. The link between the film's fears of nuclear holocaust and what Japan had just experienced wasn't an accident, in a picture that isn't just an excellent creature feature — the franchise-starting flick is stellar all round, including its glorious score. It was back in 1954 that Godzilla initially greeted the world. Now, almost seven decades later, 37 other movies have followed. The latest: Godzilla Minus One, which gives Zilly fans a long-awaited new Japanese Godzilla movie and takes its namesake back to the country's postwar era. As seen in the just-dropped first trailer for Godzilla Minus One, Japan is still coping with the aftermath of WWII's atomic bombings when the kaiju appears. The question: in a place that's already rebuilding, how will everyone both endure and battle against this towering critter? In a feature written and directed by Takashi Yamazaki (Lupin III: The First, Ghost Book), cue plenty of rampaging through the streets by Godzilla, plus fleeing by the film's humans. Cue buildings levelled, the ground both rumbling and crumbling, and explosions wreaking more havoc, too. Referencing going backwards from zero in its moniker, cue a film that follows people trying to survive and fight — all back in the time that gave birth to all things Godzilla. Reaching cinemas in Japan on Friday, November 3 and the US on Friday, December 1, but without a release date Down Under as yet, Godzilla Minus One marks the first live-action Japanese Godzilla release about its namesake since 2016's excellent Shin Godzilla. Since then, three animated efforts — 2017's Godzilla: Planet of the Monsters, and 2018's Godzilla: City on the Edge of Battle and Godzilla: The Planet Eater — have arrived on streaming, however. The franchise also includes America's take on Godzilla, starting with a low in 1998, then including another try in 2014, 2019's Godzilla: King of the Monsters and 2021's Godzilla vs Kong. Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, a sequel to the latter, is due in 2024. And, TV series Monarch: Legacy of Monsters is due to hit before the end of 2023. Check out the trailer for Godzilla Minus One below: Godzilla Minus One will hit cinemas in Japan on Friday, November 3 and the US on Friday, December 1, but doesn't yet have a release date Down Under — we'll update you when one is announced.
More than most video games, Until Dawn always felt destined for the big screen from the moment that it first had players pressing buttons. The premise of the 2015 hit is straight out of a horror movie, with a group of eight friends attempting to make it through a trip to Blackwood Mountain — the place where one character's two sisters disappeared a year prior, and where everyone is now looking for answers — alive. The cast boasted star power, including a pre-Oscar Rami Malek (The Amateur), plus Hayden Panettiere (Scream VI) and Peter Stormare (So Long, Marianne). Visually, there's also its pivotal third-person perspective. Something that Until Dawn featured as a game, however, that was unlikely to make the leap to cinemas: the choose-your-adventure approach to play. Interactive films exist, but the two best-known recent examples are each streaming releases: Black Mirror: Bandersnatch and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy vs the Reverend, both on Netflix. In adapting Until Dawn into a movie destined for the silver screen, so lurked the dilemma — aka how to nod to the butterfly effect-style element, where player decisions dictate the storyline. The answer came by still focusing on choice, and also nodding to the fact hundreds of endings are possible in the game, making selecting an option a move that requires careful consideration about where any path might lead. Enter the mechanism that's fuelled everything from Groundhog Day and the Happy Death Day films to Edge of Tomorrow and so much more: time loops. In the movie directed by David F Sandberg (Shazam! and Shazam! Fury of the Gods), and penned by Gary Dauberman (Salem's Lot) and Blair Butler (The Invitation), there's still a group of friends, a missing sibling and a remote setting. That said, neither its helmer nor one of its writers, both of whom first collaborated on Annabelle: Creation, set out to make a direct adaptation of the game, Sandberg and Dauberman tell Concrete Playground. "It's more like a new chapter of Until Dawn," advises Sandberg, who first made the leap to full-length flicks in horror courtesy of the short-to-feature Lights Out. "The game is so cinematic, we just didn't want to try to replicate that experience," notes Dauberman, a mainstay behind the scenes on The Conjuring Universe films, including Annabelle and its sequels — he directed as well as penned Annabelle Comes Home — and The Nun, alongside scripting IT and IT: Chapter Two. [caption id="attachment_1000992" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Stewart Cook/Sony Pictures via Getty Images[/caption] Here, then, the characters are different, and the absent sister as well. The cast fighting to survive has changed, too. As a film, Until Dawn steps into a new scenario also, although Stormare remains the link among the actors to its gaming beginnings. This time, it's Clover (Ella Rubin, Anora) who is in search of Melanie (Maia Mitchell, The Artful Dodger) a year since she was last seen. The rest of her travelling group — Max (Michael Cimino, Never Have I Ever), Megan (Ji-young Yoo, Expats), Abe (Belmont Cameli, The Alto Knights) and Nina (Odessa A'zion, Am I OK?) — have helping Clover as their main aim rather than finding Melanie, though. She's determined to look for her sister. They're eager to assist her with facing her trauma and moving on. Of course, no one expects that following Melanie's path to an abandoned visitor centre in a secluded valley will lead them to being stuck battling an array of killers in a time loop, and dreading an hourglass flipping again and again. When they all die, Until Dawn's latest figures just find themselves in the same place, yet caught in another scenario. Sometimes that plunges the movie into slasher-film territory. Sometimes it skews more supernatural. Sometimes, Clover and her friends are caught in a creature feature — and the list goes on. The only way for them to be free of the nightmare, and from an experience that hops between horror subgenres, is right there in the feature's title. Make it until dawn and the hellish ordeal ends. What excited Sandberg and Dauberman, other than being gamers themselves, about taking on the task of bringing Until Dawn to cinemas? That's where our chat with the pair started. From there, we dug into selecting the different subgenres, basically making multiple horror flicks in one, Stormare's return, and how you enlist a cast when their gig is to get murdered over and over — plus interrogating choice via time loops, calling out other films using temporal repeats, the current wave of successful video game-to-screen adaptations (think: The Last of Us, Fallout, The Super Mario Bros Movie and A Minecraft Movie) and more. On What Excited Sandberg and Dauberman About Adapting Until Dawn Into a Movie Gary: "I think the thing that excited us the most — I'll speak for me — but was really being able to do a couple different subgenres of horror within one movie. The game is really this cinematic experience that's a true love letter to the genre. We wanted to make sure that was captured in the movie, and do that ourselves with the movie. And so that was really exciting. So then it just became about, 'well, how are we going to do that?'. Because it's not going to be a direct adaptation of the game — because, as I said, the game is so cinematic, we just didn't want to try to replicate that experience. So it was really about, 'okay, how can we stay true to the game, the world and all that, but also be able to do our own thing as well within the genre?'." David: "And what excited me was that Gary and Blair, they didn't try to just recreate the game — which was already so much like a movie and already cinematic. It's more like a new chapter of Until Dawn. And the fact that we have all these different horror genres in one movie. So I got to try out all these different things, including genres I'd never done before — like slasher or found footage. It was just a dream come true." On Deciding Which Horror Subgenres to Jump Between in the Film Gary: "It's interesting — Blair and I always had slasher first, and I think a large part of that's just because, I mean I know that's because of the game itself and the psycho mask and all that. And then I think it was just what could be different from slasher? We leaned into supernatural because that felt so different and a stark contrast to just the visceral kills of the slasher. So you just try to think of what's going to give that sharp contrast to whatever came before. Then you go supernatural, then you go right into body horror — which is super real and gross, whereas supernatural generally isn't that. That's the thought behind how it's laid out in sequential order, I guess." On Feeling Like This Movie Meant Making Not Just One Horror Film, But Multiple Horror Films David: "For sure, because it also, like schedule-wise and time wise, felt like we were trying to do six or seven movies in one. It was a challenge. It's a very ambitious movie for the time we had, so we had to do a lot of planning — and sometimes adapting on the day, where it's like 'okay, we're not going to have time to do all of these things, so we'll focus on what's most important to get'. So it was a challenge, but it was also the reason why I signed up for the movie — to get to do all of this. So I happily did it." On Making Dr Hill (and Peter Stormare in the Role) One of the Key Connections Between the Game and the Movie Gary: "Dr Hill, to me, was always the character I was most curious about in the game, and felt like he could be a great link, connective tissue, between the game and the movie. And he could really be the steward of the franchise, of these stories. He always felt like he's got more going on. And I think talking with the game developers and what they had intended with Dr Hill as well, it was a constant dialogue and conversation, so he just made the most sense organically to what they had in mind and what we had in mind to use. And plus, it's Peter Stormare. If you've got Peter Stormare, you want to use him every chance you get. So that was also a part of the decision. But from a storytelling aspect, I saw him as a great face of the franchise." On How You Build a Cast When the Gig Is to Get Killed Over and Over Again David: "We did a lot of auditions to try to find the right people. Michael, who plays Max, came recommended — he's worked with Gary before. But otherwise, it's just doing a lot of auditions and finding the right people who are not just good actors, but who are willing to go there, to these places. Because I had to warn the cast that this is going to be a challenging movie, like physically challenging and mentally challenging, because you're going to have to be wet and bloody and dirty and crawl through mud, and all of these things. And work nights and work in uncomfortable locations and all these things. But they were really up for it. And once we'd done all this extensive casting, they just worked as a team right away, just became instant friends and were just a pleasure to work with. And I know they really appreciated getting to do — like Maia was saying that in most movies and TV shows, she has to look pretty and perfect, and all these things. In this movie, you don't need to look perfect. You need to look like you've gone through hell. And you get to scream and let it all out. So they were more than up for it." On Calling Out How Popular Time-Loop Flicks Are in the Film — and Knowing How This Addition to the Genre Needed to Stand Out Gary: "We knew we didn't want to do the Groundhog Day-esque time loop. Happy Death Day does that so, so well and effectively. If we were going to do it, we needed to own it for us and make it different. So in a way, the knowledge of those made us just work against that — like going 'okay, we know that's out there, so we've got to do something different'. So that's kind of how we went. And then in terms of the subgenres themselves, it really was about the tropes within the subgenres that we were using as elements to each sequence — but not any specific movie per se." David: "Yeah, you don't want to shy away from some of these tropes, because you want people to feel like 'okay, now we're in this kind of film'." Gary: "Yeah, exactly." David: "But you try to subvert it so you don't know exactly what's coming, but you just need to feel familiar enough." Gary: "That's right." On Still Interrogating Choice, Even If the Film Can't Mirror the Game's Player-Shaped Storylines and Hundreds of Endings, in a Movie That's Also About Trauma Gary: "It was a really important element from the character standpoint of like, 'okay, the terror is new, but we're still here, we're still a part of this group'. And as the group starts to fracture a bit because they have different ways of how they want to go about solving this puzzle of how they're going to survive until dawn, I think it's about, one of the things is sticking together and surviving through trauma and leaning on each other to get through something — as opposed to just being off in a corner by yourself, because that's not going to get you through it, much like Clover was at the start of the movie. For Clover, for instance, she's someone who had to die over and over again in order to know how to live again. So that's kind of how we saw the character choices affecting the character arcs in the movie." David: "Yeah. And I thought it was so brilliant to have this restarting in the movie, because it does make it feel so much like the game — where you can play it several times and make different choices and see different deaths and different kills and stuff. And this was a way to get that in movie form." On the Film's Commitment to Practical, In-Camera Effects as Much as Possible David: "It's something I've always wanted to do. Since I was a little kid watching horror movies, reading all these books about effects done with latex and silicone — and makeup effects and all these things, something I've wanted to do forever, and this was a chance to do that. And I like when horror movies, in particular, do that. I'm not opposed to visual effects in any way, and there's visual effects in this movie, too, but we wanted to try to take practical as far as we could — and have things there for our actors to see and feel and react to, because it just makes it more fun for us. But I think the audience can feel that coming through as well." On How Sandberg and Dauberman's Working Relationship Has Evolved in the Eight Years Since Annabelle: Creation David: "Gary produced this movie as well. It all started with him, the project. So I guess you were more involved now. I mean, you were involved in all of Annabelle: Creation as well. So it's very similar." Gary: "I think it was similar, but I think we just got more comfortable with each other." David: "Yeah." Gary: "So I think it's evolved from that standpoint. But I think I just have a confidence in him that I don't have in a lot of people, so he's like a safe place for me. I just know that he's going to elevate whatever material I hand over to him. And so, yeah, I think it's just the familiarity and the comfortability that you oftentimes don't get in this business, because it's so transactional and it's new faces every time you go somewhere. So it's nice to have somebody who's consistent and constant." On Why Adaptations of Video Games Are Such a Focus at the Moment — and Striking Such a Chord with Audiences David: "I think it's because people who grew up with video games are now in positions to make to make and write these types of movies. And I think that really helps — because I think back in the 80s, making that Super Mario Bros movie, I don't think those people were gamers. Maybe they were, I don't know. So I think it's just like, for this generation or for us now, it's like 'well, of course video games are just as important as comic books or other movies or whatever'. So it's gotten to the respect that it deserves." [caption id="attachment_1000993" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Stewart Cook/Sony Pictures via Getty Images[/caption] Gary: "Yeah, and I think from a business standpoint, it's such an IP-driven business that comic books feels a little probably picked over. And so it feels like now the attention has turned to video games — and that IP, it's just been kind of sitting there. But as gamers, we've always known it's been — it's right there. You go do this stuff, give it the money and the time it deserves, and the talent. So I'm happy and excited to see that that's coming to fruition." David: "And games, of course, have become more and more cinematic, closer to movies as well." Gary: "Yeah, yeah, which becomes part of a challenge." Until Dawn released in cinemas Down Under on Thursday, April 24, 2025.
