AustLit

'Showing in the Orizzonti sidebar at this year's Venice Film Festival, Ruin (2013) is by turns a gritty and dazzling lovers-on-the-run tale set in modern day Cambodia. Directed by Michael Cody and Amiel Courtin-Wilson, the film tells the story of two of society's worst-off down-and-outs. Sang Malen plays Sovanna, a young prostitute who is beaten and mistreated by her pimp when she feigns illness to escape work. She manages to escape, but Phnom Penh - and Cambodia, for that matter - is no place for a young girl on her own. Fortunately she meets Phirun (Rous Mony), an aggressive young local factory worker.

'A vague spark of affection is ignited and Phirun promises to shelter the girl, but following a murder they are forced to flee the city and look to survive on the road.'

Source: Cine Vue (http://www.cine-vue.com/2013/09/venice-2013-ruin-review.html). (Sighted: 9/9/2013)

'Dan is in love with Leanne. They were born on the same day - 19th June 1960. They eat together. They live together. They steal together. When Dan's love is suddenly ripped away from him, he is reduced to savagery. The past is not a dead thing, but may return, like a hunter, to follow us for a time.'

Source: Screen Australia. (Sighted: 29/1/2014)

'Provocative, funny and profoundly moving, Bastardy is the inspirational story of a self proclaimed Robin Hood of the streets.

'For forty years and with infectious humour and optimism, Jack Charles has juggled a life of crime with another successful career - acting.

'Since founding the first Aboriginal theatre company in the 1970's, Jack has performed with Australia's most renowned actors (Geoffrey Rush, David Gulpillil, Bill Hunter) and directors in feature films (The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith, Bedevil and Blackfellas) TV series and hundreds of plays.

'Filmmaker Amiel Courtin-Wilson follows Jack over seven years - gradually blurring the line between director and accomplice as Jack continually traverses the criminal and acting worlds.

'However, the law finally catches up with Jack and when he faces a jail sentence he might not survive, he is forced to decide if he can go straight for the first time in his life.

'Bastardy is the story of one man's journey into the light. (From the Siren Visual website.)