MWFF 2020 OPENING NIGHT: THESE ARE MY PEOPLE

By Natalie Williams

I often feel nervous around big events. My heartbeat quickens, my breathing is sharp and painful. My thoughts race with ideas of what could go wrong and what others will think of me. But there is something about walking into a room full of amazing, talented, hard working women that makes me so excited. I enter and it hits me. These are my people. Brilliant women creating art that aims to uplift and inspire us all.

It's the opening night of the Melbourne Women in Film Festival and I’ve brought along my best pal Alex with me to view the amazing opening film Vai and have her meeting my fellow critics lab mentees. Downstairs are chatters of excitement and upstairs are refreshments and nibbles for post-cinema nourishment. Hugs are shared between us all and jokes are passed back and forth before we take our seats in the stunningly beautiful and recently refurbished cinema. 

 The rainbow lights of The Capitol ceiling shine onto the beaming faces of the women around me. I overhear whispers of fellow cinema goers discussing the film and its beautiful storytelling and masterful cinematic techniques. There are giggles and smiles all around as I stare at the women in the room as an air of calm and content falls over me. 

These are the hardworking filmmakers of MWFF 2020. They are powerful, they are compassionate, they are driven, they are empathetic and they are unapologetic. They are complex and flawed and rich with stories to tell. They are infinitely brilliant. One day, I hope I can be just like them. 

 Check out the rest of the MWFF program here to find a screening or a panel to meet and celebrate these fantastic female storytellers.