This female filmmakers’ program, The Rouge, was introduced in 2015 to boost female filmmaking in Australia after a Screen Australia report found female filmmaking participation rates in Australia was quite low. This low figure reflected participation rates by female filmmakers in the Australian film industry generally. After we introduced the program in 2015, we saw an immediate increase by female filmmakers, up to 35 per cent. Award winning film producer Sue Maslin from Film Art Media will once again sponsor this important and popular program which is back for it’s fifth year in 2020.  Sue watches all the films and picks the winner who will receive the Film Art Media Award for the Best Film By A Female Director  and $1000.

When this festival started, we had a participation rate of about 5 -10 per cent from female filmmakers. In our 2015 festival, we had 53 entries from around the world.

To be eligible for the Rouge Program, a film needs two females (or female identifying) in the following roles: screenwriter, director, producer. Only films with a female director are eligible for the Film Art Media Award for the Best Film By A Female Director. It was won in 2019 by Lara Köse, for her film ‘Kaya’, which also won the Setting Sun Best Film Award 2019.

Enter here.