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Australia’s only film festival programmed for film lovers 50+, Young at Heart, has revealed a stellar program that will roll out in April to Palace Cinemas across Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra and for the first time. . . Brisbane. 

“This year’s program takes a particular look at the modern family, celebrating the unconventional, complex and ever-changing relationships that bind us together,” says Festival Director Mathieu Ravier.

Young at Heart is the only film festival specifically created for seniors, which enriches cultural diversity and experiences for all audiences.

For its 11th incarnation, the Young at Heart program will include ten new feature films, a selection of new Australian short films starring seniors, special events, filmmaker Q&As, a digital print of the 1951 classic A Streetcar Named Desire and the Foxtel Movies Audience Award where filmgoers vote for Best Film.

Exploring shifting family dynamics are the dramas Louder than Bombs starring Isabelle Huppert, Jesse Eisenberg and Gabriel Byrne; Fathers and Daughters with Russell Crowe, Amanda Seyfried and Jane Fonda; and Mia Madre, from Italian master Nanni Moretti and starring Margherita Buy and John Turturro.

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Fathers and Daughters is an earnest love story vividly brought to life by an all-star cast

Relationships are also the subject of Grandma, a sharply observed comedy starring the inimitable Lilly Tomlin as a strong-willed lesbian poet; and the bittersweet Australian comedy, A Month of Sundays starring Anthony LaPaglia, Justine Clarke, Julia Blake and John Clarke.

The program also includes the Irish film Dare To Be Wild, about a landscape gardener’s dream to take on the establishment at the Chelsea Flower Show; the Japanese film, Our Little Sister, which charts the relationship between four sisters in a joyful celebration of family and community; a biopic of Indian mathematical genius Srinivasa Ramanujan, The Man Who Knew Infinity; and the documentaries, Seymour: An Introduction directed by Ethan Hawke, as well as Harry And Snowman which recounts the extraordinary friendship between a man and his horse.

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A Month of Sundays is a bittersweet comedy about ordinary people and improbable salvation

Celebrating the contribution of senior Australians to film culture will be the Relay Service Short Film Awards, a showcase of the best new Australian short films featuring seniors in lead roles, that will tour to over 80 regional towns from April 1 to 17. The Best Senior Actor award will be determined by an esteemed jury of industry professionals including entertainer Warren Kermond and actress Vola Vandere.

Event details

April 1-7 in Sydney and Canberra
• Palace Verona – 17 Oxford St, Paddington – (02) 9360 6099
• Palace Norton St – 99 Norton St, Leichardt – (02) 9564 5620
• Palace Electric – 2 Phillip Law St, Canberra – (02) 6222 4900

April 11-17 in Melbourne and Brisbane
• Palace Balwyn – 231 Whitehorse Rd, Balwyn – (03) 9817 1277
• Palace Brighton Bay – 294 Bay St, Brighton – (03) 9596 3590
• Palace Centro – 39 James St, Fortitude Valley – (07) 3852 4488

Tickets: From $6. Available via www.palacecinemas.com.au or each venue’s Box Office.
Program: Available from www.youngatheart.net.au or filmgoers can receive a copy in the post by calling 02 9550 2266.

The competition to win VIP passes to the festival has ended.

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