The Melbourne International Film Festival is again returning to the Melbourne Planetarium.  This year the planetarium will present two special fulldome showcases.

Showcase One – Saturday 1st and Saturday 8th August at 7pm

Musica: Why is the Universe Beautiful?, from Japan, begins with a forest, a flower, a sunset, the vast stadium of stars… A girl is mesmerised by the beauty of nature and asks, “Why do I sense beauty?” A quiet pianist who calls himself Musica shows her the common elements hiding in both music and nature. And so begins the endless conversation she has with Musica… and the Universe.

Bella Gaia, meanwhile, offers a poetic vision of Earth from space. Inspired by astronauts who spoke of the life-changing power of seeing the Earth from space, filmmaker and composer Kenji Williams created Bella Gaia to simulate the transformation called the Overview Effect. Working closely with NASA’s scientific visualisation studio, the award-winning film successfully simulates space flight, taking the audience on a spectacular journey around planet Earth.

Showcase Two – Saturday 1st and Saturday 8th August at 9pm

The Submergence Trilogy includes three fulldome dance films: The Beautiful, an immersive metaphysical journey through the landscapes of South Wales; The Sublime, a dynamic fulldome dance film featuring site-specific live parkour and breakdance sequences, shot within the natural & urban spaces of Wales; and Pal o’ My Heart, the story of two Irish boys, set during the Easter Rising, and filmed on location on the remote Pembrokeshire coastline with the two dancers, Daniel Connor and Murilo Leite D’Imperio, performing in and out of the water.

Ancient Skies – Europe’s Neolithic civilisations, far from being “savages”, were highly intelligent, capable of extraordinarily skilled feats of engineering and astronomy. Ancient Skies explores this fascinating subject and the enduring popularity of the legacy of our ancestors.

For ticket enquiries go to the MIFF website:
http://miff.com.au/program/film/fulldome-showcase-1

 http://miff.com.au/program/film/fulldome-showcase-2