Summary
An Australian coming of age drama set around live performance is filled with a top soundtrack, great young cast and a lot of fun.
There’s a lot of firsts that 6 FESTIVALS can claim. In addition to being the narrative feature debut of Macario De Souza (Bra Boys, Fighting Fear), it’s the first Australian-produced film for the Paramount+ streaming platform. Yet it’s also part of a coming of a local coming of age tradition that sits somewhere at the crossroads of Garage Days and Babyteeth.
As the title of the film would imply, De Souza’s film takes place over the course of half a dozen music festivals along Australia’s east coast. Maxie (Rasmus King), Summer (Yasmin Honeychurch) and James (Rory Potter) share a friendship over their love of live music. The latter dreams of being a promoter and running his own festival one day.
However, when James receives a heartbreaking medical diagnosis, the trio resolve to see as many festivals as they can. The fests — which include Utopia Valley, Big Pineapple, and Yours and Owls — not only see them soaking up some of the nation’s best performing artists, but dealing with their various personal and familial issues as well.
There’s almost a whole season’s worth of television packed into this one unassuming feature. Summer has aspirations of singing, but is unable to come out of her own shell. Maxie has to deal with an abusive older brother, who forces him to sell drugs at the various gigs they attend. As we’re dealing with a whole bunch of live gigs, it never feels as though De Souza (alongside co-writers Sean Nash and Lou Sanzh) has tried to cram it all in. The transition between venues allows them to grow and develop organically.
Shot on location at the actual festivals throughout 2020 and 2021, 6 FESTIVALS is also a celebration of the music. Specifically, it’s a magnification of contemporary Australian music, with cameos and performances from the likes of Lime Cordiale, G Flip, Dune Rats, Hooligan Hefs, Bliss n Eso, Ruby Fields, Peking Duk and more. When these kinds of youth-driven films roll along, it often feels as though someone has wedged in an adult’s view of what the kids are doing. Yet this, like John Hughes or early Susan Seidelman films did in the ’80s, always feels immediate and fresh. Cinematographer Hugh Miller captures it all in slick fashion, and some genuinely emotional pieces to G Flip’s ‘I Am Not Afraid’ and Dune Rats’ ‘Scott Green’ are highlights.
A lot of that has to do with the terrific young cast. While Potter’s character has one of the weightiest arcs of the narrative, Honeychurch (Life of Jess) does a lot of the emotional heavy lifting of the piece. Similarly, King takes what could have been a one-note goofy character and gives him a few extra layers of pathos. Mind you, they get to drop a fair number of C-bombs — which just adds to the authenticity of the whole thing.
Opening and closing with sing-a-long covers of Powderfinger’s ‘My Happiness,’ 6 FESTIVALS is ultimately a joyful film. While some of the youth tropes may seem familiar to some audiences, this jaded ol’ viewer can only imagine what an impact a vibrant film like this would have had in my formative years. Try and see it on a big screen — and if you can’t, make sure those speakers are cranked right up.
2022 | Australia | DIRECTOR: Macario De Souza | WRITERS: Sean Nash, Macario De Souza, Lou Sanz | CAST: Rasmus King, Yasmin Honeychurch, Rory Potter, Guyala Bayles | DISTRIBUTOR: Bonsai Films, Paramount+ | RUNNING TIME: 95 minutes | RELEASE DATE: 11 August 2022
