The Bondi Short Film Festival was established by Francis Coady in 2000. Initially the festival began as a favor to his friends who had missed out on entering films in other festivals in Sydney as they had already screened their films in other states of Australia. Coady thought this was insane and ensured that film makers entering the Bondi Short Film Festival should not be restricted in any way.

“I was watching some incredible short films made by my friends and their associates and no one was able to see these films in Sydney. So I just pulled a party together and screened them. Simple as that! ” said Francis Coady.

Starting at the North Bondi RSL in 2000, the Bondi Short Film Festival quickly out-grew the venue and two years later moved to its new home, the Bondi Pavilion.

 

FESTIVAL REVIEW by STATE OF THE ARTS
We thought the best way to provide an overview of the festival in 2004 was to provide you with a review by one of Australia's finest art critics from State of the Arts.

“In its fourth sell-out year, the Bondi Short Film Festival once again raised the local bar for the short film genre, with a standout collection in this year's top fourteen.

Festival director Francis Coady and team have lovingly sifted through over 200 submissions to bring together this festival's collection. Unlike Tropfest, which follows an annual thematic inclusion, the Bondi Short Film Festival, which is held in the Pavilion at Sydney’s Bondi Beach, is open to the filmmaker's discretion, allowing for a wonderful melting pot of ideas including drama, comedy, documentary and animation. When asked what elements really make a film stand out in the initial selection process, Coady has knowingly responded, ”Sincerity, strong plot and script. If a filmmaker can make you feel something for the characters in such a short space of time they have done a good job!”

Technically an 'amateur' competition, the quality of the films in this year’s festival were highly impressive, with each year's entries becoming increasingly more sophisticated and polished than the last. According to Coady, the medium of short film has become more popular due to the increase in short film festivals - and this has resulted in stiffer competition amongst filmmakers.

The 2004 finalists were judged by Sam Worthington (Actor - Somersault), Martin Fabinyi (Mushroom Pictures) and Priscella Engall (Drum Media), with the coveted Best Film award being handed to Director Tahnee McGuire and Producer Stuart Parkyn for Blandville. A wonderful documentary about Blandville Court, a Sydney housing estate built in the 1960s, which stands high on a hill in Gladesville, its grey and austere modernist lines suggesting little life or interest. Once inside the building however, passion, love, kindness, loneliness, humour, colour, eccentricity and zeal abound in the stories of its elderly residents. Their passions and beliefs build another structure, the structure that has supported them through their lives. Blandville is beautiful in its sensitive yet tongue-in-cheek approach to its subjects. Simple, precious stories presented with humour, without any loss of dignity for the characters, Blandville was a standout winner for this reviewer.

Promising to be even bigger and better for 2009, the Annual Bondi Short Film Festival is an excellent summer's day out in Sydney. With a matinee and evening session, the event is accessible to all.”

- Amber Creswell (Art critic: State of the Arts)