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The Moon Is Upside Down

Directed by Loren Taylor
2023
New Zealand
100 minutes
Unclassified 18+
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With a stellar cast, this funny and poignant NZ romantic drama follows three women at a crossroads in their apparently unconnected lives.

A mail-order bride from Siberia, the lonely wife of a wealthy property investor, and an anaesthetist looking for frisky fun, are the engaging central characters in this sharply observed slice-of-life set around Wellington. Uproariously funny one moment and deeply affecting the next, New Zealand actor-filmmaker Loren Taylor’s free-wheeling debut contrasts life’s absurdities with our innate desire to form connections, seek happiness and maybe even make some sense of it all. Winner of the Best First Feature prize at Tallinn, it’s wonderfully acted by a cast that includes Australian Victoria Haralabidou (Prosper, The Tourist), and Taylor’s Eagle vs Shark co-star Jemaine Clement (Nude Tuesday, SFF 2022).

Limited seats are available for patrons requiring access for wheelchairs, low vision and hearing loop. Please contact our ticketing team directly on 1300 733 733 or tickets@sff.org.au to complete your booking.
A wry and sharply-written examination of the gap between hopeful expectations and the cold, hard realities of life
Wendy Ide, Screen International
The Moon is Upside Down is a must-watch, a thought-provoking examination of connection, loneliness, and the unpredictable twists of fate
Malaika Bova, Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival

Special Guests

Loren Taylor
Director, Screenwriter, Cast
Loren Taylor is an actress best known for her screenwriting credits and performance in Taika Waititi’s Eagle vs. Shark, where she won Best Actress at the Newport International film Festival and the St Tropez Festival de Antipodes. Taylor has made both lead and guest appearances in Xena, Young Hercules, Atlantis High and The Strip.
Jemaine Clement
Cast
Jemaine Clement is a New Zealand actor, comedian, filmmaker, musician and writer, best known for his musical comedy with Bret McKenzie under the name Flight of the Conchords, which later became a comedy series on BBC and HBO. He co-directed, co-wrote, and co-starred in What We Do in the Shadows with Taika Waititi (SFF Closing Night 2014), which later adapted into an FX television series.

Tickets

Sat 8 Jun
6pm
Dendy Newtown - Cinema 1
Assisted Listening
Wheelchair
Past Event Cancel
Sun 9 Jun
6pm
Ritz Randwick - Cinema 3
Assisted Listening
Wheelchair
Past Event Cancel
Program Strand
Features
Year
2023
Classification
Unclassified 18+
Country
New Zealand
Language
In English and Russian with English subtitles
Director
Loren Taylor
Producer
Georgina Conder, Philippa Campbell
Cast
Elizabeth Hawthorne, Loren Taylor, Victoria Haralabidou
Screenwriter
Loren Taylor
Cinematographer
Adam Luxton
Editor
Simon Price
Premiere
Australian Premiere
Genre
Women Directors, Focus on Women, Comedies, Festival Award Winners, Off-Beat
Company Credits
Australian Distributor: Vendetta Films
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