No, it’s not sold out...there are still a few places left for opening night- the great documentary Desert Runners at the Village Cinema followed by a glamorous after party at Mud at the Old Seaport -  rub shoulders with some of Australia’s best producers and directors and meet one of the stars of the film, Australian ultra marathon runner Samantha Gash. Enjoy great Tasmanian food and wine from one of the state’s finest chefs Don Cameron (ex Stillwater)- and all this, movie and party, for just $65! Book here now

Tickets for BOFA 2014 are selling fast, and some movies are close to sold out, so pick up your BOFA program and book your seats now- for many of these films it will be a once-only screening in Tasmania, so don’t miss your only chance to see some of the world’s best features and documentaries.

BOFA 2014 programs are available in many venues around the state, at Neil Pitt’s and Hotel Grand Chancellor in Launceston or online at the BOFA web site here.

With the Chinese president Xi Jinping due to visit Tasmania this month, BOFA will be highlighting China with two award winning films- one documentary and one feature.

One of the hits of the Melbourne Film Festival, The Nightingale (Saturday, 2.45pm. Tramsheds Theatre) is an entertaining and insightful look at generational change in China. This French/Chinese production, directed by Philippe Muyl, tells the story of Renxing, an urbane and affluent 10-year-old forced to accompany her grandfather on a trip through the Chinese countryside to his tiny hometown.  Renxing slowly discovers the joys of living offline as it emerges that oldest can still teach the youngest – and vice versa.

One of the surprises of the film is the lush beauty of the rural landscape of south west China, ravishingly shot and worth the price of admission in itself.

China’s Three Dreams (Friday, 10.45am. Annexe Theatre) is a remarkable Australian documentary that premiered with two sold-out sessions at the Sydney Film Festival.

In the 1970s there were only three dreams in China: a radio, a watch and a bicycle. Today’s Chinese youth dream of wealth and an affluent lifestyle. Director Nick Torrens uses Lei, a young woman known as “The Searcher” to dramatically illustrate how the speed of change is creating a growing generation gap in the world’s fastest growing economy.

Film maker Nick Torrens will be a guest of BOFA and will host a Q & A after the film.

China is Tasmania’s largest trading partner, with merchandise and exports worth $610 million a year, so come along and gain a better understanding of this fascinating country through the eyes of two award winning film makers.

Probably the most powerful documentary to screen at BOFA this year, Orlando von Einsiedel’s extraordinary documentary Virunga (Saturday, 10.30am. Tramsheds Theatre)  lays out the complex of deadly forces threatening the World Heritage listed national park in eastern Congo.
Virunga National Park is the last refuge of the wild mountain gorilla, but is threatened by warring rebel groups, poachers and shady oil companies. The Park Rangers, with their affectionate family of orphaned gorillas, are the heroes of this amazing movie.

Sir David Attenborough recently commented on the oil exploitation threat: "It would be extremely worrying if Virunga were to be exploited for oil. Not only would it threaten a park that is home to a vast range of wildlife, but it would also send a worrying signal for the future of other world heritage sites."

Leonardo DiCaprio has partnered with Netflix to release Virunga, saying “films like Virunga are powerful stories that are a window into the incredible cultural and natural diversity of our world, the forces that are threatening to destroy it, and the people who are fighting to protect it,”

In the words of Variety, Virunga  has “enough action, pathos, suspense, venal villains, stalwart heroes and endangered gorillas for a dozen fiction films”.

Not to be missed.

Author, University lecturer and practising psychologist Agi O’Hara will be a special guest at BOFA 2014 (What Makes a Man a Man? Sunday, 9.00am to 12.30pm, Architecture & Design Theatre)

Agi is the founder of the charitable institution What Makes a Man Inc. that has created a virtual mentoring project, a multi-media resource for men of all ages. It is developed around a collection of "life lessons and reflections" of well-known Australian male public figures from a variety of professional, sporting and social contexts. The aim of the project is to provide potential role models to men who may be struggling through adversity or lacking a sense of purpose or direction.

Agi O’Hara will be part of the panel that looks at the way in which we can use the life experiences and wisdom of ‘community elders’ to offer significant guidance to men who lack their own role models and often seem lost and unprepared for life as an adult male.

The panel will include Hawthorn football legend Peter Hudson, marriage equality campaigner Rick Marton and Adam Mostogl, recently named Tasmania’s Young Australian of the Year.

This is a half day session for the price of a single screening! Bring a group of 4 or more and the price drops even more. Not for profit groups and charities are also eligible for further concession reductions.

This will be a fascinating discussion relevant to all men and to the women in their lives. Book here to be a part of it.

Go to the BOFA web site for ticket prices and multiple entry pass deals.  Be a part of Tasmania’s only major annual film festival.