Tasmania’s only major annual film festival starts Thursday – four fantastic days of features and documentaries, short film competitions, industry masterclasses, and BOFA in Action sessions, kicking off with our Opening Night Red Carpet screening on Thursday night. Be a part of the Friendly Film Festival, BOFA 2016.

So many films, so little time. To help you decide, here are Festival Director Owen Tilbury’s top picks for BOFA 2016 – and he’s seen them all...

It’s a safe bet that this will be one of the most talked-about films at this year’s Festival. In South Africa’s powerful and enigmatic Nazareth Baptist Church (Shembe), every Shembe man aspires to own a leopard skin and this conservation blind spot means that leopard populations across southern Africa are declining. The culturally entrenched practice threatens an impending catastrophe. Leopard researcher Tristan Dickerson has dedicated his life to studying and protecting leopards – now he has produced a very realistic synthetic fur and has to convince the Shembe people to use it to save the big cats that they too love.

SUNDAY  9.45pm  TRAMSHEDS THEATRE 
SUNDAY  4.00pm  QVMAG THEATRE

Don’t miss this opportunity to hear Director Clayton Jacobson talk about the making of one of Australia’s most loved movies on its 10th anniversary. The story of Kenny Smyth (Shane Jacobson), the plumber who specializes in delivering and maintaining portable toilets to well-populated events, is just as funny today as it was in 2006. We follow Kenny as he juggles his family life with his excrement-soaked travails and eventually works his way to the highlight of his career -- a visit to the International Pumper and Cleaner Expo in Nashville, (or ‘Poo HQ’).

SATURDAY 
1.00pm FESTIVAL LOUNGE - Trish Lake, BOFA Artistic Director, in Conversation with Clayton Jacobson ( Free Event)  followed by the screening of KENNY at 2.00pm in the  ANNEXE THEATRE

The meeting place for all film lovers at BOFA, The Festival Lounge is the place to relax between movies, meet friends, talk about what you’ve just seen and enjoy a coffee, or a glass of Tasmanian beer, cider or wine.

Just outside the Annexe, Sweet Little Caravan will be serving doughnuts, almond croissants and strawberry tarts. There will also be cheese platters from Wursthaus and savoury lunch options specially designed for BOFA by Manubread, with vegetarian options available.

Make a note of the opening hours:
Thursday: 9.00am to 6.30pm
Friday: 9.00am. to late
Saturday: 9.00am. to late
Sunday: 9.00am to 6.00pm

And don’t forget HAPPY HOUR Thursday, Friday & Saturday 5.00pm to 6.30pm. and BOFA NIGHT SHIFT with free live music Friday & Saturday 9.30pm till late. Friday night hear the talented singer/guitarist Fletcher Bissett and Saturday night the well known local duo Luke and Sarah Trifitt from Paper Souls.

Launceston City Council has been an enthusiastic supporter of BOFA since our beginnings in 2010. Like the BOFA team, they believed that it was possible to create a small, but world class film festival that would become an iconic event for Launceston and the Tamar Valley. With their strong community focus and emphasis on community consultation, through the on line forum Your Voice. Your Launceston, the LCC is the perfect partner for Community BOFA at BOFA 2016. LCC will partner with BOFA in presenting WHAT’S STRONG, NOT WRONG, WITH COMMUNITIES, a full day session with two world leaders in grass-roots community-led development, Cormac Russell of Nurture Development UK, and Peter Kenyon of the Bank of Ideas, Australia.

Tasmanian masterchef Don Cameron doesn’t do many cocktail parties, but he’s created something very special for BOFA Opening Night. Right after the free-wheeling Italian comedy-drama Like Crazy at the Village Cinema we move to Don’s MUDBAR RESTAURANT at the Old Seaport for a memorable after party with fine Tasmanian wines and beers plus this amazing Don Cameron menu:

• Lettuce, Asparagus and Truffle Velouté with Pecorino
• Pork and Polenta Dumplings with Roasted Tomato Passata
• Baked Risotto with Chilli Jam and Chives
• Gougère with Smoked Salmon, Béarnaise and Mushroom Duxelle
• Coffee Zabaglione with Orange Sugar, Frangelico Brown Sugar Ice Cream

AND ALL THIS FOR JUST $85 FOR MOVIE AND AFTER PARTY – STILL A FEW PLACES LEFT - BOOK HERE

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 10 – MOVIE AT 7.00PM AT THE VILLAGE CINEMA, AFTER PARTY AT MUDBAR

Don’t just take your chances at the BOFA booking office – many films will sell out, so buy your tickets and BOOK NOW.

You can access the full program and buy tickets NOW on the BOFA web site. And remember, there are big discounts for buying tickets in blocks of 4, 8 and 16. Tickets are completely transferable, so get together with family and friends or a local club to make big savings.

HOW TO GET YOUR BOFA 2016 PROGRAMME:

• Go and use the flip book programme
• Go and download the PDF programme
• Pick up your copy from Neil Pitt’s Menswear, Aussie Launceston or Hotel Grand Chancellor in Launceston or many other CBD locations throughout the state
• Download the FREE What’s On In app now at www.whatsonin.com.au and take the BOFA programme with you wherever you go.