This Week

Once again, kind and faithful readers, you have a chance to be in “on the ground floor” of a modern cultural bud, just coming into blossom. SBS Independent (SBSI) are gaining a well deserved reputation for co-financing new film making talent and their latest success story was nominated for Best Short Animated Film at the Academy Awards on the weekend (it didn’t win) : The Mysterious Geographic Explorations of Jasper Morello (SBS Fri 8P). SBSI also helped finance Oscar winner Harvey Krumpet two years ago also.
Jasper Morello which did win the AFI Award for best sort animation last year is the creation of former Swinburne Film School student, Anthony Lucas. Lucas has described Jasper Morello as the “ultimate Captain Nemo” story and it runs for 26 minutes.

The key television event of the week however is of course the opening ceremony to the Commonwealth Games (9 Wed 830P). Irrespective as to what you think of the games, my expectation of the opening ceremony is that it will do Melbourne, Victoria and Australia proud. After the coming of age experience at Sydney six years ago, we needn’t fear any cultural cringe and on the contrary we can look forward to celebrating everything that is good about this city and this international sporting carnival.