September (Drama / Completed)

The inaugural project in the newly established Tropfest Feature Program, September is a tender story of friendship and loyalty between two boys on the cusp of adulthood.

September is a humane, cinematic and intricately drawn coming-of-age story - a visually stunning character film about two 16 year old boys, one black, one white, whose pure and unaffected friendship begins to fall apart against the backdrop of a turbulent and pivotal moment in Australia's past.

Set in Western Australia in 1968, Ed and Paddy have been best friends for as long as they can remember, having grown up together on Ed's family farm. They spend their afternoons together being boys; laughing, reading, smoking and then building their own make-shift boxing ring in the wheat fields where they spar each day and dream of future glories.

But Ed is white and Paddy is Aboriginal and the changing social and political climate threatens to fracture what was a rock-solid friendship.

Cast: Clarence John Ryan, Xavier Samuel, Mia Wasikowska, Kieran Darcy-Smith, Alice Mcconnell, Kelton Pell, Lisa Flanagan, Sibylla Budd (Credits may not be contractual)

Director: Peter Carstairs

Writers: Peter Carstairs, Ant Horn

Producers: John Polson, Lynda House, Serena Paull

Production Company: Tropfest Feature Program

Berlin International Film Festival (2008):

- Official Selection, Generation 14Plus

Russell Edwards, Variety.com:

"A flashback to one of Australia's racist blind spots awkwardly ducks and weaves before landing a killer punch in the warmly expressed Oz meller "September"... Pic unspooled in Toronto's Discovery sidebar and should make room on its calendar for more fest slots."

Matt Riviera, Last Night With Riviera:

"It's also a confident debut by Peter Carstairs following some award-winning shorts (this is the inaugural project in the newly established Tropfest Feature Program). Rather than aim for emotional catharsis, the director maintains a quiet, laconic tone throughout. The thin narrative is composed of layers upon layers of subtle observations, achieved through excellent acting and stunning photography."

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