BBFF2025
17 - 26 October
The Byron Bay International Film Festival 2025 took place from 17–26 October across multiple venues in Byron Bay and the Northern Rivers region. It presented a diverse program of international and Australian independent films, including features, documentaries, and short film sessions, alongside filmmaker Q&As and industry events.
The 2025 edition (its 19th) emphasized emerging voices, local “home-grown” productions, and socially engaged storytelling, reinforcing its reputation as a hub for creative exchange and innovation.
Overall, the festival combined a relaxed coastal atmosphere with a curated, globally minded program, attracting filmmakers, industry professionals, and audiences for both screenings and collaborative discussions.
BBFF2025 JURY MEMBERS
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![A portrait of Jack Thompson an older man with a white beard and mustache, smiling slightly, wearing a black jacket, against a plain light background.]()
Jack Thomson AM
A giant of Australian cinema, Jack has supported BBFF since its earliest days. Championing the local industry, he has featured in many iconic homegrown films.
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![Close-up of a woman with short black hair, blue eyes, wearing red lipstick, smiling slightly, with a shadow on a white background.]()
J'aimee Skippon-Volke
J’aimee is the Director of the Byron Bay International Film Festival and long-term board member of Screenworks. Over the past nine years she has been building BBFF into Australia’s largest regional film festival.
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![A professional headshot of a smiling woman with short blonde hair, wearing a light jacket and a red necklace against a neutral background.]()
MARGARET POMERANZ
Margaret Pomeranz is an Australian film critic, writer, producer, and television personality. Pomeranz joined the Special Broadcasting Services (SBS) in 1980 as writer and producer, working on TV programs such Front Up, Subsonics and the AFI and IF Awards.
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![A smiling woman with short, curly gray hair wearing a white shirt, standing in front of a light blue background with abstract designs.]()
Alex Mankiewicz
Alex is an award-winning illustrator who has storyboarded features and vetted scripts for HBO and other production companies. Daughter of Joseph (All About Eve), niece of Herman (Citizen Kane), she grew up reading screenplays as part of the family business.
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![A black-and-white headshot of a smiling bald man wearing glasses and a striped shirt against a dark background.]()
Elad Offer
Elad Offer is a film producer and industry executive known for his work in international film distribution and festival programming, contributing expertise in global cinema and market strategy.
BBFF2025 OFFICIAL SELECTION - DRAMATIC FEATURES
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![Movie poster for '' featuring sitting looking cold in the snow. The poster includes the words last ride]()
LAST RIDE
Directed by Cinqué Lee
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![Four adults stand together in a dimly lit room with drinks, posing in front of a shelf with plants and decor, under the stylized word “Birthright” in pink script.]()
BIRTHWRIGHT
Directed by Zoe Pepper
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![Movie poster titled “DJ Ahmet” showing a boy and a young man sitting on a tractor in a rural landscape, with festival laurels above.]()
DJ AHMET
Directed by Georgi M. Unkovski
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![Movie poster for “Happyend” showing two people facing each other on a pedestrian bridge, with Japanese text and festival laurels.]()
HAPPY END
Directed by Neo Sora
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![A movie poster showing three people by a van in a desert landscape under a clear blue sky, with the title “It Was Just an Accident” in bold yellow text above them.]()
IT WAS JUST AN ACCIDENT
Directed by Jafar Panahi
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![A film poster with a blue background and the title “Magic Farm” above a group of orange-tinted people gathered around a tall camera rig.]()
MAGIC FARM
Directed by Amalia Ulman
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![A movie poster with the title “Sirat” in large fading letters over a desert scene where a small group of people sit near speakers and two vans under a starry sky.]()
SIRAT
Directed by Oliver Laxe
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![A film poster featuring two people embracing at the center of a warm-toned, textured background, with the title “Universal Language” and multiple award laurels below.]()
UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE
Directed by Matthew Rankin
BBFF2025 OFFICIAL SELECTION - DOCUMENTARIES
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![Sunny shinning on a person standing on a hill with a white title reading '500 Days In The Wild'.]()
500 DAYS IN THE WILD
Directed by Dianne Whelan
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![A film poster showing a man in a wheelchair facing the ocean on a beach, with the title “Beyond the Break” above him.]()
BEYOND THE BREAK
Directed by Caleb Graham
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![A film poster showing a young person in winter clothing looking across snowy mountains, with the title “Champions of the Golden Valley” overlaid.]()
CHAMPIONS OF THE GOLDEN VALLEY
Directed by Ben Sturgulewski
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![A film poster showing a man riding a bicycle down a sunlit street in a colorful town, with the title “Common Wealth” above him.]()
COMMON WEALTH
Directed by Kane Guglielmi
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![A film poster showing two smiling faces in close-up with a burst of fire between them, and a nighttime crowd scene below, titled “Comparsa.”]()
COMPARSA
Directed by Vickie Curtis, Doug Anderson
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![A film poster showing a lone diver suspended in a glowing underwater cavern, with beams of light filtering through and the title “Deeper” below.]()
DEEPER
Directed by Jennifer Peedom
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![A film poster showing a young chimpanzee in green forest foliage above a mirrored landscape, with the title “Fool’s Paradise Lost?” written across the center.]()
FOOLS PARADISE (LOST?)
Directed by Alexandra Lexton
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![A stylized film poster showing a suited man pointing toward a dolphin leaping from water, with the title “John Lilly and the Earth Coincidence Control Office” below.]()
JOHN LILLY & THE EARTH COINCIDENCE CONTROL OFFICE
Directed by Michael Almereyda, Courtney Stephens
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![A film poster featuring a close-up portrait of an Indigenous man with long gray hair, with the title “Journey Home, David Gulpilil” beside him.]()
JOURNEY HOME, DAVID GULPILIL
Directed by Maggie Miles, Trisha Morton-Thomas
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![A film poster showing a person standing in tall grass overlooking a lake and hills, with the title “Ngā Ao E Rua (Two Worlds)” above.]()
MARLON WILLIAMS: TWO WORLDS - NGĀ AO E RUA
Directed by Ursula Grace Williams
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![A red film poster showing a hand holding puppet strings attached to a silhouetted figure above two people walking, surrounded by flowers, titled “Mistress Dispeller.”]()
MISTRESS DISPELLER
Directed by Elizabeth Lo
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![A film poster showing two women laughing with an elderly person seated by the water at sunset, with a dog nearby and the title “Nansie” above.]()
NANSIE
Directed by Anna Trichet-Laurier
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![A film poster showing a man facing a giant eye with a tunnel-like pupil, with the colorful title “Orwell” above.]()
ORWELL 2+2=5
Directed by Raoul Peck
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![A film poster showing a woman holding a box, surrounded by colorful, kaleidoscopic floral patterns, with the title “The Extraordinary Miss Flower” below.]()
THE EXTRAORDINARY MISS FLOWER
Directed by Iain Forsyth, Jane Pollard
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![A film poster with a glowing golden abstract background and the title “The Heart Revolution” in script lettering, with award laurels above.]()
THE HEART REVOLUTION
Directed by Benedikt Just
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![A film poster showing a person feeding a baby turtle on a beach at sunrise, with the title “Turtle Walker” above.]()
TURTLE WALKER
Directed by Taira Malaney
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![A film poster featuring a collage of surfers and coastal scenes in sepia tones, with bold red text reading “We the Surfers.”]()
WE THE SURFERS
Directed by Arthur Bourbon
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![A film poster showing a translucent portrait of a person over a vast desert landscape with riders on horseback, titled “Yurlu Country.”]()
YURLU | COUNTRY
Directed by Yaara Bou Melhem
BBFF2025 OFFICIAL SELECTION - SURF FILMS
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![A film poster showing a man in a wheelchair facing the ocean on a beach, with the title “Beyond the Break” above him.]()
BEYOND THE BREAK
Directed by Caleb Graham
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![A film poster showing a young person in winter clothing looking across snowy mountains, with the title “Champions of the Golden Valley” overlaid.]()
CHAMPIONS OF THE GOLDEN VALLEY
Directed by Ben Sturgulewski
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![A film poster showing a lone diver suspended in a glowing underwater cavern, with beams of light filtering through and the title “Deeper” below.]()
DEEPER
Directed by Jennifer Peedom
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![A film poster featuring a collage of surfers and coastal scenes in sepia tones, with bold red text reading “We the Surfers.”]()
WE THE SURFERS
Directed by Arthur Bourbon
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![Sunny shinning on a person standing on a hill with a white title reading '500 Days In The Wild'.]()
500 DAYS IN THE WILD
Directed by Dianne Whelan
BBFF2025 OFFICIAL SELECTION - OTHER CATEGORIES
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![Close-up of a surprised older man with a grey beard on the left, alongside a purple panel on the right displaying the words “SHORT FILMS” and event details.]()
SHORT FILMS
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Spotlight On Byron Bay 2025
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![Grid of diverse film stills featuring various people and scenes on the left, with a purple panel on the right displaying the text “YOUNG FILMMAKERS” and festival branding.]()
Young Australian Filmmakers
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![Silhouetted crowd at a concert lifting a person who is crowd-surfing under bright stage lights, with a teal panel on the right displaying “MUSIC VIDEOS” and festival branding.]()
Music Videos
BBFF2025 Nominees and Winners
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Best Film
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Best Dramatic Feature
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Best Short Film
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Best Documentary
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Best Surf Film
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Best Experimental Film
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Best Byron Film
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Best Cinematography
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Best Animation
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Best Music Video
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Byron Bay International Screenplay Competition
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Rob Stewart Conservation Award
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Young Australian Filmmaker of the Year