18 February: Full Time + Voice Activated (short)
This week’s feature film is the heart-racing French drama Full Time, directed by Éric Gravel.
Mother of two Julie is making ends meet, getting by as the head chambermaid of a five-star hotel in Paris. Each meticulously-planned day starts before sunrise, preparing the kids for school and undertaking a long commute to work, where she unflappably completes her duties in time to return to them. But when a national railway strike breaks out – paralysing the entire France public transport system – Julie’s routine is thrown into chaos, increasingly pushing her into a frenetic race against time that threatens everything she’s worked so hard for.
According to Jonathan Romney of The Guardian, Full Time is a “very political film about the tribulations of earning a living, notably in jobs that bring little prestige yet involve high degrees of professionalism”. The film is a constant flurry, showing Julie rushing to and from work and attending job interviews in the limited time outside of her shifts– or sometimes, within her hours. In preparation for the role, lead actress Laure Calamy (also seen in Antoinette in the Cévennes) had to take maid classes to perfect her technique and movements in those dramatic, choreographed hotel scenes. The performance won her Best Actress at the 2021 Venice Film Festival.
Full Time is a story that shouldn't be as dramatic as it is– a pulse-pounding thriller serving as a commentary on the daily hustle that defines modern life.
But that’s not all! We’re also screening Australian short film Voice Activated.
After a successful run of film festivals, garnering 11 awards worldwide and a nomination for the AACTA Award for Best Short Film, Steve Anthopoulos’ 2022 short film follows the trials of a florist with a stutter forced to cooperate with a voice assistant on the way to an important delivery.
The film’s protagonist is based on the director and his struggles with stuttering since the age of six. “The inspiration came from my ill-fated attempts at talking to Siri … She’d misinterpret me or interrupt me. And although it was frustrating it was also pretty funny,” he said in an interview with Close-Up Culture.
Be sure to catch both these great films when they screens this Sunday, 18 February at 7pm for all IFS members at the Gala Cinema. If you’re not yet a member of the 2024 Illawarra Film Society season, it’s not too late! Sign up now and secure over 30 films, screened weekly through the year, for just $99.
