Out Takes

9 Jun 2024

Local Queer Cinema: ‘In The Room Where He Waits’ and ‘Sunflower’

LISTEN TO PODCAST NOW

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (71.7MB)

Local Queer Cinema: ‘In The Room Where He Waits’ and ‘Sunflower’

It’s no secret we love highlighting local queer cinema and for this show we looked at two new bold and highly impressive queer Australian feature films available for you to indulge in. ‘In The Room Where He Waits’ follows Tobin Wade, a theatre actor poised to perform in his Broadway breakthrough role, who must return home to Australia after the breakdown of his long-term relationship and the sudden death of his father. Stuck quarantining in a hotel room before the funeral, Tobin begins to unravel, not ready to confront a past long-left behind. The film stars critically acclaimed WA actor Daniel Monks (Sissy, Pulse) Susie Porter (Ladies in Black) and Anthony Brandon Wong (from Sequin in a Blue Room) and is written and directed by Timothy Despina Marshall who joined us to discuss the process of making the film and why it was important for him to share this story in his feature film debut.

We were also joined by director/producer team Gabriel Carrubba and Zane Borg along with Liam Mollica who is the lead actor in ‘Sunflower’ playing Leo, a seventeen-year-old boy who struggles to understand and embrace his sexuality as he comes of age in the working-class suburbs on Melbourne’s edge. Along with discussing the themes and drive behind each of them to tell this story we also find out more about the challenges and opportunities that come with making an independent feature film in Australia. For more great queer film and television content, subscribe to our podcast and follow Out Takes on Instagram.