Chasing Rabbits - The Film
Chasing Rabbits is now a 20 minute short film.
Shot in Melbourne between the 19th and 24th March 2001 by Cinematographer and Director Sion Michel from the script adapted from Mark Fletcher's original stage play and featuring Peter Hardy in the solo role, the film of Chasing Rabbits had its premiere screening at The Classic cinema in Elsternwick on the 18th June 2001.
It has since been screened at the following film festivals:
2001 Minnesota Fringe Festival
The Long Beach Film Festival
St Louis International Film Festival
Anchorage Film Festival
Santa Fe Film Festival
Empire State Film Festival
Sarasota Film Festival
Johns Hopkins Film Festival 2002
2002 Rochester International Film Festival
AJIJIC Festival Internacional de Cine
Bare Bones International Film Festival
Wetfest Cairns Australia
Fayettville Arkansas FilmFest
IndieFest Telluride Colorado
Valodaro International Film Festival Mexico
Eclipse Film Festival Utah
Flickerfest International Film Festival 2003
Eureka Springs Digital Film Festival Arkansas
Santa Barbara International Film Festival
Belo Horizonte International Short Film Festival Brazil
At the NSW ACS Awards in Sydney on Saturday 3rd November 2001, Sion Michel was awarded the Gold Medal for Cinematography for his work on Chasing Rabbits.
The film went on to win the following awards:
Empire State Film Festival NYC
1st Prize Best Short Film, 2001
Bare Bones Film Festival
Tulsa Oklahoma
Grand Jury Award
Best Actor In A Foreign Film 2002
Anchorage Film Festival
Third Place, 2002
8th Annual Cinevue Film Festival Florida
Best Short Film, 2001
8th Annual Cinevue Film Festival Florida
Best Actor, 2001
Telluride Indifest
Winner (Short Film), 2003
Fayetteville Film Fest
Jury Nominated Winner, 2003
2002 Grand Goldie Film Award
REVIEW
Chasing Rabbits - The Minneapolis Star Tribune
Sun, 5 Aug 2001
2001 Minneapolis Film Festival
‘From edgy to over-the-edge, the offerings in this year's Fringe Film Fest prove that creativity and do-it-yourself gumption are the key
elements in creating original, intriguing movies. The lineup of shorts and features is organized in a number of thematic showcases.
What binds them is a disdain for hack storytelling and homogenized film technique.
The standout among screenings classified as feature-length is Sion Michel's "Chasing Rabbits."
As handsomely directed, acted and shot as any Hollywood prestige picture, it offers a 21-minute journey through the mind of a man whose involvement in a traffic accident turns out to be less than accidental.
Actor Peter Hardy begins with bluff self-confidence, gradually revealing decades of pain and trauma compressed into homicidal rage.’
