TROPTALKS are here and with the extraordinary array of guest speakers, tickets will be snapped up quickly.

Presented by Western Sydney University  TROPTALKS are part of a week-long extravaganza of events, including the Craft Awards, Launch Party, and Trop Jr; with the week coming to a spectacular finale with the Tropfest main event on Saturday 17 February at Parramatta Park.

Academy Award winner and head of the 2018 Jury Susan Sarandon will lead a stellar lineup of the industry’s leading innovators and creators.  Joining Susan Sarandon will be Saroo Brierley, whose life story inspired Golden Globe-nominated film Lion, and Tropfest alumni Abe Forsythe (Tropfest 2010), whose upcoming film Little Monsters stars Oscar winner Lupita Nyong’o.

Other highlights speakers include Yolanda Ramke and Ben Howling. The duo’s Tropfest 2013 finalist film Cargo is currently being developed into Australia’s first Netflix Original feature, starring Martin Freeman (The Hobbit), having enjoyed viral success on YouTube.

TROPTALKS  presented by Western Sydney University 2018 

New Technologies in Filmmaking | $11.70 | 6:30pm, Tuesday 13 February | Level 9, Peter Shergold Building, Western Sydney University, Parramatta City Campus, 169 Macquarie Street, Parramatta.
New Technologies in Filmmaking (13 Feb.), hosted by author and pop culture commentator Maria Lewis, will discuss the greatest minds in emerging film technologies. Oscar-winning effects company ODD STUDIO’s Adam Johansen (Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith) and Colin Ware (Alien: Covenant) will be joined by Emmy Award- winning VR artist Lynette Wallworth (Coral), and VR studio Mod co-founder, Michela Ledwidge.

Genre Busters | $11.70 | 6:30pm, Wednesday 14 February | Level 9, Peter Shergold Building, Western Sydney University, Parramatta City Campus, 169 Macquarie Street, Parramatta. 
Genre Busters (14 Feb.), hosted by Jason di Rosso (ABC Radio National’s The Screen Hub), will explore the recent surge of genre-defying films. Tropfest alumni Abe Forsythe, Yolanda Ramke and Ben Howling will speak alongside Western Sydney University’s Media Arts Production lecturer Maryella Hatfield to dissect different ways to change genre perceptions.

Indigenous Storytelling | $11.70 | 12.30pm, Thursday 15 February | Level 1, L/Theatre, Western Sydney University, Sydney City Campus, 255 Elizabeth Street, Sydney. 
Award-winning Indigenous talent will exchange ideas at Indigenous Storytelling (15 Feb.), hosted by Daniel Browning (ABC Radio National’s Awaye!). Rising star Tysan Towney (Romper Stomper), veteran casting director Anousha Zarkesh (Sweet Country) and Berlinale Jury Special Mention winner Catriona McKenzie (Satellite Boy) will shed Indigenous insight on filmmaking.

Adaptation – Bringing Stories to Life | $11.70 | 6pm, Friday 16 February | Level 9, Peter Shergold Building, Western Sydney University, Parramatta City Campus, 169 Macquarie Street, Parramatta.
Susan Sarandon and Saroo Brierley will be joined by Lion producer Angie Fielder, Robert Connolly (Paper Planes), and Western Sydney University PhD Graduate Marty Murphy at Adaptation: Bringing Stories to Life (16 Feb.), showcasing the most talented names in film adaptation. The talk will be hosted by Chris Taylor (ABC TV’s Screen Time).

For TropTalks tickets, festival details, screening venues and regular updates on all things Trop visit:

Website: www.tropfest.org.au
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/tropfest
Twitter: www.twitter.com/TROPFEST
Instagram: www.instagram.com/tropfest
YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/TROPFEST