Expat directors shine but Australian films shunned at Cannes

Not a single Australian feature film has made it into competition at the Cannes Film Festival following the line-up announcement.

While two Australian directors will see their films in competition to win an award, no local productions have made the cut.

Chopper director Andrew Dominik’s new film Killing Them Softly, formerly titled Cogan’s Trade, starring Brad Pitt and Ben Mendelsohn will compete. The film also features Australian actress Bella Heathcote.

The Proposition director John Hillcoat’s Lawless will also run in competition. Hillcoat teamed up with The Proposition’s screenwriter Nick Cave on the script and on screen, Guy Pearce and with fellow Australians Jason Clarke and Mia Wasikowska as well as Gary Oldman and  Shia La Bouffe for the film set in depression-era Virginia.