The Melbourne Cinémathèque & ACMI present
Dead to the World
When
Wed 25 Nov 2026
See below for additional related events
Set in Newtown, Gibson’s only feature was directly inspired by the fast-talking boxing films of the 1940s and 1950s as well as the social changes taking place in Australia during the early 1990s. Centred around a boxing gym owned by a female Polish immigrant, the film examines the tensions between the working class and a burgeoning gentrification, with these two disparate realms juxtaposing and challenging one another inside and outside of the ring. Starring Lynette Curran, John Doyle (aka Rampaging Roy Slaven), Richard Roxburgh and Noah Taylor. Rarely screened since completion, this restoration presents the director’s preferred cut.
Preceded by head_phone_film_poems Ross Gibson (2021) 25 mins – Unclassified 15+. A selection of suggestive, haunting short poetic works created from the “found” archives of ASIO, Sydney’s Justice & Police Museum and Gibson’s own collection of late-night footage shot in his own neighbourhood.
To be introduced by Ross Gibson’s creative and life collaborator, Kathryn Bird.
Films in this program
There are no upcoming related events at this time.
About Melbourne Cinémathèque
Australia's longest-running film society, Melbourne Cinémathèque screens significant works of international cinema in the medium they were created, the way they would have originally screened.
Melbourne Cinémathèque is self-administered, volunteer-run, not-for-profit and membership-driven.
