Make Them Count

If you had to pick your top five films of all time, would you be honest and include the schlock you're less than proud to love, or would you stick to arthouse masterpieces? Shaun Larkin, screen event coordinator at ACMI, has helped to program events in the Desert Island Flicks series over the last two years and has asked himself this question many times. “Every time I do this I think, 'Holy crap, what would be my top five?',” he laughs.

In the series, prominent members of the arts world spend an evening discussing the five films closest to their hearts. Despite having had cinematic luminaries such as Tim Burton and Adam Elliot on stage before, Larkin isn't just looking for recommendations for critically acclaimed cinema. “When we work with the people in the events, we don't want them to select the five best films that they've seen, we want them to choose the films that actually mean a lot to them... That's normally when you get the really juicy and interesting stories.”

This time around, the artist in the hot seat for the Desert Island Flicks Castaway series will be David McAllister, former principal artist, and now artistic director of the Australian National Ballet. Despite programming writers, actors and media figures before, it'll be the first time that Desert Island Flicks is showcasing someone with a dance background.

Chatting later on the phone, cinephile McAllister says that his love of film dates back to his childhood in Perth, when he often found himself carried away by the escapism and fantasy of a Saturday afternoon double-bill. But in later years, he explains, film has taken on a more practical role for him too “When you're a performer, [film is a source of] imagery that you draw on, especially in ballet because it's a nonverbal art form,” he says. “You're relying on images and ideas to portray character and stories.” He often alludes to scenes from films when working with the company. “[Dancers] are such a visually stimulated group. I think it's a great way to get someone to think visually about what they're trying to do physically.”

McAllister names films that have caught his imagination over the years, from dance classics like The Red Shoes to more recent films like Wim Wender's biopic of Pina Bausch and the forthcoming Anna Karenina adaptation, which he describes dreamily as “absolutely magnificent”. These days though, he says he is less likely to be as profoundly moved by film than in his formative years. “[Now] they inspire me in a different way, in a more technical way.” He thinks about that for a moment. “But then again, I just saw Les Misérables and cried!”

Fans of Flashdance and Centre Stage should prepare for disappointment; McAllister confirms that these didn't make the cut, although there certainly are some other dance-inspired numbers in his top five. There are a few wild cards in the mix too, however. He reveals that one of his selections is Gone With The Wind, which he saw as a teenager and which began “a lifelong love affair with that movie, and with Vivien Leigh”. He is keeping shtum about the rest of his choices though, saying that revealing them will have to wait until the night in question.