A gem of a queer coming-of-age drama from the working-class suburbs of Melbourne.
A tenderly hand-crafted, queer coming of age indie set on the Melbourne suburban fringe, Sunflower glows with emotional truth, humour and heartbreak. Leo (Liam Mollica) seems a typical seventeen-year-old. He hangs with his mates, shyly asks out his first girlfriend, and bickers with his infuriating but loving family. After he is blindsided by a growing attraction to his best friend, Boof (Luke J. Morgan), Leo must grapple with his emerging identity and the homophobic jungle of high school. Authentic is an over-used descriptor in the cinematic zeitgeist, but in the case of Gabriel Carrubba’s semi-autobiographical feature debut where each performance is affectingly real, it is undeniably earned.
“Stirring and personal … A sensual and intimate character study from an exciting new voice in queer and Australian cinema.” (Cinema Australia)
“This gay love story brings endless heartfelt candour to the big screen … a highlight of this year’s Sydney Film Festival.” (Pulp)