H is for Happiness (2019)
Set in the colourful Australian coastal town of Albany, H IS FOR HAPPINESS is a classic feel-good film for all ages that will make you laugh, cry, and cheer with delight. Based on the award-winning book My Life as an Alphabet by Barry Jonsberg, it is the genuinely heart-warming and unflinchingly honest story of one twelve-year-old’s determination to bring her family back from the brink and spark philosophy of happiness essay in their lives. Using an entirely unique approach, Candice Phee is an unforgettable heroine whose exploits will inspire and delight anyone who has faced the trials of adolescence and the heartbreak of family tragedy.
Starring newcomers Daisy Axon and Wesley Patton alongside Miriam Margolyes, Richard Roxburgh, Emma Booth, Joel Jackson, Deb Mailman and a miniature horse, H IS FOR HAPPINESS shows us a quintessentially Australian world through the eyes of a quirky outsider, and is a joyous celebration of all things a little bit different.
H IS FOR HAPPINESS was one of four gala screenings at the 2019 Melbourne International Film Festival, and went on to win the prestigious Cinefest Oz Film Prize, and a Jury Prize at the 2020 Berlin International Film Festival. It was also nominated for ten AACTA Awards in 2020.
Awards, Festivals, Sales/Releases:
- Winner Cinefest Oz Film Prize, 2019
- Melbourne International Film Festival 2019, 2nd Place Audience Award
- Special Mention, Children's Jury, Generation Kplus, Berlin International Film Festival 2020
- Main Prize of the Children's Jury for Best Feature Film for Children & Jury Prize for the Best Children Performance in a Feature Film for Children (Wesley Patten), Ziln International Film Festival 2020, Czech Republic
- Main Competition Fern Flower Award - Kids Kino New Horizons Film Festival 2020, Poland
- Best Film of the Professional Jury - KinoKino Zagreb 2020, Croatia
- Ten AACTA (Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts) Nominations 2020 for Best Film, Best Direction, Best Lead Actor Richard Roxburgh, Best Supporting Actor Wesley Patten, Best Supporting Actress Emma Booth and Deborah Mailman, Best Cinematography, Best Original Score, Best Costume Design, Best Casting
- Melbourne International Film Festival 2019
- Cinefest Oz, 2019
- Byron Bay International Film Festival 2019
- International Premiere, Opening Film, Generation Kplus, Berlin International Film Festival 2020
- US Premiere, Children's Film Festival Seattle 2020, United States
- Perth Festival 2019
- Tumbleweeds Film Festival, Seattle 2020, United States
- Minneapolis St Paul International Film Festival 2020, United States
- Busan International Kids & Youth Film Festival 2020, South Korea
- Kyiv Molodist Film Festival 2020, Ukraine
- Ziln International Film Festival for Children & Youth 2020, Czech Republic
- Zurich Film Festival 2020, Switzerland
- Kinodiseea International Children Film Festival 2020, Romania
- Haifa International Film Festival 2020, Israel
- Gothenburg Film Festival Prisma 2020, Sweden
- Kaohsiung Film Festival 2020, Taiwan
- Ulaanbaatar Film Festival 2020, Mongolia
- Pacific Meridian International Film Festival 2020, Russia
- Filem'on International Film Festival 2020, Belgium
- Cork International Film Festival 2020, Ireland
- China International Children's Film Festival 2020, China
- Kids Kino - New Horizons 2020, Poland
- International Young Audience Film Festival Ale Kino! 2020, Poland
- International Vilnius Film Festival for Children & Youth 2020, Lithuania
- KinoKino Zagreb - International Film Festival for Children 2020, Croatia
- Jakarta Film Festival FSAI 2021, Indonesia
- Lisbon's International Children & Youth Film Festival 2021, Portugal
- AFF Youth 2021 - Adelaide Film Festival, Australia
- Universal/R&R Films, February 2020