Local filmmaker Jasper Sharpe has taken second place in this year’s Tropfest filmmaking competition for his short film, We Don’t Take Breaks.
“This film really impressed us, such confident, stylish filmmaking, we absolutely adored it,” renowned Australian actress Margot Robbie said, presenting the fledgling director with the award in front of about 35,000 people at Sydney’s Centennial Park.
“Filmmaking is a collaborative process,” Jasper said as he accepted the award and thanked his cast, crew, producer, and of course Tropfest for coming back after a hiatus of seven years and providing emerging filmmakers a global stage to showcase their work in the ‘world’s largest short film festival’.
Jasper’s short film was one of only 16 selected as finalists from over 700 entries. Sydney mum Lianne Mackessy won first place and a $50,000 prize for her film Crescendo. Jasper won $30,000.
While he now lives in Melbourne, Jasper was raised and educated in the Northern Rivers, attending Tuntable Creek Primary School and Richmond River High School and being actively involved with Nimbin Headers.
“I used to watch Tropfest as a kid and it was super inspiring,” Jasper said.
He said the inspiration for the film came from his personal experiences in the hospitality industry.
“It was kinda hectic, we had all these people jumping on, mostly volunteering their time over two scheduled night shoots. I was editing it on my laptop in all kinds of places.
“I want to send a huge thank you to everyone who was involved, and we look forward to the next one,” Jasper said.
