Dalveen film society head to the American south

The Dalveen Film Society outside their beautiful old hall.

The Dalveen Film Society’s third film The Peanut Butter Falcon, set for Saturday, 26 June at 7.30pm and already tickets are selling fast.

In fact, since the Society started their film nights in the town’s quaint little town hall, even the organisers have been surprised at how well the nights have been received.

“It’s actually, I don’t even know how to describe it in some ways – its much much bigger and we have had much more support than we thought we were going to have,” organizing committee member Jo Anderson said.

“For the last film we had to close ticket sales about a week before the movie screened because we sold out, which was very unexpected. Tickets are on sale now for this movie and selling quickly again. We are just keeping a check on numbers to make sure we don’t sell more tickets than we can fit people into the hall.”

Jo said the support and interest was incredible with people seeming to really love coming to the country hall.

“We have had a lot of feedback from people describing it as a really good evening out, it’s not just showing a film or watching a film, it’s watching a film, it’s having a drink, having a chat with other people all within a little country hall,” she said.

“Really positive feedback.

“We knew people would be interest but the interest has taken us a little bit by surprise and people have been saying we would like more films and more screenings. This year we’re going to keep it to five films but certainly towards the end of the year, we will have a bit of a reflection and have a look and look at how we can take things forward.”

Dalveen had shown movies at the hall back a hundred years ago when movies were silent and a band of local film lovers decided to resurrect the process – showing a film every two months and marrying it with good local produce and a lot of great country hospitality.

This time around, because it’s a bit chilly at the moment, the committee will have a nice fire out side for people to meet at and talk around as well as a menu to suit the flavour of the film (something they have done for each screening).

“The film is set in the Southern states of America so we’re doing a southern chicken platter,” Jo explained.

“This will be some southern baked chicken and some home-made cornbread and homemade salsa and relish to go with it. It should be a nice little taste of the south which you could marry with a nice drink from the bar and enjoy what I think is going to be a really uplifting heartfelt film.”

The Peanut Butter Falcon, a 2019 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Tyler Nilson and Michael Schwartz, stars Shia LaBeouf, Zack Gottsagen, Dakota Johnson, Bruce Dern, Jon Bernthal and Thomas Haden Church.

Its follows a young man with Down syndrome (Gottsagen) who escapes from an assisted living facility and befriends a wayward fisherman on the run (LaBeouf); as the two men form a rapid bond, a social worker (Johnson) attempts to track them down.

Tickets are available from The Dalveen Post Office, The Summit Store and Gracious Giving in Stanthorpe or online at: www.eventbrite.co.nz/e/156464356101