Malick's masterpiece stumps some, leaves others amazed

FILM ... with Michael Dalton

The Tree of Life (PG)
Director: Terrence Malick
Stars: Brat Pitt, Sean Penn, Jessica Chastain, the Universe as we now don't know it
Rating: 4.5/5
138-minutes, now screening

Firmly dividing audiences and critics, and aggressively booed at The Cannes Film Festival, Terrence Malick’s controversial new film, The Tree of Life, comes on like a dream.

For the indolent, this appears to be a film about family life accompanied by unconnected imagery. But for those willing to meet Malick halfway — and to appreciate this exhilarating work, you must — his film is a thoughtfully designed examination of the world, our place in it, and what we are.
The primary focus here is a family with Brad Pitt (in a revelatory performance) and Jessica Chastain (who resembles a young Liv Ullman) as the parents. They have three sons, and much of the action is seen through the eyes of their son Jack (played in his mature years by a confused Sean Penn).
One of Malick’s many contentions is the mystery of human behaviour, which he investigates through the domination of a father over a son (paralleled early on by a staggeringly beautiful return to The Big Bang where we witness the conflict between two dinosaurs), and the growing resentment of the son. Can we ever understand why people behave the way they do? A broad question certainly, but one Malick answers with elegance.
There’s more, much more, as Malick plays host to their lives, mirroring their actions with the bigger picture and always with the finer details. This profound piece, full of imagery, and superbly scored by Alexandre Desplat and classic choral standards (Tavener and Gorecki among many others) drifts and floats, meandering along with little exposition. The Tree of Life is for those willing to surrender to this journey, and there’s never been one like it. Malick’s film moves slowly and it must, for The Tree of Life is some kind of a masterpiece, alive with beauty and truth.



Isabelle shines in hit-and-miss afffair

Special Treatment (MA15+)
Stars: Isabelle Huppert,Bouli Lanners
Rating: 3/5
96-minutes, now screening

Isabelle Huppert makes any film worthwhile; whether she’s tortured by personal demons (The Piano Teacher), introverted (8 Femmes), or obsessive (Home), Huppert brings her own unique style of performance to the table.

In Special Treatment, she plays Alice, a fetish prostitute ready to get out of the game. Running alongside her is Xavier (Bouli Lanners) a disillusioned, arrogant psychiatrist who, as the film begins, is ready to leave his wife due to, it would seem, general discontent.
This is a curious film, in search of a tone, and not as balanced as it should be. It hits the right notes and there’s a delicious, giggly sense of the forbidden as we watch Alice prepare for her various clients—one is turned on by sex in the middle of a crime scene, another by seeing her behave like a lollipop-loving nymph—yet there’s no real sense of foundation to the action. Neither character is happy, they need each other, but surprisingly, their eventual meetings don’t result in much, other than confusion and withdrawal.
Whether we visit a prostitute or a psychiatrist, the idea is to leave feeling better and this contrivance, which is certainly exciting fodder, isn’t handled with the sophistication it deserves.
Special Treatment tries to be arch and cool about the hooker lifestyle, tries to peel back the layers of Xavier’s dilemma — at one point he visits an exclusive sex club which overwhelms him hysterically — and tries to, with little explanation, bring Alice peace. But the final resolution is too trite, too easy, and too self-righteous.
Refusing to treat Alice, Xavier refers her to another doctor who works in a disabled centre, which is mawkishly used for a “things could be a lot worse” scenario. Neither Alice nor Xavier is a fool, but Special Treatment certainly makes them out to be.



The Binge


The Yes Men Fix the World (M) now available through Madman
Blades of Blood (M) now available through Icon
The Firm (MA15+) now available through Icon
Certified Copy (M) now available through Madman

Something of a mixed bag this issue, as I trawl through the DVDs I have for review. In The Yes Men Fix the World (above), self-appointed guardians of the oppressed and the weak, Andy Bichlbaum and Mike Bonanno, once more set out to take on irresponsible and unscrupulous corporations.
This latest film is more of the same from the guys who spawned The Yes Men in 2003, and while some of their stunts seem a little repetitive, and others prompt outright guffaws, the concept becomes more than a little disheartening when the same stunts and ridiculous corporate presentations begin being taken seriously by those who churn billions of dollars around the world—tick-shaped bio-survival suits that feed on global refugees to sustain their corporate wearers? Fantastic! Do you have a card?

In the big budget Blades of Blood, two sixteenth-century Korean statesmen pit their wits against each other in order to rally enough support to either collaborate with advancing Japanese invaders, or unite squabbling clans to defend their homeland. This compelling film certainly lives up to its title, drenching the sets and cast in treachery and tragedy.
Another kind of treachery comes to light in The Firm, as the unemployed Dom (Calum McNab) falls victim to the glamour of football violence in his local neighbourhood, particularly in the form of the charismatic thug, Bex (Paul Anderson), who is totally comfortable picking up wide-eyed sycophants and grinding them up in gang violence before spitting them out on the streets.

And finally, for something a little more urbane and cerebral, cinephiles will froth at the mouth over the DVD release of Abbas Kiarostami’s Certified Copy, starring Juliette Binoche and relative newcomer, William Shimell as two people who meet in a small Italian town, and proceed to role play some quite disturbing relationship scenarios—or are they role playing?

New De Bortoli pair blend well together

WINE ... with David Bray

De Bortoli first came to notice in the early 1980s with some wonderful, history-making botrytised white from their Riverina vineyards. Did very nicely out of it, too. They are still moving right along, not only putting out a fine pair of interesting blends, but announcing them in contemporary style.

Yep, it was an on-line launch, as near as your correspondent can recall to an electronically facilitated wine tasting. The two bottles had arrived by courier, along with instructions on how to use the “virtual platform’’. Easy it was, and at 10 in the morning up on my screen came Leanne De Bortoli and Steve Webber on the back deck of their Yarra Valley home, with bottles, monitor and cameras.
They talked, opened bottles, poured, sipped, did the things they do in old-fashioned wine tastings. Your reporter took a modest sip or two after a good sniff and didn’t spit. Other people were sending in comments.
Leanne kicked it off as follows: “In 1994, my family planted the newly named BellaRiva vineyard on the King River at the base of the Victorian snowfields. The 200-hectare vineyard is planted on sandstone and shale deposits washed down by the river over time. It is planted to Pinot Grigio, Vermentino, Sangiovese, Merlot, Tempranillo, Moscato Giallo as well as some more traditional varieties.
“Making seriously interesting wine for $16-18 per bottle sounds easy, but we find it extremely challenging. At this price, Australia has typically produced dried out dense red wine with lots of oak, which just doesn’t cut the mustard in the food stakes. And we have done to death both the fuller styles of white wine at one end of the scale and the very neutral styles at the other.
“Hence, Steve and I have been dreaming about some grown-up blends that are dry, savoury, interesting and proudly medium-bodied in both white and red format. The wines are more about style than variety. The white blend is light, faintly aromatic, dry and textural; the red blend bright, rustic and savoury. We think both are seriously delicious!”
Winemaker Steve got to the details, starting with the 2010 BellaRiva Pinot Grigio Vermentino (below): “In our vineyards we think this blend works. Grigio doesn’t have much flavour but is dry, vinous, thirst- quenching while Vermentino, which we have completely fallen for, is faintly aromatic, medium bodied and gives real interest to white wine. We could have used Malvasia and /or Fiano for a similar flavour profile.
And on the actual winemaking: “Grapes are both whole bunch pressed as well as crushed to give a range of phenolics for complexity and texture. The juice is allowed to ferment in used French oak casks as well as some higher solids tank fermentation. Lees are stirred regularly until final assembling of the blend.”
And on its taste: “Light straw in colour with a green edge. Complex, slightly nutty, faintly aromatic, fresh. Pear like fruit with nutty undertones. Clean but good texture and complexity, quite fine, almost salty, gluggable. : Alc/Vol: 12.5 per cent.
“For 2009 BellaRiva Sangiovese Merlot (above right), we admire the rusticity of Sangiovese. It is the king of peasant wine – light to medium bodied, savoury, slightly naughty, dry and can be drunk as ‘new’ wine or lovely as semi mature red (3-5 years). Blend in a bit of Merlot that has more Italianate than standard ‘right bank’ characters and you have something pretty interesting. Fruit is hand-picked and fermented in 15T static fermenters for 10-12 days. The fruit is then pressed, settled and matured in used oak casks for 10 months before bottling. Some wine is retained in tank for freshness."
And for its taste: “Red with good garnet edge. Complex, slightly rustic earthy aromas, autumnal, brooding. Savoury palate with good texture and length. Chalky tannins. Dreaming pasta! Alc/Vol: 13.5 per cent”


All your reporter can add is that they went down very nicely indeed later in the day.
But back to the King Valley, which is yielding some of the more interesting new wines on the Australian market.
To refresh your memory, it’s in the hills of north-east Victoria, south of Wangaratta, on the way to major Victorian snow fields. Tourist publicity tells us it has a history which features bushrangers and Chinese and Italian immigrants.
The Chinese came from the Goldfields in the mid-1800s as market gardeners, tobacco growers and merchants. The Italian followed in the 1940s and 50s, grew tobacco for a while but soon realised they would do better with European wine grapes.
There are some 25 wineries here at last count. Best known are two of our country’s strongest and most innovative family-owned wine producers, Brown Brothers of Milawa and De Bortoli, which is where we came in.

MoB about to hit the roof

FROM MY CORNER .... with Ann Brunswick

You’ve probably all seen the recent media coverage showing that work is progressing apace on the $200 million restoration of our City Hall. One of the project's outcomes will be to restore the ground floor windows on the building's Ann Street side that were covered up when the Museum of Brisbane was established a few years back.

Once the refurbishment work is finished, those inside the building will again be able to see the outside world through the windows fronting King George Square and lining the Ann Street wall. So where will that leave the museum?
Well, my spies at City Hall tell me the MoB is earmarked to return to the upgraded City Hall in a new position.
Apparently plans are afoot to site an expanded MoB on the building's roof, which the City Hall kindergarten once occupied.

***
Somebody working in the state public sector sent me a copy of an advertisement for a job vacancy in the Department of Transport. Why they would do that is beyond me. They know perfectly well how happy I am at The Indie and how fat my salary package is.
The editor even sweetened the deal at our last contract negotiations by throwing in a free full membership for me at Tattersall’s Club. So that’s where you'll find me at lunchtime and most of the afternoon if you are keen to track me down.
Applications closed recently so it is too late for you to apply. Nevertheless, for your information here are a couple of paragraphs from the ad in question:
“The Department of Transport and Main Roads is seeking an accomplished Engagement and Communication Strategist (A08) to build stakeholder focus knowledge and capability for its People and Capability Division. The primary responsibilities of the Engagement and Communication Strategist are to implement People and Capability Division's stakeholder focus strategy:
• developing, delivering and evaluating cost-effective activities to embed a stakeholder focussed culture
• being a key source of specialist knowledge and authoritative advice about stakeholder focus; and
• supporting divisional staff in conducting engagement and communication activities to achieve the best possible business outcomes for the division and its stakeholders."
Does anyone out there have any idea what this job is all about? Did you make sense of any of it?
For your information, an AO8 position in the state public service attracts a salary of somewhere between almost $98,000 and more than $103,000.
Now, just bear in mind that the recently delivered 2011-12 State Budget contained overall spending initiatives totalling more than $43 billion.
Of that amount, almost $17 billion is for public service wages. Now, leaving aside the cost of paying our more useful public employees – nurses, teachers, police officers, ambos and the like – there must be a lot of room for cutting that wages bill by giving the pink slip to people such as the boffin who wrote the job description cited in the previous item.

Valley needs 'Giulani makeover'

NEWS

Inner-city Councillor David Hinchliffe wants former New York Mayor Rudi Giuliani to undertake a tour of Fortitude Valley and give his views on ways of reviving the Valley heart.

Mr Giuliani is in Brisbane as guest speaker at the Asia Pacfiic Cities Summit at the Convention Centre.
“Mayor Giuliani was able to bring back Times Square from the doldrums to its current position as the ‘Crossroads of the World’”, said Cr Hinchliffe, who represents Central Ward.
“His philosophy of ‘no broken windows’ could do the same to the Valley”.
Cr Hinchliffe, whose ward office is in the heart of the Valley's business area, said the Valley suffered from not having one authority with clear powers over crime and grime.
“The sooner Council and State resolve to have the one authority which speaks with the one voice and has complete say over what happens in the Valley the sooner the Valley will be able to get its act together. There are some property owners who are simply holding the Valley back.
“If properties look unloved as many properties in the Valley do, then it sends the wrong message to everyone else in that community.
“The state says council has the power to act and the council says it doesn’t have the power to take on property owners.
“We need to be able to go into the Valley with a bag of carrots and sticks – carrots to provide incentives to property owners to do the right thing and sticks to deal with those property owners who frankly don’t give a damn,” Cr Hinchliffe said.
At this morning’s session of the Asia Pacific Cities Summit, Giuliani spoke about his philosophy of making sure all property owners looked after their buildings “and that included fixing all the broken windows” as a way of building confidence in communities.
Cr Hinchliffe said: “There are a number of major companies interested in investing in places like the TCB building in the Valley, but the state of properties between the train station and the Mall is a big drawback to investment."

Residents angry over park plan silence

NEWS

By Joe Hinchliffe

Telco giant Optus appears poised to build infrastructure on a much-loved near-city park – and local residents are angry that their prized bushland is being threatened by privatisation without the community so much as being told, let alone asked.

Residents were stunned last week by the appearance of four leasing pegs staked into Teneriffe Park, directly next to the park’s entrance on Teneriffe Drive. With little to no feedback since, they fear they may also be powerless to stop the project. In an area of the inner city where high property values make every square metre of land a prized commodity, the park’s three hectares of native bushland provide a sanctuary for both wildlife and for locals, who regularly gather to use the barbecue and playground. It has been lovingly nurtured and protected by community groups for decades and its barbecue and play equipment are regular gathering points for locals.
Teneriffe Bushcare Group meets regularly to regenerate the diverse ecosystems, including dry rainforest, found within the park, and its spokesperson Rodney Chambers (pictured) objects to the fact that locals have been excluded from the discussion. “The issue here is the rudeness of Optus,” said Mr Chambers, a member of the volunteer organisation since its foundation more than 20 years ago.
“They have not consulted anyone and when you ask them what’s going on, they say that they have no plans, they are only in discussions. But they have surveyors out staking out the land, so there is something going on,” he said.
The group and other residents have banded together to get to the bottom of the mystery, concerned that decades of work are to be undone by the development. But they say that until now Brisbane City Council’s Local Asset Service (LAS), which manages local parks, has been unable to satisfactorily explain the presence of the pegs.
Recent inquiries to council have revealed only that the pegs are a part of a proposed piece of infrastructure by mobile phone provider Optus which has also requested that Energex upgrade and relocate an existing streetlight so that it can attach antennas on top of the pole. The development also includes the construction of a shelter area to house electronic transmitters on the park itself.
Although Optus has already staked out a 2m by 3.5m plot of land and removed branches from the area, it has not followed any of the guidelines set out for development on council property, locals claim. The first step requires that the developers approach council’s City Property and Leasing department for approval.
A member of the department has said it is unaware of the Optus proposal and that it was “completely inappropriate” for the mobile company to stake out the area at this point. This should be followed by community consultation. But so far locals have been largely left in the dark.
So far Optus has not responded to any of the community’s inquiries about the details and some of the group are pessimistic about the chances of standing up to the telecommunications giant.
“I’ve looked into the Telecommunications Act,” said long-term resident Peter Milne, “and if they decide to go ahead we can’t stop them.” The Act, passed in 1997 by the Howard Government, included a clause that allowed the construction of telecommunications infrastructure that was deemed “low impact” to proceed without the approval of council or community consultation. The Act stipulated however that even low-impact development had an obligation to “protect the environment” including, amongst others, “eco-systems, people and communities.”
Given the unique nature of this inner city bushland and its significance for the local community there does appear to be grounds on which to challenge the development.
Indeed Council’s City and Property Branch has disputed the classification of the development as being of low impact, which would force Optus to seek council and community approval. Robert Hugall, an electrical engineer and Teneriffe local, agrees with the council that the development would have a significant impact on the neighbourhood. “Even the basic monopoles come with large cabinets that will be completely inappropriate for this remanent of inner-city bushland that local residents have fought hard to maintain and worked hard to regenerate,” he said.
As locals struggle to piece together the facts on what is happening to their community icon, some are willing to work with Optus to make the development genuinely “low impact.” But with the telecommunications giant so far not even deigning a response, they are left with few options.
“I’m not a diehard protestor, said Mr Chambers, “but we've fought these things in the past.”

• Optus had not responded to a request for an interview as this issue of The Independent went to press.

Action at last on Valley grot spot... but is it anywhere near enough

NEWS

Axed Valley Place Manager Greg Scroope enjoyed a partial win in his last days on the job recently — his stinging rebuke to one of the Valley’s leading property owners was apparently the catalyst for forcing some cleaning and repair work on one of the suburb’s worst grot spots –- the walkway from Valley Metro to Wickham Street.

In a email to local stakeholders before his departure, Mr Scroope lamented an impasse that “allows a landowner to completely disregard normal standards of safety, health and amenity”.
Mr Scroope’s email came two days before his job was terminated by City Council and other Valley Place staff relocated to other council duties, a decision attacked by local councillor David Hinchliffe.
In his email to Cr Hinchliffe, state MP Grace Grace, the Valley Chamber of Commerce, Brisbane Lifestyle Committee Council chair Geraldine Knapp, Valley Malls Advisory Committee chair Phil DiBella and other stakeholders, Mr Scroope said he had met 10 days earlier with property owner Jack Moc who “owns the building that holds Cafe One and who has the administrative and management rights for the area between the air bridge linking McWhirter’s through to the Valley Metro Shopping Centre”.
“I have been trying for months to encourage Jack into cleaning up this property. I had an agreement with Jack that he would clean up his premises subject to the ‘significant and substantial mounting pressure’ of a range of stakeholders on this property. In the time provided an agreed to by Jack Moc, he only complied with half of one of the nine requests made of him.
“Given that I’m only in council for another two days, there is limited opportunity for me to do anything more with regard to achieving the outcome we are all looking for. I can I suggest that the necessary and relevant state council officers will come together shortly to look at this property in a forensic way.”
In an email to Mr Moc on Monday 30 May, he wrote: “Jack I visited the arcade this afternoon and it is still as dirty as ever. Apart from the application of some paint to the escalator walls the place is the same. It should be noted that both escalators were not functioning when I was there.
“Jack, when I came to see you two weeks ago, I came to give you some early advise (sic) to clean the place because of the ‘substantial mounting pressure’ on the owners of this property. That has not gone away and I again suggest you complete the work in the next day or two.”
But in a followup email on his second last day Mr Scroope told stakeholders: “There looks to have been more work done overnight. The floor in the Mt Cathy property [Walton’s portion] has been mopped and swept but still shows signs of substantial inground dirt. Now it just looks as dirty as the rest of the Moc property which has to be said is an improvement. Floor tiles are still missing. Large graffiti is still evident in the Mt Cathy property walls.
“Dirty ceiling tiles have been painted over so expect them to start peeling within months. Single flouro lights have been installed where doubles are required.
“Neither of the escalators are working.”
An inspection by The Independent earlier this week revealed that most of the 14 floor tiles that had been replaced already need to be relaid. Four of the white tiles have already broken up and are now piled in a corner. Other tiles wobble freely, with their grouting having separated from the floor itself. Many light tubes are still missing. The Wickham Street end owned by Mr Moc has had a decent makeover, with the escalator walls painted, lights replaced and some redundant signs removed. Councillor Hinchliffe said closing of the Place Management Project for the Valley was a “very retrograde step in the campaign to clean up the area”.
The decision had been made without consultation or reference with him as local councillor or with the local Valley business community.
He told Cr Geraldine Knapp by email: “I am very disappointed that Greg Scroope’s role as Place Manager for the Valley has now been axed. Greg has been great and the axing of his job has come as a shock to the local community. “Is there any possibility of revising that decision?”








Since the picture at the far right was taken, the white tile at top left has joined the pile of discared and broken tiles in the corner of the walkway.

Time to act on those ‘who don’t give a rats’

NEWS

Long-serving city councillor David Hinchliffe believes Fortitude Valley locals are “reaching boiling point” over property owners who have let their premises run down. He’s also expressed his frustration over the apparent inability of authorities at various levels of government to bring these owners to task.

In an email to Brisbane Lifestyle Committee chairperson Geraldine Knapp, Cr Hinchliffe wrote: “I think everyone in the Valley is reaching boiling point over the state of a number of premises and the apparent inability that authorities have to take strong, decisive and if necessary punitive action to deal with ‘difficult’ property owners who frankly don't give a ‘rat’s’ about the state of their properties.
“I take it you’ve been briefed about the on-going efforts to try to clean up certain properties owned by ‘recalcitrant’ owners who keep resisting the efforts of the council, the Valley Chamber of Commerce, myself, the media and the public to clean up their premises.
“The issue referred to in the email below from Greg Scroope is the state of the property which for many arriving in the Valley is their introduction to area. It is the arcade from the Valley Metro train stations through the building and across the air-bridge to McWhirters. It is an utter disgrace and it has been getting progressively worse over the last six months. I encourage you to visit and see for yourself.
“Of course, it is also a privately owned space, so the issue arises what powers council has to take action.
“I have been asking council for a ruling on whether council does have the power to make property owners in the Valley clean up filthy premises. That power exists for the front of properties fronting the malls and that power is applied where it is needed. But the question arises whether the power exists elsewhere. Through Grace Grace MP, I’ve received advice from the State Government that the council does have such power. However, officers have been telling me that that is not the case either under the Building or Public Health legislation. I have raised this at the recent Valley Malls Committee meeting and asked for confirmation. We do need clarity about this.
“Can you please obtain advice whether such power is available to council to fine owners who do not clean up filthy premises? If council does not have the power, then we need to ask the state to change the legislation. I have put this proposal forward before. When will there be an answer please?”

Fresh fruit and vegies ‘always a family option’

NEWS

Shop wisely and buy produce in good supply at a fair price and no Queensland family should be forced to forgo fresh fruit and vegetables as part of their regular diet.

That’s the advice from McWhirters Farmers Markets owner Nick Criticos (pictured) in response to a recent mainstream media article that suggested Queenslanders were being forced to turn to tinned fruit and vegetables as soaring prices in the wake of recent cyclone and flood disasters pushed fresh produce prices supposedly out of reach. The recent Sunday Mail article claimed retailers were applying up to 300 per cent markups on some lines.
Under the heading “Buyers Get the Rough End!” the article gave one example where a farmer had found pineapples being sold at a small fruit shop for 14 times the farmgate price.
Mr Criticos who has operated in the Valley for more than two decades has one simple suggestion to anyone confronted with outlets that are hitting shoppers with anywhere near 300 per cent markups: “Don’t buy them!”
Mr Criticos said wise shoppers needed to understand the industry’s basic rule of supply and demand and adjust their shopping patterns accordingly.
“It’s the nature of the industry. Crops fail. Crops get damaged. Don’t go into a fruit and vegetable store with a set notion that you must have one particular product. Use the alternatives.
“For example, a lot of vegetables are up in price at the moment because of the cold. Wait until supplies improve and prices come down.”
Mr Criticos said a follow-up article in the Courier-Mail some days later had listed a number of produce markets in south-east Queensland where shoppers could supposedly get a good deal on their fruit and vegies.
“Carrots up at the city markets today were $2.50 a kilo. I have the same quality for $1.50. They were selling broccoli for $8 a kilo; we are at $4.
“And my prices includes all the labour and costs associated with running a permanent fruit and vegetable market, not paying a small fee to set up an open-air stall.
“We always apply a fair markup on our cost price. We are here to look after our customers.”

‘Little pieces’ add up to a competition win

By Suzannah Thomsett
Photo: Rod Pilbeam

New Farm design student Lauren Sisson is very pleased that her initial success in the Teneriffe Festival design competition means the opportunity to do still more work on her branding design.

Ms Sisson (pictured) works one day a week at Basis Agency to refine and apply her original design to all of the festival’s branding opportunities.
“At [Basis Agency] I’m extending upon the original, revisiting parts of it, preparing it for additional applications such as sponsorship – the more formal side of things, not just all the pretty graphics,” Ms Sisson said.
The 19-year-old is only weeks from graduating from Design College Australia with an Advanced Diploma in Graphic Design, and has lived in New Farm for about a year. Ms Sisson says for her design she wanted to look at what suited Teneriffe as she saw it.
“It’s a friendly and light-hearted place, and it’s a celebratory festival,” she said. “I wanted to capture the eclectic nature of Teneriffe … it’s about all the little pieces coming together.
“I guess the main prize for me will be seeing my design everywhere at the festival when I’m finished.”
Teneriffe Festival’s organisers say there were more than 30 entries in their design competition, although Ms Sisson only knew of the 10 in her class.
“The project went on for a full term, about eight to nine weeks, and we worked on it at the college about once or twice a week,” Ms Sisson said.
“Of course, I put lots in outside of college, too.” Ms Sisson says that after she graduates, she would like to do graphic design work for a magazine or other editorial publication.
The Teneriffe Festival is on Saturday 2 July and will feature: a farmers, craft and fashion market; fashion parades; outdoor movie screenings; sheep shearing; and historical displays and bus tours, among other attractions.

• For more information, visit http://www.teneriffefestival.org/.

‘Use sluggish market to your advantage’

PROPERTY News

With reduced competition forcing property prices down and rents increasing in many regions across Australia, now is the perfect time for first-home buyers to snap up a bargain before investors do, according to PRDnationwide.

Activity in the housing market has dropped by as much as 55 per cent over just 12 months in some capital cities according to PRDnationwide, leading to conditions favouring first-home buyers, with more properties for sale and discounted asking prices. “It’s an extremely good time to invest,” says Adam Gray (pictured) from PRDnationwide New Farm.
“I believe that house prices will be higher next year than this year so now is the opportunity.” He encourages first-home buyers who are not currently in the position to purchase to buy with a friend or relative.
“They can do this as tenants in common so they own a certain percentage of the property,” he said.
Mr Gray also suggests first-home buyers consider buying a studio apartment. “Although they are not very big, they could be a great stepping stone for an individual to get onto the property ladder.”
Gary Roden of PRDnationwide Kallangur to Brisbane’s north, said buyers can afford a first home if they are serious about it and set a plan. “For a young couple it is important to get your priorities right. Both parties should retain their employment and forget about starting a family for at least three years,” he says.
“The cost of living is so high it prevents the single person from entering to market unless they have a high paid job. “This is an excellent time for buyers to save a deposit – in previous years from 2000 to 2004 a person could not save quick enough to beat the rising price of real estate.”
Mr Roden says potential homebuyers should stop trying to compete with friends and purchase a home in their price bracket. “Most first-home buyers have many friends that they unconsciously compete with,” he says.
“If people feel like they will never get to purchase a property, then in most cases they won’t. It is all to do with attitude and good planning. “I do not believe property prices will drop much lower due to our strong economy and high employment so the best time to start saving is now.”
He warns against relying on government hand-outs or access to “easy money”.


Tips on getting onto the property ladder

• Work out your budget before you go house hunting
• Stop trying to compete with friends and purchase a home in your price bracket
• Buy with a friend or relative.
• Rent out spare rooms
• Downgrade your expectations and buy a smaller property than you had first planned
• To save for a deposit try paying more rent to your agent or parents than necessary and ask them to save it for you.
• Borrow the deposit from parents or ask them to set up a small loan against their own home to fund the deposit
• Some developers can help to contribute to the deposit by way of a rebate
• Get a high paying job and delay family plans while saving for a deposit.