HE AIN'T HEAVY
Australia / 2024 / 102 min / DCP / Comedy drama

Directed by David Vincent Smith

Script : David Vincent Smith
Cinematography : Lewis Potts
Editing : Antony Webb
Music : Brian Kruger
Production : Jess Parker

Cast : Leila George, Sam Corlett, Greta Scacchi, Clarence Ryan, Alexandra Nell

Melbourne Festival 2024
Cannes Ecrans Séniors Award 2025
Opening film

Jade, a 30-year-old woman, has sacrificed the best years of her life trying to free her younger brother, Max, from the grip of drugs. Without telling her mother, Bev, who is always ready to forgive her son for anything, Jade decides to lock her brother away in his grandparents' country house in a last-ditch attempt to make him give up his addiction. An incredible performance accompanies this story inspired by true events. Beyond this story, it is a story of empathy and universal love, a deeply human film and a masterpiece of cinema.

David Vincent Smith

David Vincent Smith is an award-winning writer and director from Western Australia. He has directed numerous music videos and short films, including “King Neptune,” “We Were Here,” “I Am Not Hurting You,” and “Good Night.” In 2016, David was selected for Screenwest’s prestigious Feature Navigator program, completing a three-month Director’s Attachment on a Netflix sci-fi production in Serbia. He previously trained in Los Angeles under renowned directing coach Judith Weston, whose students include Steve McQueen (12 Years a Slave) and Alejandro González Iñárritu (The Revenant, Birdman). David has also directed three launch films for the WA Museum and Bilya Beneath, the headline performance for the Perth International Arts Festival. He Ain’t Heavy is his feature film debut.