"Nobody up here pays attention to reviews ... most of the written word has gone the way of the dinosaur" -- Bruce Willis, Cannes, 1997

Brenda is reading for Mary in Cat On A Hot Tin Roof... I'm freezing, late with my work, reading Thomas, Miller, Celine...Book chats on Oprah...discussions in the foyer with the witches from MacBeth...Lowing, Hall and Zion...you know I just can't trust anyone who has Sheryl Crow in their record collection. Men rarely make passes at girls who wear glasses...shivering in the bath tub, cutting my foot on glass...And still I live by their juridstiction, beating out my reviews and opinions with a constant tap tap tapping at my chamber door. What does it all add up to? Faithful readers, hiding in your foxholes on another mediocre October evening, celebrate such things. Read Toto, for if a film student vomits in a forest, who is there to clean it up and package it when s/he hits the big time? Sleep on it folks. And Holly Golightly? The cheque is in the mail.

"To be grimly pragmatic, if you want to be uncompromising as a critic, you might just end up doing it on your own website." -- Jonathan Romney, in Projections 8

Toto is the film magazine for Australia's future filmmakers. Made by student filmmakers and filmcritics for other lovers of cinema, we hope writing about cinema will inspire and catalyse our cinematic ideas and ambitions. Toto's creators seek to get out of the bitter barn and play in the hay. We are optimists grappling with cynicism and sincerity, creative critics developing an informed, personal approach to cinema art and literature.

The title Toto captures our sense of playfulness and willing mischief, of loyalty and enthusiasm. With the technology and talent we have access to, we have created this forum in order to cross-polinate and co-inspire. We want to snap at ankles and devise an Oz of our own imagination - new cinemas for a new Australia.

Hijacking the new millenium with digital tools and a fierce DIY spirit, Toto is an important node for a new generation of cinephiles. With multiculturalism, the 2000 Olympics and the push for an Australian Republic, we're on the chase for new forms and hybrid horizons. But we need writers and people with connections and resources. If you are interested in joining our collective, or can help out in any way, email us!

Snailmail and publicity materials to:

TOTO c/o Eugene Chew
21 Thomas St, McMahons Pt
NSW 2060, Australia

TOTO is proudly brought to you by:

the editors
eugene chew
adam rivett

staff writers
david bull
huan-tzin goh
natalia laban
adrian gunadi
sebastian niemand

contributing writers
rino breebaart
esther anatolitis
marta jary
peter plunkett
catherine mulligan
ursula hackett
yu-ching lee
nicole dados
kirsty leishman
simon haines
adam roff
felicity blake

photographer
charmaine hearder

website design
eugene chew
barry green
yasinta widjojo

webspace kindly donated by
peter gammie

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