Direct from its triumphant World Premiere in Cannes, where it was selected to open the Directors Fortnight and subsequently drew a rapturous standing ovation, Proof is a sensational debut for Melbourne-based writer/director Jocelyn Moorhouse and further vindication of the nurturing process of Film Victoria and The Australian Film Commission's funding policies in relation to aspiring talent and low budget productions.

Moorhouse's thoughtful and surprisingly humorous script revolves around the intriguing concept of a blind man in his early thirties who takes photographs as proof that the world he hears and touches is the same one that sighted people see. Relying, as blind people do, on other people for information, Martin (Hugo Weaving) is bitter about his handicap yet fiercely independent. He clings to his precious photographs with their Braille encoded captions, as tangible evidence of the world around him.

For years Martin has been waiting for someone he can trust to describe his photos . A chance meeting with Andy (Russell Crowe), a kitchen hand at a restaurant he frequents, grows into a genuine friendship, much to the chagrin of Martin's housekeeper, Celia (Genevieve Picot), whose previously hidden passions for Martin come to the surface upon Andy's intrusion into their sheltered world.

Continually surprising and not afraid to confront a few uncomfortable home truths about handicaps of all persuasions, Proof mixes European art-cinema influences with unmistakably Australian roots, as it plunges fearlessly into the murky areas of obsession, manipulation and betrayal. This is strong stuff for a first feature and makes the achievement all the more impressive - come see for yourself. (T.B)