Meet the MWFF Critics Lab 2026
Each year we select a small group of emerging critics to experience MWFF as an in-house critic. As part of the experience, MWFF Critics are mentored by industry professionals who help them to produce a portfolio of work. They also get the opportunity to meet filmmakers, watch all of the films in the program, and connect with programmers and the MWFF festival team. This year, we welcome Alina Ivanova, Gisele Bruce, Montana May, and Nadia Harari to the MWFF Critics Lab! They will be mentored by Cher Tan and Indigo Bailey.
Meet our Mentors
Cher Tan is an essayist, editor and critic. Her essays, criticism and other written work have been published widely. Her critically-acclaimed debut essay collection, Peripathetic: Notes on (Un)belonging, was published with NewSouth in 2024. She lives and works on unceded Wurundjeri Country.
Indigo Bailey is a Tasmanian writer and editor living in Naarm. She has written nonfiction and fiction for HEAT, Island Magazine, Meanjin, and The Guardian, among other publications. She is the Managing Editor of the film criticism publication Rough Cut.
Meet our Mentees
Alina Ivanova (she/her) is a freelance writer based in Naarm/Melbourne and a Journalism and French student at Monash. She spends most of her time writing articles, fiction, and criticism, and loves finding niche films. For her, one of the best things about watching a film is the conversation afterwards.
Nadia Lazich Harari (they/them) is an emerging writer based on unceded Wurundjeri Country. They are an events programmer for the Melbourne Art Library and can usually be found under a gumtree, daydreaming or at work as a quasi-librarian.
Montana May (she/they) is an emerging film critic with a fervour for campy, monstrous feminine horror films. May graduated with distinction from RMIT with a BFA in 2025. Their fine arts training informs a materially attentive, visually literate approach to criticism. Motivated by a disdain for profit driven algorithms that act as the purveyor of taste, her criticism seeks to celebrate overlooked talent and merit over metrics.
Gisele Bruce (she/her) is an Australian filmmaker and writer who resists the male gaze. She studies the female experience, focusing on self-agency, imagination and individuality. Her quest is to reclaim the voices historical records have long tried to erase.