Tarantino joins Melbourne Film Fest

CULT movie director Quentin Tarantino and East Timorese President Jose Ramos-Horta are among the celebrity guests attending the 2009 Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF).

Mr Ramos-Horta will join Australian actors Anthony LaPaglia, Gyton Grantley and Nathan Phillips at the world premiere of Balibo, about the deaths of five Australian-based journalists in East Timor, on Friday, July 24 - the opening night of the festival.

It heralds a star-studded 17 days, with Deborra-Lee Furness, Frances O'Connor and Miranda Otto set to walk the red carpet the following night for the premiere of Blessed, by director Ana Kokkinos.

Tarantino will jet into town for the Australian premiere of his latest film Inglourious Basterds on Sunday August 2.

"This year we are going out, all guns blazing, with a program full of depth, variety and originality, not to mention our notable line-up of guests," said MIFF executive director Richard Moore.

Other guests include French filmmaker Claire Denis with her new film 35 Shots of Rum, fresh-faced star Carey Mulligan from the coming-of-age drama An Education, and Michael Nyman, the minimalist composer known for his many collaborations with Peter Greenaway.

Nicolas Winding Refn, director of the Sydney Film Prize-winning Bronson, and Alexis Dos Santos, director of the UK indie film Unmade Beds will also attend the festival.

The full program guide will be available on July 10, when single session tickets go on sale.

Directed by Robert Connolly, Balibo tells the story of the shooting of five Australian-based journalists during Indonesia's invasion of East Timor in 1975.

The story is told through the eyes of war correspondent Roger East and a young Jose Ramos-Horta, who travel to East Timor to investigate the murders of the Balibo Five.