Sample People
• 8.45pm, Friday 4th September, 2026
Join us for a pre-screening Q&A with
Dir: Clinton Smith, Peter Buckmeyer & Barton Smith
Sydney Opera House
Dir: Clinton Smith
Watch the trailer below
Set against the backdrop of a blistering summer weekend, Sample People delivers a chaotic, multi-stranded thrill ride through the underground pulse of millennial Sydney. A hyper-stylized kaleidoscope of youth culture explodes across forty-eight hours of neon, chaos, and crime.
The film weaves together the interlocking lives of an ensemble of inner-city youth – hustlers, aspiring musicians, lovers, and small-time criminals, all careening toward an explosive collision. Caught up in the storm is Jess (Kylie Minogue), in a dangerous web of gun-toting eccentricities and nightclub culture, sharing the screen with early riveting performances from future international heavyweights Ben Mendelsohn and Joel Edgerton.” Along with, David field, Simon Lyndon & many more
Driven by a high-octane Australian soundtrack and dripping in Y2K aesthetic, Sample People captures its characters under increasingly bizarre, vivid, and hazardous circumstances. As the heat rises and the partying spirals out of control, their desperate paths cross in unexpected ways.
Recontextualised for the STROBE Film Festival 2026, this edgy cult classic remains a vibrant, unapologetic time capsule of a generation living right on the edge. It’s a fierce reminder of an era of subcultures and hyper-saturated style in a city where cool is deadly.
Directed by Clinton Smith, Sample People remains one of the most distinctive Australian films of its era, complemented by a celebrated soundtrack released through Mushroom Records that reached No. 38 on the ARIA Albums Chart.
This special restoration offers a rare opportunity to experience the film on the big screen once again.
