Thank You, I'll Take the Service Sector': Class, Gentrification and Pawno

On the surface, Paul Ireland's low-budget film – which chronicles the intersecting lives of twelve individuals, all gravitating around the titular pawnshop – may appear a mere 'love letter' to the suburb of Footscray. Dave Hoskin writes, however, that Pawno also reveals deepening fissures in Australian cinema, with taste lines drawn to match those of class, and elitist film criticism favouring arthouse titles over those targeting the mainstream.

Additional keywords: John Brumpton, Mark Coles Smith, Damian Hill, Kerry Armstrong, Romper Stomper, Paul Keating.