Melbourne’s International Film Festival was to be held throughout August this year but was cancelled due to COVID-19. However, Deadline has now reported that MIFF is heading only this year thanks to the online platform Shift 72, which recently took up the SXSX gig as well.

The online MIFF event will be branded MIFF 68½ (the upcoming show was meant to be the 69th) and will let online ticket holders watch films from around the globe, including those that were meant to be shown at the festival, and possibly some other additions. There’s currently no full listing available or more information on ticket prices.

Like many things that are shifting to an online avenue to deal with the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, it’s hard not to wonder if this will affect future programs when people get a taste of partaking in the film festival from the comfort of their home.

The MIFF board originally left the following message on the MIFF website in response to closing the festival:

It is with sadness that the Board and Management of the Melbourne International Film Festival have taken the difficult decision to cancel MIFF 2020 owing to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

For 68 years, MIFF has championed the power of film to educate, entertain and inspire humanity – and to document its experiences, especially during challenging times – so the unprecedented move to cancel the August 2020 festival, as well as 37ºSouth Market & Accelerator Lab, has not been taken lightly.

“The thought of a winter without MIFF in our city is a disorienting one; deeply disappointing to both our organisation and, I’m sure, our community,” said MIFF Artistic Director Al Cossar. “It is a decision that was very hard but plainly necessary, responsible and required given what we all face together at this moment. Our thoughts rush to those who make MIFF what it is year after year, and what it will return to be. To our partners, funders, venues, staff, suppliers, filmmakers and artists, volunteers, prized collaborators of all kinds, and our own uniquely MIFF audiences, we wish you safety and support; we will continue, together.”

MIFF is committed to the longevity and sustainability of the festival and will continue to provide compelling and community-building experiences for our audience and stakeholders into the future. And, in the absence of the festival this year, MIFF is considering other means of maintaining its engagement with audiences. We will share details as they become available.

We look forward to finding out more about MIFF 68½. Let us know in the comments below if this idea excites you.