BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT FILM
SOUTH AUSTRALIAN PREMIERE
Mia
Marco Noé | 2024 | 5m | Australia | Documentary
Ten-year-old Mia Kretzer is determined to land her biggest skating trick yet — again. For Mia, practice isn’t just routine; it’s progress in motion.
Credits
Director
Marco Noé
Producer
Marco Noé
Chico Kretzer
Cast
Mia Kretzer
Inae Maree
Interview with director Marco Noé
Reviews
Written by Jack McKenzie
Flinders University Bachelor of Creative Industries (Film and Television) Student
Mia, directed by Marco Noe, is an uplifting and emotionally resonant short documentary that captures the beauty of perseverance through the eyes of 10 year old skateboarder Mia Kretzer. Winner of Best Documentary, the film succeeds in transforming a simple premise, a young girl’s quest to land a 720, into a deeply inspiring portrait of resilience, focus, and the unrelenting pursuit of personal growth.
Noe’s direction is beautifully restrained. Rather than relying on heavy narration or emotional manipulation, he lets Mia’s actions and expressions tell the story. Each attempt, each fall, and each small triumph builds naturally toward a sense of hard earned achievement. The documentary’s minimalism works to its advantage, highlighting Mia’s authenticity and the physicality of her journey. The sound of her board hitting the ground, the echo of wheels against the ramp and concrete, and her quiet determination all combine to create a powerful emotional rhythm.
Visually, Mia is striking in its simplicity. The cinematography captures both the intimacy of her concentration and the vastness of the skatepark around her, positioning her as both small within her world and monumental in her effort. Noe’s camera never intrudes, it instead just observes. This understated approach gives the film a documentary purity rarely achieved in short form storytelling.
Beyond skateboarding, Mia becomes a universal story about perseverance, a reminder that success is not defined by landing a trick, but by the courage to keep getting back up, no matter how many times you fall. The film’s emotional payoff feels both genuine and hard-won, leaving the audience uplifted and reflective. Mia deserves its Best Documentary win. It’s an inspiring, beautifully crafted piece that finds depth in simplicity and celebrates the quiet power of persistence.
Written by Tom Venus
Flinders University Bachelor of Creative Arts (Screen) Student
Mia is a tight and concise documentary, running at exactly five and a half minutes. As the title suggests, the film focuses on 10-year-old skateboarder Mia Kretzner. Demonstrating impressive skills for her age, the film details her successes and competition at an international level.
Despite her skill and success at high-level competitions, the film is rooted in the process of practicing and getting better. Much of the film takes place at a suburban skate park with her mum, Inae Maree. Skating in a bowl that has almost vertical edges, Mia attempts to perform a 720° turn. The difficulty of this is clear, and it’s also outlined by Mia during a subsequent interview in which she also stresses the importance of succeeding at this trick to be competitive in competition.
Veering away from the skate park, we learn about Mia’s success – she competed at the 2024 X Games, and we see a montage of her travels, seeing her skate in front of a crowd to rapturous applause. She also holds multiple Guinness World Records (Youngest Female X Games athlete, Youngest Female X Games Medallist, and the Youngest Female X Games gold medallist).
After this, and approaching the midway point of the film, we return to the skate park as Mia still attempts to pull off the 720° turn. The film makes clear that Mia’s accomplishments come because of her effort, and this was my main takeaway from the film. It would have been easy for this to be solely about Mia’s successes, but to me, the film is mostly about the nature of effort and practice and how it pays off.
It’s almost as if the film is missing a third act, but perhaps it’s better described as ‘yet to be written’. Mia continues practising at the skate park, and the film ends as she discusses how she will learn bigger and better tricks, before she embraces her Mum and they leave the skatepark. It’s clear that Mia’s skateboarding will continue, and we end as Mia continues her story, rather than the film finishing it for her.