Wind & Sky ProductionsThe Land Bridge
Info
Produced: 2024
Project Type: Digital exhibition with digital stories, short documentary, multimedia elements and education resources.
Film Running Time: 24 minutes
Classification: Exempt from classification.
Funded by: Funded by the Australian Government through the Our Marine Parks grant program.
Links
The Land Bridge, a digital exhibition.
Media release: exploring the deep human history of Bass Strait and its land bridge.
Cultural traditions category page from The Land Bridge digital story. By Wind & Sky Productions. Source image: envato elements.
Home page of The Land Bridge digital story. By Wind & Sky Productions.
Over the waves, on the land and in the sky category page from The Land Bridge digital story.
By Wind & Sky Productions. Source image: Ed Dunens.
Colin Hughes and Buck Brown on Tayaritja/the Furneaux Group of Islands, Bass Strait. Still from the documentary film The Land Bridge. Recorded by Jillian Mundy. Courtesy of Wind & Sky Productions.
Aboriginal Heritage Officer Colin Hughes on Tayaritja/the Furneaux Group of Islands, Bass Strait. Still from the documentary film The Land Bridge. Recorded by Jillian Mundy. Courtesy of Wind & Sky Productions.
Postgraduate student Madeleine Bessell-Koprek examines ancient charcoal grains under the microscope at Australian National University, Ngunnawal Country, Canberra. Still from the documentary film The Land Bridge. By Wind & Sky Productions.
Seabed mapping survey ship about to drop the autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) ‘Sirius’ into Bass Strait. Still from the documentary film The Land Bridge. Film by Wind & Sky Productions. Underwater footage courtesy of Beagle Marine Park Mapping Project, NESP Marine Biodiversity Hub.
Conservation biologist Professor Chris Johnson, University of Tasmania, Nipaluna/Hobart, Lutruwita/Tasmania. Still from the documentary film The Land Bridge. By Wind & Sky Productions.
Education resource kits for The Land Bridge digital story . By Wind & Sky Productions. Source images: Simon Haberle and Jillian Mundy.
Introduction to The Land Bridge digital story. By Wind & Sky Productions. Source images: Jary Nemo, and Megan Hotchkiss Davidson.
The Story
Thousands of years ago, during Australia’s most recent ice age, a land bridge linked Lutruwita/Tasmania and Victoria, as they are known today.
The Land Bridge digital story and documentary film tells the story of the Bass Strait when it was a vast grassy plain people lived on and walked across.
The Land Bridge is a colourful, watchable and informative exploration of the underwater worlds, cultural traditions and above water remains linking us to the deep past landscape of the Bassian Plain.
The Land Bridge digital story project was produced by Wind & Sky Productions and funded by the Australian Government through the Our Marine Parks grant program.
About the Project
The tale of the now-submerged land bridge, then and now, is imaginatively told on a website which features a half hour documentary, a number of highly readable image-rich essays, and other informational material including a timeline.
The project also features education kits for Years 7-8 science and humanities subjects which are aligned to both the Australian Curriculum and the Victorian Curriculum. Future essays and a podcast series is being planned.
The project emphasises First Nations knowledge and creators. First Nations communities consulted with us on the project. Stories and guidance came from the Palawa of Lutruwita/Tasmania, and the Bunurong and the Gunaikurnai of coastal southeastern Victoria. First Nations storytellers, Indigenous knowledge holders and media producers contributed interviews and creative content. Scientists from around Australia also contributed, providing geology, ecology, wildlife and environmental history perspectives. Popular author Adam Courtenay wrote a story on the famous ‘Sydney Cove’ shipwreck.
Behind the scenes, Wind & Sky Productions worked with an Australia-wide team of subject specialists who reviewed scientific content and provided expert advice. Research groups, including the Australian Research Council Centre for Excellence in Australian Biodiversity and Heritage (CABAH), the Institute of Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS) and Geoscience Australia (GA), provided research, advice and people to help with the project.
Partner organisations were Parks Australia, Parks Victoria, the Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre (TAC), the Gunaikurnai Land and Waters Aboriginal Corporation (GLAWAC), Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation (BLCAC), and the Australian Research Council Centre for Excellence in Australian Biodiversity and Heritage (CABAH).
A full list of project credits is included in the Land Bridge web site.
Documentary Film
This documentary takes us on a journey from the Bass Strait seafloor which was once a vast grassy plain on which people, animals and plants lived, to the islands and coastal places of the Bass Strait, once hilltops of a now submerged ice age landscape.
Through the perspectives of marine scientists, wildlife biologists, paleoecologists, Country rangers and cultural custodians, the film explores what we know of the ancient Bassian Plain, how we know it, and how First Peoples remain spiritually connected to those long past times.
Between about 43,000 and about 15,000 years ago, during the last ice age when sea-levels were lower, a land bridge connected Lutruwita/Tasmania to mainland Australia.
The land bridge now lies 60 metres under the notoriously treacherous waters of the Bass Strait off the southeastern Australia coast.
Cultural knowledge and song lines connected to the land bridge are held within First Nations communities.
Today, First Nations custodians and multi-disciplinary teams of researchers are working to understand this deep past.
As the world grapples with climate change, warming oceans, and associated sea level rise, this film reminds us how much we can learn from our deep human story.
Film Information
Title: The Land Bridge
Year Produced: 2024
Runtime: 24 minutes
Country: Australia
Type: Documentary
Genre: Science & Nature, History, First Nations
Production Company: Wind & Sky Productions
Director: Jary Nemo
Producers: Jary Nemo & Lucinda Horrocks
Writer: Jary Nemo
Featuring: Colin J Hughes, Buck (Brendan) Brown, Simon Haberle, Chris Johnson, Fiona Maher, Neville Barrett, Madeleine Bessell-Koprek, Wayne Thorpe, and the voice of Jillian Mundy.
Classification: Exempt from classification. Suitable for viewing by a general audience.
Licensing: This film has been released under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0) licence.
Viewing the Film
The film is freely available to screen and share via the Land Bridge documentary on Vimeo or from the Land Bridge web site documentary page.
How to Screen the Film
If you would like a screening copy to screen or project at a non-commercial community event in a cinema, theatre or hall, please contact us.
Viewing the Digital Story
The digital story, including all content, is freely available at https://thelandbridge.au/.
Education Resource Kits
The Land Bridge education resources contain ready-to-go classroom activities for teachers of The Australian Curriculum and The Victorian Curriculum years 7 and 8 students.
Divided into separate Science and Humanities resource kits, each resource contains four activities built around the film and digital story content of the Land Bridge project.
Activities link to content from the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Cultures cross-curriculum priority.
Resources developed by Lee Kindler and Jan Hagston, drawing on source content created by Lucinda Horrocks and Wind & Sky Productions.
The kits are free to download from the Land Bridge web site.
More about the Bass Strait Land Bridge
After more information? Try visiting the Introduction to the Land Bridge on the project website.
Film Screenings
03 December 2024, Project Launch and Film Premiere, State Cinema, Hobart.
Credits
- Creative Producers
- Lucinda Horrocks and Jary Nemo
- Production Manager
- Jary Nemo
- Digital Story Content Manager
- Lucinda Horrocks
- Film Producers
- Lucinda Horrocks and Jary Nemo
- Film Writer/Director
- Jary Nemo
- Web Designer
- Jary Nemo
- Education Resource Developers
- Jan Hagston, Lee Kindler
- Digital Story Editors
- Tom Brooker, Heather Horrocks, Lucinda Horrocks
- Digital Story Writers
- Associate Professor Neville Barrett, Kiah Berglund, Madeleine Bessell-Koprek, Adam Courtenay, Dr Stefani Crabtree, Dr Matthew Fielding, Dean Greeno, Professor Simon Haberle, Dr Stephen Harris, Dr David Hocking, Lucinda Horrocks, Noah Jim, Professor Chris Johnson, Fiona Maher, Dr Matt McDowell, Dr Jacquomo Monk, Professor Patrick Nunn, Amy Mulchay, Joanna Serret, Neville Rosengren, Wayne Thorpe, Professor Sean Ulm, Mathew Wheatley, Alice Wise
- Film and Audio Interviewees
- Associate Professor Neville Barrett, Madeleine Bessell-Koprek, Buck Brown, Adam Courtenay, Dr Stefani Crabtree, Aunty Gail Kunwarra Dawson, Dr Matthew Fielding, maikutena Vicki-Laine Greene, Aunty Lola Greeno, Uncle Rex Greeno, Professor Simon Haberle, Colin J Hughes, Professor Chris Johnson, Fiona Maher, Dr Robin Sim, Mort Summers, Aunty Dyan Summers, Wayne Thorpe, Ms Tasma Walton
- Interviewers
- Lucinda Horrocks, Jillian Mundy, Justin Stankovic
- Audio Recordists
- Lucinda Horrocks, Jary Nemo, Jillian Mundy, Justin Stankovic
- Audio Producers
- Lucinda Horrocks, Jary Nemo
- Film Camera, Sound and Editing
- Jary Nemo
- Film Additional Camera and Sound Recorded by
- Jillian Mundy, Justin Stankovic
- Film Prerecorded Content Provided by
- Troy Melville, Simon Haberle, Beagle Marine Park Mapping Project, NESP Marine Biodiversity Hub (with thanks to Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) “Sirius” and the Autonomous Robotics Group, University of Sydney), Parks Victoria, NOAA.
- Project Advisors:
- Cultural Advisors
- Tony Brown, Uncle Shane Clarke, Zoe Cozens, Julian Dunn, Dr Shannon Faulkhead, Dean Greeno, Hank Horton, Dr Caroline Hubschmann, Fiona Maher, Grattan Mullett, Uncle Russell Mullett, Jillian Mundy, Andry Sculthorpe, Wayne Thorpe, Ane Van Der Walt, Sarah Wilcox
- Science Advisors
- Associate Professor Neville Barrett, Tristan Derham, Dr Stefani Crabtree, Dr Matthew Fielding, Professor Simon Haberle, Dr Stephen Harris, Dr David Hocking, Associate Professor Daniel Ierodiaconou, Professor Chris Johnson, Professor David Kennedy, Professor Ian McNiven, Dr Jacquomo Monk, Professor Patrick Nunn, Neville Rosengren, Dr Robin Sim, Professor Sean Ulm
- Humanities and Education Advisors
- Jenni Burden, Professor Fred Cahir, Jane Lennon, Rick Mitchell, Dr Peter Taylor, Dr Rebe Taylor
- Parks and Museums Advisors
- Lynden Costin, Dermot Henry, Dr Mark Norman, Kate Phillips, Bill Playne, Mark Rodrigue
- Reviewers
- Phil Bell, Natalie Bool, Dr Mick Brown, Professor Fred Cahir, Dr Andrew Caroll, Dr Stephen Carey, Associate Professor Graeme Coulson, Zoe Cozens, Associate Professor Peter Dahlhaus, Julian Dunn, Professor Peter Gell, Harriet Goodrich, Dr Caroline Hubschmann, Fiona Maher, Rick Mitchell, Grattan Mullett, Jillian Mundy, Rachel Nanson, Professor Ian McNiven, Dr Scott Nichol, Adjunct Associate Professor Nicholas Reid, Neville Rosengren, Andry Sculthorpe, Dr Robin Sim, Tessa Smith, Dr Rebe Taylor, Wayne Thorpe, Professor Sean Ulm, Ane Van Der Walt, Tim Ziegler
- Writer Mentor
- Adam Courtenay
- Produced by
- Wind & Sky Productions Pty Ltd
- Commissioners on behalf of Parks Australia
- Natalie Bool, Daniel Murphy, Andy Warmbrunn
- Digital Story Still Images by
- Ed Dunens, Jillian Mundy, Jack and Jude, Envato Elements, Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre, Dean Greeno, Simon Haberle, Demelza Wall, Mark Antos, Melissa Nicholls, Patrick Kavenagh, Museums Victoria, Parks Victoria, Parks Australia, Madeleine Bessell-Koprek, Dr Mary Gillham Archives, Stephen Harris, David Paul, Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery, Tasmanian Parks and Wildlife, Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and a number of scientific and amateur photographers and organisations credited in-text who have released their photographs via Creative Commons, for which we thank them.
- Film and Digital Story Maps, Map Illustrations and Map Animations by
- Wind & Sky Productions, Geosciences Australia, Megan Hotchkiss Davidson of Sandia National Laboratories (courtesy of CABAH), Deakin University Marine Mapping Group courtesy of David Kennedy and Daniel Ierodiaconou, Parks Australia, Patrick Nunn, Stefani A. Crabtree, Devin A. White, Corey J. A. Bradshaw, Frédérik Saltré, Alan N. Williams, Robin J. Beaman, Michael I. Bird & Sean Ulm, Clare Ainsworth, Matthew Flinders maps courtesy of National Library of Australia, Google Maps, Wayne Thorpe, Google Earth drawing on the following data: Google, Data SIO, NOAA, U.S. Navy, NGA, GEBCO, Data LDEO-Columbia, NSF, NOAA, Landsat / Copernicus, Beagle Marine Park Mapping Project, NESP Marine Biodiversity Hub, Neville Rosengren.
- Stock Media Sources
- Pond5, BlackBoxGuild, Envato Elements Pty Ltd, Adobe Stock Images stock.adobe.com
- Creative Commons and Public Domain Archival Media Sources
- Wikimedia Commons, Flickr, Atlas of Living Australia, iNaturalist, Seamap Australia, National Library of Australia, CSIRO, NOAA, Museums Victoria, State Library of Victoria
- Film Music
- Look to the Sky. Artist/Composer Piotr Pacyna. Publisher: Lynne Publishing (PRS). SRCO (Sound Recording Copyright Owner): Piotr Pacyna. All rights reserved
- Funded by
- This project was funded by the Australian Government through the Our Marine Parks grant program.
- Additional Funding Support
- The writer mentor program was supported by the Australian Government through the Regional Arts Fund
- Cultural Partners
- Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre (TAC), Gunaikurnai Land and Waters Aboriginal Corporation (GLAWAC), Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation (BLCAC)
- Research Partners
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage (CABAH), Parks Victoria
- With Special Thanks to
- Mark Rodrigue, for inventing this project up and asking us to make it.
- Additional Thanks to
- Jon Addison, Professor John Arnould, Dr Robin Beaman, Professor Jonathan Benjamin, Aunty Caroline Briggs, Andrew Davies, Tristan Derham, Brett Mitchell, Catherine Young, Dan Turnbull, Daniel Miller, Dr Stefania Ondei, Danielle O Leary, Dee Dzelalija, Dejan Stojanovic, Genevieve Newton, Jason King, Jessica Riley, Jessica Shapiro, Katherine Mullett, Kobi Sainty, Nathan Wright, Paul Hedge, Vica Bayley, Dr Ben Shaw, Dr Cathy Byrne, Dr Conni Lord, Dr David Tutchener, Ross Crates, Professor David Kennedy, Professor Greg Lehman, Professor Lynette Russell, Cora Trevarthen, Andrew Vance, Aboriginal Land Council of Tasmania, Australian National University, Australian Museums and Galleries Association Victoria, Biodiversity Maintenance Australia, Boon Wurrung Foundation, Deakin University, Federation University Australia, Flinders University, Geography Teachers Association of Victoria, Geoscience Australia, Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS), James Cook University, IMAS Marine Predators Hub, Melbourne University, Monash University, Museums Victoria, National Environmental Science Programme (NESP) Marine Biodiversity Hub, National Environmental Science Programme (NESP) Marine and Coastal Hub, University of Tasmania, University of Wollongong, Santa Fe Institute, Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, University of the Sunshine Coast and Utah State University.
- Companion website:
- The Land Bridge
- Acknowledgements:
- Project production and development took place on the lands of the Wadawurrung, Palawa, Gunaikurnai, Bunurong and Ngunnawal. The producers acknowledge the First Peoples of the land bridge and all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Traditional Custodians of Country. We recognise their continuing connection to land, sea, culture, and community and pay our respects to Elders past and present.
- This is an Australian Government funded project through the Our Marine Parks grant program.
- Copyright with:
- Wind & Sky Productions and listed individual authors and creators ©2024
Acts of Heroism
Info
Produced: 2022
Length: 15.34 minutes
Funded by: Telematics Trust
In collaboration with: Federation University
Links
Aboriginal Heroes of Flood Fire and Food Digital Map.
Uncle David Wandin, photograph by Wind & Sky Productions.
Jidah Clark and Yaraan Couzens-Bundle, photograph by Wind & Sky Productions.
Dr Fred Cahir, photograph by Wind & Sky Productions.
The Loddon River, Dja Dja Wurrung Country. Photograph by Wind & Sky Productions.
Central Victorian bushland, Djab Wurrung Country. Photograph by Wind & Sky Productions.
The Story
This short documentary film explores the history of emergency rescues and assistance in Victoria by Aboriginal people of non-Aboriginal people.
In the 19th and early 20th century Aboriginal Victorians saved lives. They knew how to manage fire and flood in the bush and where to find food in times of scarcity. Despite the devastating impacts of European invasion, Aboriginal people consistently offered help and rescue to colonists.
‘Acts of Heroism’ looks at instances where Aboriginal people took action in emergency situations in Victoria and reflects on the legacy of these shared histories. It includes Indigenous and academic perspectives, with speakers Yaraan Couzens-Bundle, Jidah Clark, Uncle David Wandin, Associate Professor Michael-Shawn Fletcher, Professor Richard Broome and Associate Professor Fred Cahir. Directed by Jary Nemo, produced and written by Lucinda Horrocks and Jary Nemo, the film features the original music of composer Deb Lowah Clark.
Warning
Viewers are advised that the film may contain images and names of people who have died.
The film mentions acts of violence and the killing times which may be distressing.
Viewers are also advised they will hear and see words written more than a hundred years ago.
In quoting the words as they were first written the film makers intend no disrespect to peoples past or present.
Background
This short film is a companion to a web-based education portal ‘Aboriginal Heroes of Fire, Food and Flood’ which spatially maps locations and documented instances of Aboriginal heroism to do with fire, flood and food in Victoria and Southeastern Australia from the 1800s to the 1930s.
The project was funded by the Telematics Trust and is a collaboration between Federation University historians, the Centre for eResearch and Digital Innovation at Federation University, and Wind & Sky Productions. The film was produced in Ballarat, in regional Victoria, on Wadawurrung Country.
More information at https://www.aboriginalheroesmatter.org.au/
Viewing the film
The film is freely available to view online via Vimeo https://vimeo.com/727605113 or Youtube https://youtu.be/eRCBIzdqBCI.
To arrange a community screening contact Wind & Sky Productions.
Credits
- Featuring (in order of appearance):
- Yaraan Couzens-Bundle, Jidah Clark, Fred Cahir, Richard Broome, David Wandin and Michael-Shawn Fletcher
- And the voices of:
- Bryn Cahir, Hannah Cahir, Heather Horrocks, Kylee Smith, Tobias Horrocks, William Horrocks, Thomas Brooker
- Directed by:
- Jary Nemo
- Written and produced by:
- Lucinda Horrocks and Jary Nemo
- Executive producer:
- Fred Cahir
- Original music:
- Deb Lowah Clark
- Soundscape:
- ‘Place-we-be’. Composed, recorded and performed by Deb Lowah Clark. Featuring Deb Lowah Clark, Sarah Jane Hall, Bonnie Chew and Tony Lovett. Production support Dave Clark.
- Stock content:
- Footage courtesy of iStock by Getty Images. ‘Old Prophecy’ by Felipe Adorno Vassao. Courtesy Beat Suite.
- Equipment support:
- Assisted by a City of Ballarat Creative Inspiration Grant through Creative Ballarat and Regional Arts Victoria.
- With thanks to:
- Maxine Briggs, Craig Briody, Deb Lowah Clark, Dave Clark, Kirsten Clark, Pete Dahlhaus, Sam Henson, Kathy Horvat, Clare Gervasoni, Geoffrey Lord, Malcolm Sanders, Helen Thompson, Rob Milne, Dan Tout, Anthony Romano, Charley Woolmore, City of Ballarat, Latrobe University, Melbourne University Indigenous Knowledge Institute, Federation University Centre for eResearch and Digital Innovation (CeRDI), Regional Arts Victoria, Federation University SMB Library, Royal Historical Society Victoria, State Library Victoria and Wandoon Estate Aboriginal Corporation.
- License:
- This film has been released under a Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license.
- Produced in collaboration with:
- Federation University Australia
- Supported by:
- the Telematics Trust
- Companion website:
- Aboriginal Heroes Matter
- Acknowledgements:
- Film production and development took place on the lands of the Bunurong, Dja Dja Wurrung, Djab Wurrung, Jardwardjali, Taungurung, Wadawurrung, and Wurundjeri peoples. We acknowledge these Traditional Owners and pay our respects to their Elders past, present and future.
- Copyright with:
- Wind & Sky Productions ©2022 unless otherwise acknowledged.
Seeing the Land from an Aboriginal Canoe at Setting Sun Short Film Festival
We are delighted to announce that Seeing the Land from an Aboriginal Canoe is a Finalist for two awards, Best Cultural Diversity and Best Documentary Metro at the Setting Sun Short Film Festival. The film will be screening at the Sun Theatre, Yarraville on Friday the 28th of April as part of the 7pm session
Where: 8 Ballarat Street, Yarraville 3013 Victoria, Australia � Tel 03 9362 0999 Fax 03 9362 0337 info@suntheatre.com.au
When: 7 pm – 10 pm Friday 28 April 2017
Tickets: This is a ticketed event Tickets at https://www.suntheatre.com.au/component/yco/?view=movie&movie=SSETTINGSUN%3ABRID
Highly Commended in MAGNA Awards 2016
We are delighted to announce that ‘Seeing the Land from an Aboriginal Canoe’ was Highly Commended in its category at the Museums and Galleries National Awards, the MAGNA 2016 Awards, announced on the 18th May 2016 in Auckland.
Read More
Painting Stories – Aunty Marlene Gilson
By Lucinda Horrocks, 16 October 2015.
“I realise the dispossession of Aboriginal people and the legacy of racist colonialism is still present in the bones of my home”
Aunty Marlene Gilson’s paintbrush is tiny. It’s narrow as a twig, a fraction the width of her thumbnail. She holds it poised in one hand while rummaging for paint amongst the crumpled tubes lying randomly on a chair next to her. She talks constantly, nervous because we are there. “Where’s the red?” she says. “You know, I can never find it. “ She dips the brush into the paint tube with a practised gesture. “I’m not supposed to do it this way”, she says, “but it’s easier”. She leans close to the large canvas and traces a line, a thread of colour. Bright pigments. Red first. Then yellow, then white. She is lighting a campfire, the simple colours morphing into flames before my eyes. “I wasn’t going to light the fire but I think it looks better.” She dabs on a bit of white and black with a dirty sponge. “That’s the smoke”, she says. And indeed it is, drifting lazily past some tiny figures around a campfire.
“That’s done.” She says.
Seeing the Land from an Aboriginal Canoe
Info
Commissioned by: Culture Victoria
Produced: 2015
Length: 10.27 minutes
Uncle Bryon Powell, Wadawurrung Elder, talks about stories of canoe use by Wadawurrung people. Interviewed on the banks of the Barwon River, Geelong. Still by Jary Nemo
Associate Professor Fred Cahir on the Big Screen, Fed Square, July 2015. Photograph by Jary Nemo.
The Culture Victoria project included a full image gallery with archival images, extended audio interviews, and a specifically commissioned documentary.
The Culture Victoria story objects included film, audio and images with curatorial text created by Wind & Sky Productions and three specifically commissioned historical essays written by Fred Cahir and Lucinda Horrocks.
Waggoners Fording a Stream, Illustrated Australian News, engraver FW Sleap, 1883, courtesy of the State Library of Victoria.
Jamie Lowe, Djabwurrung man. Still by Jary Nemo.
Associate Professor Fred Cahir. Still by Jary Nemo.
The Story
On the rivers of remote Victoria, 19th century European settlers depended on Aboriginal navigators and canoe builders to transport goods, stock and people.
The Aboriginal bark canoe was a technology in demand in regional Victoria in the 1800s. Explorers and drovers, gold miners and settlers used Aboriginal ferrying services and boat building services to conduct trade and transport. Stories abound of trade, canoeing, and heroic rescues on rivers such as the Murray, Goulburn, Campaspe, Ovens and Loddon, shedding light on the generosity, resourcefulness and ingenuity of the Indigenous inhabitants and of the trading relationships formed between Aboriginal people and European colonists. Indeed it could be argued that the waterways skills of Aboriginal Australians were integral to the early economic viability of Victoria.
Multimedia Project
Wind & Sky Productions produced a short documentary film and multimedia gallery for Culture Victoria, curating the online exhibition and producing the text, video, audio and visual content. The project was launched on the 27 May 2015 to mark the beginning of National Reconciliation Week 2015. The documentary film screened at the Big Screen at Federation Square, Melbourne, from the 5-11 July 2015 as part of NAIDOC Week 2015. The project featured interviews with the historian Associate Professor Fred Cahir and Traditional Owners Uncle Bryon Powell, Jamie Lowe and Rick Nelson, and included artwork, maps and photographs from the regional and metropolitan collections of the State Library of Victoria, the Art Gallery of Ballarat, Public Record Office Victoria, Museum Victoria and the Ballarat Gold Museum. Three short historical essays written by Fred Cahir and Lucinda Horrocks were also specially produced for the project. The project was freely available to access by the public from 2015-2022, when the Culture Victoria Portal closed.
Screenings
Online: https://youtu.be/K9QmxoY0TQ0
April 2022, Lonely Wolf International Film Festival Spring Edition
18 June 2017, St Andrews Film Society, St Andrews
26-28 May 2017, Gnarwirring Ngitj Festival, Sovereign Hill Ballarat
28 April 2017, Setting Sun Short Film Festival, Yarraville
28 September 2016, Australian Limnology Conference, Ballarat
July 2016, 2016 NAIDOC Week Special Screening, Child and Family Services (CAFS), Ballarat
27 May 2016, Phee Broadway Theatre, Castlemaine, Reconciliation Week Screenings
9-10 April 2016, Lake Bolac Eel Festival, Lake Bolac
12-14 March 2016, Geelong Wooden Boat Festival, Geelong
20 February 2016, Geelong Environmental Film Festival, Geelong
21 November 2015, Castlemaine Local and International Film Festival (CLIFF), Castlemaine
5-11 July 2015, The Big Screen, Federation Square, Melbourne
Awards
Nominee – Jary Nemo, Outstanding Achievement in Documentary Cinematography, Lonely Wolf International Film Festival, London, Spring 2022.
Nominee – Jary Nemo, Outstanding Achievement in Documentary Editing, Archival Usage & Assembly, Lonely Wolf International Film Festival, London, Spring 2022.
Finalist, Best Cultural Diversity, Setting Sun Short Film Festival, Yarraville, 2017.
Finalist, Best Documentary Metro, Setting Sun Short Film Festival, Yarraville, 2017.
Museums and Galleries National Awards (MAGNA Awards) 2016, Highly Commended, Indigenous Project or Keeping Place, Level 2.
Media
Lucinda Horrocks, ‘seeing the land from an Aboriginal canoe’, Association Magazine, Art Gallery of Ballarat, Autumn 2017, pp.30-33.
Fred Cahir and Lucinda Horrocks, ‘Seeing the Land from an Aboriginal Canoe’, Park Watch Magazine, September 2016 No 266, pp 24-25.
Larissa Romensky, ‘Documentary film explores significance of Aboriginal entrepreneurship in Victoria during colonial times’, ABC Central Victoria, 19 November 2015, http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-11-19/documentary-film-explores-significance-of-aboriginal-transport/6954288
Shane Fowles, ‘Seeing the Land from an Aboriginal Canoe documentary details indigenous assistance to settlers’, Geelong Advertiser, 7 July 2015, http://www.geelongadvertiser.com.au/news/geelong/seeing-the-land-from-an-aboriginal-canoe-documentary-details-indigenous-assistance-to-settlers/story-fnjuhovy-1227430795289
Lucinda Horrocks radio interview, Breakfast with Dominic Brine, 107.9 ABC Ballarat, 6 July 2015.
Melissa Cunningham, ‘Ballarat’s Aboriginal history set to light up big screen’, Ballarat Courier, 2 July 2015, http://www.thecourier.com.au/story/3185898/unknown-history-explored/
Film Credits
- Produced by:
- Jary Nemo and Lucinda Horrocks
- Production Company:
- Wind & Sky Productions
- Directed and edited by:
- Jary Nemo
- Written and researched by:
- Fred Cahir and Lucinda Horrocks
- Featuring:
- Fred Cahir, Uncle Bryon Powell, Jamie Lowe, Rick Nelson
- Camera and Sound:
- Jary Nemo
- Interviews:
- Lucinda Horrocks
- Archival images courtesy of:
- The Art Gallery of Ballarat and The State Library of Victoria.
- With thanks to:
- Uncle Frank Abrahams, Aunty Vicki Abrahams, John Blythman, Lauren Bourke, Maxine Briggs, Leonie Cameron, Charlotte Christie, Ian Clark, Jeremy Clark, Brett Dunlop, Peter Freund, Richard Gillespie, Barbara Huggins, Karmen Jobling, Tracey Manallack, Rosemary McInerney, Julie McLaren, Kimberley Moulton, Gordon Morrison, Grattan Mullett, Uncle Bill Nicholson, Melanie Raberts, Felicity Say, Vic Say, Aunty Loraine Sellings, Jeanette Tasker, Miriam Troon, Roger Trudgeon, John Tully, Uncle Larry Walsh, Simone Werts, John Young, the Art Gallery of Ballarat, the Ballarat Mechanics Institute, Brambuk National Park & Cultural Centre, Dja Dja Wurrung Clans Aboriginal Corporation, Dunolly & District History, the Gold Museum Ballarat, Federation University Australia, the Koori Heritage Trust, Lake Tyers Aboriginal Trust, Museum Victoria, the Public Record Office Victoria, the State Library of Victoria, the Wathaurung Aboriginal Corporation, and the Wurundjeri Tribe Land and Compensation Cultural Heritage Council.
- Commissioned by:
- Culture Victoria
- Funded by:
- Creative Victoria
- Acknowledgement:
- This film was created for the Culture Victoria website (www.cv.vic.gov.au) with the support of the Victorian Government through Creative Victoria. Film production and development took place on the traditional lands of the Djab Wurrung, Dja Dja Wurrung, Jardwadjali, Wadawurrung (Wathaurung), and Woiwurrung peoples. We would like to acknowledge these traditional owners and pay our respects to their Elders, past and present.
- Copyright with:
- © Wind & Sky Productions 2015.
Project Credits
- Project Acknowledgements:
- Development and filming for this project took place on the traditional lands of the Dja Dja Wurrung, Djab Wurrung, Jardwadjali, Wadawurrung (Wathaurung) and Woiwurrung speaking peoples. The team was also privileged to consult with and to be granted permission to use images and artwork from Taungurung, Yorta Yorta and Gunai/Kurnai speaking peoples. The project team acknowledges the traditional owners of the lands on which we live and work and we pay our respect to their Elders, past and present. Many people worked on this project and helped make it a reality. We thank them all.
- Project Team
- Creative Producers:
- Jary Nemo and Lucinda Horrocks
- Production Company:
- Wind & Sky Productions
- Film Director:
- Jary Nemo
- Writing and research:
- Fred Cahir and Lucinda Horrocks
- Cast:
- Fred Cahir, Uncle Bryon Powell, Jamie Lowe, Rick Nelson
- Acknowledgments by Institution
- Art Gallery of Ballarat:
- Peter Freund, Julie McLaren, Gordon Morrison
- Australian National Maritime Museum:
- David Payne
- Ballarat Mechanics Institute:
- John Blythman, Rosemary McInerney
- Brambuk National Park and Cultural Centre:
- Uncle Frank Abrahams, Aunty Vicki Abrahams, Jeremy Clark, Jamie Lowe
- BrainTrain:
- Bill Horrocks, Heather Horrocks
- Castlemaine ANTaR:
- Rick Nelson, Paulette Nelson, Felicity Say, Vic Say
- Cummerugunja Local Aboriginal Land Council:
- Rebecca Atkinson
- Culture Victoria:
- Dimity Mapstone, Eleanor Whitworth, Tanya Wolkenberg
- Dja Dja Wurrung Clans Aboriginal Corporation:
- Barbara Huggins
- Dunolly Museum:
- John Tully
- Federation University Australia:
- Fred Cahir, Ian Clark, John McDonald
- Footscray Community Arts Centre:
- Uncle Larry Walsh
- Gunaikurnai Land & Waters Aboriginal Land Corporation:
- Grattan Mullett
- Koori Heritage Trust:
- Nerissa Broben, Charlotte Christie
- Lake Tyers Aboriginal Trust:
- Leonie Cameron, Aunty Lorraine Sellings, Jeanette Tasker
- Museum Victoria:
- Richard Gillespie, Kimberley Moulton, Melanie Raberts, Miriam Troon
- Public Record Office Victoria:
- Lauren Bourke, Tracey Manallack
- Sovereign Hill Museums Association: Gold Museum, Ballarat:
- Brett Dunlop, Roger Trudgeon
- State Library of Victoria:
- Maxine Briggs
- Wathaurung Aboriginal Corporation trading as Wadawurrung:
- Uncle Bryon Powell, John Young, Simone Werts
- Wind & Sky Productions:
- Lucinda Horrocks, Jary Nemo
- Wurundjeri Tribe Land and Compensation Cultural Heritage Council Incorporated:
- Uncle Colin Hunter, Karmen Jobling, Aunty Alice Kolasa, Uncle Bill Nicholson, Charley Woolmore
- Yorta Yorta Nation Aboriginal Corporation:
- Aunty Janice Muir, Aunty Elsie Bailey, Ruben Baksh
- Commissioned by:
- Culture Victoria
- Funded by:
- Creative Victoria
- Copyright with:
- Content Producers and Collection Holders.
Canoe Project Sheds Light on Hidden Aboriginal History
1 July 2015 (revised)
A new project about bark canoes reveals a forgotten history of encounters between Aboriginal Victorians and settlers in the 1800s.
On the rivers of remote colonial Victoria, 19th century European settlers depended on Aboriginal navigators and canoe builders to transport goods, mail and people.
A documentary and multimedia project, now live on Culture Victoria, explores this little known aspect of colonial history through a short documentary film, image gallery, audio interviews and three short educational essays.
The film was screened on the Big Screen at Fed Square every day from the 5-11 July 2015 as part of NAIDOC week 2015.
What's New
Wind & Sky Launches the Land Bridge Project
It’s been a long time in the making, but we are delighted to announce the launch of our most recent production, The Land Bridge.
Exploring the deep human history of Bass Strait and its Land Bridge
A new digital exhibition tells us about Bass Strait when it was a vast grassy plain people walked across and lived on.
Lucinda Horrocks wins commendation for ‘Discovering an Archive’
Wind & Sky Productions producer Lucinda Horrocks wins a commendation for her writing.
‘The Missing’ wins Best Short Documentary Award in Zurich
‘The Missing’ has won the ‘Best Short Documentary’ award at the Inspirational Film Festival in Zurich.