A life less ordinary
Bastardy
The life of indigenous actor Jack Charles takes centre stage in Bastardy.
This fine Australian documentary presents the many incarnations of Jack Charles: actor, Aboriginal elder, homosexual, ex-junkie, cat burglar, jailbird, street philosopher and self proclaimed Robin Hood of the streets.
His lifestyle is unconventional, his attitude provocative and his humour infectious. Jack is unapologetic and more than willing to take us on a journey through a life characterised by triumph and disgrace in equal measure.
But what really shines through in this profound story is that Jack is a true larrikin.
It's a quality recognised by director Amiel Courtin-Wilson: "As soon as I met Jack Charles I knew I had to make a film about him."
Seamlessly blending archival footage with material shot over seven years, in Bastardy, Jack's 'life less ordinary' is laid bare.
Born in 1943, Jack was a child of the Stolen Generations and spent his formative years in the boy's homes of Melbourne. In 1971 he founded the first Aboriginal theatre company, Nindethana, and has since performed with some of Australia's most renowned actors and directors in feature films (The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith, Bedevil), TV series and stage plays.
After making its debut at the Melbourne International Film Festival in 2008, Bastardy went on to screen at film festivals across the globe to critical acclaim. Back home, it was nominated for a 2009 AFI Award for Best Feature Length Documentary and won the Jury Prize for Best Documentary awarded by the Film Critics Circle of Australia.
Bastardy screens in ACMI's Australian Perspectives on Saturday 8 August at 4pm.
More information here and at the film's official website
"A touching, beautiful, magnificent portrait" Inside Film
"Absorbing, confronting" The Age
Director Amiel Courtin-Wilson began making films at age 13 and came to note at age 20 with Chasing Buddha, a documentary about his aunt Robina Courtin, a Tibetan Buddhist nun and director of the Liberation Prison Project in the United States.
Chasing Buddha premiered at Sundance in 2000, was nominated for an AFI for Best Direction in a Documentary and went on to win a string of awards including Best Documentary at both the Dendy Awards and the IF Awards in 2000. Courtin-Wilson's latest short film, Cicada, screened earlier this year in the prestigious Director's Fortnight Program in the Cannes Film Festival.
Published Wednesday, 29 July 2009
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