
The Melbourne Cinémathèque & ACMI present
Protected: The Truth About Palm Island
When
Wed 19 Nov 2025
See below for additional related events
The second of three extraordinary cross-cultural projects collaboratively made by Italian migrant, filmmaker and journalist Cavadini – preceded by Ningla A-Na and followed by the groundbreaking Two Laws – this key work from 1975 is a dramatised documentary describing life on the Palm Island Reserve in the 1950s.
It documents the extraordinary privations of the Aboriginal community living on the island as well the landmark strike in 1957 that brought together figures from many nations and provided a central spark in the push for self-determination.
About Melbourne Cinémathèque
Australia's longest-running film society, Melbourne Cinémathèque screens significant works of international cinema in the medium they were created, the way they would have originally screened.
Melbourne Cinémathèque is self-administered, volunteer-run, not-for-profit and membership-driven.
