‘Reckoning’ is a feature documentary plus impact strategy and resources. It responds to our First Nations’ call in the Uluru Statement for Truth-telling and will engage collaboratively with Indigenous and non-Indigenous folk grappling with the legacies of colonisation. Utilising the latest historical research, Reckoning will focus on First Nations resilience and resistance to colonisation, efforts ...
Reckoning
GOAL
$45,000
Australia
Field of Interest
- First Nations communities
- Social inclusion and justice
Project Summary
‘Reckoning’ is a feature documentary plus impact strategy and resources. It responds to our First Nations’ call in the Uluru Statement for Truth-telling and will engage collaboratively with Indigenous and non-Indigenous folk grappling with the legacies of colonisation. Utilising the latest historical research, Reckoning will focus on First Nations resilience and resistance to colonisation, efforts to counter its negative impacts and assertion of Indigenous knowledge.
The filmmakers, marda marda writer/researcher Steve Kinnane and non-Indigenous documentarian Steve Thomas, embark on a ‘both ways’ storytelling odyssey, following the path of colonisation and exploring truth-telling initiatives along the way.
The Voice referendum failed but across the country settler and First Nations people are creating change through Truth-telling in a long overdue reckoning with the unfinished business of belonging, identity and nationhood. Kinnane and Thomas are award winners in their fields, as is producer Stephen Luby, creator of the TV version of Kate Grenville’s ‘the Secret River’. Reckoning was developed with assistance from VicScreen and is ready for production. Advisers include Prof Henry Reynolds and Dr Julia Hurst.
Project Outcomes
The power of documentary lies in its ability to move audiences through telling personal stories, assisting viewers to put themselves in other people’s shoes and inspiring both empathy and action. By engaging through a popular medium with Indigenous and non-Indigenous folk who are grappling with post-colonial Truth-telling, Reckoning will contribute to the processes of national reconciliation, societal healing and wellbeing. Our audience is the whole of Australia (white and black) and beyond. Documentaries have the potential to reach a wide audience – whether through broadcasts, streaming, community screenings or education.
Reckoning will explore what truth-telling can mean for ordinary people and the kind of change it can invoke, whether attitudinally or practically. Like Freedom Stories, Steve Thomas’s previous documentary, Reckoning will form a mosaic of unique but complementary stories. It will combine different perspectives on truth-telling and offer models for action. The feature documentary will be the focal point of Reckoning but associated educational materials and an effective impact strategy will be developed alongside it, and the film will be repurposed for different audiences. The strategy will include cinema release; social media campaigns; film festivals; TV and streaming acquisition; community screenings; educational distribution; a Study Kit; repurposing eg. as shorts for schools; a website.
Besides critical reviews and public discussion of the feature documentary, measurement of its take-up in all its facets and iterations, including social media responses, viewing figures and counts of community screenings etc will assist in gauging whether the project meets its goals.
Budget Breakdown
TOTAL BUDGET: $500,000
FUNDING
| Funding source | Amount |
|---|---|
| VicScreen | $11,000 |
EXPENSES
| Expense item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Contribution to crew interstate travel | $15,000 |
| Contribution to crew interstate accomodation | $15,000 |
| Contribution to location costs | $10,000 |
| Contribution to equipment hire | $5,000 |
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