Yalata SA, May 2009
CHALLENGE: The Hero Project worked with the Yalata community and Tullawon Health Service to produce a short film addressing community concerns around healthy eating.
PARTNERS: Indigenous Cultural Support DEWHA; Indigenous Coordination Centre SA; Australia Council for the Arts Creative Community Partnership Initiative; Arts SA Partnerships for Healthy Communities; Tullawon Health Service Inc; Anangu School; Yalata Aboriginal Community; Tallstoreez Productionz; Apple Australia
Film: Mai Palya.Anangu Kunpu.Kata Palya
If your device can’t play this clip, click here to watch it on Vimeo.
If your device can’t play this clip, click here to watch it on Vimeo.
Mai Palya. Anangu Kunpu. Kata Palya -
Good Food. Strong Body. Good Mind
C’mon kids, you look tired! Lets go cook something healthy to eat, it’ll give you energy to run and play all day.
Fish is good for the brain, vegetables keep you healthy and bush tucker like kangaroo tails keep you strong.
OUTCOMES: During the 4 day workshop with over 25 participants the group brainstormed, shot and edited their film to promote healthy and active lifestyles. To get the whole team on board, we moved focus from healthy eating to healthy living; as there was huge pride for their sporting activities; BMX biking, acrobatic back flips, playing footy. To showcase healthy food the group prepared and cooked easy to make meals in the bush and kitchen. On location the whole team filmed the preparation of damper and kangaroo tail at a camp fire. The outcome overwhelmed the whole community.
The project is a benchmark for us to show how digital media (from making snapshots to complex films), can bridge cultural and social divides.
SCREENINGS & AWARDS:
The entire school attended the final screening on day 4.
Tullawon Health Service ordered 100 DVDs to distribute to other remote communities and health services.
One of our key aims is media literacy for liberation. However, as white media makers and educators, we are challenged to adequately offer support to an Indigenous community who have been forcibly removed from their land during the Maralinga atom bomb testing and must work hard to keep culture and maintain a functioning social structure. Dabbling in media can appear a secondary concern under these conditions.
Our experience with such collaborations is that using media can have a profound impact. We worked with the adult supporters to develop digital media tutorials that engage the community and raise expectations and self-esteem. It was encouraging for the adult supporters in the community to see participants who struggle to speak to anyone, address the camera and spend hours shooting and editing their film.
As a result, the youth workers are now sourcing funding to get digital media equipment to continue the work.
Tags: health, indigenous, remote, youth