Advance screenings of Rachel Perkins' glorious Bran Nue Dae start next week with the national release to follow during January.
This is one of the best 2009 Australian productions. This indigenous Shakespearean-style comedy/romance/road movie is all fun. Don't miss it.
Spread the news!
It's also screening at the Sundance Film Festival later this month.
Showing posts with label broome. Show all posts
Showing posts with label broome. Show all posts
Friday, January 1, 2010
Bran Nue Dae Hits Cinemas
Thursday, December 24, 2009
The Kimberley: Nowhere Else But Here
A video tribute ot the Kimberley/Pilbara region of Western Australia, introduced by Ernie Dingo. Features Broome band the Pigrim Brothers and their classic song 'Nowhere Else But Here'.
Great place, Category 5 cyclones and all.
Monday, September 15, 2008
WA: looking after the Kimberley
As a former resident of Broome, I'm wondering what difference the new government will make. The Kimberley was in the process of renewal. If Health and Law and Order are Liberal priorities, they will have to duplicate the newly built Police Station and the "as new" hospital.
It's hard to say, as the opposition had no concrete proposals that I was aware of during 15 months there. For details of what was happening under Alan Carpenter's Labor government, videos of the Kimberley Cabinet earlier this year are instructive.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Farewell to Broome
Time to hand in the keys to the post box tomorrow morning and head down to 80 mile beach. A lot of national parks to visit between here and Black Rock in Melbourne. We'll miss the Federal budget, the remaining U.S. primaries and a few AFL games. It's a hard life!
Might get a chance to post along the way. No promises. If you miss this blog, then try reading Voices without Votes, Remembering 68 (Facebook) or watching some of the Laborview videos. Links are on the right. If you can't access YouTube try TeacherTube which has many of them. My own favourite is Howard's Last Innings: Tallyroom Spectators. So here it is:
It always cheers me up!
Saturday, May 10, 2008
Country Share: Welcome to Broome
Just like Broome itself Labor View from Broome has many visitors from overseas. I was surprised by the latest results for Country Share on Sitemeter. It covers the last 100 visits. Certainly posts on Voices without Votes have increased the political traffic but a closer examination of referring sites shows the power of Google searches including an increasing number of image searches. Kwoff and Digg also feature regularly with less from Reddit.
ClustrMaps shows an even greater diversity of countries visiting the site.
On Monday we are leaving Broome and returning to my country, Melbourne, to live. Might post occasionally during the next five weeks but will spend most of the time out of mobile much less internet range. Diesel is $1.80 a litre here. Wonder what it's fetching on the Gunbarrel Highway.
Expect a new name in late June.
Thursday, May 8, 2008
WA Sunday Times: Not ducking but goosed!
The raid on the Western Australian Sunday Times has interstate interest: WA police raid on Sunday Times leaves politicians ducking for cover This is my response to Woolly Days aka Derek Barry of Queensland:
When we moved to WA in January last year I was staggered to learn of both the powers of the CCC Corruption and Crime Commission) and their exercise of those powers: phone taps, bugging, recording of private conversations and surveillance involving people not directly accused of anything. A sort of Star fishing Chamber.
Despite or perhaps because of my long time involvement with the ALP, I would not be surprised if the assertions of dirt on the government's hands were true. However, at this stage it is pure speculation. I suggest that someone ask the CCC to investigate whether the Ministers have abused their powers.
As a Broome ALP sub-branch member I enjoyed Shelley Archer MLC's hospitality at Party functions in her home before her forced resignation and regularly visited her electorate office. I have often joked that my political jokes and anecdotes were being recorded and would be taken out of context, or worse in context.
The public seem happy to watch the squirming of politicians and the legion of urgers and suits (and hats in Brian Burke's case) who inhabit the decision-making lobbies. It is a costly exercise in both financial and civil liberties terms. Lots of unethical behaviour, some bordering on the illegal, has been exposed. I'm not aware of any successful criminal charges.
The media have thrived on the revelations emanating from the CCC's activities but aren't prepared to cop the collateral damage that comes with this heavy handed approach to keeping the bastards honest.
'What's sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander'.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Broadband for Kimberley Indigenous Communities
As part of the continuing Community Cabinet visit to Broome, Fran Logan, WA Minister for Industry and Enterprise, announced the connection of Broome and the remote Indigenous communities of Ardyaloon, Bidyadanga, Djarindjin and Lombadina to high-speed broadband.
It was hot and windy at the Port where the server is housed. Wish my ADSL broadband was as good as this new service is supposed to be. Downloading video to Youtube and Teachertube has been frustrating, with frequent lost connections and poor quality when it gets there, especially on Youtube.
Once the dust settles I'll review the Community Cabinet.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Questions Without Notice
Community Cabinet in Broome has been a public relations blitz with 20 media events planned for the visit. The local journalists have warmed to the task with an increasing number of questions off the topics of the ministerial announcements.
Opt-out organ donation, health rehabilitation centres, alcohol bans and liquor licensing issues, and doctor shortages are just some of those raised in 'Questions Without Notice'.
Not included from my footage were questions about the Fremantle football club, the West Australian newspaper, and ALP membership rules and pre-selections. Thought they are getting enough coverage in the mass media.
There are still some more ministerial events to come, so watch this space.
Second Magistrate for the Kimberley
Law and order is an expensive business. When announcing a second magistrate for the Kimberley, the WA premier Alan Carpenter explained that the need for a second magistrate in the region is not just a question of geography and population.
We have also put a lot more emphasis on law enforcement in the Kimberley. We have put into place our multi-function police stations. They obviously have an impact, and therefore an impact on the workload of everybody involved in the legal system, not the least of which is the magistrate.
More laws, more police, more judicial staff, more legal aid, and more prisons. And more indigenous people in those prisons. We can only hope that the better schools, medical care and employment opportunities promised will help to break this vicious cycle.
WA Cabinet Meets in Broome
The Western Australian State cabinet meets in Broome as part of its regional community consultations. Local public sector workers rally outside about the cost of living. Diesel is $1.76 per litre and rising, and bananas fetch $3.98 per kilo on a good day.
Monday, April 14, 2008
New pool for Fitzroy Crossing
The previous post explains the context for this video.
For the official media statement, please see: Premier announces swimming pool for Fitzroy Crossing
Was thinking of tagging it "good news indigenous story" but couldn't face the cynics.
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
WMD: Words of Mass Deception
There was nothing particularly new about Frontline's Bush's War on SBS last night but it was frightening to see it all spread before us. The amorality of the key players in the Iraq invasion was astonishing. Dick Chaney, Donald Rumsfeld, George Tenant, Paul Wolfowitz, Richard Perl, and countless others should not be able to sleep at night. The idea of Condoleezza Rice as McCain's ruuning mate is gob smacking.
Most aren't even prepared to front programs like Frontline to defend themselves anymore. Those who did like Richard Armitage left me feeling disgusted. He and Colin Powell should have resigned in protest rather than do Bush and Chaney's bidding. Powell's performance at the UN was Machiavellian except that its content was so ametuerish. How did so many people fall for it?
I tuned in after seeing Kite Runner at Broome's Sun Pictures. Perhaps it was the outdoor atmosphere, in particular planes landing on top of us, but I quite liked the film. The anti-Russian and anti-Taliban sentiments did not dominate too much. I enjoyed the fact that it is an Afghan languages film with little English even in the US scenes.
If Iraq may need a 100 year occupation, as John McCain has suggested, then Afghanistan may wait millennia for sanity to prevail.
Monday, March 24, 2008
Broome Dinosaur Footprints
No, it's not a post about following some of John wHoward's ex-Ministers. It was one of those "Where are the other 6 billion people?" moments.
Monday 24 March 2008. 7:30 am Gantheaume Point, Broome. Low tide.
When the tide is low enough, you can climb down to the rocks below the Point lighthouse and see two exposed footprints of Megalosauropus broomensis. They are 53 cm long and are just some of the footprints around the Broome area.
We went the long way across from the end of Cable Beach. We were the only people there. Can't get over how often that happens in our crowded world. Let's keep it a secret!
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Lydia Balbal: Desert Country
Martagul 2008 by Lydia Balbal
Lydia Balbal was one of the children who walked out of her desert country in the 1960s. The story of their journey back to country Desert Heart was on ABC1 this week and will be repeated on ABC2 at 7:00 pm on Sunday 23 March.
Broome's Short Street Gallery who represent the Bidyadanga artists had an exhibition opening for Lydia Lydia's work on Thursday. The painting above is a stunning work. It depicts a special place in her father's country where she played as a child.
The only disappointment of the exhibition was that all but a handful of the her paintings had been sold beforehand.
Thursday, March 20, 2008
US Ambassador's visit makes Page 4 in Broome
Don't mention the war!
John wHoward and Alexander Downer have sneaked in and out of Broome while we've been living here. It was the US Ambassador Robert McCallum's turn last week. According to the Broome Advertiser: "a small media contingent gathered at Notre Dame [University] to quiz the ambassador on a range of issues." Naturally no citizen journalists were invited.
The results of the quiz were less that cutting edge. He's for trade and tourism, against global warming, and neutral about gas projects in the Kimberley. It seems that Basil Fawlty wasn't there to mention the war.
It goes without saying that his qualification for the job was that he was a College mate of George W. He has to resign next January so the holiday's almost over. I wonder which mate of Barack's will visit next time.
Apart from a few Uni students and the every vigilant press, the visit passed unnoticed. Even the Advertiser put it as the the second story on page 4. Even the Shire President was out of town on other business.
Saturday, March 15, 2008
TV premiere for Desert Heart
Winpa by Daniel Walbidi
Not to be missed next Tuesday : Desert Heart, a documentary by David Batty of Bush Mechanics fame.Members of the Yulparija tribe who left the Great Sandy Desert forty years ago return to their land. They now live on the sea at the Bidyadanga community south of Broome. An art movement based on their traditional country flourishes there today.
ABC1 Tuesday 18 March at 10:00 pm on Artscape.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
King Tide at Chinatown
High tides used to regularly flood the Chinatown area of Broome in Western Australia. They are still a spectacular sight, especially at Streeter's Jetty once used by the old pearl luggers. There weren't as many mangroves along that part of Roebuck Bay then as a result.
The famous outdoor cinema Sun Pictures experienced tidal flooding until banks were constructed in 1974.
Monday, March 10, 2008
Broome Catalina Sunrise
It was a negative tide this morning. This provided the opportunity to see the remains of some of the flying boats sunk by Japanese planes on 3 March 1942. More than 40 people died and 15 flying boats were destroyed as well as other aircraft on the ground.
If you can't manage the walk, there is a hovercraft trip.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Desert Heart: Back to Country
Winpa by Daniel Walbidi
For the second time in a week Broome's Sun Pictures was the setting for an important indigenous event. Wednesday saw a gathering of locals to watch and celebrate Kevin Rudd's Sorry speech. Last night brought the premiere of Desert Heart, a documentary by David Batty of Bush Mechanics fame.It is the story of the Yulparija who left the Great Sandy Desert forty years ago. They now live as saltwater people in Bidyadanga south of Broome. In 2006 young artist Daniel Walbidi joined members of the tribe on a journey back to their land. They were supported by Emily Rohr of Short Street Gallery.
For more about their artwork, see Junk for Code.
The film, and the work of these artists which documents their country, are inspiring. Don't miss it when the ABC screens it in March.
Friday, February 8, 2008
Cable Beach Sunset
The wet season is finally in full swing in Broome.
Next couple of months are cyclone season. This is a clip from last year's dry.
Can't beat Cable Beach sunsets. Always best when there is some cloud.
Enjoy!
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