A Welcome to Country was offered by Uncle Charles “Chicka” Madden, who
emphasised the value of community support.
Guests were drawn to the warm spirit of generosity. “I’m always looking
to make connections within the community,” said Dr Mari Rhydwen of the NSW
Board of Studies. Local teacher, Jodie Swan, said, “Indigenous cinema is so
important, I think – and I’m keen to know about other events to be held here”.
Following a screening of the award-winning Mad Bastards
(directed by Brendan Fletcher, 2009), the film’s co-writer and male lead, Dean
“Koodah” Daley-Jones, told of how the story’s antidomestic-violence message is
enabling boys and young men, including those in prisons and remote communities
that have hosted screenings, to see what words such as compassion, courage,
respect, love and dignity look like in action. “It’s my story. It’s our story,
and there’s a lot of blood, sweat, tears and laughter … It’s about regaining
balance, the balance of a warrior,” he said.
The film, we learn, took eight weeks to shoot, and at least eight years
to write and plan. It’s a gritty evocation of life in the Kimberley region –
hard men battling to do the right thing by their families.
The Gamarada Indigenous Healing and Life Training organisation, through
its men’s groups and programs like Biyanga Naminma (“Father to Share”),
encourages fathers (and father figures) to be more aware of the root causes
that lead to the breakdown of relationships and isolation. Using culture as an
underlying theme, the men are disciplined in expressing negative emotions. Through
small-group discussion, mentoring and meditation (or Dadirri, an Aboriginal
practice of contemplation and connection to spirit) men are empowered to
reclaim their rightful place as carers and peacemakers – “peaceful warriors” in
the community.
For more information about Gamarada visit www.gamarada.org.au/. Contact:
Program Manager Ken Zulumovski (ken.z@gamarada.org.au).
Photo: Andrew Collis – Actor and filmmaker Dean Daley-Jones (front
centre) with members of the Gamarada Aboriginal men’s group
Source: The South Sydney Herald April 2012 – www.southsydneyherald.com.au