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National Film and Sound Archive of AustraliaNational Film and Sound Archive
National Film and Sound Archive of Australia
National Film and Sound Archive
National Film and Sound Archive of Australia
National Film and Sound Archive

We Don't Need a Map

2017

We Don't Need a Map

2017

  • NFSA IDM5FS8C2V
  • TypeFilm
  • MediumMoving Image
  • FormDocumentary
  • GenresIndigenous themes or stories
  • Year2017
  • WARNING: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander viewers are advised that the following program may contain images and/or audio of deceased persons

We Don't Need A Map is an epic telling of Australia's history, told through our collective relationship to one famous constellation. It is a challenging, poetic essay about who we are as a nation.

The Southern Cross is the most famous constellation in the southern hemisphere. Ever since colonisation, it's been claimed, appropriated and hotly contested for ownership by a radical range of Australian groups.

But for Aboriginal people the meaning of this heavenly body is deeply spiritual. And just about completely unknown. For a start, the Southern Cross isn't even a cross – it's a totem that's deeply woven into the spiritual and practical lives of Aboriginal people.

Leading Australian filmmaker Warwick Thornton tackles this fiery subject head on, in a bold film which challenges us to consider the place of the Southern Cross in the Australian psyche.

Imbued with Warwick's cavalier spirit, this is a thought-provoking ride through Australia's cultural and political landscape.

The film is part of NITV's landmark Moment in History initiative, launched by NITV and Screen Australia to bring together some of Australia's most experienced and innovative Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander filmmakers to create powerful, one-off documentaries that reflect on the place of Indigenous Australians in the country today.

On this journey Thornton has had the formidable support of fellow filmmaker Brendan Fletcher (Mad Bastards), a celebrated director known for a long history of collaborations with Indigenous Australians.

  • WARNING: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander viewers are advised that the following program may contain images and/or audio of deceased persons

We Don't Need A Map is an epic telling of Australia's history, told through our collective relationship to one famous constellation. It is a challenging, poetic essay about who we are as a nation.

The Southern Cross is the most famous constellation in the southern hemisphere. Ever since colonisation, it's been claimed, appropriated and hotly contested for ownership by a radical range of Australian groups.

But for Aboriginal people the meaning of this heavenly body is deeply spiritual. And just about completely unknown. For a start, the Southern Cross isn't even a cross – it's a totem that's deeply woven into the spiritual and practical lives of Aboriginal people.

Leading Australian filmmaker Warwick Thornton tackles this fiery subject head on, in a bold film which challenges us to consider the place of the Southern Cross in the Australian psyche.

Imbued with Warwick's cavalier spirit, this is a thought-provoking ride through Australia's cultural and political landscape.

The film is part of NITV's landmark Moment in History initiative, launched by NITV and Screen Australia to bring together some of Australia's most experienced and innovative Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander filmmakers to create powerful, one-off documentaries that reflect on the place of Indigenous Australians in the country today.

On this journey Thornton has had the formidable support of fellow filmmaker Brendan Fletcher (Mad Bastards), a celebrated director known for a long history of collaborations with Indigenous Australians.

  • Director
    Warwick Thornton
    Broadcaster
    NITV
    Cinematographer/Director of Photography
    Andrea Lang, Dylan River, Warwick Thornton
    Editor
    Andrea Lang
    Producer
    Brendan Fletcher
    Scriptwriters
    Brendan Fletcher, Warwick Thornton
    Production Company
    Barefoot Communications
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