Watch Video
Podcasts
Blogs
NEW SOUTH WALES
Inside Living Black
Tuesday, 17 June, 2008
Laura Grace
The series might have ended on screen but behind the scenes the wheels are still churning away.
While some are taking a well-earned break and others are researching stories for the next series, I have begun exploring the boxes and boxes of tapes that have accumulated in our work area, the product of more than 10 years of stories that have come from SBS’s Indigenous Media Unit.
Living Black and its predecessor the Indigenous Current Affairs Magazine (ICAM) have covered a lot of ground between them, from the top of the Torres Strait to Ridson Cove in Tasmania, from the Oak Valley Community in South Australia to Carnarvon in WA.
I have been revisiting our trips through the old camera tapes that past reporters and cameramen shot. It's making me feel pretty well-travelled for an office girl. These tapes hold all sorts of vision that didn't make the final cut, or that hasn't seen the light of day since the world turned digital.
This morning I went fishing off the coast of Broome and spotted some whales, yesterday I visited the Argyle diamond mine in WA and last week I was watching the sunset over the beautiful beaches of Palm Island. Through watching these tapes I've had the pleasure of meeting Clifford Possum before he passed away, as well as visiting David Gulpilil in his home up in Arnhem Land. I've even gone back in time to see our own Kris Flanders shooting some of his first stories with the baby face of a 20 year old!
Have Your Say: What old Living Black footage would you like to see?
Throughout the Living Black series one of my jobs has been to track down extra footage for stories. This has given me a strange affection for video tapes and DVDs. So for me, looking through hours of footage is as exciting as looking for gold.
I've really treasured my first series with Living Black. It has introduced me to parts of Australia I hadn't heard of before, words that I hadn't put my tongue around before, and put me in touch with a whole bunch of warm, generous and concerned people both on screen and around me in the office.
While some are taking a well-earned break and others are researching stories for the next series, I have begun exploring the boxes and boxes of tapes that have accumulated in our work area, the product of more than 10 years of stories that have come from SBS’s Indigenous Media Unit.
Living Black and its predecessor the Indigenous Current Affairs Magazine (ICAM) have covered a lot of ground between them, from the top of the Torres Strait to Ridson Cove in Tasmania, from the Oak Valley Community in South Australia to Carnarvon in WA.
I have been revisiting our trips through the old camera tapes that past reporters and cameramen shot. It's making me feel pretty well-travelled for an office girl. These tapes hold all sorts of vision that didn't make the final cut, or that hasn't seen the light of day since the world turned digital.
This morning I went fishing off the coast of Broome and spotted some whales, yesterday I visited the Argyle diamond mine in WA and last week I was watching the sunset over the beautiful beaches of Palm Island. Through watching these tapes I've had the pleasure of meeting Clifford Possum before he passed away, as well as visiting David Gulpilil in his home up in Arnhem Land. I've even gone back in time to see our own Kris Flanders shooting some of his first stories with the baby face of a 20 year old!
Have Your Say: What old Living Black footage would you like to see?
Throughout the Living Black series one of my jobs has been to track down extra footage for stories. This has given me a strange affection for video tapes and DVDs. So for me, looking through hours of footage is as exciting as looking for gold.
I've really treasured my first series with Living Black. It has introduced me to parts of Australia I hadn't heard of before, words that I hadn't put my tongue around before, and put me in touch with a whole bunch of warm, generous and concerned people both on screen and around me in the office.
