2006 Ten Canoes
90 mins Feature Film
Writer & director: Rolf de Heer
Co-directed by Peter Djiggirr
It is the distant past, tribal times. Dayindi (played by Jamie Gulpilil, son of the great David Gulpilil) covets one of the wives of his older brother. To teach him the proper way, he is told a story from the mythical past, a story of wrong love, kidnapping, sorcery, bungling mayhem and revenge gone wrong.
Ten Canoes was shot on and around the Arafura Swamp in north-eastern Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory of Australia. The film is unique in that it is the first feature film to be shot entirely in Aboriginal language (predominantly Ganalbingu), and it is set both in the past (centuries ago, before the coming of white people to Australia) and in the Ganalbingu mythical past. It is a tragi-comedy, a cautionary tale of love, lust and revenge gone wrong that, incidental to its central story line, also explores something of the "old ways".
Awards:
Awarded Special Jury Prize by the Un Certain Regard Jury, Cannes 2006.
2006 Film of the Year - Australian Catholic Film Office
AFI Awards 2006
Best Film, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Editing and Best Sound
Film Critics Circle of Australia Awards 2006
Best Film, Best Editing (Tania Nehme) & shared award for Best Cinematography (Ian Jones) with Jindabyne (David Williamson) -
Best film -Cinema des Antipodes, 2006
Grand Prize, Flanders International Film Festival 2006
Queensland Premier’s Literary Award for Best Screenplay
NSW Premier Audio Visual History Prize 2006
Nominations
Australia’s entry to 2006 Academy Awards for Best Foreign Film
IF Awards 2006 -Best Feature, Director, Actor, Cinematogrpahy, Script, Sound
AFI Awards 2006 -Best Film, Best Direction, Best Original Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Editing, Best Sound, Best Production Design
Opening Night film, 2006 Sydney Film Festival
Film Critics Circle Awards 2006 for Best Film, Director, Original Screenplay, Cinematography and Editing
