RAN Remote Area Nurse (TV series)
Encyclopedia
RAN is an Australia
n television program
(drama series), filmed entirely on Masig Island (Yorke Island)
in the tropical
Torres Strait
north of the Cape York Peninsula
, the northern-most part of Australia (State of Queensland
), and the border with Papua New Guinea
.
This is an important series to Torres Strait Islanders
, but also to the predominantly Anglo Australian community as it highlights the difference between Islanders and mainland Indigenous Australians
and the interactions between Islander and Anglo culture. Islander actors and extras are extensively used.
The series was released on DVD on 20 February 2006.
television, it follows the life of Helen Tremain (Susie Porter
), the Remote Area Nurse, charged with providing medical services to the remote Torres Strait Islanders
community.
of wife Ina and grown children Eddie, Solomon, Paul (adopted), Nancy and Faith (adopted) and their families and friends, and other characters on the island including some white Australians.
The season of six episodes covers topics such as: whites fitting into an Islander culture; alcohol
misuse and smuggling in Islander communities; family hostility and love; outsider influence on island life; family tension, life and death; seasons in the tropics and the effect on people, marriage and family.
s provided for the wider television audience.
While non-Islanders can only guess at the accuracy of the portrayal, it is obvious that many extra
s are Islanders and that there was significant assistance from locals in the production.
At the 2006 Australian Film Institute Awards
, the show won 3 awards:
At the 2007 Logies, the show won 1 Award:
Nominated in two other categories:
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n television program
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
(drama series), filmed entirely on Masig Island (Yorke Island)
Yorke island, Torres Strait
Yorke Island is a coral cay situated in the Eastern area of the central island group in the Torres Strait, at the top end of the Great Barrier Reef and Northwest of the tip of Cape York Peninsula in Queensland, Australia...
in the tropical
Tropics
The tropics is a region of the Earth surrounding the Equator. It is limited in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the northern hemisphere at approximately N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the southern hemisphere at S; these latitudes correspond to the axial tilt of the Earth...
Torres Strait
Torres Strait
The Torres Strait is a body of water which lies between Australia and the Melanesian island of New Guinea. It is approximately wide at its narrowest extent. To the south is Cape York Peninsula, the northernmost continental extremity of the Australian state of Queensland...
north of the Cape York Peninsula
Cape York Peninsula
Cape York Peninsula is a large remote peninsula located in Far North Queensland at the tip of the state of Queensland, Australia, the largest unspoilt wilderness in northern Australia and one of the last remaining wilderness areas on Earth...
, the northern-most part of Australia (State of Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
), and the border with Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea , officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands...
.
This is an important series to Torres Strait Islanders
Torres Strait Islanders
Torres Strait Islanders are the indigenous people of the Torres Strait Islands, part of Queensland, Australia. They are culturally and genetically linked to Melanesian peoples and those of Papua New Guinea....
, but also to the predominantly Anglo Australian community as it highlights the difference between Islanders and mainland Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
and the interactions between Islander and Anglo culture. Islander actors and extras are extensively used.
The series was released on DVD on 20 February 2006.
Outline
First aired in early 2006 on Special Broadcasting Service (SBS)Special Broadcasting Service
The Special Broadcasting Service is a hybrid-funded Australian public broadcasting radio and television network. The stated purpose of SBS is "to provide multilingual and multicultural radio and television services that inform, educate and entertain all Australians and, in doing so, reflect...
television, it follows the life of Helen Tremain (Susie Porter
Susie Porter
Susie Porter is a multiple award winning Australian television and film actress.-Television:Susie Porter began her acting career in one episode of House Gang, a short lived television program. She then had small roles in other Australian television programs in the late 1990s, including Big Sky,...
), the Remote Area Nurse, charged with providing medical services to the remote Torres Strait Islanders
Torres Strait Islanders
Torres Strait Islanders are the indigenous people of the Torres Strait Islands, part of Queensland, Australia. They are culturally and genetically linked to Melanesian peoples and those of Papua New Guinea....
community.
Drama
The drama comes from the RAN's necessarily close association with the island Chairman, Russ Gaibui (Charles Passi), and his extensive and somewhat dysfunctional familyDysfunctional family
A dysfunctional family is a family in which conflict, misbehavior, and often abuse on the part of individual members occur continually and regularly, leading other members to accommodate such actions. Children sometimes grow up in such families with the understanding that such an arrangement is...
of wife Ina and grown children Eddie, Solomon, Paul (adopted), Nancy and Faith (adopted) and their families and friends, and other characters on the island including some white Australians.
The season of six episodes covers topics such as: whites fitting into an Islander culture; alcohol
Alcohol
In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....
misuse and smuggling in Islander communities; family hostility and love; outsider influence on island life; family tension, life and death; seasons in the tropics and the effect on people, marriage and family.
Accuracy
The series is portrayed as telling true stories. Many of the idioms of the drama come from local situations. Islanders speak among themselves in their local dialect with subtitleSubtitle (captioning)
Subtitles are textual versions of the dialog in films and television programs, usually displayed at the bottom of the screen. They can either be a form of written translation of a dialog in a foreign language, or a written rendering of the dialog in the same language, with or without added...
s provided for the wider television audience.
While non-Islanders can only guess at the accuracy of the portrayal, it is obvious that many extra
Extra (actor)
A background actor or extra is a performer in a film, television show, stage, musical, opera or ballet production, who appears in a nonspeaking, nonsinging or nondancing capacity, usually in the background...
s are Islanders and that there was significant assistance from locals in the production.
Cast
- Susie PorterSusie PorterSusie Porter is a multiple award winning Australian television and film actress.-Television:Susie Porter began her acting career in one episode of House Gang, a short lived television program. She then had small roles in other Australian television programs in the late 1990s, including Big Sky,...
- Helen Tremain (Remote Area Nurse) - LogieLogie AwardThe TV Week Logie Awards are the Australian television industry awards, which have been presented annually since 1959. Renamed by Graham Kennedy in 1960 after he won the first 'Star Of The Year' award, the name 'Logie' awards honours John Logie Baird, a Scotsman who invented the television as a...
winner (Best Actress), 2007 - Charles Passi - Russ Gaibui (island Chairman)
- Billy Mitchell - Robert Henry Hoffman (Robbo) (barge operator)
- Luke CarrollLuke Carroll-Television and film:Carroll started out in guest roles in some Australian shows, including The Flying Doctors, Lift Off, The Man from Snowy River, Ocean Girl and Water Rats....
- Paul Gaibui (son of Russ and Ina) - Margaret Harvey - Nancy Gaibui (daughter of Russ and Ina, mother of Faith)
- Merwez Whaleboat - Bernadette (defacto wife of Paul Gaigui, mother of two daughters)
- Jim Gela - Solomon Gaibui (second and favoured son of Russ and Ina, husband of Lindy and father of Grace; island quarantine officer)
- Aaron Fa'aosoAaron Fa'aosoAaron Fa'aoso is an Australian television and film actor. He is of Torres Strait Islander and Tongan descent . His mother is from Saibai Island .-Career:...
- Eddie Gaibui (first son of Russ and Ina; black sheepBlack sheepIn the English language, black sheep is an idiom used to describe an odd or disreputable member of a group, especially within a family. The term has typically been given negative implications, implying waywardness...
, but a ChristianChristianA Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
minister; lives off-island, but visits) - Serai Zaro - Ina Gaibui (wife of Russ, mother to the clan; quiet, patient, loving and kind; but, capable)
- Peta BradyPeta BradyPeta Brady is an Australian actress. She is best known for playing Cody Willis in the TV soap opera Neighbours. Since she left the show, Brady has appeared in the film Mullet, the TV sitcom Kath & Kim and the SBS series RAN ...
- Lindy Gaibui (white wife of Solomon, mother of Grace) - Belford Lui - Mick Gaibui (brother of Russ, island policePoliceThe police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
man and churchChurch BodyA local church is a Christian religious organization that meets in a particular location. Many are formally organized, with constitutions and by-laws, maintain offices, are served by pastors or lay leaders, and, in nations where this is permissible, often seek seek non-profit corporate status...
deaconDeaconDeacon is a ministry in the Christian Church that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions...
) - Louisa Taylor - Myrtle (mother of Jesus; low mental ability; can be a friend to everyone)
- Santa Marina Rodgers - Mrs Augustus (mother of Doug and Ina; former midwife; community elder)
- Moses Kaddy - Doug Augustus (son of Mrs and brother of Ina; schizophrenicSchizophreniaSchizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by a disintegration of thought processes and of emotional responsiveness. It most commonly manifests itself as auditory hallucinations, paranoid or bizarre delusions, or disorganized speech and thinking, and it is accompanied by significant social...
; lovable rogue) - Norah Bagiri - Lucy (mother of Daniel, Joey and Jesus (adopted); health worker with the RAN)
- Fred Kebisu - Amos (island child)
- Bruce SpenceBruce SpenceBruce Spence, born September 17, 1945 is an actor, having spent most of his career performing in Australia. Bruce attended Henderson High School in West Auckland....
- Vince (brother of George; white "entrepreneur", bar owner and "shady" character) - John BrumptonJohn BrumptonJohn Brumpton is an Australian actor who has appeared in a large number of local productions.-Writing career:He co-wrote the feature film Life and he won the International Critics Prize at the Toronto International Film Festival.-Theatre:...
- George (brother of Vince; white "entrepreneur", bar owner and "shady" character) - Felix WilliamsonFelix Williamson-Career:He has had many roles in television, film and theatre and portrayed Paul Keating in the 2010 telemovie, Hawke opposite Richard Roxburgh's Bob Hawke....
- Dr John Bourke (fly-in medical doctorPhysicianA physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
) - Gabriel Ingui - Tuuks (bored islander)
Crew
- Penny ChapmanPenny ChapmanPenny Chapman is an Australian television producer. Her work includes Brides of Christ and RAN Remote Area Nurse. and the award winning My Place -References:...
- Producer - David CaesarDavid CaesarDavid Caesar is an Australian television and film director and writer.He grew up in Turlinjah on the south coast of NSW and attended school in nearby Moruya where he was school captain in his senior year....
- Director - Catriona McKenzie - Director
- Helen Pankhurst - Co-Producer
- John Alsop - Writer (Ep 1 & 2)
- Alice Addison - Writer (Ep 3 & 4)
- Sue Smith - Writer (Ep 5 & 6)
- George Mye - Cultural Consultant (Islander, from Erub (Darnley) Island ; long-time member of local government, and ATSIC Commissioner)
- Robyn White - Medical Consultant (nurse; since 1992, a Torres Strait remote area nurse, currently on Masig Island)
- David Bridie - Music Producer
- Ian Jones - Director of Photography
- Greg Apps - Casting Director
- Shawn Seet - Film Editor
Awards
The show and cast have won several awards, and been nominated in many more. Below is just some of the wins and nominations.At the 2006 Australian Film Institute Awards
Australian Film Institute Awards
The Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Award, known as the AACTA Award , is an accolade presented annually by the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts . The awards recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry and television industry, including directors,...
, the show won 3 awards:
- Best Screenplay: Sue Smith (for the fifth episode)
- Best Actress in a Drama: Susie PorterSusie PorterSusie Porter is a multiple award winning Australian television and film actress.-Television:Susie Porter began her acting career in one episode of House Gang, a short lived television program. She then had small roles in other Australian television programs in the late 1990s, including Big Sky,...
- Best Series
At the 2007 Logies, the show won 1 Award:
- Most Outstanding Actress: Susie PorterSusie PorterSusie Porter is a multiple award winning Australian television and film actress.-Television:Susie Porter began her acting career in one episode of House Gang, a short lived television program. She then had small roles in other Australian television programs in the late 1990s, including Big Sky,...
Nominated in two other categories:
- Most Outstanding Drama Series, Miniseries or Telemovie
- Most Outstanding New Talent: Aaron Fa'aosoAaron Fa'aosoAaron Fa'aoso is an Australian television and film actor. He is of Torres Strait Islander and Tongan descent . His mother is from Saibai Island .-Career:...