Ten Canoes
Encyclopedia
Ten Canoes is a 2006 film
. It was directed by Rolf de Heer
and Peter Djigirr and starred Crusoe Kurddal. The title of the film arose from discussions between de Heer and David Gulpilil
about a photograph of ten canoeists poling across the Arafura Swamp
, taken by anthropologist Donald Thomson
in 1936.
, in a time before western contact, and tells the story of a warrior Dayindi (Jamie Gulpilil), who hunts goose eggs while being told another story about another young man who, like Dayindi, coveted his elder brother's wife. The sequences featuring Dayindi, set shortly before contact with white people, are in black and white, while shots set in the present and in the distant past are in colour. The film is narrated in English by David Gulpilil; all protagonists speak in indigenous dialects of the Yolŋu Matha language group, with subtitles. A narration in Yolŋu Matha is also available.
In the story told to Dayindi: a man (whose own younger brother desires his third and youngest wife), kills a member of a neighbouring tribe, whom he believes had kidnapped his second wife the previous year. To prevent all-out war, tribal laws dictate that the offending tribe allow the offender (or the killer) to be speared from a distance by the tribe of the slain man. The offender is allowed to be accompanied by a companion, and he takes his younger brother. Whenever one of the two is hit, the spear-throwers will stop, and justice will have been served. The offender is hit and mortally wounded but survives long enough to return to his camp, where he is tended to by his eldest wife for a period of time. Shortly after he finally succumbs, the elder brother's kidnapped second wife finds her way back to the camp. She reveals that she had been kidnapped by a different tribe, much farther away and had taken this long to return. She mourns her lost husband, who had attacked the wrong tribe, though now she and the elder wife take his younger brother as their new husband. The younger brother, who was only interested in the youngest of the three wives, now has to care for all of them, much more than he bargained for.
And so, Dayindi learns the dangerous consequences of jealousy.
and speaks Gunwinggu
. Other actors and actresses from Ramingining
speak various dialects of the Yolngu Matha
language family.
Special Jury Prize at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival
. De Heer rejected claims he is a white director making an indigenous story: "People talk about, what is a white director doing making an indigenous story? They're telling the story, largely, and I'm the mechanism by which they can." Ten Canoes was screened at the Sydney Film Festival
in June 2006 and was released nationally on 29 June 2006.
In October 2006 Ten Canoes was chosen as Australia's official entry into the Best Foreign Language Film category for the 2007 Academy Awards
, thus becoming the third Australian film to be considered for the award (following Floating Life in 1996 and La Spagnola in 2001).
Ten Canoes was nominated for seven Australian Film Institute (AFI) awards
, of which it won six. The movie won the awards for Best Picture (Julie Ryan, Rolf de Heer producers), Best Director (Rolf de Heer and Peter Djigirr), Best Screenplay - Original (Rolf de Heer), Best Cinematography (Ian Jones), Best Editing (Tania Nehme) and Best Sound (James Currie, Tom Heuzenroeder, Michael Bakaloff and Rory McGregor). It was also nominated for Best Production Design (Beverly Freeman).
It won three awards from the Film Critics Circle of Australia
: Best Film, Best Editing (Tania Nehme) and Best Cinematography (Ian Jones). (The latter award was a tie with David Williamson's work on Jindabyne
.) The film was also nominated for Best Director and Best Original Screenplay. The documentary (that aired on Australian network SBS) The Balanda and the Bark Canoes, which detailed de Heer's experiences making the film, won Best Australian Short Documentary for de Heer, Tania Nehme and Molly Reynolds. The documentary explores with rare insight the interplay between cultures in a film project immersing a 'Balanda' (white man) into the intricacies of kinship systems impacting the casting of the film as well as giving some powerful voice to the inner conflicts of indigenous peoples today caught between the world of their heritage and that of modern life.
At the end of 2006 the film stands as one of the highest grossing Australian films of that year. By October it had made just over $3,000,000 from a budget of $2,200,000.
The film ranked #72 in Empire
magazines "The 100 Best Films Of World Cinema" in 2010.
2006 in film
- Highest-grossing films :Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top-grossing films that were first released in the United States in 2006...
. It was directed by Rolf de Heer
Rolf de Heer
Rolf de Heer is a Dutch film director, writer and producer living in Australia. De Heer was born in Heemskerk in The Netherlands but migrated to Sydney when he was eight years old. He attended the Australian Film Television and Radio School in Sydney. His company is called Vertigo Productions and...
and Peter Djigirr and starred Crusoe Kurddal. The title of the film arose from discussions between de Heer and David Gulpilil
David Gulpilil
David Gulpilil Ridjimiraril Dalaithngu , is an Indigenous Australian traditional dancer and actor. His first starring role was Walkabout....
about a photograph of ten canoeists poling across the Arafura Swamp
Arafura Swamp
The Arafura Swamp is a large inland freshwater wetland in Arnhem Land, in the Top End of the Northern Territory of Australia. It is a near pristine floodplain with an area of 700 km2 that may expand to 1300 km2 by the end of the wet season, making it the largest wooded swamp in the Northern...
, taken by anthropologist Donald Thomson
Donald Thomson
Donald Fergusson Thomson, OBE was an Australian anthropologist and ornithologist who was largely responsible for turning the Caledon Bay crisis into a "decisive moment in the history of Aboriginal-European relations." He is remembered as a friend of the Yolngu people, and as a champion of...
in 1936.
Synopsis
The film is set in Arnhem LandArnhem Land
The Arnhem Land Region is one of the five regions of the Northern Territory of Australia. It is located in the north-eastern corner of the territory and is around 500 km from the territory capital Darwin. The region has an area of 97,000 km² which also covers the area of Kakadu National...
, in a time before western contact, and tells the story of a warrior Dayindi (Jamie Gulpilil), who hunts goose eggs while being told another story about another young man who, like Dayindi, coveted his elder brother's wife. The sequences featuring Dayindi, set shortly before contact with white people, are in black and white, while shots set in the present and in the distant past are in colour. The film is narrated in English by David Gulpilil; all protagonists speak in indigenous dialects of the Yolŋu Matha language group, with subtitles. A narration in Yolŋu Matha is also available.
In the story told to Dayindi: a man (whose own younger brother desires his third and youngest wife), kills a member of a neighbouring tribe, whom he believes had kidnapped his second wife the previous year. To prevent all-out war, tribal laws dictate that the offending tribe allow the offender (or the killer) to be speared from a distance by the tribe of the slain man. The offender is allowed to be accompanied by a companion, and he takes his younger brother. Whenever one of the two is hit, the spear-throwers will stop, and justice will have been served. The offender is hit and mortally wounded but survives long enough to return to his camp, where he is tended to by his eldest wife for a period of time. Shortly after he finally succumbs, the elder brother's kidnapped second wife finds her way back to the camp. She reveals that she had been kidnapped by a different tribe, much farther away and had taken this long to return. She mourns her lost husband, who had attacked the wrong tribe, though now she and the elder wife take his younger brother as their new husband. The younger brother, who was only interested in the youngest of the three wives, now has to care for all of them, much more than he bargained for.
And so, Dayindi learns the dangerous consequences of jealousy.
Cast and crew
Crusoe Kurddal is from ManingridaManingrida, Northern Territory
Maningrida is a self-governing indigenous community in the heart of the Arnhem Land region of Australia's Northern Territory. Maningrida is located 500 km east of Darwin and 300 km north east of Jabiru. It is on the North Central Arnhem Land coast of the Arafura Sea, on the estuary of the Liverpool...
and speaks Gunwinggu
Gunwinggu
Kunwinjku, also spelt Gunwinggu or Gunwinjgu and also known as Bininj Gunwok or Mayali, is an Australian Aboriginal language in northern Australia...
. Other actors and actresses from Ramingining
Ramingining, Northern Territory
Ramingining is an Indigenous community in the Northern Territory, Australia, 560 km east of Darwin. It is on the edge of the Arafura Swamp in Arnhem Land...
speak various dialects of the Yolngu Matha
Yolngu Matha
Yolŋu Matha is a cover term for the languages of the Yolngu , the Indigenous people of northeast Arnhem Land in northern Australia. .Yolngu languages have a fortis–lenis contrast in plosive consonants...
language family.
Cast
- Crusoe Kurddal – Ridjimiraril
- Jamie Gulpilil – Dayindi/Yeeralparil
- Richard Birrinbirrin – Birrinbirrin
- Peter Minygululu – Minygululu
- Frances Djulibing – Nowalingu
- David GulpililDavid GulpililDavid Gulpilil Ridjimiraril Dalaithngu , is an Indigenous Australian traditional dancer and actor. His first starring role was Walkabout....
– The Storyteller - Sonia Djarrabalminym – Banalandju
- Cassandra Malangarri Baker – Munandjarra
- Philip Gudthaykudthay – The Sorcerer
- Peter Djigirr – Canoeist/The Victim/Warrior
- Michael Dawu – Canoeist/The Stranger
- Bobby Bunungurr – Canoeist/Uncle
- Johnny Buniyira – Canoeist/Warrior
- Gil Birmingham – Canoeist/Warrior
- Steven Wilinydjanu Maliburr – Canoeist/Warrior
Reception
Ten Canoes won the Un Certain RegardUn Certain Regard
Un Certain Regard is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's Official Selection. It is run at the Salle Debussy, parallel to the competition for the Palme d'Or.This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob...
Special Jury Prize at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival
2006 Cannes Film Festival
The 2006 Cannes Film Festival ran from May 17, 2006 to May 28, 2006. Twenty films from eleven countries were in competition for the Palme d'Or. The President of the Official Jury was Wong Kar-wai, the first Chinese director to preside over the jury....
. De Heer rejected claims he is a white director making an indigenous story: "People talk about, what is a white director doing making an indigenous story? They're telling the story, largely, and I'm the mechanism by which they can." Ten Canoes was screened at the Sydney Film Festival
Sydney Film Festival
The Sydney Film Festival is an annual film festival held in the Australian city of Sydney and is held over 12 days in June. The competitive film festival draws international and local attention, with films being showcased in several venues across the city centre and includes features,...
in June 2006 and was released nationally on 29 June 2006.
In October 2006 Ten Canoes was chosen as Australia's official entry into the Best Foreign Language Film category for the 2007 Academy Awards
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
, thus becoming the third Australian film to be considered for the award (following Floating Life in 1996 and La Spagnola in 2001).
Ten Canoes was nominated for seven Australian Film Institute (AFI) 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,...
, of which it won six. The movie won the awards for Best Picture (Julie Ryan, Rolf de Heer producers), Best Director (Rolf de Heer and Peter Djigirr), Best Screenplay - Original (Rolf de Heer), Best Cinematography (Ian Jones), Best Editing (Tania Nehme) and Best Sound (James Currie, Tom Heuzenroeder, Michael Bakaloff and Rory McGregor). It was also nominated for Best Production Design (Beverly Freeman).
It won three awards from the Film Critics Circle of Australia
Film Critics Circle of Australia
The Film Critics Circle of Australia is a group of cinema critics that judge Australian films.-External links:**...
: Best Film, Best Editing (Tania Nehme) and Best Cinematography (Ian Jones). (The latter award was a tie with David Williamson's work on Jindabyne
Jindabyne (film)
Jindabyne is a 2006 Australian drama film by director Ray Lawrence and starring an ensemble cast including Gabriel Byrne, Laura Linney, Deborra-Lee Furness and John Howard. Jindabyne was filmed entirely on location in and around the town of the same name: Jindabyne, New South Wales, situated next...
.) The film was also nominated for Best Director and Best Original Screenplay. The documentary (that aired on Australian network SBS) The Balanda and the Bark Canoes, which detailed de Heer's experiences making the film, won Best Australian Short Documentary for de Heer, Tania Nehme and Molly Reynolds. The documentary explores with rare insight the interplay between cultures in a film project immersing a 'Balanda' (white man) into the intricacies of kinship systems impacting the casting of the film as well as giving some powerful voice to the inner conflicts of indigenous peoples today caught between the world of their heritage and that of modern life.
At the end of 2006 the film stands as one of the highest grossing Australian films of that year. By October it had made just over $3,000,000 from a budget of $2,200,000.
The film ranked #72 in Empire
Empire (magazine)
Empire is a British film magazine published monthly by Bauer Consumer Media. From the first issue in July 1989, the magazine was edited by Barry McIlheney and published by Emap. Bauer purchased Emap Consumer Media in early 2008...
magazines "The 100 Best Films Of World Cinema" in 2010.
Locations
- Arafura SwampArafura SwampThe Arafura Swamp is a large inland freshwater wetland in Arnhem Land, in the Top End of the Northern Territory of Australia. It is a near pristine floodplain with an area of 700 km2 that may expand to 1300 km2 by the end of the wet season, making it the largest wooded swamp in the Northern...
, Northern TerritoryNorthern TerritoryThe Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
, AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , 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... - Arnhem Land, Northern Territory, AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , 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...
- Ramingining, Northern TerritoryRamingining, Northern TerritoryRamingining is an Indigenous community in the Northern Territory, Australia, 560 km east of Darwin. It is on the edge of the Arafura Swamp in Arnhem Land...
, AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , 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...
Awards
- Won AFI Award for Best Cinematography, Best Direction, Best Editing, Best Film, Best Original Screenplay, Best Sound -- 2006
- Nominated AFI Award for Best Production Design -- 2006
- Won Special Jury Prize, Cannes Film FestivalCannes Film FestivalThe Cannes International Film Festival , is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films of all genres including documentaries from around the world. Founded in 1946, it is among the world's most prestigious and publicized film festivals...
-- 2006 - Won FCCA AwardFilm Critics Circle of AustraliaThe Film Critics Circle of Australia is a group of cinema critics that judge Australian films.-External links:**...
for Best Cinematography, Best Editing, Best Film -- 2006 - Nominated FCCA AwardFilm Critics Circle of AustraliaThe Film Critics Circle of Australia is a group of cinema critics that judge Australian films.-External links:**...
for Best Director, Best Original Screenplay -- 2006 - Won Grand Prix Award, Ghent International Film Festival -- 2006
- Won IF Awards for Best Actor (Crusoe Kurddal), Best Cinematography, Best Director -- 2006
- Nominated IF Awards for Best Feature Film, Best Script, Best Sound -- 2006
- Nominated Mar del Plata Film FestivalMar del Plata Film FestivalThe Mar del Plata International Film Festival is an international film festival that takes place every November in the city of Mar del Plata, Argentina...
for Best Film -- 2007 - Won NatFilm FestivalNatFilm FestivalThe NatFilm Festival, staged annually across 16 cinemas in Copenhagen, in addition to several in Odense, Aalborg and Århus, shows the widest programme of films to the largest festival audience in Denmark...
for Audience Award - Nominated Satellite Award for Best Motion Picture
See also
- Cinema of AustraliaCinema of AustraliaCinema of Australia, more commonly referred to as the Australian film industry, refers to the system of production, distribution, and exhibition of films in Australia. Film production commenced in Australia in 1906 with the production of The Story of the Kelly Gang, the earliest feature film made...
- South Australian Film CorporationSouth Australian Film CorporationSouth Australian Film Corporation is a South Australian Government statutory corporation established in 1972. Former State Premier Don Dunstan played an instrumental role in the foundation of the Corporation and its early film production activities....
- AtanarjuatAtanarjuatAtanarjuat is a 2001 Canadian film directed by Zacharias Kunuk. It was the first feature film ever to be written, directed and acted entirely in Inuktitut...
, a 2001 Canadian film entirely in InuktitutInuktitutInuktitut or Eastern Canadian Inuktitut, Eastern Canadian Inuit language is the name of some of the Inuit languages spoken in Canada...
by InuitInuitThe Inuit are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic regions of Canada , Denmark , Russia and the United States . Inuit means “the people” in the Inuktitut language...
actors, also about an ancestral aboriginal legend also involving the sexual jealousy of brothers.