Straight from Australia’s national museum of screen culture in Melbourne, ACMI, (formerly the Australian Centre for the Moving Image), an exhibition exploring the creation of the hit TV series Cleverman has opened at the Museum of the Riverina Historic Council Chambers site.
The exhibition gives visitors the opportunity to see behind the scenes of this popular show, which stormed onto ABC TV in 2016 as a dystopian sci-fi with a difference.
With a predominantly Indigenous cast and senior crew, the series explores a series of Aboriginal origin stories in a contemporary context, with political nuance touching on themes of class, racism and power.
The Cleverman exhibition is an immersive experience created in consultation with a multidisciplinary Indigenous Advisory Group, First Nations curator Kathrine Clarke and co-curators, series concept creator Ryan Griffen and production designer Jacob Nash.
The exhibition showcases a range of original props, costumes and artwork, alongside interviews with cast and crew.
Museum Manager Luke Grealy said with an immersive combination of video, audio and objects, this exhibition not only explores the making of Cleverman, but the origin stories that underpin it.
“It’s exciting to be working with a world-class organisation like ACMI,” Mr Grealy said.
“Bringing innovative and exciting experiences that explore issues affecting First Nations communities to Wagga Wagga is something that we strive for.”
ACMI Director and CEO Katrina Sedgwick OAM said ACMI has been curating touring exhibitions across Australia for the past decade, celebrating extraordinary Australian screen practice and practitioners.
“The ground-breaking series Cleverman presents Dreaming stories in a stunningly designed sci-fi near-future, laced with political themes that ring true today,” Ms Sedgwick said.
“We jumped at the opportunity to collaborate with series creator Ryan Griffen to create an exhibition that takes people behind the scenes to explore the storytelling and superb screen craft that delivered this remarkable Indigenous Australian TV series.”
As the Museum of the Riverina’s first exhibition of 2022, it is the starting point for an exciting year ahead.
“With a range of incredible exhibitions to be hosted throughout the year at the Historic Council Chambers site, the return of the Bald Archy Prize and the redevelopment of the Botanic Gardens site, 2022 is set to be a great year for the Museum of the Riverina,” Mr Grealy said.
If you haven’t seen the Cleverman TV show yet, you can stream it online or borrow both seasons from the Wagga Wagga City Library.
Cleverman the exhibition will be on show until Sunday 29 May 2022.
