ABC is pleased to announce that the inspiring documentary Maralinga Tjarutja premieres Sunday 24 May at 7.40pm on ABC and iview. Maralinga Tjarutja shines a spotlight on the people who have lived on their lands for over 60,000 years. While it’s a story of deep tragedy, it also celebrates their incredible resilience.
Many Australians would be unaware that the Maralinga Tjarutja land in regional South Australia was the location for the British Nuclear Test Program between 1953 and 1963. The Maralinga Tjarutja people have fought for the clean-up of contamination, for compensation and in 2009, for the handback of the Maralinga Village and test sites. They have gone on to rebuild traditional communities into vibrant, creative cultural communities that will ensure Maralinga Tjarutja custodianship of their lands into the future.
Jeremy LeBois, the Chair of the Maralinga Tjarutja Trust says “This documentary is important to the Maralinga people because it gives us a voice to tell the real story of what really happened to the people who walked, lived and hunted on this land for thousands of years,”
Writer and director, Larissa Behrendt says “This is an extraordinary story and it is a privilege to bring it to the screen. The red earthed country that stretches under blue skies provides a cinematic backdrop to the story of a community that has rebuilt itself to be vibrant, strong and proud of its culture. It is a story that deserves to be told through the voices and art of the people who lived it.”
Maralinga Tjarutja celebrates the people, their tenacious spirit and cultural strength through which they fight to retain their country.
Production Credits: Maralinga Tjarutja is a Blackfella Films production for the ABC. Principal production investment from the ABC in association with Screen Australia. Financed with support from South Australian Film Corporation.
Director Larissa Behrendt. Producer Darren Dale. Writer Larissa Behrendt. Executive Producer Kelrick Martin
