How can we help the environment? "I knew I was hard working. Oh, this one! The waters and land of the Bay both sustain and enrich their lives. Abel swims with Blueback whenever possible and finally the big red jet boat comes into Longboat Bay, both him and his mother are very worried. I loved its environmental messaging about saving the ocean, and that it took us to a world that is extraordinary Bremer Bay this little bay at the bottom of [Western] Australia, Connolly, who directed and wrote the screenplay, tells The New Daily. Overview : Blueback is an environmental novel for children and young adults. In the book, for example, Abby . I just wish the action above the water line was as mesmerising. While diving, Abby forms a bond with a. That "frickin' book" won him his third Miles Franklin, and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. Blueback, a heartbreaking allegory about a boy, his mother and a blue groper, was written "inside a business week," Winton says. Timothy John Winton (born 4 August 1960) is an Australian writer. The run of successes in Winton's career is the stuff of only the most fanciful of imaginations. He did two weeks [in] quarantine to play a supporting role. Over time, he has mellowed a little - he's just returned from a three-month For them, its like, whatever, you're there. I love it. Once Bremer Bay was decided on as a film location, the magic started to unfold. Abbys friendship with the underwater extrovert allows her to put a fishy face to the preciousness of the reef and inspires her to take a stand against the destructive forces of commerce much like her activist mother Dora (Radha Mitchell). Winton says he gets more fan mail about that book than anything else he's written. As an adaptation comes to the silver screen, he reflects on how the book's protagonist has haunted him all the way to Ningaloo Reef. It can live up to 70 years. He's currently working on a three-part documentary about the reef, which will airon ABC TV next year. Mon 21 - Sun 27 Nov at Lotterywest Films, from $17 - $20. There was also state-of-the-art mechanized puppetry created by Creature Technology Company, who were behind King Kong: Alive on Broadway and the popular arena show version of How to Train Your Dragon. Audiences open to an ecological ocean drama thats gentler, more grounded and certainly more Strayan than James Camerons squillion-dollar screensaver can find an appealing if slight companion piece in the latest Tim Winton adaptation, brought to the screen by writer-director Robert Connolly. This beautiful story about a child, their activist mum, a wild blue groper, and the fight to save a reef from commercial fishing operators and developers has now been adapted by filmmaker Robert Connolly (director of Balibo, Three Dollars and The Dry, and producer of Romulus, My Father and The Boys) into a coming-of-age family film for the big screen. If you could recommend just one film from your careers that you want people to see above any others, what would it be and why would it be that? So were really excited. 40 pages. I am delighted by the magic that those performers were able to give., Young actors Ilsa Fogg and Pedrea Jackson on set. avoiding or recovering from" and (b) "something I do for myself and because I Blueback is loosely based on Booker Prize nominee Tim Winton's critically acclaimed novella of the same name. But the plots essential shape has been maintained by writer-director Robert Connolly (The Dry), whos worked with Winton before. After the ambition of I wanted it to be somewhere that had a scale; what an amazing place for a mother to bring up a daughter and teach her about the environment and to introduce her to Blueback, this amazing fish.. This story was first published on The New Daily. I thought I might be good," Winton says. Blueback puts a very eloquent case for the care of this marine paradise. And I think by offering some hope, and by offering a positive tail on a lot of these stories, it can make it seem less insurmountable. Eric Bana: I got to meet the fish in its early gestation period, as a polystyrene cut-out while it was being developed, and saw all the work that was going in by the amazing company that brought Blueback to life. It was gigantic. full-time writer since 1982, he has remained trenchantly suspicious of the Theirs is a simple life. Mia Wasikowska: I did manage to crossover with the girls in Western Australia by maybe only two days when I was at the end of my filming period. Years later, when Abel is older, he returns to the bay and plays with Blueback again, but when his mother passes away he returns to his studies about the ocean. And when it comes to the environment, it wears its environmental message on its on its heart and sleeve. Eric Bana: Theres definitely room for both, but I do agree what Robert said there, because I think theres so many serious issues that we are constantly being confronted with, and having to absorb, and feel like we have to take action on that it can be overwhelming. Book recommendations, author interviews, editors' picks, and more. By continuing to use our site you are agreeing to our, Ten-day video challenge creates a snapshot of Adelaides music scene. Adapted from the critically acclaimed novella by Tim Winton, BLUEBACK is a heart-warming tale of family, friendship, and the power of one person to make a difference. I also feel the universality of it is beyond gender. You know, this is an actual life-size mechanical, human-operated thing. give only this print interview. 100% (1) 100% found this document useful (1 vote) 2K views. He helps his mother each day and loves to dive. Perhaps it's that simplicity which makes Blueback so powerful for readers young and old. other way round. Robert said not too long ago that the environmental movement has really embraced the idea of activism through optimism, which is a fascinating way of looking at it, and something Blueback deals in from start to finish. Feature | 100mins | Completed. But then I've always hated the idea AEST = Australian Eastern Standard Time which is 10 hours ahead of GMT (Greenwich Mean Time), abc.net.au/news/tim-winton-blueback-ningaloo-and-40-years-of-writing/101297058, Get breaking news alerts directly to your phone with our app, Help keep family & friends informed by sharing this article. But, when Abel leaves his mother to go to a boarding school his mother has an encounter withbusinessmen who are trying to get her to sell the bay. And I probably would have been sort of nervous to scuba dive if I wasnt pushed to because of this film., She went on to say how surreal it felt to be underwater for 20 to 30 minutes, likening it to going into outer space. ourselves. Report abuse. He produced the anthology film, The Turning (2013), based on Wintons short story collection. I wanted to work with the real, natural world. Helpful. Reviewed in the United States on July 11, 2013. The teenage Abby (Ilsa Fogg) is the perfect child, intellectually gifted, uncannily calm in a crisis and free of all the stroppiness that punctuates the adolescent years of more credible beings. The film is at its best in the watery world luminously evoked by cinematographer Andrew Commis a place where the animatronic puppet that is Blueback mingles happily with the rest of the sea life. something. ", "I don't think art needs an excuse to exist. A hint that she may have a crush on Briggs (Clarence Ryan), the friend who has adored her since their childhood, goes nowhere. I was only there for two weeks, and maybe you were quite similar? Bana and Wasikowska hadnt seen a Blue Groper prior to filming, in fact. This article was first published in The Weekend His father was killed by a tiger shark when Abel was young. His love for the natural world is echoed in his conservation work. In the book, for example, Abby is a 10-year-old boy, Abel. , Exclusive: Blueback's Mia Wasikowska and Eric Bana Open Up About Their Heartwarming New Film, Two Planned DCU Projects Remain a Mystery, Including James Gunn's Favorite, 10 Gut-Wrenching Movies That Are Too Sad to Rewatch, The Little Mermaid's Live-Action Sebastian Design Revealed in Merchandise - and Continues a Disappointing Disney Trend. And its just, I think its a real triumph, and I think the audience can tell when things are CGI, and theres something really special about about our fish, because its so physically real, and for the cast to be able to interact with it. Blueback releases in select theaters, as well as on digital and on-demand, this coming Friday March 3. Blueback, from Quiver Distribution and Roadshow Films, is a co-production of Screen Australia, Screenwest, West Australian Regional Film Fund, Film Victoria, HanWay Films, Pick Up Truck Pictures, Soundfirm, and Arenamedia, hits theaters March 3. expected to be read by more than a couple of thousand people, and when you get Connolly describes him as a wonderful man to work with. Mia Wasikowska: Yeah, Blueback is quite a classic here in Australia. Like in Connollys previous feature The Dry, theres plenty of air in the frame and space for contemplation. It should be required reading in creative writing classes: Winton is The book is also strongly reflective of the inner man: it's all here - * making compost for their garden from left over food scraps; cover-awkward-bases tactic. And it means that Blueback puts a very eloquent case for the care of this marine paradise. Rob made a beautiful choice to make the fish real and mechanical, as opposed to just CGI. I wasnt as taken in by Wasikowska, who is soft and sullen, reading her lines in a vacant sort of way as if shes mentally some place else. It was another one of those strange life-imitating-art moments: in Blueback, published in 1997, Abel and his mum successfully protect their patch of coast from developers. Publisher's Summary. Donate to InReview today. Since his first novel, An Open Swimmer, won the Australian Vogel Award in 1981, he has won the Miles Franklin Award four times (for Shallows, Cloudstreet, Dirt Music and Breath) and twice been shortlisted for the Booker Prize (for The Riders and Dirt Music). obligation of stewardship, which requires sacrifice.". Winton at this address are forwarded to him by his publisher. (Blueback, . With Robert Connolly's most recent film The Dry fast approaching $20 million at the . Blueback, the new film from director/writer Robert Connolly (The Dry, The Slap, Paper Planes), delivers a big message about ocean wildlife that's perfectly woven into a heartwarming tale about an unlikely friendship. "It's a period of moved by how moved they were by it.." Moved too by the money they offered, This book constantly explores sustainability as Abel and his mother are striving to protect the environment. Eric Bana: I sort of knew Robert was developing it, because we have an office together. On the one hand, it's a time when students should be challenged by texts more complex than anything they've experienced at primary school. A classically Western Australian story from Tim Winton comes to the big screen with a star-studded cast including Mia Wasikowska and Eric Bana. environment everything is about balancing the books, of looking after Your support will help us continue the important work of InReview in publishing free professional journalism that celebrates, interrogates and amplifies arts and culture in South Australia. On land, Connollys touch isnt so sure. udiences open to an ecological ocean drama thats gentler, more grounded and certainly more Strayan than James Camerons. The underwater scenes perfectly capture the gliding rhythms of the sea world at its most serene. 37, the Fremantle-based author has always been an enigmatic figure in Ozlit. And what that meant was there was a process getting in, but once we were there, they were COVID free at that time. The series will be narrated and written by renowned, award-winning Australian author and conservationist, Tim Winton. Few writers have been as welcomed or as sought after. Winton is clear-eyed when it comes to the urgency of environmental action, declaring that a "clock is ticking" on human existence. Uploaded by Carys Arnold. three children have enjoyed the same, mainly because I was lucky enough to be Find out the next TV, streaming series and movies to add to your must-sees. YouTube. Blueback. But theres a twist in the lead role. Winton is now a renowned author of adult and children's novels. Mia Wasikowska: Yeah, absolutely. "I feel very specifically that I benefited from growing up where I did, The film crew on location at Bremer Bay in Western Australia. If I had my way, I'd Whats going on?. He felt indebted to the teachers and mentors who'd helped him to succeed, who didn't get the same accolades themselves. Like the excellent, more adult-oriented Breath also based on a Winton novel this wholesome and modestly affecting coming-of-age story is set on the west coast of Australia, in a fictitious community called Longboat Bay. Winton's passion for Ningaloo has only grown in the years since the campaign. A new fisher also comes to the bay and he has no respect for the fish or being sustainable, allthis fisher cares about is getting the most fish. GREG ARCHER is a pop culture junkie. Connolly and Winton have just found a brilliantly pacy and involving way to make the years pass quickly. The film has a natural rhythm and energy to it, shared Bana. Since his first novel, An Open Swimmer, won the Australian Vogel Award in 1981, he has won the Miles Franklin Award four times (for Shallows, Cloudstreet, Dirt Music and Breath) and twice been shortlisted for the Booker Prize (for The Riders and Dirt Music). And we can see that Erik Thomson is up to mischief even before he turns up in a white suit. So I guess it was a period when I was in my 20s when I wanted to try and capture that.". Blueback by Tim Winton PLOT Abel Jackson's life is intimately entwined with the environment in which he lives. "You find yourself living out things that you've already written; you find yourself inhabiting scenes that you've already imagined and published.". Throughout the inevitable rise in interest in him, he has guarded his The acting is mostly great, the underwater cinematography is superb and the selection of songs on the soundtrack suggest that Robert Connolly's record collection would be an agreeable place to spend a couple of hours. Connollys production has notes of the Oscar-winning 2020 documentary My Octopus Teacher, with a protagonist (in the novel a boy named Abel, now a girl named Abby) developing a friendship with the titular character: a wild blue groper who profoundly influences her worldview. MY FIRST look at Robert Connolly's film adaptation . And I think that they just did a brilliant job. The blue groper at the heart of Blueback was created by Melbournes Creature Technology Company.Credit:Roadshow. Blueback is told straight from the heart by everyone on either side of the camera, which is an approach you dont really see often enough anymore, and one you both clearly gravitated towards. This is the most time weve spent on camera together, right now! Tim Winton is appearing as part of ABC RN's Big Weekend of Books. Winton was the first member of his family to go to university, where he studied creative writing. And it was so emotional. Nor is there anything surprising in the fact that his workers are a callous bunch with a taste for illegal spearfishing. Longboat Bay is like a paradise because of the crystal clear water, the way that the sun is always up and the different and the unique types of fish that are there. he helps his mother each day and loves to dive. His father was killed by a tiger shark when Abel was young. They said, Youve got two daughters, Dad! Mia Wasikowska: Yeah, it was so crazy. A feature film adaptation of Tim Winton's 1997 novella Blueback (Penguin) has received production funding from Screen Australia in its latest funding round.. Writer/director Robert Connolly of Arenamedia will work with producers Liz Kearney and James Grandison on the adaptation, which follows a young girl (changed from a young boy in the novel) who befriends a wild groper while diving, and . And I was like, Whats with the polystyrene fish? And, and somebody in my office said, Ah, thats Robs next project.. He and his mother have depended . Polystyrene fish needs an excuse to exist and on-demand, this coming Friday March 3 which lives. Series will be narrated and written by renowned, award-winning Australian author and conservationist, Tim Winton the of... Beyond gender, who did n't get the same accolades themselves this was! 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