| Description |
1 streaming video file (55 min.) : sound, colour |
| Summary |
Welcome to the world of Jack Charles - a world little known to most non-Indigenous Australians. Bastardy is the culmination of seven transformative years of hard work researching, following and filming one of Australia's near-forgotten treasures. Provocative, funny and profoundly moving, Bastardy is a mesmerising, kaleidoscopic story of a homeless man's journey roaming the streets of present day Melbourne. The title of this international award-winning documentary comes from a play written in 1972 by legendary playwright John Romeril - Bastardy - based on the life story of Jack Charles, and performed by him in Melbourne. Over seven years filmmaker Amiel Courtin-Wilson follows Jack - gradually blurring the line between director and accomplice as Jack continually traverses the criminal and acting worlds. More than 120 hours were captured on camera and condensed into a documentary that presents the many incarnations of Jack Charles - drug addict, critically acclaimed actor, cat burglar, prisoner and Aboriginal elder. For 40 years and with infectious humour and optimism, Jack Charles has juggled a life of crime with another successful career - acting. Since founding the first Aboriginal company in the 1970s, Jack has performed with some of Australia's most renowned actors (Geoffrey Rush, David Gulpillil, Bill Hunter) and directors in feature films (The Chant Of Jimmy Blacksmith, Bedevil), TV series and hundreds of plays. Bastardy is a rich patchwork, delicately stitched together to include dramatic recreations, archival and observational material. When the law finally catches up with Jack and when he faces a jail sentence he might not survive, he is forced to decide if he can go straight for the first time in his life |
| Notes |
Off-air recording recorded by Enhance TV |
|
Originally broadcast by ABC1 on 11/03/2010 |
| Credits |
Director/producer, Amiel Courtin-Wilson ; producer, Philippa Campey |
| Cast |
Jack Charles |
| Subject |
Aboriginal Australians -- Biography
|
|
Actors -- Australia -- Biography
|
|
Heroin abuse -- Australia -- Personal narratives
|
|
Documentary films -- Australia
|
|
Documentary films.
|
|
Aboriginal Australians.
|
|
Actors.
|
|
Documentary films.
|
|
Heroin abuse.
|
|
Australia.
|
| Genre/Form |
Biographies.
|
|
Personal narratives.
|
| Form |
Streaming video
|
| Author |
Courtin-Wilson, Amiel, film director, film producer
|
|
Campey, Philippa, film producer
|
|
Benwell, Steve, composer
|
|
Charles, Jack, interviewee
|
|
