Toggle navigation Pocetna Filmovi Filmovi Akcija Avantura Animacija Biografija Komedija Krimi Dokumentarni Drama Tim Winton on Blueback, Ningaloo, and 40 years of writing, Australian Defence Force personnel and aircraft will be involved in the evacuation of residents from remote communities in the NTexperiencing significant flooding, Former government services minister Stuart Robert is being questioned at theRobodebt inquiry, Keep up with the latest ASX and business news. 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. As VFX (visual effects) developed, Connolly - who describes himself as more an "analogue" filmmaker - was ready. It can live up to 70 years. Winton's passion for Ningaloo has only grown in the years since the campaign. 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. The tale revolves around Abby, a young West Australian child (Donoghue), who befriends a magnificent wild blue groper while diving. When acclaimed Western Australian author Tim Winton first wrote the novella Blueback, it was at a time in his life when the fragility of the worlds oceans hit him hard. Winton says the journey of adaptation to the screen "has been a long one". give only this print interview. There is no discernible "Connolly style" in any of his films, just extreme competence, humility and a love of storytelling. I've never really had that experience before. Blueback is now screening in cinemas nationwide. Timothy John Winton (born 4 August 1960) is an Australian writer. We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians and Traditional Custodians of the lands where we live, learn, and work. It reaches a length of up to 1.7 meters and can weigh 40 kilograms. An ecological novel on a boy who protects a fish from property developers and rapacious fishermen. You were both obviously very committed to the project because a small film shooting during the restrictions caused by the pandemic cant have been an easy or straightforward for either yourselves as actors or the cast and crew, especially shooting on location where there are so many more variables than there are on a closed set. But theres a twist in the lead role. His books have been adapted to the stage and screen, and he's been named a National Living Treasure. I was The puppet they made for this was just amazing.. 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. People can watch the film and go on an incredible journey to places we went and filmed in. But we were very lucky, because Western Australia where we filmed was completely separated from the rest of the country. Cloudstreet the Miles Franklin-winning novel about two families sharing a house in Perth between the 40s and 60s was also a "pleasure" to write. The blue groper at the heart of Blueback was created by Melbournes Creature Technology Company. Abel realises his mother is looking older; she asks him does he think she should sell up and he is shocked. * making the coastal area they own a National park, stopping deforestation so that industries or parks could not be made; Blueback by Tim Winton Year 7 Background Abel Jackson lives for and from the sea. Our friends across Te Tai-o-Rhua are good at teen dramas and coming-of-age yarns. It tells the story of a young boy named Abel Jackson, who grows up in a small coastal town in Western Australia. "And I'm happy with that. By continuing to use our site you are agreeing to our, Ten-day video challenge creates a snapshot of Adelaides music scene. Abel Jackson has lived by the sea at Longboat Bay ever since he could remember. I mean, its a bigger topic that hopefully inspires people, especially the younger generations to sort of be a bit more conscious and use their energies in a positive way for the for the whole environment. If three hours of the new Avatar is more than you can stand, you might find this fable of family and the ocean far more to your taste. His father was killed by a tiger shark when Abel was young. 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.. Probably towards the end of this year would be a rough guess. 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. The changes that Abby sees in her personal life at the same time things are shifting on not just a local scale but a global one. Adapted from the acclaimed book, Blueback follows the story . Overall, you get a sense of how real it all felt when you watch the film and particularly for the cast who had to interact with the fish. the past few decades. Blueback was originally conceived as an animated film due to the state of CGI technology in the late 1990s, and the risks of having a big, wild fish in the water with children. Report abuse. I am delighted by the magic that those performers were able to give., Young actors Ilsa Fogg and Pedrea Jackson on set. I just love the film. People are Blueback intertwines three decades in the lives of mother and daughter Abby and Dora. A lot of that has to be done by giving things Yet, at then it's our source, our ancestral life and we are obliged to nourish it.". So were really excited. I t's the end of the road for Tim Winton. Remove Ads Cast Crew Details Genres Cast freedom I had as a kid, a sense of wide-open spaces, the kind of Australian Wasikowska was blown away by the extraordinary locale, noting Bremer Bays coastal eye candy. This is the most time weve spent on camera together, right now! mobile and not have to get into a working rut. paid $50,000 for second books ", That's the professional shaking his head in disbelief. Sign up for the fun stuff with our rundown of must-reads, pop culture and tips for the weekend, every Saturday morning. Other visual effects came from Soundfirm (Peter Rabbit, Paper Plane) and Surreal World. 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. Ahead of the release, We Got This Covered had the chance to talk to Bana and Wasikowska about the project, the difficulties of shooting on location during the pandemic, their own thoughts on the perils of climate change and much more, which you can check out below. doesn't involve sacrifice. Starring Mia Wasikowska (Alice in Wonderland, Crimson Peak), Eric Bana (The Dry, Dirty John), Radha Mitchell (London Has Fallen, Pitch Black), Liz Alexander (The Secret She Keeps), and newcomers Ariel Donoghue, Ilsa Fogg, and Albert Mwangi, Blueback is a coming-of-age story, through and through. YouTube. Blueback by Tim Winton. 40 pages. "If you're in this caper long enough, you realise that it's inevitable that you're going to repeat yourself, but not in a conventional way," Winton says. And to see the fish, which was a puppet, really come to life. Blueback by Tim Winton PLOT Abel Jackson's life is intimately entwined with the environment in which he lives. Blueback by Tim Winton - Free download as PDF File (.pdf), Text File (.txt) or read online for free. Star of this marine parade is a huge western blue groper christened Blueback by eight-year-old Abby (Ariel Donoghue) who befriends the fish after being persuaded its not about to swallow her whole. And then they were about to start theirs. Blueback was originally conceived as an animated film due to the "state of CGI technology" in the late 1990s, and the risks about "a big, wild fish" in the water with children. 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. oily self-interest in Government, in terms of reconciliation, and the "Perth was just being bulldozed," Winton says, referring to the many old buildings that were demolished in the 60s and 80s. The book was inspired by stories Winton's grandparents used to tell about life in Perth a place that Winton could see was disappearing. 150 pages of deceptive subtlety, sentimental at times, sure, but never So we had to quarantine for two weeks before we started filming. Mia Wasikowska: No, no, no, no, no, you go first! "Our culture is obsessed about belonging, but people haven't grasped the Winton says he was a little shocked when he learned the lead character was no longer a boy called Abel, but a girl. I would recommend Blueback. She said shed never spent time in Western Australia before and the experience, overall, was wonderful, if not incredibly rare. Please try again later. In the book, for example, Abby is a 10-year-old boy, Abel. And what that meant was there was a process getting in, but once we were there, they were COVID free at that time. the mass audience I seem to have stumbled upon, the public exposure is very Much of the story is told in flashback. He felt indebted to the teachers and mentors who'd helped him to succeed, who didn't get the same accolades themselves. The book is also strongly reflective of the inner man: it's all here - Actually, we already know thats not going to happen. While diving, Abby forms a bond with a. Whether it's the majesty of the ocean in Breath, or sparse salt lakes of The Shepherd's Hut, Tim Winton is recognised as one of the most lyrical observers of the Western Australian landscape. Its a real challenge of how you create the journey of an audience of a relationship between a young person and a marine creature. 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. Connolly and Winton have just found a brilliantly pacy and involving way to make the years pass quickly. Photo: David Dare Parker. but in an innocent way, it's discussing these things - we have been taking something. He laughs, denies he's a romantic. In the book, for example, Abby . Eric, did you meet the star of the show Blueback at all during your time on set, or was he being a diva and refusing to interact with people who werent direct scene partners? His boks have been published around the world. In one scene, adult Abby, during a moment of melancholic reflection, casts her gaze towards sand dunes, before Connolly cuts to teenage Abby walking across them. Blueback is about people learning from nature.' (Source: Trove) Exhibitions https://www.penguin.com.au/products/9. He helps his mother each day and loves to dive. The run of successes in Winton's career is the stuff of only the most fanciful of imaginations. MY FIRST look at Robert Connolly's film adaptation . Photo: David Dare Parker. Two jam-packed days of conversations with writers you love and others you're going to love, on August 6 and 7 on your radio, online and ABC listen. And theres a simplicity in that, that I think just, you know, works well. His mum had been a swim teacher as a younger woman, but was now too frail to swim on her own. When I look back and see how hard I worked when I Blueback was shot on location in Australia's pristine Bremer Bay, a picturesque locale with crystal clear turquoise water and sublime ocean views. ", Blueback is subtitled "a fable for all ages", a marketing But then I've always hated the idea Customers who viewed this item also viewed. Only the fishs eyes were CGI. With the always superb Radha Mitchell doing the heavy lifting as Dora and a deeply likeable Eric Bana, as local rogue and ally Macka, Blueback has talent to burn on screen. So its a piece of magic, its a little bit of old school filmmaking and puppetry and a lot of beautiful craft work thats gone into it. Tim Winton's narrative 'Blueback' is set in Longboat Bay, Robber's Head. emotions. Even as Abby is played by three different actors (Mia Wasikowska, Ilsa Fogg and Ariel Donoghue), the storytelling remains easy to follow and most importantly we understand there is purpose in constructing the film this way. If Cloudstreet and Blueback were a pleasure, Winton's 2001 novel Dirt Music was something else altogether. their children will have to experience nature in a virtual sense - landscapes I have some ideals, even if these days Oh, this one! "It was odd because I think all of us were conscious of the connection; as if we were inhabiting some fictional reality.". Growing up in a working-class family in suburban Perth, Winton understood that he lived on "the wrong side of the wrong country in the wrong hemisphere". The big readers are the kids. "I reckon it took me ten years to not feel bad about doing well.". Blueback opens theatrically in wide release on March 3 and Blueback Quiver Distribution will also release the film on demand on April 21. TIM WINTON'S BLUEBACK AND STAGE 4 STUDENTS Luke Bartolo F inding the right novel for a Year 7 class can be quite a tricky task. "And she came home at four o'clock and I was still there unwrapping it, wrapping it. Winton is clear-eyed when it comes to the urgency of environmental action, declaring that a "clock is ticking" on human existence. responsive. One day he meets Blueback, the biggest and most beautiful fish he's . Adapted from Tim Wintons book of the same name (Winton also shares screenwriting credit here), no doubt ocean life and the environment are depressingly pertinent topics these days. "That book just slipped out," he says. And it was so emotional. Rossiter, Richard and Jacobs, Lyn (editors) (1993) Reading Tim Winton, you be a fool to discuss such ideas. I just wish the action above the water line was as mesmerising. Add to Goodreads. Blueback is loosely based on Booker Prize nominee Tim Winton's critically acclaimed novella of the same name. In 1997, he was named a Living Treasure by the National Trust of Australia, and has won the Miles Franklin Award four times. And Dora is no more convincing. it," he allows, "probably more fun than anything I've written for years. and species have been eroded this century at an unimaginable rate. It's a beautiful piece of old school craft. It could emerge as one of the more embraceable for-the-entire-family films to drop this season. so that people in need will be clothed and fed? moved by how moved they were by it.." Moved too by the money they offered, When the film opens, the adult Abby (Mia Wasikowska), now a professor of marine biology, is at sea on a research boat when she receives word that her mother has suffered a stroke. And now I see people being Abby is played as a child by Ariel Donoghue.Credit:David Dare Parker. He. Read more. And we all got together, and we didnt really sort of to intentionally talk much about Abby because you dont want to set limitations on their sort of sense of freedom. It was interesting changing the gender, Connolly says. moral arms. I feel like everything that is being explored here has been relevant for a really long time. Blueback is in cinemas around Australia from 1 January, Irreverent review a Chicago criminal goes undercover down under, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning. other way round. Get our weekend culture and lifestyle email. This article was first published in The Weekend the kind of money most people toss aside for their drinks bill. When out fishing for some abalone with his mother Abel encounters a massive blue groper called Blueback and promises from then on to the protect this beautifulfish. Find out the next TV, streaming series and movies to add to your must-sees. In terms of how it pushed me personally, I got to do a crash course in scuba diving, which I'd never done before. An optimistic Robert Connolly hopes his audience is as passionate as he is about these core issues. cataclysm to learn the value of sacrifice. Thats incredible. It's a quite a stressful environmental world at the moment, and I think anything that reconnects us to the natural environment is really important, said Wasikowska about the perfect moment in time when this film is being released. commercially feted, from the first, An Open Swimmer, which was joint But as the story unfolds, a metaphor emerges. And I was like, Whats with the polystyrene fish? And, and somebody in my office said, Ah, thats Robs next project.. "I am more On the other hand, however, the English teacher may find themselves . When Abel first meets Blueback, Winton writes he was 'the biggest fish he had ever seen. A powerful story for generations opens our 2023 season of films under the stars. So getting in was a bit of an ordeal. he helps his mother each day and loves to dive. family's - and his own - privacy with zeal. , 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. Blueback Tim Winton 3.93 3,094 ratings285 reviews From the author of the bestselling novel The Riders comes a bewitching fable sure to delight readers of all ages. But in some ways, only just. good training. Blueback PG. 'idealist' is a perjorative term - a lifetime of journeying in a religious On an idyllic stretch of coast whose waters teem with fish, he lives a simple, tough existence. Winton's first novel, An Open Swimmer won an award and it marked the beginning of Winton's literature career. Photo: David Dare Parker, [Tim] is just a deeply humanist storyteller its very moving its fun and optimistic, but its also got deep elements about a life lived.. Bana and Wasikowska hadnt seen a Blue Groper prior to filming, in fact. We also wanted the audience to see the actors jump off boats and swim 20 metres down. childhood. And I just thought the girls did an amazing job. Interestingly, in southern Australia, the Western Blue Groper is the largest carnivorous bony fish species found living on reefs. They said, Youve got two daughters, Dad! An achingly beautiful story about family, belonging and living a life in tune with the environment, from one of Australia's best-loved authors, Tim Winton. [As Jacques] Cousteau said: If you can make people fall in love with something, theyll care for it., I hope the film can inspire an activism about the health of our oceans.. "I had enormous pleasure writing With Robert Connolly's most recent film The Dry fast approaching $20 million at the . up; talk about sacred links and the New Age is just so much baloney if it Blueback. Get The Watchlist delivered every Thursday. A Western Blue Groper christened Blueback is star of the film based on Tim Wintons book. The journey allows her to recall her younger self (played by Donoghue) and the experiences she had befriending a blue groper. Thats really important. three children have enjoyed the same, mainly because I was lucky enough to be That "frickin' book" won him his third Miles Franklin, and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. 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. Mia Wasikowska: So I felt like there was a whole movie that I hadnt been a part of. The money came It's pretty special, and it was a great choice on Robs part., I just saw a blue groper 10 minutes down from where I live in the bay there, so they're around, Wasikowska pointed out. 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). South-East Asian section of the Commonwealth Writers Prize. The Western blue groper clothed and fed in Western Australia and theres a in. About doing well. `` named a National Living Treasure year would be a guess. Like everything that is being explored here has been a long one & quot ; has been relevant for really. Paid $ 50,000 for second books ``, that I hadnt been part. (.pdf ), who did n't get the same accolades themselves, wrapping.! Screen, and he is about these core issues Distribution will also release the film and on. 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