''Spear'' is a 2015 Australian

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

and

dance film A dance film (also known as screen dance) is a movie in which dancing is used to reveal inspirational challenges and the central themes of the film, whether these themes be connected to narrative or story, states of being, or more experimental and ...

directed by choreographer

Stephen Page Stephen George Page is an Aboriginal Australian choreographer, film director and former dancer. He was artistic director of the Bangarra Dance Theatre, an Indigenous Australian dance company, from 1991 until 2022. During this time he choreograp ...

Cast

* Hunter Page-Lochard as Djali *

Aaron Pedersen Aaron Pedersen (born 24 November 1970) is an Aboriginal Australian television and film actor. He is known for many film and television roles, in particular as Detective Jay Swan in the film '' Mystery Road'' (2013), its sequel '' Goldstone'' (201 ...

as Suicide Man * Troy Honeysett as White Man * Djakapurra Munyarryun as Big Man

Production

Originally performed on stage by the

Bangarra Dance Theatre Bangarra Dance Theatre is an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander dance company focused on contemporary dance. It was founded by African American dancer and choreographer Carole Y. Johnson, Gumbaynggirr man Rob Bryant, and South African-bor ...

in 2000 under the title ''Skin'', ''Spear'' was reimagined for film using mostly dance and movement. ''Spear'' was written and directed by

, father of Hunter Page-Lochard, and produced by

John Harvey John Harvey may refer to: People Academics *John Harvey (astrologer) (1564–1592), English astrologer and physician *John Harvey (architectural historian) (1911–1997), British architectural historian, who wrote on English Gothic architecture a ...

. Dancer and choreographer Daniel Riley worked as director's attachment and played a small part in the film.

Release

''Spear'' was screened in the Discovery section of the

2015 Toronto International Film Festival The 40th annual Toronto International Film Festival was held from 10 to 20 September 2015. On 28 July 2015 the first wave of films to be screened at the Festival was announced. Jean-Marc Vallée's ''Demolition'' starring Jake Gyllenhaal and N ...

. It had its Australian premiere at the

Adelaide Film Festival The Adelaide Film Festival (AFF, formerly ADLFF) is a film festival usually held for two weeks in mid-October in movie theater, cinemas in Adelaide, South Australia. Originally presented wikt:Special:Search/biennial, biennially in March from 2 ...

in October 2015 and was screened in the

Sydney Festival Sydney Festival is a major arts festival in Australia's largest city, Sydney, that runs for three weeks every January since it was established in 1977. The festival program features over 100 events from local and international artists and inclu ...

in January 2016.

Awards and nominations

* Special Mention, Cultural Diversity Award under the patronage of

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

Asia Pacific Screen Awards The Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA) is an international cultural initiative overseen by the Asia Pacific Screen Academy and headquartered in Australia, sometimes called "Asia-Pacific Oscars". In order to realise UNESCO's goals of promoting a ...

2015 * Nominee, Best Cinematography (Bonnie Elliott),

6th AACTA Awards The 6th Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards (generally known as AACTA Awards) are a series of awards which includes the 6th AACTA Awards Luncheon, the 6th AACTA Awards ceremony and the 6th AACTA International Awards. The forme ...

* Nominee, Best Costume Design (Jennifer Irwin), 6th AACTA Awards * Nominee, Panavision Spirit Award for Independent Cinema, 2016

Santa Barbara International Film Festival The Santa Barbara International Film Festival (SBIFF) is an eleven-day film festival held in Santa Barbara, California in February annually, since 1986. The festival screens over 200 feature films and shorts from different countries and regions. ...

* Nominee, Best Cinematography (Bonnie Elliott), 2017

Film Critics Circle of Australia Awards The Film Critics Circle of Australia (FCCA) is an association of film criticism, cinema critics and film review, reviewers. It includes journalists in "media, television, major national and state papers, radio, national and state, online and fr ...

* Nominee, Best Cinematography (Bonnie Elliott), 2017 Australian Film Critics Association Awards

References

External links

* 2015 films 2015 drama films 2015 directorial debut films Australian drama films 2010s English-language films 2010s Australian films Films about Aboriginal Australians Stage plays about Aboriginal Australians English-language drama films {{2010s-drama-film-stub