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AIATSIS National Indigenous Studies Conference 2011
Canberra 19-22September
Register online now!
Events
When registering for the conference you will need to select each of these optional events individually.
Film Screening: Here I Am (feature film written and directed by Beck Cole)
Monday 19th 5:30 - 8:00 pm: Welcome reception and film screening at National Film and Sound Archive.
Synopsis: Fresh out of prison, beautiful yet complex Karen is a young woman with a burning desire to turn her life around for good. Upon her release from prison she finds herself on the streets with no‐one to call for help. Determined to stay on track Karen finds shelter at Temple House ‐ a safe haven for Aboriginal women like herself. With the support of her new family of friends Karen begins the journey of reconnecting with her estranged mother and her young daughter and is soon propelled to face the difficult truth that shame is a powerful force and sometimes the most important person to forgive is yourself.
Bio: Writer and director Beck Cole hails from Alice Springs. She is a member of the Warramungu people of Central Australia. Beck’s last production was Making Samson & Delilah, a one‐hour doco commissioned by ABC‐TV and funded through Screen Australia and Screen NSW. The doco premiered at Melbourne International Film Festival then went on to screen at Telluride Film Festival and NZ Film Festival. It also screened on ABC‐TV along with the feature film in November 2009.
Her last drama, half‐hour Plains Empty, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2005 before screening at many other festivals. Her previous short film Flat also screened at Sundance and Edinburgh Film Festivals in 2004. Both films were made for SBS‐TV with the Indigenous Branch of the AFC. Plains Empty also had funding from the FTO and SAFC.
Beck also writes for television, having written episodes of the SBS series The Circuit and Channel Nine’s Double Trouble. Other award‐winning documentaries written and directed by Beck include Wirriya:
small boy (made for ABC‐TV, nominated IF Awards, Best Doco WOW Film Festival Sydney), The Lore of Love (SBS TV) and the acclaimed history series First Australians: the untold story of Australia (many awards including Logie, Premier’s Literary Award).
Here I Am is Beck’s first feature film.
Gallery tour NGA
Tuesday 20th 5:30 - 6:30 pm: Guided tours of Indigenous Galleries at National Gallery of Australia (numbers limited)
The National Gallery of Australia has very generously granted delegates a tour of the new Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art galleries. The tours will be led by senior Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art curator, Ms Franchesca Cubillo.
The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art collection at the National Gallery of Australia comprises over 7500 works and is the largest in the world. The gallery’s new and purpose-built gallery spaces allow much more of the collection to be seen with each one specifically designed for a different geographic region or aspect of Indigenous art and, where possible, paintings and sculptures are illuminated overhead by natural daylight, akin to the light in which the works were created. This dedicated display of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art highlights the diversity, richness and excellence of the collection.
Tour numbers are strictly limited (due to space and security requirements) so please register early to avoid missing out on this exciting event.
Conference dinner
Tuesday 20th 6:30 - 10:00 pm Conference Dinner, Gandel Hall at National Gallery of Australia (numbers limited)
Tickets for the dinner are $80 per person. If you wish to attend the dinner, you must select this option when registering for the conference. Registration fee does not include the conference dinner.
Cultural Heritage tours
Thursday 22nd: Half day Ngunnawal Ranger guided tour to Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve (numbers limited) Download the flyer 
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Tour to Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve with the Indigenous Murrumbung Yurung Murra team, which specialises in land management, heritage and culture. Tour includes visit to a significant rock shelter to learn how Aboriginal people lived in the Australian Alps.
Select this option when you register for the conference, or contact us to be added to the tour if you have already registered.