A quartet of aspiring First Nations screen creatives has commenced work at Adelaide’s Channel 44 community TV station this week as part of a new mentorship program from the South Australian Film Corporation.
Announced last year as part of the SAFC’s First Nations Screen Strategy 2020-2025, the initiative is part of a wider partnership between the SAFC and Channel 44 to provide opportunities to South Australian First Nations screen practitioners.
Working alongside Channel 44 staff, Kiara Milera, Keith Gilbey-Warrior, Rick Hutcheson and Anil Samy will gain hands-on experience in television production, learning new skills, and creating original content for broadcast.
They will also assist in the production of documentary The Art of Reconciliation – Telling Our Stories, which is being produced by Channel 44 with an all First Nations crew, with support from Port Adelaide Enfield and Charles Sturt Councils.
Set to premiere during Reconciliation Week 2021, the documentary will focus on stories of the experience of a range of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the Port Adelaide Enfield and Charles Sturt council areas, and their views on reconciliation.
SAFC CEO Kate Croser says she is looking forward to watching screen careers develop through the program.
“We are delighted to be partnering with Channel 44 on this new mentoring program which will enhance the visibility of South Australian First Nations practitioners and their work, and help to establish and formalise even more career pathways for First Nations screen talent,” she says.
Channel 44 general manager Lauren Hillman says the partnership highlights the importance of the opportunities and pathways that community TV provides.
“Channel 44 is thrilled to have appointed four First Nations interns who will all commence roles on new local productions in their first week, starting with documentary series First Nations Fringe, exploring the stories behind this year’s recipients of the First Nations Fringe collaboration grants.”
Click here for more information about SAFC’s First Nations Screen Strategy.