The ARTSLAB is excited to be bringing three great documentaries to Kangaroo Valley this winter! Not only the films but the Directors as well, to talk about their work and meet the audience after the screening.
Over three Saturdays in the three months of winter, the Upper River Hall will be transformed into a cosy cinema showing KAUGERE on the 22nd of June, THE POOL on the 6th of July (for a very special community screening) and THE CARNIVAL on the 3rd of August. So save those dates!
Our first offering is KAUGERE, a one-hour documentary by award-winning photographer and director Stephen Dupont. An uplifting film despite being shot in the squalor of one of Papua New Guinea’s infamous settlements, KAUGERE is a modern-day parable of once tribal men finding new meaning through the game of rugby league. The coach Albert Muri is no stranger to crime and the raskol gangs that tore his family apart – his eldest son gunned down by police, his second son serving life in prison. But Albert’s last great hope is his youngest son, Dia. Together they train a local rugby team, and channel criminal minds into sporting heroes. The film won Best Documentary at the 2023 Byron Bay International Film Festival and the Grand Jury Prize at FIFO 2024 and was described by Director Bob Connolly as “one of the most graphic and illuminating films in recent memory.”
We are thrilled that Director Stephen Dupont can join us for this event, and that documentary filmmaker Ian Darling will be there to host the conversation with Stephen and the audience after the screening. Not only will we hear about how he came to make this film, his first, in Papua New Guinea; but also to touch on his long and remarkable career as a photographer. Stephen is recognised internationally for his photography on the human condition, war and climate, earning him dozens of prizes and several World Press Photo Awards. He has twice been an Official War Artist (Afghanistan & Solomon Islands) for the Australian War Memorial, and his hand-made limited edition artist books and prints are heavily sought after and collected by major museums and private collectors around the world. He is a man of many talents and his projects and collaborations have included not only photography and film but also theatre. This conversation with Stephen Dupont will be as riveting as the film itself!
Tickets are $15 which includes a drink (tea, coffee, beer, wine, cordial) and nibbles before the film. With the support of Shark Island Kangaroo Valley, all proceeds will go to the filmmaker and the Upper River Hall. The hall will open from 4.30 pm for pre-show mingling. The film is not recommended for children under 15 years. More information and ticketing at www.artslab.com.au or email events@artslab.com.au
In July’s Valley Voice, we will be letting you know more about our very special community screening of THE POOL. It is by the same team who have been making the documentary about our wonderful Valley over the last year. THE POOL, which is about another incredible community at the Bondi Icebergs, is having its world premiere at the Sydney Film Festival in June, and then lucky Kangaroo Valley will get to see it before anyone else does! Subscribe to The ARTSLAB at www.artslab.com.au to be the first to know when tickets go on sale for these three great events and see you at The ARTSLAB this winter!
Sarah Butler
Artistic Director
The ARTSLAB
