Friday 13 December
University of Technology, Sydney, Building 10, Level 5, Room 580
9:30am-3:30pm
Acclaimed Australian filmmaker Jennifer Kent’s film The Nightingale (2019) has generated intense debate – and prompted audience walkouts – since its premiere at the 2018 Venice Film Festival. Set during the Black War in Van Diemen’s Land in 1825, the film is an unflinching depiction of colonial, and sexual violence. Kent told The Saturday Paper that she ‘wanted to tell a story that is relevant to my history and my country.’ Her vision of British colonisation, and its consequences for those caught in its wake, taps into a conversation with a strong presence in Australia’s public, political and cultural life over the last three decades. This symposium will investigate this complex and groundbreaking historical film from a number of interdisciplinary perspectives, drawing together scholars across Australia to explore and interrogate the historical representation of gender, race and colonialism on screen.
Spaces are limited. For further information and RSVPs, contact: james.findlay@sydney.edu.au
