John richard pilger is an australian journalist based in london. Utopia also reveals, shockingly, a new stolen generation of children taken from their mothers. It was an emotional experiencesome parts are very difficult to watchwith deep sadness, shame and guilt as a white australian, anger. Pilger accompanies arthur to eddies graveside, where arthur speaks about his sadness and anger and justice, which, it seems, is a utopian dream for australias first people. Jan 07, 2020 but the film also compares the utopia of suburban australia with the actual utopia in the remote australia. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. Dec 19, 2016 the coming war on china is effectively an elaborately illustrated extension of a lecture pilger delivered at sydney university in march titled a world war has begun, in which he expounded on. Interviewees include aboriginal leaders, humanrights campaigners, academics and. Veteran journalist and baftawinning filmmaker john pilger returns to the screen with new documentary utopia, about the plight of indigenous australians. Following his hardhitting documentary the war you dont see, john pilgers new film is a rare and powerful insight into a secret australia and breaks what amounts to a national silence about the indigenous first people the oldest, most enduring presence on earth. May 24, 2014 a few months later, pilger got to ask exactly that question of warren snowdon during an interview in the decadent and advantaged surrounds of parliament house in canberra. Patrick abboud went where few have been before, into the heart of one of australias poorest, most remote communities.
In utopia, veteran documentary maker john pilger explores the continued maltreatment of his countrys aboriginal population, borrowing its ironic title from the name of a povertystricken. Pilgers utopia a devastating expose of australian apartheid. Utopia is one of the most urgent films i have made. Utopia is a defining anticolonial film which condemns australians with as much fury as it does the endless system of bureaucracy which enables them. Thirty years ago, investigative journalist john pilger exposed the plight of indigenous australians in his landmark documentary the secret. The film will be released in uk cinemas in november 20 and will be shown on itv on tuesday 17 december 20. Dec 03, 20 following his hardhitting documentary the war you dont see, john pilger s new film is a rare and powerful insight into a secret australia and breaks what amounts to a national silence about the.
Following his hardhitting documentary the war you dont see, john pilgers new film is a rare and powerful insight into a secret australia and. The paradox of john pilgers utopia by stephen hagan issuu. The hollywood reporter john pilger offers a bloodboiling assessment of his homeland s relationship with its indigenous. See more of utopia a film by john pilger on facebook. Utopia is one of the most urgent films i have made oliver laughland. Utopia takes you on a journey that will sadden, anger and frustrate you. John pilger is a journalist i grew up reading, and a large part of the reason why i entered journalism. The first europeans who came here, perhaps demented by the heat, imagined a.
John pilger explains the background to his new film utopia and describes how little has changed since his first film of 1985 about aboriginal peoples in australia, the secret country. The veteran journalist and filmmaker is angry at the lack of progress in indigenous affairs over the past 30. What he reveals is a long history of abuse, childtheft, and an unofficial eugenics program perpetrated by the ruling class. The official trailer for utopia, john pilger s new 20 film about indigenous australia. Jan 18, 2014 last night, i was fortunate enough to be able to make it along to the australian premier screening of john pilgers new documentary, utopia, at the block in redfern see the trailer for the film here. Barely a fraction of mining, oil and gas revenue has benefited aboriginal communities, whose poverty is an enduring shock, says journalist and director john pilger 1. The paradox of john pilgers utopia by jack wilkiejans 1 july 2014. A stirring polemic exposing the appalling treatment of australia s aboriginal people. Australias dirty secret or misunderstood community. Provocative documentary from john pilger about the treatment of australias aboriginal people. Pilger has also criticised his native countrys treatment of.
I felt the same about john pilgers latest documentary the coming war on china. In utopia, filmmaker john pilger follows the decadeslong story of the subjugation and criminal mistreatments of the indigenous australians. Dec 01, 2010 john pilger was interviewed by vanessa baird. Eddies parents, arthur and leila murray, became close friends, but leila is now dead, knowing no justice for her son. Oct 27, 2014 utopia examines the many contradictions and double standards, the many ignorances of the white population, and the many cruelties and violences that they have visited on the land and people of the first nations of australia. The coming war between america and china the new documentary project from john pilge check out john pilger the coming war documentary on indiegogo. Meet patricia mortonthomas video patricia mortonthomas is a writer, actor and film maker. Drawing on his long association with the first people of australia, his homeland, utopia is both an epic portrayal of the oldest continuous human culture and an investigation into a suppressed colonial past and rapacious present.
Utopia, the film, can be viewed for the first time on. But the film also compares the utopia of suburban australia with the actual utopia in the remote australia. As recently as the 1990s, there was an ideological campaign known as the history wars. Antidote films specifically identifies whiteness as an affective structure. Pilgers utopia denounces australias apartheid cinema. Since his early years as a war correspondent in vietnam, pilger has been a strong critic of american, australian and british foreign policy, which he considers to be driven by an imperialist agenda. She is a spokesperson for the family of the late kwementyaye briscoe, who died in police custody in alice springs in 2012. His epic 1979 cambodia year zero is ranked by the british film institute as one of the ten most important. John pilger celebrity profile check out the latest john pilger photo gallery, biography, pics, pictures, interviews, news, forums and blogs at rotten tomatoes.
Utopia is both a personal journey and a universal story of power and resistance, of how modern societies can be divided between those who conform and the dystopian world of those who do not. This 20 documentary will go some of the way to explain why. A voice worth listening to in my, and many others opinion. Veteran journalist john pilgers documentary is his fourth project to straddle cinema and smallscreen exposure. Veteran journalist and baftawinning filmmaker john pilger returns to the screen with new documentary utopia, about. Jun 30, 2014 the paradox of john pilgers utopia by jack wilkiejans 1 july 2014. It is his fourth film about indigenous australia, the oldest, most enduring human presence on earth. As pilger notes in utopia, the contrast between the grinding disadvantage of ampilatwatja and the obscene wealth and privilege of canberra couldnt be more stark. Last night, i was fortunate enough to be able to make it along to the australian premier screening of john pilgers new documentary, utopia, at the block in redfern see the trailer for the film here. One of the worlds best kept secrets is revealed against a background of the greatest boom. Utopia, the film, can be viewed for the first time on this site 21 may 2016 john pilger s acclaimed film on indigenous australia joins his archive for public viewing.
Utopia is an epic production by the emmy and bafta winning filmmaker and journalist john pilger. John pilger was born on october 9, 1939 in sydney, new south wales, australia. Utopia is a township, a place where little has changed in the thirty years of supposed acknowledgement of indigenous rights and government reconciliation of. Nov 12, 20 john pilger, the renowned investigative journalist and award winning film maker, has recently completed a new film, utopia, which deals with the subjugation of the aboriginal first australians.
Duke university press is linked structurally to whiteness in the construction of the australian nationstate. His work spans from the vietnam to the present day in iraq and afghanistan. It was an emotional experiencesome parts are very difficult to watchwith deep sadness, shame and guilt as a white. It is a captivating and hauntingly disturbing film as these actions are not simply historical incidents to be forgiven by. I had a call from rosalie kunothmonks the other day. Drawing on john pilgers long association with the first people of his homeland australia, utopia 20 is both an epic portrayal of the oldest continuous.
This controversial documentary film by acclaimed filmmaker john pilger draws on his long association with indigenous australians. Utopia reveals that apartheid is deep within australia s past and present and that aboriginal people are still living in abject poverty and third world conditions. John pilger, who has reported discrimination against australias first people since the 1970s, describes his new film as a journey into a secret country describing not only the uniqueness of the first australians, but their trail of tears and betrayal and resistance from one utopia to another. Utopia is john pilgers feature documentary, made for the cinema and itv. An epic film in its production, scope and revelations, utopia reveals that apartheid is deep within australias past and present. Veteran journalist and baftawinning filmmaker john pilger returns to the screen with new documentary utopia, about the plight of indigenous. John pilger, journalist and documentary maker, australian, is loved and reviled in equal measure in his country of origin. John pilger examines the lies and platitudes of those in government with the actual historical record and with the narrative of the first nations people.
Pilger returns to the 1981 death of eddie murray in custody featured in two of his previous documentaries. John pilger, the renowned investigative journalist and award winning film maker, has recently completed a new film, utopia, which deals with the subjugation of the aboriginal first australians. Nov 12, 20 pilger made utopia to make australians sit up and listen. Drawing on john pilger s long association with the first people of his homeland australia, utopia 20 is both an epic portrayal of the oldest continuous. The coming war between america and china the new documentary project from john pilger. Among numerous other awards, he has won a royal television society best documentary award. Journalist, filmmaker and author, john pilger is one of two to win british journalisms highest award twice. Barely a fraction of mining, oil and gas revenue has benefited aboriginal communities, whose poverty is an enduring shock, says journalist and director john pilger. Utopia is a vast region in northern australia and home to the oldest human presence on earth. John pilgers new film utopia, according to the promotional bumph, tells a universal story of power and resistance in the media age driven by old imperatives and presented as liberalism. This sequence ends poignantly with a still photograph of arthur murray and john pilger taken on the riverbank at wee waa, where the family grew up.
The title is derived from the aboriginal homeland community of utopia, northern territory, one of the poorest and most desolate areas in australia. This article is from the december 2010 issue of new internationalist. For his documentary films, he has won an emmy and a british academy award, a bafta. Rosalie kunothmonks revealed that people in utopia were starving. He is a writer and director, known for the war you dont see 2010, utopia 20 and heroes. The nearest town is alice springs, more than 300 kilometres across an ancient landscape of spinifex and swirling skeins of red dust. Utopia is john pilger s feature documentary, made for the cinema and itv. An epic film in its production, scope and revelations, utopia explores australia s suppressed colonial past and rapacious present. Following his hardhitting documentary the war you dont see, john pilgers new film is a rare and powerful insight into a secret australia and breaks. Meet patricia mortonthomas video patricia mortonthomas is a writer, actor and filmmaker.
Its nononsense, provocative, powerful and sickening stuff. A train wreck interview with john pilger on 666 abc canberra means listeners are still none the wiser about why they need to see the film utopia. Pilger is a strong critic of american, australian, and british foreign policy, which he considers to be driven by an imperialist and colonialist agenda. Rosalie is an elder of the arrerntealyawarra people, who lives in utopia, a vast and remote region in the red heart of australia. Nov 20, 20 in utopia, veteran documentary maker john pilger explores the continued maltreatment of his countrys aboriginal population, borrowing its ironic title from the name of a povertystricken. He is a writer and director, known for the war you.
Pilger is so desperate to blame the west for the death toll in iraq that he effectively absolves the groups and people responsible for 95 percent of the killing. Pilger returned to this subject with utopia, released in 20 see below. Journalist and film maker john pilger has been making films on indigenous australia for nearly thirty years. Utopia takes its name from an aboriginal village of the same name in the northern territories, where pilgers peripatetic journey begins combining widescreen visuals with closeup interviews of locals and archive footage. Rosalie is an elder of the arrerntealyawarra people, who lives in utopia, a.