Geoff Helisma|
Desert Pea Media (DPM) exhibited some of the fruits of its Break it Down project at Maclean High School on Monday February 10.
Two of those ‘fruits’ were the result of DPM’s collaboration with Maclean High School’s indigenous students and the Yaegl Aboriginal community: A music video, Calling into the Deep, featuring the 380 Crew (Maclean High School students) and a short film, Being, On Country, featuring Yaegl elder Uncle Ron Heron.
These productions were created over 14 days in December 2019, which is “an outcome of a unique, collaborative creative process with Desert Pea Media artists, local ‘original nations’ young people, community members, elders, high school staff and local services”, CEO and DPM’s creative director, Toby Finlayson, said.
The overall project, which was funded by North Coast Primary Health Network, aims to “facilitate an important, inter-generational conversation about social and emotional well-being for ‘original nations’ young people in communities around the north coast”.
“The connections created during this project with the community and local young people are friendships that the DPM team highly value and respect,” Mr Finlayson said.
“These projects provide an opportunity for young people to spend time together to create an intergenerational conversation around social change.
“In this day and age it’s increasingly rare for young people to sit and listen to stories of social and cultural history.
“Creating a safe cultural creative space for the community to do that is really important.
“The feedback we are getting from our evaluation and from community members all around the region is that this work is really empowering and really engaging for young people.”
The bridge/chorus of Calling into the Deep sums up the song’s theme, which is based on the outcome of “critically thinking about how to create positive change for yourself, for each other and for our communities”: ‘Our ancestors talk to us / Yeh they walk with us / Guiding us on our path / Telling us ‘darkness ain’t gunna last … Calling into the deep – brings you out / Darkness into light /Love will get you through.’
The Break it Down (north coast) project was run in four communities on the far north coast: Woodenbong, Maclean/Yamba, Baryulgil and Fingal Head.
At the time of going to press, the 380 Crew video had enjoyed more than 13,000 views and attracted some favourable comments, including: “I know my daughter never thought she could ever do anything like this (as she is hearing impaired) … but since doing this last year, I have seen a real boost in her confidence and have seen her trying things I never thought she would … can’t thank you enough DPM, truly doing some deadly work with our youth;
“I absolutely love watching the clips of everyone that you’ve done of our mob … hopefully this will help close the gap;
“Power and togetherness on this path with wisdom, and with the ancestors, hearing them, honouring them in your action, thinking [and] talking; congratulations;
“It was a beautiful night on Monday with the Yaegl community at Maclean High School … the cleansing rains were more than welcome as we ate together, yarned up and celebrated the achievements of local young people and community.”