This article was first published in The Weekend give only this print interview. Blueback intertwines three decades in the lives of mother and daughter Abby and Dora. Abel is a curious and adventurous child, and he spends much of his time exploring the surrounding wilderness and observing the creatures that live there. BLUEBACK A CONTEMPORARY FABLE by Tim Winton RELEASE DATE: March 1, 1998 The prolific Winton (The Riders, 1995; etc.) "And if we lose these places, we've lost everything.". three children have enjoyed the same, mainly because I was lucky enough to be so that people in need will be clothed and fed? As VFX (visual effects) developed, Connolly who describes himself as more an analogue filmmaker was ready. he has been to various countries, but now resides back in Western Australia. . "I was brought up in the suburbs, but it seems in retrospect as if I spent On land, Connollys touch isnt so sure. Thats incredible. In 1997, he was named a Living Treasure by the National Trust of Australia, and has won the Miles Franklin Award four times. Read it now. I t's the end of the road for Tim Winton. Eric, did you meet the star of the show Blueback at all during your time on set, or was he being a diva and refusing to interact with people who werent direct scene partners? The tale revolves around Abby, a young West Australian child (Donoghue), who befriends a magnificent wild blue groper while diving. Adapted from the acclaimed book, Blueback follows the story . 40 pages. Eric Bana: Yeah, similar experience. Reading Blueback has made usmore aware of the environment around us. But when the awards started coming in, Winton was more embarrassed than proud. And then one day he turned up with this polystyrene fish. Blueback puts a very eloquent case for the care of this marine paradise. An ecological novel on a boy who protects a fish from property developers and rapacious fishermen. In the book, for example, Abby . Only the fishs eyes were CGI. So it was a lot of fun to make. Perhaps it's that simplicity which makes Blueback so powerful for readers young and old. Teacher preparation: It was interesting changing the gender, Connolly says. I loved its environmental messaging about saving the ocean, and that it took us to a world that is extraordinary Bremer Bay this little bay at the bottom of [Western] Australia, Connolly, who directed and wrote the screenplay, tells The New Daily. "And I'm happy with that. Adapted from Tim Winton's best-selling 1997 novella of the same name, co-writer and director Robert Connolly tells the environmentally-conscious and emotionally-driven story of the unlikely. Its a family-friendly, broadly appealing film that expands the canon of coastal Aussie pictures involving interspecies mateship the original and remade Storm Boy, featuring Mr Percival the pelican, and Oddball, featuring a very photogenic Maremma sheepdog that saves a colony of penguins in Victoria. The heart of the film, however, is about relationships of all kinds. It was really wonderful. So I think I think it is a good way forward. * preventing people from overfishing in the area that they own. On the one hand, it's a time when students should be challenged by texts more complex than anything they've experienced at primary school. udiences open to an ecological ocean drama thats gentler, more grounded and certainly more Strayan than James Camerons. As an adaptation comes to the silver screen, he reflects on how the book's protagonist has haunted him all the way to Ningaloo Reef. I don't know whether books like Blueback make a difference, I mean, its a bigger topic that hopefully inspires people, especially the younger generations to sort of be a bit more conscious and use their energies in a positive way for the for the whole environment. Photo: David Dare Parker. I have a need for a fairly big margin of privacy to feel that I And after others told him they were moved to tears by the tale, he thought Mia Wasikowska: So I felt like there was a whole movie that I hadnt been a part of. 150 pages of deceptive subtlety, sentimental at times, sure, but never It should be required reading in creative writing classes: Winton is The blue groper at the heart of Blueback was created by Melbournes Creature Technology Company. "We come from water," the mother whispers to her son. I got a lot of grief from my daughters about the idea that I was making another film where the hero was a young boy after Id made Paper Planes. An inspiring story for the whole family, Tim Winton's best-selling novel comes to life on the big screen. If three hours of the new Avatar is more than you can stand, you might find this fable of family and the ocean far more to your taste. 37, the Fremantle-based author has always been an enigmatic figure in Ozlit. * Blueback is published by Macmillan as a hardback, by Pan as a Get The Watchlist delivered every Thursday. If you weren't aware of the realities of what you held to, MY FIRST look at Robert Connolly's film adaptation . YouTube. Wasikowska plays environmentalist Abby as an adult Abby returns home upon hearing of her mother, Doras, stroke. I've never really had that experience before. Rob made a beautiful choice to make the fish real and mechanical, as opposed to just CGI. READ MORE: * The movies I'm most looking forward to in the first-half of 2023 * I Wanna Dance with Somebody: Phenomenal performances lift Kiwi screenwriter's disappointing Whitney Houston biopic * Top Gun: Maverick, Whina and Moonage Daydream among the films I truly loved this year * The Lost King: Sally Hawkins shines in a breezy, enjoyable and very watchable tale. yearning for yesteryear perhaps? The Dry was one of the great experiences of my career and he was stunning in that film. 162 Pages. Over time, he has mellowed a little - he's just returned from a three-month This is his last interview, after two months in Australia promoting his 29th book, The Shepherd's Hut, and flying around the country for a sold-out . in later but at the time it was very, very hard. Blueback is a story about a young boy called Abel who lives in a bay called Longboat. it was while there that he began his first novel An Open Swimmer. But theres a twist in the lead role. Like the excellent, more adult-oriented Breath also based on a Winton novel this wholesome and modestly affecting coming-of-age story is set on the west coast of Australia, in a fictitious community called Longboat Bay. The big readers are the kids. and species have been eroded this century at an unimaginable rate. It tells the story of a young boy named Abel Jackson, who grows up in a small coastal town in Western Australia. "far more than for other fatter books". Robert Connolly had been developing the film pretty much since the novella was published, but were you guys overly familiar with the source material prior to getting involved in the project? South-East Asian section of the Commonwealth Writers Prize. "And I don't think it's worth going mad over, or tormenting your family.". So its a pretty well-known story over here. Radha Mitchell plays Dora, an environmental activist. Abel realises his mother is looking older; she asks him does he think she should sell up and he is shocked. But as the story unfolds, a metaphor emerges. Abel swims with Blueback whenever possible and finally the big red jet boat comes into Longboat Bay, both him and his mother are very worried. "They had no idea (A screen adaptation starring Mia Wasikowska and Eric Bana is slated to hit cinemas in January). Winton's first novel, An Open Swimmer won an award and it marked the beginning of Winton's literature career. Also, its a role that subsumes itself to the women who drive the story, which I think is also another fantastic quality that he has as an actor.. Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. An optimistic Robert Connolly hopes his audience is as passionate as he is about these core issues. Connolly spent over 20 years developing the project, which he also co-wrote. is timeless. Hed moved from a seaside country town to the city and was, he says, mourning the proximity to the water, so he turned his attention to marine conservation. Abel Jackson has lived by the sea at Longboat Bay ever since he could remember. And I think by offering some hope, and by offering a positive tail on a lot of these stories, it can make it seem less insurmountable. Tim Winton was born on the 4th August 1960 in Western Australia is a famous Australian Author. So I think there is tactically, I think its a its a really good, really good way for a lot of people in that space to use. Blueback, a heartbreaking allegory about a boy, his mother and a blue groper, was written "inside a business week," Winton says. Blueback was originally conceived as an animated film due to the "state of CGI technology" in the late 1990s, and the risks about "a big, wild fish" in the water with children. Find out the next TV, streaming series and movies to add to your must-sees. The story of Abby, a young girl living with her environmentalist mother on Australia's pristine west coast. It gives to us, and we give to it. So, to be in this beautiful natural environment felt soothing. The money came Radha Mitchell plays Dora, an environmental activist. And I was like, Okay, and then the fish kind of got bigger and bigger! Blueback is an adaptation of a novel from best-seller Tim Winton (The Turning). Book recommendations, author interviews, editors' picks, and more. The writers of Blueback are Robert Connolly and Tim Winton. Much of the story is told in flashback. Nor is there anything surprising in the fact that his workers are a callous bunch with a taste for illegal spearfishing. He is also a strong supporter of marine and environmental conservation. And otherwise, the goal feels like its its not as achievable. Winton says he gets more fan mail about that book than anything else he's written. She asks him isn't he sick of never having money . Neither Mitchell and Wasikowska can do much to enliven dialogue that is more bound up with the life cycle of a groper than the shifting emotions involved in being human. It has been adapted, with Winton's input, by veteran Aussie safe-pair-of-hands Robert Connolly (The Dry, Balibo) who has the true storytellers art of bringing exactly what each film needs to the table and then trusting a perfectly assembled cast and crew to get on with it. Get our weekend culture and lifestyle email. Blueback is the sixth of his books to be turned into a feature. ", He holds little hope for a Canberra-led revival. The training of the cast was so critical. paid $50,000 for second books ", That's the professional shaking his head in disbelief. Despite this idyllic image they lead a hard, basic life. A Blueback is an achingly beautiful story about family, belonging, and living a life in tune with the environment, from Tim Winton, one of Australia's best-loved authors.Abel Jackson's boyhood belongs to a vanishing world. He forms a connection with a fish - Blueback - while diving. Fogg is particularly impressive as teenage Abby, delivering a quietly commanding performance thats utterly convincing in its presentation of a decent, caring young person with (like all teenagers) some hard life lessons ahead. Winton says he was a little shocked when he learned the lead character was no longer a boy called Abel, but a girl. It takes that emotional element to propel people into changing behaviors.. Yet he still believes there is a place and indeed, a very important one for art and writing. The story follows Abel Jackson as he and his mother earn a living by finding and selling abalone. Winton draws his main inspiration from the landscape he knows well. Creative Writing: 'Blueback' by Tim Winton Goal Step 3: Dialogue Creative Writing #4 Techniques: Step 2: Setting Step 1: Characterisation Try a technique: Varied sentences Alphabet Challenge: A story can become repetitive and boring if you always begin a sentence the same way, responsive. Blueback premieres in cinemas on January 1, 2023. Expands the canon of coastal Aussie pictures: Blueback is in cinemas from 1 January. The more we're aware and connected to our natural world, the more likely we are to want to partake in its protection. While diving, Abby forms a bond with a. Blueback is now screening in cinemas nationwide. slight. emotions. Tim Winton has published twenty-nine books for adults and children, and his work has been translated into twenty-eight languages. A simple but effective way of. it is about things close to my heart.". In the book, for example, Abby is a 10-year-old boy, Abel. Tim Winton on Blueback "I don't know whether books like Blueback make a difference, but in an innocent way, it's discussing these things - we have been taking from the sea and the land for so long, it's time for us to give something back. "One area is the environment, in giving up certain liberties to deliver Skippy the Bush Kangaroo was from the Waratah National Park, wherever that was, but it wasn't where we were.". idyllic childhood, a strong matriarchal figure, deeply-held values amid a Is that something you guys can relate to having witnessed first-hand the environmental impact on Australia and the world thats been ongoing throughout your lives? Blueback is a lightly worn mother-daughter reconciliation yarn and a real paean to communities, small settlements and the people who recognise the importance of keeping them. The run of successes in Winton's career is the stuff of only the most fanciful of imaginations. Blueback is about people learning from nature.' (Source: Trove) Exhibitions The book was inspired by stories Winton's grandparents used to tell about life in Perth a place that Winton could see was disappearing. After the ambition of On the other hand, however, the English teacher may find themselves . It's just him and his mother in the house at Longboat Bay, but Abel has friends . And Dora is no more convincing. Robert said not too long ago that the environmental movement has really embraced the idea of activism through optimism, which is a fascinating way of looking at it, and something Blueback deals in from start to finish. Thank you Tim Winton. Connolly and his editors do a sublime job of getting these three eras to talk to each other. Mitchell imbues Dora with headstrong warmth, humanity and vividness as she engages in direct action including chaining herself to a truck in front of a crowd chanting, Save our bay. "I feel very specifically that I benefited from growing up where I did, Report abuse. Winton is now a renowned author of adult and children's novels. Bana and Wasikowska hadnt seen a Blue Groper prior to filming, in fact. 1. I was full-time writer since 1982, he has remained trenchantly suspicious of the I think its one that if you sit down as a family, youll really enjoy. I was only there for two weeks, and maybe you were quite similar? Listen back to his conversation with The Book Show's Claire Nichols. The latest film from The Dry director Robert Connolly, starring Mia Wasikowska . BLUEBACK Review January 5, 2023 Written by Dave Griffiths My love affair with the work of Australian author Tim Winton began way back in my first year in High School. Growing up in a working-class family in suburban Perth, Winton understood that he lived on "the wrong side of the wrong country in the wrong hemisphere". Eric, you of course previously worked with Robert on The Dry which was a massive hit in Australia and has become something of an unsung cult favourite around the world, so theres going to be a lot of people excited for the sequel, if youre not forbidden from sharing any details on that. If there's something ahead that And good he was. And there have been plenty of those: his 15 books But then I've always hated the idea Photo: David Dare Parker. Eric Bana: I got to meet the fish in its early gestation period, as a polystyrene cut-out while it was being developed, and saw all the work that was going in by the amazing company that brought Blueback to life. the kind of money most people toss aside for their drinks bill. . The news brings her back to Longboat Bay, the tiny cove off Ningaloo where shes been brought up, and the memories take over. His mum had been a swim teacher as a younger woman, but was now too frail to swim on her own. ABC RN's on-air writers' festival is back! faith against the current in the least religious country in the world has been I just love the film. Mia Waskikowska: Yeah, this was my only pandemic film, actually. "I feel very specifically that I benefited from growing up where I did, where so much revolved around the sea - in a way, it was a gift and I owe it something. But just to meet them and get a sense of who they were. Looking back, Winton says some books have been much easier to write than others. Abby is played as a child by Ariel Donoghue. Tim Winton is appearing as part of ABC RN's Big Weekend of Books. Winton says the journey of adaptation to the screen has been a long one. The storytelling came via stars Mia Wasikowska (Alice in Wonderland) and Eric Bana (The Dry, The Forgiven), and a young cast including Ilsa Fogg, Pedra Jackson and Ariel Donoghue. Everything I learned about the ocean was at the end of a spear or hook and I became interested in marine conservation in the early 1990s and got very active. I wanted it to be somewhere that had a scale; what an amazing place for a mother to bring up a daughter and teach her about the environment and to introduce her to Blueback, this amazing fish.. "Everyone on television was from the east. expected to be read by more than a couple of thousand people, and when you get Winton was the first member of his family to go to university, where he studied creative writing. Winton is clear-eyed when it comes to the urgency of environmental action, declaring that a "clock is ticking" on human existence. he helps his mother each day and loves to dive. He would have discovered an unpretentious I also feel the universality of it is beyond gender. Tim Winton has published twenty-nine books for adults and children, and his work has been translated into twenty-eight languages. Feature | 100mins | Completed. https://www.penguin.com.au/products/9. We had to sort of quarantine because Sydney, or Western Australia, was locked off from the rest of Australia. - Filmoviplex. So its a piece of magic, its a little bit of old school filmmaking and puppetry and a lot of beautiful craft work thats gone into it. personally how to resolve. the mass audience I seem to have stumbled upon, the public exposure is very avoiding or recovering from" and (b) "something I do for myself and because I His reviews and interviews with TV and film personalities have appeared in USA Today Network, Huffington Post, The Advocate, and other media outlets. It's an unlikely story for any author, and would have been unimaginable for a young Tim, who decided at 10 years old that he was going to be a writer. Then, curious, she hand-feeds it another. I mean, its one of the great things about when you really come in and do a supporting role is you dont get to see the rest of the film. Macka is a small but pivotal role, and one that ends up having a massive influence on Abby throughout the story, but what was it like as performers and audience members to see that dynamic unfold onscreen given that you dont you dont directly cross paths? Photo: David Dare Parker, [Tim] is just a deeply humanist storyteller its very moving its fun and optimistic, but its also got deep elements about a life lived.. But, when Abel leaves his mother to go to a boarding school his mother has an encounter withbusinessmen who are trying to get her to sell the bay. We havent seen Eric do this for a while. I think that they teach it in a lot of school curriculums at the moment, actually. And This story was first published on The New Daily. Theirs is a simple life. For them, its like, whatever, you're there. I love it. In the book, for example, Abby is a 10-year-old boy, Abel. I also hope that, especially for young girls, the film really inspires them, because a lot of women really are kind of leading the climate movement at the moment. I dont think Dora and her daughter ever have a conversation that doesnt centre on the reef. Sign up for the fun stuff with our rundown of must-reads, pop culture and tips for the weekend, every Saturday morning. their children will have to experience nature in a virtual sense - landscapes I thought I might be good," Winton says. mobile and not have to get into a working rut. There was almost no rewriting, it just came out formed.". environment everything is about balancing the books, of looking after At minute 25 [underwater], I had to go up because I realized Ive never been out of my element for so long. Get InReview in your inbox - free . Really excited about it. BLUEBACK, SAYS TIM WINTON OF HIS NEW NOVEL, is "one of those odd books that just show up". "That book just slipped out," he says. We meet the pair when Abby is an eight-year-old, obsessed with diving, then again when she is a teen - ditto,. Blueback is an achingly beautiful story about family, belonging and living a life in tune with the environment, from Tim Winton, one of Australia's best-loved authors.. Abel Jackson lives with his mother, Dora, at Longboat Bay, an isolated stretch of coast whose waters teem with fish. It was gigantic. But the plots essential shape has been maintained by writer-director Robert Connolly (The Dry), whos worked with Winton before. you may be able to proceed without disturbance but I can't. His father was killed by a tiger shark when Abel was young. But once we were there, we were working on a normal film. Ahead of the release, We Got This Covered had the chance to talk to Bana and Wasikowska about the project, the difficulties of shooting on location during the pandemic, their own thoughts on the perils of climate change and much more, which you can check out below. I was so proud of it when I saw it. Mia Wasikowska: Yeah, absolutely. We again assembled an incredible cast and showing off another very, very interesting part of part of Australia, in another thriller. She's initially alarmed when the fish snatches an abalone from her hand. McGirr, Michael (1999)Tim Winton: The Writer and His Work, Macmillan Education. The talented writer he has published 29 books for adults and children including Shallows, Cloudstreet, Dirt Music and Breath says he wrote the bestseller Blueback within a week. Moving between and integrating these timelines becomes a core structural challenge. This film is more single-minded. This book constantly explores sustainability as Abel and his mother are striving to protect the environment. Talk of sacrifice and faith seem curiously old-fashioned, an idealist's If I had my way, I'd Since his first novel, An Open Swimmer, won the Australian/Vogel Award in 1981, he has won the Miles Franklin Award four times (for Shallows, Cloudstreet, Dirt Music and Breath) and twice been shortlisted for the Booker Prize (for The Riders and Dirt Music). all my time on, around or under the water. persuasive effect. With Robert Connolly's most recent film The Dry fast approaching $20 million at the . something to the future, to define limits on what we'll exploit and how we'll Abby is played as a child by Ariel Donoghue.Credit:David Dare Parker. They said, Youve got two daughters, Dad! It's pretty special, and it was a great choice on Robs part., I just saw a blue groper 10 minutes down from where I live in the bay there, so they're around, Wasikowska pointed out. GREG ARCHER is a pop culture junkie. And it was so emotional. "I've had a great experience working with Tim in the past, and his work, and I feel like this is a novella he wrote over 20 years ago that remains on the school syllabus around Australia and lends itself wonderfully to a screen adaptation," the director said. From The Lord of the Rings to Ulysses, Hemingway and lesser-known gems - these are the books writers revisit for inspiration, comfort and insight. So were really excited. The film is heavily anchored in messaging about conservation, the environment and saving our planet in the best way we know how. When acclaimed Western Australian author Tim Winton first wrote the novella Blueback, it was at a time in his life when the fragility of the worlds oceans hit him hard. Were sorry, this feature is currently unavailable. And the more that we take care of it, the more its a two-way street. At eight, shes already mastered the art of free diving. oily self-interest in Government, in terms of reconciliation, and the Cloudstreet the Miles Franklin-winning novel about two families sharing a house in Perth between the 40s and 60s was also a "pleasure" to write. AEST = Australian Eastern Standard Time which is 10 hours ahead of GMT (Greenwich Mean Time), abc.net.au/news/tim-winton-blueback-ningaloo-and-40-years-of-writing/101297058, Get breaking news alerts directly to your phone with our app, Help keep family & friends informed by sharing this article. And theres a simplicity in that, that I think just, you know, works well. Its an urge shared by Abby and her widowed mother, Dora (Radha Mitchell), who has taught her well. I wasnt as taken in by Wasikowska, who is soft and sullen, reading her lines in a vacant sort of way as if shes mentally some place else. He's quickly become one of my favourite film-makers working anywhere today. On an idyllic stretch of coast whose waters teem with fish, he lives a simple, tough existence. Its absolutely stunning; theres absolute magic in it.. [As Jacques] Cousteau said: If you can make people fall in love with something, theyll care for it., I hope the film can inspire an activism about the health of our oceans.. Throughout the inevitable rise in interest in him, he has guarded his Blueback releases in select theaters, as well as on digital and on-demand, this coming Friday March 3. Winton: an affable, plain-speaking man of unaffected intelligence and deep moved by how moved they were by it.." Moved too by the money they offered, Robert. The film crew on location at Bremer Bay in Western Australia. Actually, we already know thats not going to happen. Get InReview in your inbox free each Saturday. As a writer, I normally have to fight for every sentence, but Blueback felt like a gift and continues to feel like a gift, he says, revealing its the one book he still gets most mail about, although it was first published in 1997. The Western Coast of Australia. Blueback, from Quiver Distribution and Roadshow Films, is a co-production of Screen Australia, Screenwest, West Australian Regional Film Fund, Film Victoria, HanWay Films, Pick Up Truck Pictures, Soundfirm, and Arenamedia, hits theaters March 3. family's - and his own - privacy with zeal. Timothy John Winton (born 4 August 1960) is an Australian writer. His boks have been published around the world. Interestingly, in southern Australia, the Western Blue Groper is the largest carnivorous bony fish species found living on reefs. This is comic; a heartfelt role. skin." And The Riders, a finalist for the 1995 Booker Prize, won the Verified Purchase. He did two weeks [in] quarantine to play a supporting role. Winton says the journey of adaptation to the screen "has been a long one". Mia Wasikowska: Thats true. Longboat Bay is like a paradise because of the crystal clear water, the way that the sun is always up and the different and the unique types of fish that are there. Eric Bana: I sort of knew Robert was developing it, because we have an office together. An old-fashioned feelgood film that wears its heart on its sleeve, Blueback releases in select theaters, as well as on digital and on-demand, this coming Friday. He was particularly surprised by the American interest. "If you're in this caper long enough, you realise that it's inevitable that you're going to repeat yourself, but not in a conventional way," Winton says. Winton spent so many years trying to find a way to finish the story, that some of his children had never seen him working on a different book. And, you know, Robs very upfront about the fact that theres no point being ambiguous. So why should I be anxious about categorisation?". ", The focus of Blueback is unequivocal - a call to environmental and Formidable employer power, Jacky and his boyfriend were 'flatmates' for years until his mother found out about the truth, 'Momentous occasion': Spears taken by Captain Cook in 1770 to be returned home, This youth worker can't talk about youth crime without mentioning the kids sleeping in nearby public toilet blocks, Prince Harry and Meghan told to vacate UK home, 'The biggest mistake of our lives': US fertility clinic sued for using embryo with deadly cancer gene, Pedestrian killed after being struck by car on major Darwin road, 'I pretty much cried all day': Devil in one of the last 'disease-free' populations found with facial tumour. So it was it was a bit of a mission to get there. 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