SBS VICELAND and NITV present ‘Curious Australia’ – seven new and unique documentaries

‘Curious Australia’ comprises seven half-hour documentaries, now streaming at SBS On Demand.

Source: SBS VICELAND/NITV

SBS is proud to present Curious Australia, comprising seven half-hour documentaries that innovatively explore issues relevant to contemporary Australia. 

Curious Australia supports screen practitioners from under-represented backgrounds to amplify their authentic, enlightening and powerful stories on Australian screens.

“Each half-hour program is distinct, compelling and meaningful,” said SBS Commissioning Editor of Documentaries, Bernadine Lim. “Together they capture what SBS is known for, exploring issues relevant to contemporary Australia in a unique, bold and entertaining way.

“We’re proud of the films and impressed by the way the emerging and mid-level creatives have grabbed this development opportunity to evolve their storytelling. Be prepared to laugh, cry and connect to worlds you might not know.” 

From stories exploring what it’s like being young, disabled and sexual, to the inspiring story of an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander woman who is an aspiring screenwriter working in a coal mine, Curious Australia reflects and explores the diversity of contemporary Australia’s people and experiences, in revealing and entertaining ways.

“Be prepared to laugh, cry and connect to worlds you might not know.” Bernadine Lim, SBS Commissioning Editor of Documentaries

2022 is the inaugural year of this initiative. The seven documentaries selected in this first year have been commissioned in partnership with Screen Australia, Screen NSW, Screen Queensland, Screen Tasmania, Screen Territory, Screenwest, the South Australian Film Corporation and VicScreen.

The documentaries commissioned by SBS are:

• We Are Sexual Beings (VicScreen)
• The Alexander Ball (Screen Queensland)
• Run Girl (Screen NSW)
• Whatever Scares You (VicScreen)

And NITV commissioned:

• Black Empire (South Australian Film Corporation)
• Sistas in Mining (Screen Queensland)
• Un-Locked (Screen NSW)

“We’re thrilled to be providing a national platform for these talented filmmakers from under-represented backgrounds to tell their important stories,” said Marissa McDowell, Commissioning Editor at NITV. “We’re really looking forward to seeing these bold and unique stories from First Nations perspectives by our documentary filmmakers across Australia come to life on screens next month.”

 

We Are Sexual Beings

‘We Are Sexual Beings’. Source: SBS VICELAND/NITV

We Are Sexual Beings explores what being young, disabled and sexual in modern Australia is all about. Over the course of a 24-hour period three adventurous young Australians with disabilities will pull back the covers on their intimate lives – Oli, an aspiring tennis champ and actor full of swagger and bravado; Maya, an earnest sweetheart on a quest for her first taste of true romance; and Christina, a wild-child motorhead from rural South Australia, who, in her own words, “is done with her ho phase and is all about self-satisfaction”. These three remarkably different human beings all happen to share two things in common: life-altering spinal injuries and healthy sexual appetites.

• Creator/Writer/Director: Isaac Elliott
• Creator/Writer/Producer: Lucy Knox

We Are Sexual Beings is now streaming at SBS On Demand

Black Empire

‘Black Empire’. Source: SBS VICELAND/NITV

It’s easy to feel alone in the Australian music industry, but for First Nations musicians, the isolation can be overwhelming. Rapper and Larrakia man Jimblah knows all too well that despite Black song playing such a transformative role in Australia’s history, it’s still seen as just another marketable asset. But what if it could be different? What if there was hope for something better? What will it take for Jimblah to create his own Black Empire?

• Director: Johanis Lyons-Reid
• Writer/Director: Pearl Berry
• Writer/Producer: Piri Eddy
• Producer: Lilla Berry
• Executive Producer: Dean Gibson

Black Empire is now streaming at SBS On Demand

 

The Alexander Ball

‘The Alexander Ball’. Source: SBS VICELAND/NITV

Ballroom culture originated within 1960s–70s New York founded by Black and Latinx trans women after the continuous discrimination from the LGBTQIA+ community. It’s a global movement, lifestyle and a cutthroat competition where competitors known as walkers compete in various categories for the grand prize. The Alexander Ball is Australia’s first look into the hypnotising world of Ballroom through an observational documentary extravaganza, following the exhilarating journey of Samoan-Australian trans woman of colour, Ella Ganza, as she and her Ballroom family prepare for one of the biggest events of the year: The Alexander Ball.

• Director/Producer/Writer: Jessica Magro

The Alexander Ball premieres Thursday 11 August at 8.30pm on SBS VICELAND and NITV, and is now streaming at SBS On Demand.

Sistas in Mining

‘Sistas in Mining’. Source: SBS VICELAND/NITV

Sistas in Mining follows the inspiring story of Shontell Leah Ketchell, an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander woman, an aspiring screenwriter who works as a production operator on a coal mine in Central Queensland.

• Co-Director: Ewan Cutler
• Co-Director/Producer: Jill Robinson
• Writer/Creator/Co-Producer: Shontell Leah Ketchell
• Executive Producer: Dean Gibson

Sistas in Mining premieres Thursday 11 August at 9pm on SBS VICELAND and NITV,  and is now streaming at SBS On Demand.

Run Girl

‘Run Girl’. Source: SBS VICELAND/NITV

Australian Olympic athlete and refugee, Bendere Oboya, searches for identity as she switches events from the 400m track to the 800m track in pursuit of becoming the world’s best. After starting athletics as an escape, the Ethiopian-born 21-year-old is determined to show that no matter your beginnings, anything is possible.

• Director/Producer: Renny Wijeyamohan
• Writer: Zufan Emerson
• Executive Producer: Nicholas Searle

Run Girl premieres Thursday 18 August at 8.30pm on SBS VICELAND and NITV, and is now streaming at SBS On Demand.

Un-Locked

‘Un-Locked’. Source: SBS VICELAND/NITV

Un-Locked follows two young people trying to fit into society. Through various experiences, each character’s innocence is quickly dissolved into a tainted and violent city. This is a fully animated documentary, allowing the interviewees to remain anonymous, and deliver raw recollections of their experiences of being locked up, one in juvenile detention and the other in a mental health facility.

• Co-Director/Co-Writer: Jake Duczynski
• Co-Director/Co-Writer: Mr James Hackett
• Executive Producer: Beck Cole
• Producers: Michaela Perske, Margee Brown
• Executive Producer: Dean Gibson

Un-Locked premieres Thursday 18 August at 9pm on SBS VICELAND and NITV, and is now streaming at SBS On Demand.

Whatever Scares You

‘Whatever Scares You’. Source: SBS VICELAND/NITV

Whatever Scares You is a rite of passage film that documents Breanna Deleo in her first year of work. Breanna is attempting to work as a professional artist – a challenging profession for anyone. And Breanna has begun to identify as neurodivergent. Her parents are her greatest allies and advocates. They want to protect Breanna but sometimes to find our way in the world, we need to go it alone.

• Writer and Director: Tamara Searle
• Writer: Breanna Deleo
• Producer: Alice Fleming

Whatever Scares You premieres Thursday 25 August at 8.30pm on SBS VICELAND, and is now streaming at SBS On Demand.

“We are delighted that Australian audiences will be able to discover these seven powerful documentaries in August across SBS VICELAND and NITV, which truly embody, reflect and celebrate the diversity of the people and experiences within our country and which showcase the remarkable talent working in Australian documentary-making today,” said Screen Australia’s Head of Documentary, Alex West. 

All seven of the Curious Australia documentaries will be available to stream at SBS On Demand with subtitles in five languages: Arabic, Korean, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese and Vietnamese, allowing more Australians to engage in these important topics.