The read
It runs a compact 57m.
Synopsis
A century ago the Torres Strait Island were the subjects of the famous Cambridge Anthropological Expedition - the resulting depletion of their cultural artifacts left them with nothing but a history of remembered loss. The only people in the Pacific to make elaborate turtleshell masks have none left - they are all in foreign museums. In a quest to reclaim the past, Ephraim Bani, a wise and knowledgeable Torres Strait Islander, travels with his wife to the great museums of Europe where his heritage lies. The film, an SBS Independent production, shows that the thickest of masks cracks when a descendant of the original owners enters a museum.
Ratings
TMDB7/10
1 audience votes
Key crew
- Frances CalvertWriter
- Frances CalvertDirector
Cast
- Ephraim BaniSelf / Narrator
- Petharie BariSelf
- Stewart CoulterSelf
- Antonia LovelaceSelf
- Charles HuntSelf
- Anthony SheltonSelf
- Jacques HainardSelf
- Anita HerleSelf
- Markus SchindlbeckSelf
Themes
museumanthropologycultural conflictindigenous australiansrepatriationethnography