A DOCUMENTARY that centres on the efforts of people working to preserve the scar trees around Lake Boort will premiere in February.
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Bill Code, a former journalist turned filmmaker, first learned of the scar trees while working for SBS in 2013. It inspired him to create Lake of Scars.
"It's about six-and-a-half years from first shooting to getting into the cinema," he said. "I first met (local historian) Paul Haw and Uncle Gary Murray in 2013 but the first frames of the film were shot in 2015.
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"I had been journalist for over 10 years prior to starting on documentary filmmaking. I was sent to Boort by SBS to do story on the repatriation of remains that Uncle Gary had secured back from a museum in Melbourne."
The mutual respect and friendship between the First Nations people and local resident captured Code who decided to tell their story.
"Paul and Cathie Haw helped facilitate a place for the ancestors to be buried, put on big day and co-hosted with the Yung Balug clan of the Dja Dja Wurrung," he said. "I saw the relationship and was lucky to see the biggest collection of scar trees.
"I remember clearly thinking 'if I ever go freelance, this is the first project I will delve deep into'. We went there thinking we would do short film but decided it was worth more.
"When I went back and saw the lake when it was full - it was stunning and beautiful. I was luckily able to bring all the threads together."
The film also features a score composed by Yung Balug clan member and educational tour operator Jida Gulpilil.
"Jida wrote a score and produced a soundtrack using Dja Dja Wurrung language, which is a nice thing to finish on," Code said. "Dja Dja Wurrung is a language being reviatlised, so to have Jida's score in that language was really powerful."
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Code said he hoped people could see their own communities in what he has captured while working with Boort residents and Yung Balug clan.
"It's a really great story of mutual respect and friendship," he said. "We think it's a really powerful example of reconciliation in action, so we are stoked to get it out there despite everything being thrown at us.
"I hope audience across Australia can see their own communities in Boort and in that part of Dja Dja Wurrung.
"Good people are doing good things all over Australia when comes to caring for Country, environmental work and preserving heritage. I hope the story of Boort's scar trees and the people that love them resonates as Australia moves forward."
Actor and Indigenous elder Uncle Jack Charles narrates the film. Uncle Jack, like his grandfather, is a Dja Dja Wurrung man.
"We hadn't shot the scenes with Uncle Jack Charles when the pandemic struck," Code said. "Uncle Jack hosting in that role was a real winner for us with his passion and prior knowledge to the site.
"He knows Uncle Gary and other people in the film. (Uncle Jack) hadn't seen the film before and we wanted to get those moments of shock and surprise as he watched the events unfold. We want the audience to feel they are watching with him.
"It's great to give a Dja Dja Wurrung elder the final say. The film depicts the hard work required for reconciliation and ultimately we wanted that be a part of the film making process."
Lake of Scars will premiere at the Antenna Film Festival in Sydney on February 5. It is the only Australian film selected to compete for the festival's top prize.
Code hopes it isn't a long wait before the film makes its way to Victorian cinemas and intends to host regional screenings in any small town that wants to show Lake of Scars.
"It's fantastic Antenna is interested but moving forward we have an agreement from a Melbourne cinema to have the Victorian premiere in the first week of May," he said.
"There is a little pause because Omicron is doing its worst to throw chaos on us but we are glad Antenna is running despite it all.
"We are in discussions about screenings on Dja Dja Wurrung country. Ideally we would have a Bendigo screening and are looking at Boort as well. We really want to get right across regional Victoria.
"This is still a real indie effort, so if anyone would like to help put a screening on, we would love to hear from them."
For more information on the film visit lakeofscarsfilm.com
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