How Ten Canoes made cinema history
Witness History

How Ten Canoes made cinema history

B2Upper-intermediateOctober 20, 20269 min
  • Arts & culture

In 2006, Ten Canoes made Australian cinema history. It became the first feature film performed entirely in Aboriginal languages and the first to bring a traditional Yolngu story to the screen. Shot in the remote swamplands of Arnhem Land, the production relied on old anthropological photographs, clan languages and ancestral hunting knowledge to recreate life before European settlement. For the cast, many of whom had never acted before, the experience was transformative. One of them was Frances Dulibing, chosen unexpectedly by director Rolf de Heer to play Nolingo, the jealous second wife at the centre of...

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This BBC podcast is supported by ads outside the UK. I'm not a citizen of the United States. I'm not a citizen of the United States. I'm a company that has a lot of money.

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I'm not a citizen of the United States. I'm not a citizen of the United States. cinema. In 2006, 10 canoes made Australian film history. The first feature film performed entirely in Aboriginal languages and the first to bring a traditional Yolngu story to the

1:12

screen. It was created by award-winning Australian director Rolfe de Heer and Yolngu co-director Peter Jaguir, combining Rolfe's filmmaking experience with Peter's knowledge of local stories and hunting. And for one actor, it became a powerful emotional moment.

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