Always Was Always Will Be -- Screened NITV 2013

A testimonial record of
the ten-month long camp
at the Old Swan Brewery
in peaceful protest
against the building
of a tourist centre
on the Sacred Grounds of the Waugul,
Perth, WA - 1989

In 1989 a dispute over the redevelopment of the Old Swan Brewery on the Sacred Grounds of the Waugul, Kings Park, Perth, convulsed the politics of Western Australia. Its lessons are important for all who are concerned about Aboriginal rights and culture, the environment, the progressive role of Trade Unions, the integrity of the Labor Party and the social/spiritual activities of the Churches.

Made as a campaign film, Always Was Always Will Be, is a visually rich account of this historically important struggle over a sacred site and gives an insight into the living culture and beliefs of urban Aboriginal people in Western Australia.

“This is the account of the protest to protect the Ancestral First Grandmothers’ and Grandfathers’ beliefs of the Sacred Ground of the Waugul at the old Swan Brewery on the Swan River in Perth, W.A. The Western Australian Government has gotten around its own Aboriginal Heritage Act which is meant to protect sacred sites. They are trying to push through a huge tourist development against widespread opposition. The Aboriginal protesters have brought construction to a halt. They have appealed to the trade Unions and to the Federal Government for support. Their historic protest camp and coming-togetherness in the centre of the capital city has been a lesson to the Second Race of People. As Aboriginal People are custodians for this country, this their film has been made in the hope of tomorrow that justice will be done….”
33 mins • DVD •• 1989
Produced by	Jequerity Pty Ltd	[Order]
	and the Fringe Dwellers of the Swan Valley

Changing the Needle: a film about drug rehabilitation in Vietnam

One of the first films
made in Vietnam
by a Western film crew
after the war

Screening 2008
Drugs & Harm Reduction
Film Festival - Barcelona

Shot by 3 Australian women in 1981, "Changing The Needle" was the first in-depth film to be made about Vietnam's unique approach to drug rehabilitation at a time when few foreign film crews had access to Vietnam at all. The Vietnamese methods shown in the film included acupuncture, natural medicines and exercises. The program also relied on attempts to inculcate changed attitudes and on compelling addicts into a complete change of environment.
“Changing the Needle” begins in a small, crowded rehabilitation centre in a suburb of Ho Chi Minh City and travels to a remote area in the Central Highlands as a group from the drug centre is being transferred to a rural commune.
Made in a country still ravaged by war and facing a large drug problem in its aftermath, this film documents a rehabilitation program run with very few resources. It is also a rare look at Vietnam in the immediate post-war period. In hindsight, there are lessons to be drawn from the film in considering the incidence of HIV in a drug-using population. Many drug rehabilitation centres in Vietnam now have extremely high rates of HIV amongst inmates and there is likewise a high rate of relapse. This film fills in the historical background for anyone interested in Vietnam or the history of treatments for drug addiction. For migrants from Vietnam or those contemplating a visit, "Changing The Needle" is likewise rewarding viewing.

53 mins 16mm/DVD •• Rated G • 1982
Produced by	Jequerity Pty Ltd	[Order]
Production	Martha Ansara, Mavis Robertson, Dasha Ross	Screened at the 2008 International Drug and Harm Reduction Film Festival, Barcelona

Film for Discussion: pioneer film of the Women's Liberation movement

Ordinary People: Inside One Nation