Heiners Filmseiten – Yolngu Boy (en)

Yolngu Boy

Russian title: Мальчик из племени Йолнгу
Original title: Yolngu Boy

Youth drama – Australia
Production year: 2000
Movie length: 88 minutes

Director: Stephen Johnson

Movie description:

Three Aboriginal teenagers growing up in Northern Australia come together as they deal with the responsibilities of their shared cultural background and their individual emotional issues. Lorrpu has a deep respect for his Aborigine heritage and wants to learn more about the history and customs of his people; he also begins negotiating the tricky path of romance when he meets Yuwan, a girl his age taking a vacation from school. Two of Lorrpu’s best friends are Milika, who is more interested in football than his cultural heritage, and Botj, a troubled youth with a criminal record and little interest in changing his ways. Much of Botj’s rage comes from the fact that he never knew his father, who abandoned his family when Botj was an infant; when Botj discovers that his father is living 300 miles away in the city of Darwin, he and his friends leave their village behind and set out to find him, first by canoe and later on foot.
Originally produced for broadcast by the Australian Children’s Television Foundation, »Yolngu Boy« earned a theatrical release in Oz prior to its television premiere.

Lorrpu, Botj and Milika are three Yolngu (Aboriginal) teenagers who once shared a childhood dream of becoming great hunters together. But as teenagers they changed: Botj did bad things which landed him in jail one time, and Milika is more interested in being a good football player and in chicks! Only Lorrpu is still closer to Aboriginal traditions and to their common dream. One night Botj goes too far and he’s about to return to jail. Lorrpu must weigh up his own future against saving the future of his friend. Therefore the three boys start to trek to Darwin to argue Botj’s case with tribal leader Dawu. To survive during their hard journey in the bush and the forest, they must use the ancient Aboriginal knowledge, Botj’s street instinct, and the bonds of their friendship.

Â»Yolngu Boy« is about the coming-of-age of three Aboriginal boys in Arnhem Land who inhabit two cultures at once – that of North-East Arnhem Land and also western culture. Botj, Lorrpu and Milika are three Yolngu teenagers who once shared a dream of becoming great hunters. Now aged 14, only Lorrpu hasn’t diverged. Botj is a lost soul in trouble with the law, and Milika is more interested in football and girls. One of the central themes of the film is the divide between the prosperity-driven, materialistic western ideal of life and the everyday reality faced by young Aborigines.

Boy Actors