Press release from Limelight PR
BASTARDY, Amiel Courtin-Wilson’s AFI nominated documentary on the life of legendary Aboriginal actor Jack Charles, is coming to DVD on November 26, released by Siren Visual.
Premiering to acclaim at the Melbourne International Film Festival in 2008 and released theatrically across Australia in June 2009, BASTARDY is the inspirational story of a self proclaimed Robin Hood of the streets, Jack Charles.
For forty years and with infectious humour and optimism, Jack Charles has juggled a life of crime with another successful career – acting. Since founding the first Aboriginal theatre company in the 1970’s, Jack has performed with Australia’s most renowned actors (Geoffrey Rush, David Gulpilil, Bill Hunter) and directors in feature films (The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith, Bedevil and Blackfellas) TV series and hundreds of plays.
Filmmaker Amiel Courtin-Wilson follows Jack over seven years – gradually blurring the line between director and accomplice as Jack continually traverses the criminal and acting worlds. However, the law finally catches up with Jack and when he faces a jail sentence he might not survive, he is forced to decide if he can go straight for the first time in his life.
BASTARDY is the story of one man’s journey into the light.
Features on the BASTARDY DVD release include:
* * A limited edition booklet of essays by Christos Tsiolkas and Jaimee Edwards; photographs from Jack’s life and acting career; biographies of the filmmakers and production notes; and never-before seen personal archives from Jack Charles.
* * Steal Away Home – a new half-hour documentary by Amiel Courtin-Wilson featuring in depth interviews with Jack Charles and his theatre and film peers and friends, including Fred Schepisi, Neil Armfield, Bill Hunter, Max Gillies, Bruce Spence, David Field, Alkinos Tsilimidos, Tim Robertson, Garry Waddell, Shelton Lea, Jack Huston and Gary Foley.
* * Over two hours of additional scenes – an array of moments and scenes not in the final cut
* * Cicada – the award winning short film directed by Amiel Courtin-Wilson
* * The audience Q&A with Jack Charles and Amiel Courtin-Wilson, hosted by John Safran
* * Feature Radio Interview with Jack Charles and Amiel Courtin-Wilson, broadcast on SBS
* * Theatrical Trailer produced for its Australian theatrical release in June 2009.