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Directed by Rolf de Heer and Peter Djigirr, 2006.
Ten Canoes was written and directed by Dutch-born Australian filmmaker, Rolf de Heer and Peter Djigirr. It was the first ever movie entirely filmed in Australian Aboriginal languages. Rolf de Heer worked closely with the indigenous community in which the film was based on.
He reflects on the invaluable contribution of co-director and Yolngu man Peter Djigirr to the making of the film.
“He very quickly he turned out to be the person that without you couldn’t make the film”. (de Heer, 2009)
“Casting for example, there is no way I could have cast it. Because again its that reality fiction business. In fiction anyone can play any role. However, this had to reflect real life and there is a complex kinship system. The kinship relationship of the characters had to reflect the kinship relationships of the cast. So he would go in to town and come back with somebody. There is no way either of us could have done it on our own and together we could. He was definitely the co-director.” (de Heer, 2009)
The film took $3,512,946 at the Australian Box Office. (Screen Australia, 2015)
Ten Canoes won the Un Certain Regard Special Jury Prize at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival and was chosen as Australia’s official entry into the Best Foreign Language Film category for the 2007 Academy Awards.
Ten Canoes was nominated for seven Australian Film Institute (AFI) awards, of which it won six. The movie won the awards for Best Picture (Julie Ryan, Rolf de Heer producers), Best Director (Rolf de Heer and Peter Djigirr), Best Screenplay – Original (Rolf de Heer) and Best Cinematography (Ian Jones). (ACCTA, 2006)
When interviewed by Time Magazine on making an indigenous film Rolf de Heer said “People talk about, what is a white director doing making an indigenous story? They’re telling the story, largely, and I’m the mechanism by which they can.” (Fitzgerald, 2006)