Press Release July 2021
Award-winning community champion and Kangaroo Island resident Sabrina Davis, who lost her home and farm in the January 3rd fires and raised $60,000 for local farm firefighting equipment after that, has now collaborated with Smart Creative Future to bring the Humans of Kangaroo Island Film and Literature Festival to the Parndana town hall on the second October weekend.
Humans of Kangaroo Island is a project which was started by Sabrina to uplift, inspire and connect the community with the power of storytelling. The film and literature festival is giving a stage to talented and spirited islanders and funded through a Regional Tourism Bushfire Recovery Grant supported by the Kangaroo Island Tourism Alliance.
This year the project wants to showcase the resilience and versatility of the island people to residents and mainland visitors alike. The festival at the Parndana Town Hall will build on the structure of the From The Heart film festival run by Smart Creative Future’s Sarah Kemp which in previous years has brought film makers from around Australia to Kangaroo Island to catch our hearts.
Humans of Kangaroo Island is further supported by Junction Australia and Country SA PHN on delivering a three-day-event held on the weekend of the 8th – 10th of October that will bring together the community and tell the tales of culture, history and identity of those over here living through hardship and with mental and physical disabilities.
Maree Baldwin from Junction in Kingscote says, “The Humans of Kangaroo Island Film and Literary Festival is valuable to the island as it’s an island initiative that increases our community connections, supportive understanding and celebrates our people and all they have achieved.”
Held in the “heartland” of Kangaroo Island, Parndana, for its first year, the festival is dedicated to the authors, filmmakers and business owners who have experienced and recorded the tough recovery process of the fires, the impacts of COVID-19 as well as the difficulty of living with a mental or physical illness.
On Friday, October 8, you are invited to attend an adults-only session from 7pm - 10pm. The short films shown will be award-winning Wild Fire by the team from Ad Hoc Docs as well as Soldier On by KI’s young Isaac Doman. Western KI’s publishing house owner and author Margi Prideaux will be reading from her new book FIRE followed by the highly anticipated worldwide premiere screening of documentary film January 3rd by local filmmaking team en plein air films in collaboration with resident Sabrina Davis.
Then on Saturday, October 9, the festival will include poetry readings, local guest speakers as well as screenings of I’m still me by Isaac Doman and the island premiere screening of Island to Outback created by en plein air films featuring twelve KI artists. To create an interactive and involved atmosphere, all participants will be on stage for short audience Q&A’s following their screenings or performances over the two nights.
Sunday, October 10, which is also the last day of the school holidays, will be a morning session for islanders of all ages and FREE to attend. The interactive morning will include a book reading of Evie and the Bushfire by local children’s author Becky Westbrook, fun activities for all ages to inspire future authors and film makers plus a beautiful range of short films the Fleurieu Film Festival will be bringing over to the island after collaborating with Sabrina Davis for this event. This will include some films made on the island and the 2021 Fleurieu Film Festival BEST FILM category winner called Fly.
Fleurieu Film Festival director Carolyn Corkindale is pleased to be invited to collaborate with the Humans of Kangaroo Island Film and Literature Festival. “We are likewise a community festival, encouraging new and emerging filmmakers to submit short films that broadly fit a theme. It is very special for filmmakers to have their films screened in front of as many audiences as possible. We are loving being able to share their films, several of which were filmed on KI, or just over on the Fleurieu Peninsula.”
KI Film festival coordinator and founder of Humans of Kangaroo Island, Sabrina Davis, is equally enthusiastic about the 2021 event.
“I am extremely proud of the local line up of film makers and writers at this festival,” she said. “It has been my dream for a while, especially after the devastation of the fires and the double hit with Covid-19 for our community, to get the island together and celebrate who we are.”
“There is an incredible amount of talent on this island. People from all walks of life, different ethical backgrounds, age groups and upbringings have created a fantastic variety of stories through their preferred art medium, inspired by the adversity they have had to face. It’s just wonderful and I can’t wait for everyone to see it.”
There will be food and drink options available each day for purchase in the foyer upon arrival. Make sure you arrive early to learn more about the Humans of Kangaroo Island project and hear some of the wonderful stories of local residents. As the Sunday session is FREE, the event organisers only require attendees to register online and get their FREE tickets which will enable a safe COVID-19 environment.
All tickets will be on sale from 15 July 2021 onwards at www.humansofkangarooisland.com. For those who require assistance with online bookings or prefer to pay in cash, please get your tickets from the Junction Community Centre and the Kangaroo Island Business Hub in Kingscote.
Part proceeds from the festival will be donated towards yet another community initiative as Humans of Kangaroo Island strives to make an impact.
Contact:
Humans of Kangaroo Island
Sabrina Davis
stories@humansofkangarooisland.com
