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Personal Development (4/6)
The personal development of children, adolescents and adults in a broad range of social, psychological and cultural contexts, in Australia and internationally. Films include both documentaries and selected feature films and short dramas.
MUSIC CENTRAL
2023 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: G) 27 min
MUSIC CENTRAL explores the power of music to create connection and healing. Filmed on the Central Coast of New South Wales, this documentary follows the stories of local Elder Uncle Kevin 'Gavi' Duncan, the staff and students at Woy Woy Public School, young singer-songwriter Ruby Archer and the Artistic Director of the... more
![MY COLOUR, YOUR KIND [from the CAAMA Collection]](/images/small/2298.jpg)
MY COLOUR, YOUR KIND [from the CAAMA Collection]
1998 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: G) 11 min
An atmospheric short drama about Aboriginal identity. more
MY GRANDPARENTS
2012 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: G) 26 min
A cross-generational documentary in which filmmaker Joshua Marks sets out to find out more about his grandparents. The film is, as Joshua describes it, "a journey of awareness in front of and behind the camera. Gradually, we ask who is the real subject of the film, and who is really in control?" more
MY LONG NECK
2013 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: PG) 53 min
Maja is proud of the 16 coils of brass around her neck that distinguish her as a Long Neck Kayan woman from Burma. But after 20 years of living on display and constantly being photographed in a tourist village in northern Thailand, the rings are becoming more of a trap than a source of pride. more
NIGHT THE PROWLER, THE
1978/2021 (M) 85 min
A wickedly funny and subversive collaboration between Nobel Prize-winning author Patrick White and one of Australia's most adventurous film directors, Jim Sharman (director of The Rocky Horror Picture Show). more
NORTHERN LIGHTS
2013 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: PG) 52 min
Behind the scenes of a successful programme to promote Indigenous participation in AFL, led by Indigenous football legends, Andrew McLeod and Michael Long. It's the story of NT Thunder, a new team with 60% Indigenous players, and a new philosophy of community engagement. more
NOT A BEDROOM WAR
1992 (G) 52 min
In 1992, four hundred of the world's most prominent women met in Dublin to discuss new visions of leadership. Hosted by Mary Robinson, Ireland's first woman president, NOT A BEDROOM WAR is the behind-the-scenes story of this historic and extraordinary gathering. more
ONCE A QUEEN
2005 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: G) 50 min
A universal story of a rural community with big aspirations ... Grafton in the Northern Rivers area of New South Wales, and its inspired annual celebration of its rich history. more
ON RICHARD'S SIDE
2016 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: PG) 90 min
Filmed over three decades, On Richard's Side charts the life-story of Richard, a young man with a complex disability since birth. The film provides intimate and poignant insights into his parents' determined quest to establish a quality life for their son and for themselves. more
OVER THE EDGE
2015 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: G) 56 min
Teenagers in the series ON THE EDGE reunite 5 years later as young adults facing a turbulent world. This film explores how their choices have determined their present circumstances. Some are working, some in jail, and three are parents. Every one of them is living an extraordinary life and coming to terms with their world. more
PATOU: in Black and White
2022 (M) 55 min
With a career that spans over four decades and across the globe, Jamaican singer Pat Powell ("Patou") is one of Australia's most accomplished yet hidden vocal talents. A award-winning film by Fiona Cochrane. more
PICTURING HOME
2021 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: PG) 52 min
After twenty years of homelessness one woman finds empowerment by sharing her journey through the lens of a camera. A powerful film by Annette Cohen, exploring links between mental health concerns and homelessness. more
PUMPHEAD
2020 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: PG) 74 min
Pumphead is a feature-length documentary exploring patient experiences following major heart surgery - how to understand these experiences and how to live with them. A story of existential crises and transformative experiences, told by eight ex-patients including the filmmaker himself. more
PUTUPARRI and the Rainmakers
2015 (M) 97 min
Against the backdrop of Australia's tangled colonial and Indigenous history, Putuparri and the Rainmakers explores one man's struggle to fulfill his destiny. more
RISKING OUR KIDS
2008 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: G) 52 min
Exploring the "Modernity Paradox". Could we be the last generation of humans that live longer than our parents? Have we lost sight of how to care for our kids? more
RUNNING WITH CRUTCHES (original title: ShoPaaPaa)
2020 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: PG) 96 min
Cinematically bold and intellectually mesmerising, Running With Crutches is an exploration of the line between drama and documentary in the worst of times and the best of times. A film by Shekhar Bassi and Molly Reynolds. more
![RYDIN' TIME [from the CAAMA Collection]](/images/small/2888.jpg)
RYDIN' TIME [from the CAAMA Collection]
2005 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: G) 22 min
Life on the rodeo circuit in Queensland for three teenagers who risk their lives to compete. more
SALTWATER STORY, THE
2017 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: PG) 55 min
Guided by Indigenous canoemaker Kyle Slabb from the Bundjalung people, a group of young men (both Indigenous and non-Indigenous) build traditional canoes and embark on a 3-day sea voyage re-tracing an ancient trade route from the heart of the Queensland Gold Coast to North Stradbroke Island. more
SELLING SICKNESS
2004 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: PG) 52 min
SELLING SICKNESS explores the unhealthy relationships between society, medical science and the pharmaceutical industry as they promote their new miracle cures - selling not just drugs but also the latest diseases that go with them. more
SEX, DRUGS AND STRING QUARTETS
2003 (M) 27 min
The Landau String Quartet comes together to rehearse. Each player has travelled a very different path to become a musician. In this dramatised documentary, the musicians reveal the story of that journey. more
SHINE
1996 (PG) 107 min
The 1996 multi-award winning Australian film based on the life of pianist David Helfgott, who suffered a mental breakdown and spent years in institutions. Starring Geoffrey Rush, Lynn Redgrave, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Noah Taylor, John Gielgud, Googie Withers, Justin Braine, Sonia Todd, Chris Haywood and Alex Rafalowicz. more
SILENCES, THE
2015 (M) 73 min
A film about family secrets and the ties of love, loss and kinship between a mother and daughter. more
SILMA'S SCHOOL
2006 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: G) 83 min
SILMA'S SCHOOL is a compelling observational documentary about a Muslim school in Sydney and the tumultuous struggle by its principal to keep it open. more
SNAKES AND LADDERS
1988 (PG) 59 min
Drawing on interviews and a striking selection of archival footage, this film reveals the expectations and achievements of women who have struggled to gain a tertiary education - and the reality of discrimination. The film employs the unusual device of a whimsical investigator, Sophia Whist, who pieces together the elements... more
SPECIAL TREATMENT- Locking Up Aboriginal Children
1991 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: G) 56 min
Australia imprisons almost as many black children as are imprisoned in South Africa. Today 45% of all juveniles in NSW jails are Aboriginal, though they form less than 2% of the population. Made by a crew of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians, this documentary asks why police are under-using alternative procedures... more
STEPPING OUT
1981 (G) 54 min
In November 1979, forty extraordinary people took to the stage. Labelled by society as mentally handicapped, isolated and hidden away in institutions since early childhood, they came to the Sydney Opera House and gave a performance that held audiences spellbound. This film tells the joyous story of that event. more
STRANDED
2006 (M) 52 min
Claudia is trying to start a new life for herself after the loss of her mother. She lives and fights with her loving but inept father and psychotic little sister. When two children are dumped on the family, Claudia moves into her mother's abandoned car in the driveway. She plans to fix it and take off - that's if she can... more
STRONG MEN OF NGUIU
2007 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: G) 24 min
Nguiu (known as Wurrumiyanga today) is a community on Bathurst Island, Northern Territory. There the "strong men" have been striving to restore cultural traditions among the youth on the island. Leading by example, they are steering the next generation away from substance abuse and crime to become leaders of tomorrow. more
![SUNSET TO SUNRISE [from the CAAMA Collection]](/images/small/4484.jpg)
SUNSET TO SUNRISE [from the CAAMA Collection]
2006 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: G) 24 min
By the light of a comforting campfire, Rupert Max Stuart, a 77-year old Arrernte Mat-utjarra Elder and a custodian of the Alice Springs area, offers poignant words of wisdom to a younger generation. more
TAGGED
2006 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: PG) 59 min
TAGGED is the story of four young people growing up in Sydney's notorious south-western suburbs. Reacting against the negative portrayal of young people from their area in the mainstream press, they talk about the things they love in their community, especially its diversity, its familiarity and its youthful energy. more
TEACH A MAN TO FISH
2018 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: PG) 80 min
Grant Leigh Saunders is an Aboriginal filmmaker, writer and musician who has secretly always wanted to be a fisherman, just like his father and grandfather before him. This fishing yarn is set against the backdrop of the beautiful Manning River in central New South Wales. more
TENDER HOOKS
1988 (M) 95 min
A bold debut feature by Wollongong filmmaker, Mary Callaghan: a new wave, pop cult, love story set in Sydney, starring Jo Kennedy and Nique Needles. When two young lovers discover their love has become an obsession, contact becomes a matter of survival. more
TERRA NULLIUS
1992/2021 (G) 21 min
RE-RELEASE OF AN ACCLAIMED FILM FROM 1992, RE-MASTERED FROM THE ORIGINAL FILM NEGATIVES. "In evoking what an Aboriginal child goes through when disconnected from family and taken into foster-care, this film is ahead of its time in its treatment." - Margo Neale, Senior Indigenous Curator and historian. more
THIS IS HOW YOU'LL MAKE YOUR BED IN PRISON
2009 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: G) 10 min
The story of Vickie Lee Roach, an Aboriginal woman in an Australian prison who challenged the Federal government to gain the right to vote ... and won. more
![THREE HORSEMEN [from the AIATSIS Collection]](/images/small/7834.jpg)
THREE HORSEMEN [from the AIATSIS Collection]
1982 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: G) 51 min
Three generations of Aboriginal stockmen on a cattle station in far north Queensland. more
VISIONS OF PARADISE
2009 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: PG) 44 min
The story of four young idealists who thought they had found paradise on earth only to discover they were actually in mind control cults. more
WEATHER DIARIES, THE
2020 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: PG) 91 min
An intimate chronicle of two simultaneous histories: on the one hand the cataclysmic impacts of climate change and the extinction crisis on the forest ecosystems, and on the other, the development of the filmmaker's daughter from child to adult. more
![WHO WE ARE - Brave New Clan [from the CAAMA Collection]](/images/small/11889.jpg)
WHO WE ARE - Brave New Clan [from the CAAMA Collection]
2015 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: G) 47 min
Six young Australians share what Indigenous culture means to them today in contemporary urban Australia. From the bustling streets of Sydney to the aquamarine vistas of the Torres Strait, their stories span a diverse population across the country and yet share common themes of resilience, courage, optimism and success. more
WONDER BOY
2001 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: PG) 56 min
The follow-up documentary to the highly successful 1992 documentary DRIVING WITH RICHARD, the story of Richard Rook, a boy with special needs (physical and intellectual disabilities), and his parents Deirdre and Charlie. more
![YELLOW FELLA [from the CAAMA Collection]](/images/small/2299.jpg)
YELLOW FELLA [from the CAAMA Collection]
2004 (Classification Exempt - Ronin Recommends: G) 25 min
A portrait of the late Balang Tom E. Lewis who as a young man in 1978 was chosen by director Fred Schepisi to star in THE CHANT OF JIMMY BLACKSMITH. The life of the character he played was hauntingly close to his own – a restless young man of mixed heritage, struggling between two cultures to find his own identity. more