First Nations Short Film "Marlu Man"

Kaya! (Hello)

My name is Brooke Collard and I am a Ballardong/Whadjuk Noongar woman who is a producer and writer for film. I am working together with Zac James, Yamatji playwright, on his debut film "Marlu Man". This will also be the first drama project that I have produced.

"They needed a hero. They got... Marlu Man.

An Aboriginal man who is pushed to his limits by a racist society creates the gammonest super hero alter-ego; Marlu Man. Armed with a pouch full of ping pong balls, a polony sandwich (yes polony, not devon) and a thirst for justice, Marlu Man kidnaps online trolls and dishes out punishment in his fortress of solitude, Mum's shed.

Marlu Man, half kangaroo, half pox. All hero."

"Marlu Man" is a commentary on the unjust handling of Elijah Doughty's trial, which sadly was echoed with the recent passing of Cassius Turvey. Zac James is an uncle to Elijah Doughty, and in our application for "Marlu Man", it was before Cassius passed away. His passing was extremely heartbreaking and unanticipated, and has shown us that Zac's story needs to be told as our First Nations youth are still being targeted.

We have currently secured funding from Screenwest, but are looking to see if we can get further support from the community, as it is low budget. We are putting funds towards paying crew union rates and catering for them over a 3 day shoot in March. We are seeking extra financial support to employ an armourer to ensure our set is as safe as possible where we are representing weapons with props. We currently are hiring First Nations people in crew roles as much as we possibly can, such as our Director/Writer, Producer and Editor are all First Nations. For cultural and mental well being, we would also like to employ an Elder on set to facilitate a Welcome to Country, and daily yarning circles with our team to check in with everyone's well being.

Funds will also be going towards facilitating a Cultural Awareness workshop with all crew members prior to filming, as we are handling sensitive content and where we can best arm our crew with information and knowledge, we will. We will also host community screenings in Boorloo (Perth) to showcase to the First Nations community.