From Sand to Celluloid – Two Bob Mermaid (1996)
Length: 11 minutes
Synopsis
A short drama, set in the 1950s, about an Aboriginal girl Koorin (Carrie Prosser) who is fair skinned and gains access to the local swimming pool where Aboriginal people are legally denied access.
Curator’s notes
Two Bob Mermaid is the directorial debut of Darlene Johnson. It is the story of Koorin (Carrie Prosser), a fair skinned Indigenous girl who ‘passes’ – allowing people to think you are white. Koorin dreams of becoming a famous swimmer. The title of the film refers to Esther William’s film Million Dollar Mermaid, a ‘two bob’ mermaid creating a correlation between class and dreams. In order to achieve her dream Koorin lets the townspeople think that she is white so that she can gain access to the local swimming pool from which Aboriginal peoples are banned.
Two Bob Mermaid is visually stunning, and Johnson manages to tell quite a political story through the eyes of a child, whose innocent tendency to dream is restricted by the political restrictions imposed upon Aboriginal people during the period the film is set (1950s). The banning from swimming pools was a reality for Indigenous people up until racism was outlawed in Australia. Dr Charles Perkins during the Freedom Rides of 1967 encouraged Indigenous people to fight the bans. Indigenous peoples were made citizens of this country after the 1967 referendum.
Original aspect ratio: 16 x 9 (TV)
| Production company | Core Films |
|---|---|
| Producer | Antonia Barnard |
| Supervising producer | Graeme Isaac |
| Director | Darlene Johnson |
| Writer | Darlene Johnson |
| Cast | Janita Alderson-Hicks |
| Meisha Ballangarry | |
| Stephen Blair | |
| Anna Bluden | |
| Karen Cassin | |
| John Cooper | |
| Megan Drury | |
| Celia Keane | |
| Dale Kennedy | |
| Paul Knox | |
| Tessa Leahy | |
| David Page | |
| Luke Pankhurst | |
| Edward Parry | |
| Jie Pittman | |
| Carrie Prosser | |
| Gary Sweet | |
| Zeminda Walker |
Acknowledgements
Produced with the assistance of the Indigenous Branch of the Australian Film Commission.
