First Contact

First Contact

Visual footage and testimonies from the expedition of gold-prospecting white explorers to the inland of Papua New Guinea, who encountered indigenous tribes that had never come in contact with any other culture. Shot in the 1980s and partly based on the titular book, this stunning Australian documentary presents the unique meeting between two seemingly different worlds, as the natives presumed the white newcomers to be the spirits of their dead kinsmen who came back to visit them.
Screening Schedule

No physical screenings scheduled.

Direction: Bob Connolly, Robin Anderson
Cinematography: Dennis O’Rourke, Tony Wilson
Editing: Martyn Down, Stewart Young
Sound: Ian Wilson
Music: Ron Carpenter
Producers: Robin Anderson, Bob Connolly
Format: Digital File
Color: Color/B&W
Production Country: Australia
Production Year: 1983
Duration: 52'
Contact: Documentary Educational Resources
Awards/Distinctions: Grand Prix – Cinéma du Réel Best Documentary – AFI Awards

Bob Connolly

Filmography

1983 First Contact (co-direction)
1989 Joe Leahy’s Neighbours (co-direction)
1992 Black Harvest (co-direction)
1996 Rats in the Ranks (co-direction)
2001 Facing the Music (co-direction)

Robin Anderson

Filmography

1983 First Contact (co-direction)
1989 Joe Leahy’s Neighbours (co-direction)
1992 Black Harvest (co-direction)
1996 Rats in the Ranks (co-direction)
2001 Facing the Music (co-direction)