person or book cover
Source: screen cap, promotional trailer
form y separately published work icon The Sapphires single work   film/TV  
Adaptation of The Sapphires Tony Briggs , 2004 single work drama
Issue Details: First known date: 2012... 2012 The Sapphires
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

'Gail, Cynthia, Julie and Kay are sexy, black, young and talented - and they've never set foot outside Australia. Until, in the chaos of 1968, they're plucked from the obscurity of a remote Aboriginal mission, branded as Australia's answer to The Supremes, and - grasping the chance of a lifetime - dropped into the jungles of Vietnam to entertain the troops.' Source: www.encoremagazine.com.au/ (Sighted 26/09/2011).

Exhibitions

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16598381
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Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

    • c
      Australia,
      c
      :       Goalpost Pictures ,       2012 .
      person or book cover
      Source: screen cap, title, promotional trailer
      Extent: 103 mins.p.
      Description: 1 videodisc (DVD)
      Note/s:

      • Released in France at the Cannes Film Festival 19 May 2012.

        Australian release date 9 August 2012.

      • Distributed by Hopscotch Films
      • Also in Blu-Ray
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Works about this Work

How Wayne Blair’s "The Sapphires" Tells A Story Of Collective And Individual Belonging Lexy Akillas , 2020 single work
— Appears in: NEW : Emerging Scholars in Australian Indigenous Studies , March vol. 5 no. 1 2020;
— Review of The Sapphires Keith Thompson , Tony Briggs , 2012 single work film/TV 'Wayne Blair’s 2012, dramatic comedy The Sapphires is an Australian film that discusses a number of important issues for Indigenous people, including the concept of belonging. Blair explores how belonging can exist both within community groups and internally through self-identity. The bones of the film are based on the true story of Laurel Robinson and Lois Peeler, two Indigenous women who toured Vietnam as the original ‘Sapphires’ with a New Zealand Maori band (Herche 2013). Laurel Robinson’s son, Tony Briggs wrote the screenplay and the 2004 musical (of the same name) thus being able to add a sense of authenticity. The film opens up a side of Australian history that has previously been underrepresented but has a universal appeal through its representation of belonging.'
Sweet Soul Music: The Making Of The Sapphires Cara Nash , 2019 single work column
— Appears in: FilmInk , 2 May 2019;
At the Movies: Contemporary Australian Indigenous Cultural Expressions – Transforming the Australian Story Lynn Griffin , Michelle Trudgett , Steven Griffin , 2018 single work essay
— Appears in: The Australian Journal of Indigenous Education , December vol. 47 no. 2 2018; 'Cinema is an art form widely recognised as an agent to change the social condition and alter traditional norms. Movies can be used to educate and transform society's collective conscience. Indigenous Australian artists utilise the power of artistic expression as a tool to initiate change in the attitudes and perceptions of the broader Australian society. Australia's story has predominately been told from the coloniser's viewpoint. This narrative is being rewritten through Indigenous artists utilising the power of cinema to create compelling stories with Indigenous control. This medium has come into prominence for Indigenous Australians to express our culture, ontology and politics. Movies such as Samson and Delilah, Bran Nue Dae, The Sapphires and Rabbit-Proof Fence for example, have highlighted the injustices of past policies, adding new dimensions to the Australian narrative. These three films are just a few of the Indigenous Australian produced films being used in the Australian National Curriculum.'
Indigenous Soul : The Sapphires' Journey from Stage to Screen Zoë Wallin , 2018 single work criticism
— Appears in: Screen Education , no. 89 2018; (p. 110-115)

'The energy is palpable. When the four members of 1960s Aboriginal Australian girl group The Sapphires step onto the stage of a Saigon nightclub in front of a crowd of expectant marines, they know the stakes: an unconvincing show will cost them their Vietnam gig and put them back on a plane to Australia. Before this, the four women - Gail (Deborah Mailman), Julie (Jessica Mauboy), Cynthia (Miranda Tapsell) and Kay (Shari Sebbens) - have been told that they need to clean up their act for the show. Manager Dave Lovelace (Chris O'Dowd) has ushered them to various Vietnamese street vendors to purchase the sparkly new dresses that add the gloss necessary to meet international expectations. It's no surprise that The Sapphires pull it off, winning over their American audience with an intimate, soulful rendition of Dave Crawford's 'What a Man'.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.
Penny Smallacombe : It’s 2018 and It’s OUR TIME Dov Kornits , 2018 single work column
— Appears in: FilmInk , 10 August 2018;
Good as Gold Michael Bodey , 2012 single work review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 28 - 29 July 2012; (p. 14-15)
— Review of The Sapphires Keith Thompson , Tony Briggs , 2012 single work film/TV
Reviews with Nick Dent Nick Dent , 2012 single work review
— Appears in: The Sunday Mail , 5 August 2012; (p. 25)
— Review of The Sapphires Keith Thompson , Tony Briggs , 2012 single work film/TV
Tale a Gem in the Making Rodney Chester , 2012 single work review
— Appears in: The Courier-Mail , 4 - 5 August 2012; (p. 9)
— Review of The Sapphires Keith Thompson , Tony Briggs , 2012 single work film/TV
Movies : Spotlight Ed Gibbs , 2012 single work review
— Appears in: The Sunday Age , 5 August 2012; (p. 20)
— Review of The Sapphires Keith Thompson , Tony Briggs , 2012 single work film/TV
Film Phil Brown , 2012 single work review
— Appears in: Brisbane News , 8 - 14 August no. 894 2012; (p. 22)
— Review of The Sapphires Keith Thompson , Tony Briggs , 2012 single work film/TV
A Big Day for... Sapphires to Shine Matt Buchanan , Scott Ellis , 2011 single work column
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 26 September 2011; (p. 16)
Call of Duty Trip of a Lifetime Matt Buchanan , Scott Ellis , 2011 single work column
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 29 September 2011; (p. 22)
Local TV Booms but Films Fall Behind Clare Kermond , 2011 single work column
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 28 October 2011; (p. 10)
Kath, Kim and Baz to Rejuvenate Box Office After Show Garry Maddox , 2012 single work column
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 24 January 2012; (p. 12)
Sapphires Set in French Fest Tristan Swanwick , 2012 single work column
— Appears in: The Courier-Mail , 2 May 2012; (p. 25)
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Awards

VIEW ALL AWARDS (8)
Last amended 16 Feb 2016 10:18:22
Wayne Blair
Subjects:
  • 1968
Settings:
  • Cummeragunja Reserve (1881- 1940), Barmah, Nathalia - Barmah area, Yarrawonga - Cobram - Nathalia area, Northern Victoria, Victoria,
  • c
    Vietnam,
    c
    Southeast Asia, South and East Asia, Asia,
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