“Bunker: The Last Fleet” will have its domestic premiere at the St Kilda Film Festival in June.
The short film aims to push the boundaries of the Indigenous sci-fi genre and was conceived as a proof of concept for a feature film.
It is the passion project of South Australian filmmakers Rowan Pullen (“Arc Raider”) and Stephen Potter (“Room 6”).
It takes place in the year 2057, six years into an extraterrestrial invasion of our world, when the harvest of humankind has begun.
“Bunker: The Last Fleet” is a story about hope, humanity and survival, according to Natasha Wanganeen, who is all at once lead actor, writer and producer of the film.
“My character Tjarra is a powerful, strong and proud Nunga woman determined to take back what is thought to be lost,” the actor said. “Just like during the production process, the knowledge and leadership of Elders and the support of community is critical to the story.”
The film was shot entirely in the South Australian desert on Kaurna land.
Trevor Jamieson, actor and story collaborator, said collaborating with First Nations communities and working closely with Elders was central to the project.
“Language and protocol is very important to Aboriginal people – I was so pleased that the team consulted with Kaurna Elders and involved the community to get permission to tell the story,” he said.
“For me, my people are from central WA and my character represents my mob – he offers guidance on the fire and how we as Aboriginal people, all of us, sit around this fire. ‘Bunker’ takes a futuristic spin on this message of taking care of culture.”
Fellow actor Roy Phung said “Bunker: The Last Fleet” tells a story much broader than its label.
“‘Bunker’ is not just a sci-fi film, or even just an Australian sci-fi film, it’s a uniquely South Australian story told by South Australian creatives,” he said.
“Authentic representation is also a critical part of the story, and it was so refreshing to embrace this dystopian cyber geek character and not be typecast as an Asian stereotype.”
Tickets to “Bunker: The Last Fleet” at the St Kilda Film Fest on June 3 are available here. It will also screen at the Revelation Perth International Film Festival in July.
In addition to the 14-minute short film, a feature film version of “Bunker: The Last Fleet” is currently in an advanced stage of development.