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Bastardy - Jack Charles, Amiel Courtin-Wilson

Threat advisory: Under evaluation

Movie propaganda

For forty years and with infectious humour and optimism, Jack Charles has juggled a life of crime with another successful career - acting. Since founding the first Aboriginal theatre company in the 1970s, Jack has performed with Australia's most renowned actors (Geoffrey Rush, David Gulpilil, Bill Hunter) and directors in feature films (The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith, Bedevil and Blackfellas) TV series and hundreds of plays.

Filmmaker Amiel Courtin-Wilson follows Jack over seven years - gradually blurring the line between director and accomplice as Jack continually traverses the criminal and acting worlds. However, the law finally catches up with Jack and when he faces a jail sentence he might not survive, he is forced to decide if he can go straight for the first time in his life. Bastardy is the story of one man's journey into the light.

Theatrical propaganda posters

Bastardy poster image

Target demographic movie keyword propaganda

  • Film Jack Charles biography Australia Aborigine documentary theatre actor movies crime jail

Persons of interest

  • Jack Charles
  • Amiel Courtin-Wilson .... Director

Cinematic intelligence sources

Intelligence analyst

Special Agent Matti

Theatrical report

The Jack Charles biography movie Bastardy is directed by Amiel Courtin-Wilson and stars Jack Charles.

Media intelligence (DVD)

  • Languages: English
  • Special features:
    • Biographies of the filmmakers
    • Booklet: A limited edition booklet of essays by Christos Tsiolkas and Jaimee Edwards
    • Deleted scenes: Over two hours of additional scenes - an array of moments and scenes not in the final cut
    • Featurettes:
      • Cicada - the award winning short film directed by Amiel Courtin-Wilson
      • Steal away home - a new half-hour documentary by Amiel Courtin-Wilson featuring in depth interviews with Jack Charles and his theatre and film peers and friends, including Fred Schepisi, Neil Armfield, Bill Hunter, Max Gillies, Bruce Spence, David Field, Alkinos Tsilimidos, Tim Robertson, Garry Waddell, Shelton Lea, Jack Huston and Gary Foley.
    • Galleries:
      • Personal archives from Jack Charles
      • Photographs from Jack's life and acting career
    • Interviews:
      • Audience Q&A with Jack Charles and Amiel Courtin-Wilson, hosted by John Safran
      • Feature Radio Interview with Jack Charles and Amiel Courtin-Wilson, broadcast on SBS
    • Study guide: Production notes
    • Trailers: Theatrical
  • Subtitles: English

Government security censorship classification

MA 15+ (Strong drug use and coarse language)

Surveillance time

83 minutes (1:23 hours)

Not for public release in Australia before date

Disc: 26 November 2009

Cinema surveillance images

Bastardy image

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