Strange Birds in Paradise, subtitled A West Papuan Story is an Australian documentary film created by Adelaide filmmaker Charlie Hill-Smith.

Strange Birds in Paradise
Directed byCharlie Hill-Smith
Produced byJamie Nicolai, John Cherry
CinematographyAngus Kemp
Music byDavid Bridie, Hein Arumisore, Jacob Rumbiak, Ronny Kareni, Donny Roem
CountryAustralia

Reception

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Andrew Fenton, The Advertiser states that Hill-Smith is trying to put too much into the film, writing "There are some powerful scenes but the overall result is an unfocused narrative that follows too many threads."[1] Sallie Don wrote in The Australian that "It's via the music that filmmaker Charlie Hill-Smith documents the story, and he pushes you to look beyond the few impressions you may have of this wild and mostly inaccessible part of the world."[2]

Accolades

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Year Award Nomination Nominee Result
2011 ARIA Music Awards Best World Music Album[3] David Bridie, Hein Arumisore, Jacob Rumbiak, Ronny Kareni and Donny Roem Nominated
2010 AFI Award Best Feature Length Documentary[4] Jamie Nicolai, John Cherry Nominated
2010 AFI Award Best Direction in a Documentary[4] Charlie Hill-Smith Nominated
2010 AFI Award Best Cinematography in a Documentary[4] Angus Kemp Nominated
2010 AFI Award Best Sound in a Documentary[4] Mik La Vage, Doron Kipen, David Bridie Nominated
2010 Inside Film Awards Best Documentary[5] Charlie Hill-Smith (director), Jamie Nicolai (producer), John Cherry (producer) Won

Soundtrack

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The soundtrack album Strange Birds in Paradise: A West Papuan Soundtrack was released through Wantok Musik.[6][7] It earned David Bridie, Hein Arumisore, Jacob Rumbiak, Ronny Kareni and Donny Roem a nomination for a 2001 ARIA Award for Best World Music Album.

Track listing

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  1. Land Of The Morning Star
  2. Jo Jo
  3. E Mambo Simbo
  4. Syofirumo
  5. Sup Sup
  6. Oweluk Tiage
  7. Mapnduma
  8. Yapo Mama Cica
  9. Garamutarama
  10. Awino Sup Ine
  11. Apuse
  12. Mystery Of Life
  13. To Samuai Tandu
  14. Kelly Kwalik Amungme Surge

References

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  1. ^ Fenton, Andrew (22 February 2011), "Strange Birds in Paradise: A West Papuan Story", The Advertiser
  2. ^ Don, Sallie (3 January 2012), "A creative statement to global silence", The Australian
  3. ^ Lesnie, Melissa (12 October 2011), "ARIA Award for Best Classical Album revealed", Limelight
  4. ^ a b c d Roach, Vicky (27 October 2010), "AFI Award nominees announced", Daily Telegraph
  5. ^ "Full list of IF Award winners", Sydney Morning Herald, 15 November 2010
  6. ^ Glorfeld, Jeff (5 August 2011), "5 August 2011", The Age
  7. ^ Hillier, Tony (20 August 2011), "Music Reviews", The Australian
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