Secession Films

31/07/2025

Learn about the Ian Urquhart Cinereel Archive in this short film presented by Alexa Young and Andrew Garton. The archive provided source material for Secession Film's KNOW ME.

Introducing the Ian Urquhart Cinereel Archive, eight hours of silent Standard 8mm film shot by former British civil service officer, Ian Urquhart in Baram District,…

09/04/2025

Documentary Australia has just launched DocAccess, a new community resource to help you screen documentaries and inspire positive social change. Our film, Forged from Fire - the Making of the Blacksmiths' Tree, is featured on it!

DocAccess includes powerful playlists featuring 50+ documentary films on & , the , , + stories, including free tools and templates to help you host your screening.

DocAccess is a free resource to help communities and organisations access and screen documentaries, with tools and guides to run screening events.

13/02/2025

Secession Film's KNOW ME is completed and ready for screenings. Screenings will be announced at KNOW ME. A new trailer was released today :)

A poetic interweave of narration and restored film and video from two eras of Sarawak's forests and its people. Drawing of footage from two eras KNOW ME is…

12/09/2024

Thus far, everything in terms of post-production with KNOW ME is on track. Well on track to have this film completed by November, early-December at the latest. Screenings will be scheduled for 2025 and announced here and various other socials.

16/08/2024

Special shout-out and wild enthusiasm for Lesley Branagan's detailed and rigorous review of recent preview edits of KNOW ME. It's great when people say, "it's cool", but it's even better when someone says, "I don't think this is working" and asks, "what are trying to say here?" Lesley's that kind of person. A friend from way back when we both played in bands in Sydney. I encourage my friends to watch her wonderful, moving documentary on the astounding photographer, Robyn Beech - A Life Exposed: Robyn Beeche movie. Thanks to Lesley I got to meet Robyn in India shortly before she transcended. What a gift she was. Some of you are likely to recognise her iconic work.

Documentary film, 52 minsAustralian-born photographer Robyn Beeche became renowned in London for her ground-breaking photographs of painted bodies, and colla...

26/06/2024

In the past few days support towards the completion of KNOW ME has been astonishing. In a week we have raised just over $2000 of fully tax-deductible donations through Documentary Australia on top of $3000 through the Australian Cultural Fund.

Please consider a 100% tax deductible donation 👇 to KNOW ME and join our small community of supporters raising awareness to the need to protect the last of the wild forests and deepening our connection to them.

Sarawak’s forests yearn to be known before no one remains to hear their story.

17/06/2024

Since I last wrote here I've been chipping away at my next film, KNOW ME. As we are nearing the end of the financial year I would like to invite you to consider supporting the completion of KNOW ME with a tax-deductible donation. Not only will you help to complete my film, you will be supporting Australia's independent non-fiction filmmakers - 5% of each donation goes towards the work of the Documentary Australia Foundation.

https://documentaryaustralia.com.au/project/know-me/

Through the Australian Cultural Fund we were able to raise $3000 from supporters like you. Films are expensive to make. I'm hoping, at a minimum, to double this amount. Thank you kindly to everyone who has supported this project thus far. Thank you...

KNOW ME was filmed in Sarawak, on the island of Borneo, between 1954 and 2012. It is an intimate portrait of one of the last great forests and the indigenous communities that still live in them.

Told through the footage of British linguist and former District Officer, Ian Urquhart and my own, taken over 40 years since Ian last filmed there, it is as if the remaining forest yearns to be known before no one is left to tell its story.

Sarawak’s forests yearn to be known before no one remains to hear their story.

07/04/2024

Update on my new film, KNOW ME.

Sarawak’s forests yearn to be known before no one remains to hear their story.

28/06/2023

Join me on this new page >> KNOW ME

03/05/2022

We are very proud to announce that Occupational Therapy Australia have published a new book, titled: Doing Our Best: Individual and Community Responses to Challenging Times . The book features a short story based on our work with community health practitioners for the Forged from Fire screenings.

If you are interested in a copy, the book is now available for pre-order:

https://otaus.com.au/media-and-advocacy/doing-our-best