Chasing the Light – Norfolk Island

Last weekend, the place to be was at the Norfolk Island Ferny Lane Theatre for the world’s first viewing of the pre-screening of the film, Chasing the Light – Norfolk Island. On Friday the 11^th March and Saturday the 12^th March 2022, locals along with visitors filled the movie theatre with excitement to view the new Norfolk Island documentary.

Chasing the Light – Norfolk Island, was presented by Ray Martin and Ken Duncan along with the film crew camera man Andy Taylor, Trine Shephard the co-ordinator, and Norfolk Island local photographer Zac Sanders. Trine said the dream to create a beautiful documentary about Norfolk Island started seven years ago, has now been completed, ready to for the Norfolk Island community and the world to view.

SBS Australian television will be launching Chasing the Light – Norfolk Island, on Easter Sunday the 17^th April 2022, and it will be re-run about three times and will be also available on demand for Australian viewers. I hope it will also be made available for New Zealand and other areas around the world in the months to follow. Short clips will also be used as promotional material and made available for Norfolk Island Tourism.

Ray Martin (Raymond George Martin AM) is an Ambassador for Norfolk Island, he loves photography and has been a regular visitor for many years. Ken Duncan, (Kenneth McLeod Duncan OAM) Australian’s acclaimed landscape photographer and documentary presenter.

Ray and Ken were at the Ferny Lane Theatre for the unique pre-screening on the weekend. It was interesting to hear their introduction to their new Norfolk Island documentary Chasing the Light – Norfolk Island. Along with camera man Andy and co-ordinator Trina, they thanked the community for sharing their time for the documentary and people who showed them special places and Zac Sanders for assisting with location filming and the adventures out to Phillip Island and coastal bays.

If you didn’t get to see the weekend pre-screening, I will not give away too many details, but Chasing the Light - Norfolk Island, was capturing the people,

the connection to land, the beauty and character of Norfolk Island and the Norfolk Island community.

The project team have had a couple of busy years organising and filming of Chasing the Light – Norfolk Island. In 2021, the film crew visited Norfolk Island and they captured the annual Anniversary Day, also known as Bounty Day celebrations on 8^th June 2021. During April 2021 visit they filmed in many locations including the Norfolk Island Museum, the HMS Sirius Museum downtown in Kingston. I was at work at the museum that day and it was interesting to watch Ray and Ken as they were filmed, they both have a very relaxed style, and this showed in the finished production.

Thank you to everyone who have made this film possible, and those who gave time to assist with the making of the documentary. The film has been produced for Tourism Australia, SBS Australia and Norfolk Island Tourism.

After the film screening was completed, Ken Duncan presented images of some of his Norfolk Island landscape photographs. The panorama images are stunning and have fine detail as he captures scenery and sunsets and sunrises and the Norfolk Island magical dark skies with fantastic images at Kingston. Ken has the skills to capture high detailed photographs and stitch them together and prints these on high quality paper and he loves large prints and displays them in art and photographic galleries. He also had some of these photographs available to purchase.

When researching for this article I can across a link for Chasing the Light – Australia 2017.

This was also another film by Ken Duncan and Ray Martin.

https://www.facebook.com/chasingthelightdoco/?ti=as

Ray Martin has also made short promotional films for Norfolk Island, I found a 2016 clip on YouTube. Ray Martin Norfolk Island Ambassador - 1 Nov 2016

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_JoiJq172U&feature=share

If you didn’t get to see Chasing the Light – Norfolk Island on the weekend, remember to watch SBS on Easter Sunday 17^th April 2022, I am sure you will enjoy the film

Attached a few photos I took at Ferny Lane Theatre on the weekend at the pre-screening, plus photo credit Andy Taylor of the production team.

Betty Matthews

March 2022