Stand Up Film Analysis

Australia, being the multicultural country that it is and has been for decades, some form of racial discrimination will always be inevitable. Through the use of characters and visual techniques, Australian Rules and ‘Stand Up’ from the TV series Redfern: Now are able to create a representation of the indigenous race and reflect on the racial attitudes toward them at the time. Australian Rules was released in 2002, and according to the events that occurred in the film, racism and racial divide was still very present in Australian society. On several occasions during the film, conflict is demonstrated amongst white Australians and indigenous Australians. ‘Stand Up’ on the other hand, creates a rather different representation of Indigenous Australians. …show more content…
The episode was released in 2012 and clearly indicates that there has been some ‘healing’ in racial discrimination between white Australians and indigenous Australians. Unlike Australian Rules, ‘Stand Up’ creates a representation of indigenous Australians through the use of sympathetic characters. Joel, the main character in the episode, refuses to sing the national anthem as he believes that the anthem conflicts with his aboriginal heritage and views on Australian history. With the help of Joel’s dad, they both make a ‘Stand Up’ against the principle of Clifton Grammar, which eventually leads to a termination in his scholarship. Joel’s willingness to stand up for what he believes in regardless of the consequences that may arise, represents aboriginals as a race that are proud people who are willing to sacrifice in order to protect their beliefs and who they are, whereas in Australian Rules, aboriginals are represented as being unable to stand up for racial injustice, who instead respond in a vengeful