Sapphires, The (ATOM Education Kit)

ATOM Education Kits consist of downloadable learning resources to support educators with using media as teaching tools in the classroom.

Resources include an ATOM Study Guide (with Australian Curriculum links) and industry articles focused on critical analysis of key themes and narratives.

SYNOPSIS

The Sapphires (film) was inspired by a true story about four Indigenous women: sisters Laurel Robinson and Lois Peeler and their cousins Beverley Briggs and Naomi Mayers. These four Yorta Yorta women, born along the Murray River, were part of an extended family who regularly sang together in their community during the 1960s and 1970s. They toured Vietnam in the late 1960s, singing to American troops during the prolonged Vietnam War. 

KIT RESOURCES:

1. The Sapphires (ATOM Study Guide)

Suitable for a wide range of year levels, as are the issues it raises about indigenous Australians. Because of some swearing and non-explicit sex scenes, the film is mainly suited to middle to upper-secondary school levels.

Australian Curriculum subject areas/links:

• SOSE/HSIE
• English
• Media Studies
• Civics and Citizenship
• Politics
• Indigenous Studies
• Music Studies

2. Dulcet Delta Blues: The Sweet Soul Of The Sapphires (ARTICLE)

With its feel-good story, sassy cast and roster of jukebox classics, this film adaptation of the award-winning stage musical The Sapphires sets out to charm. But for Brian Yatman, the film sometimes sugar-coats the darker history it represents.

3. Screening The Sapphires: An Interview With Wayne Blair And Tony Briggs (ARTICLE)

The Sapphires (Wayne Blair, 2012) presents the unlikely story of four Aboriginal women travelling to Vietnam to sing for the troops. Cynthia Karena spoke to two of the creative forces behind one of 2012's biggest local successes.

4. Indigenous Soul: 'The Sapphires' Journey from Stage to Screen (ARTICLE)

Zoë Wallin investigates the development, politics and real-life backstory of the popular Australian comedy.