Zero-Point (ATOM Study Guide)

Kyle Burton, a young Indigenous man with the power to manipulate zero-point energy within all matter, works for the Australian Government's post-human taskforce 'AFECO' using the pseudonym Zero-Point. After thwarting a terrorist threat at an Australia Day celebration, Kyle begins to uncover evidence of a government conspiracy regarding a classified post-human program and the origin of super-powers in Australia. Then, while confronting the ultra-nationalist terrorist known as Samson, Kyle discovers more about the mysterious death of his father, the original Zero-Point.

Zero-Point explores the uses and abuses of power – both historically and in the contemporary world through the modern mythos of the superhero genre. Zero-Point and his nemesis Samson are both Indigenous Australians dealing with the colonial history of Australia and the trauma that is associated with the violence committed against their forebears. The series explores a range of topical and controversial issues, including nuclear testing on traditional land, immigration, terrorism, racial tension and post-colonial politics. Based on the original comic book by Jonathon Saunders, Zero-Point is a bold, dynamic, action-packed superhero series that contains a detailed world of characters and backstory. Although only briefly introduced in this first web series, this world provides a deep foundation for the story and characters which can be developed in future series.

Curriculum Links:

Zero-Point can be linked to the following subject areas in the Australian Curriculum and connects directly with the Cross Curriculum Priority Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Cultures:

• English: Years 8 – 10
• Humanities: Year 10

Zero-Point connects with the aims of the Australian Curriculum to address two distinct needs in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander education:

• that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students are able to see themselves, their identities and their cultures reflected in the curriculum of each of the learning areas, can fully participate in the curriculum and can build their self-esteem
• that the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Cultures cross-curriculum priority is designed for all students to engage in reconciliation, respect and recognition of the world's oldest continuous living cultures.

Used as an English text Zero-Point can be directly connected to the following Year 9 and 10 English Content Descriptions:

• Students engage with a variety of texts for enjoyment. They interpret, create, evaluate, discuss and perform a wide range of literary texts in which the primary purpose is aesthetic, as well as texts designed to inform and persuade. These include various types of media texts, including newspapers, film and digital texts, fiction, non-fiction, poetry, dramatic performances and multimodal texts, with themes and issues involving levels of abstraction, higher order reasoning and intertextual references.
• These texts explore themes of human experience and cultural significance, interpersonal relationships, and ethical and global dilemmas within real-world and fictional settings and represent a variety of perspectives
• Interpret and compare how representations of people and culture in literary texts are drawn from different historical, social and cultural contexts (ACELT1633)
• Present an argument about a literary text based on initial impressions and subsequent analysis of the whole text.

Students can also use this text as part of their study of History at Year 10 in which students are required to examine the history of the modern world and Australia in a global context. This text relates to the following Year 10 History Content Descriptors:

• Continuity and change in beliefs and values that have influenced the Australian way of life (ACDSEH149 – Scootle)
• Background to the struggle of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples for rights and freedoms before 1965, including the 1938 Day of Mourning and the Stolen Generations.
• The continuing nature of efforts to secure civil rights and freedoms in Australia and throughout the world, such as the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (2007) (ACDSEH143 – Scootle)