Film Offers Heart and Help
By Rudi Maxwell
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| Ashley Kilner, 20, has been living on the streets for the past three years. He is going blind and has just been cut off benefits by Centrelink. You'd think he'd be bleak about his future, but BIG hART, an arts-based organization headed by actor Rachel Ward, currently making a film in Lismore, has given him hope. 'Being involved in making this film has given me a reason to get up in the morning and not neck myself,' Ashley said. BIG hART is a community arts-based organisation working with disadvantaged young people in rural and remote communities. It combines the gifts of isolated people and the skills of professional arts mentors. A four-member film crew is currently shooting the film for BIG hART. They chose Lismore because it lacks youth facilities. The team hopes to give young people skills they can use to improve their lives. The film, which will screen in Lismore on November, has two parts - a documentary section in which young people tell their stories, followed by a fictional drama created by the youths with scriptwriting help from Ms Ward, star of The Thorn Birds. |
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| Ashley is one of the stars in the film and has proved to be a natural for the industry. 'It deals with the issues of alcohol and drug use. I've helped with the sound, editing and production. I play the bad guy - I'm racist and violent. I hope people I know will understand this is just a character and I'm just acting. I'm actually a pretty nice guy,' he said. For a nice guy, he deserves a few breaks. Ashley has a rare degenerative eye condition, which leads to total blindness. The federal Government has denied him a sickness benefit. He tells his story without a trace of self-pity. 'I'm on the waiting list for an operation, but it will cost me $4,000 for each eye and obviously I don't have that sort of money. Without the operation, within the next year I'll be completely blind.' But Ashley is not despondent and hopes to use his experiences to help others. 'I'd like to raise awareness that not all people on the streets are bad guys. You're looked upon as a criminal, alcoholic or drug addict. It's not always the case. There's a lot of people who've had a lot of hardship and haven't had a lot of opportunities who just need a helping hand. A lot of people just need something to get started,' he said. 'I think most people aren't aware of the problems that we face and unfortunately often their perception is that our situation is all our own fault and we don't want to help ourselves. That's simply not true,' he said. Ashley has learnt a lot from the BIG hART project. 'The film group has been absolutely wonderful. They're trying to help me get a job. I can't work in areas where I'm qualified - motor mechanic and chef - because of my eyesight, it would be very dangerous. The BIG hART are putting a foot in the door for me. If I can get a job then I'll be fine - I can start my life from there,' Ashley said. He hopes to become a youth counselor and advocate. But in the meantime, there's his acting career. Rachel Ward and Lismore mayor Bob Gates will launch the Lismore BIG hART project, with a screening the film next Friday, November 16, at the Star Court Theatre, Lismore, at 5pm. This story was found at www.echonews.com/744/index.html |
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