Culture

Oranges & Sunshine Written by Rona Munro, directed by Jim Loach Starring Emily Watson, Hugo Weaving & David Wenham Showing now in selected cinemas Oranges and Sunshine is a film adaptation of the book Empty Cradles, written by Margaret Humphries. Humphries was a Nottingham part-time social worker (played by Emily Watson), who investigated the forced relocation of British children to Australia from British orphanages.

If James Alberts, better known as Adelaide-based rapper Jimblah, hadn't discovered hip hop, he could well have ended up serving time in prison. Instead, he now serves prisoners in prison, by teaching them.

Finding Santana By Jill Jolliffe Wakefield Press, 2010 177 pages, $24.95 (pb) Jill Jolliffe's encounter with the Komodo Dragon, a carnivorous, aggressive, pre-historic lizard, was "hair-raising". But even more threatening were the murderous agents from the Indonesian secret police, with their de facto uniform of "cropped hair, trim moustache, Rolex watch and Ray-Ban sunglasses".

Realm of Suppression An exhibition by Didotklasta Harimurti Free Range Gallery 399 Wellington St Perth July 22-26 July Didotklasta Harimurti, an Indonesian social activist, visual artist, theatre director and writer, will hold an exhibition of his drawings at the Free Range Gallery in Perth in July. Titled Realm of Suppression, this will be his first solo exhibition in Australia.

When the multi-award-winning journalist John Pilger needed researchers for his latest film,  The War You Don’t See, he turned to David Edwards and David Cromwell. The pair run media-analysing website Media Lens, which turned 10 years old on July 9. Here, they answer some of the “more interesting” questions posed by their readers, plus a couple from Green Left Weekly’s  Mat  Ward. Why did you start Media Lens?

When the multi-award-winning journalist John Pilger needed researchers for his latest film, The War You Don’t See, he turned to David Edwards and David Cromwell. The pair run media-analysing website Media Lens, which is set to turn 10 years old on July 9. Here, they answer some of the “more interesting” questions posed by their readers, plus a couple from Green Left Weekly’s Mat Ward. * * * Why did you start Media Lens?

Indigenous rapper Caper says a backlash from his fans caused Facebook to reverse their banning of the video to his song "How Would You Like To Be Me?" (lyrics below). The song, which addresses racism in Australia, has enjoyed extensive radio airplay, becoming one of the most requested songs on Magic FM. The 30-year-old musician, otherwise known as Colin Darcy from Whyalla in South Australia, said in a post on the social networking website: "Whoever reported my new video 'How Would You Like To Be Me' as offensive has actually stopped it from being promoted on facebook.

Wild International Art exhibition by Sam Bullock June 1-July 2 Andrew Baker Gallery 26 Brookes St, Bowen Hills Brisbane www.andrew-baker.com Sam Bullock has a wonderful artistic talent. He is also autistic.

The Sydney Film Festival, held over June 8-13, featured 161 films from 42 countries. Every one of the eight films I was able to see was packed out, even the beautiful State Theatre which holds more than 2000 people. Four films I saw are a must-see if they ever get a general release in suburban cinemas. The first was Sing Your Song, a biography of African-American singer and actor Harry Belafonte.

They’re a part of the human race Searching for a safe place To rise from their despair To be part of the world that seems fair Without wars Famines Or destruction That stops all means of production So they begin to flee Unwilling to live amongst the debris Where they lost friends Without any warnings Where they lost family Indefinitely… When they arrive Freedom is limited in order to survive Due to a lack of understanding With the government demanding Brief medical attention A lack of food and mental exhaustion A place we like to call mandatory detention

Marcel Khalife, born in 1950 in Amchit, Lebanon, has injected new life into the music produced by the oud (the Arabic lute) ― helping revive an important part of Arabic culture. Khalife studied the oud at the Beirut National Conservatory of Music and graduated in 1971. From 1972 to 1975, Khalife taught at the Beirut National Conservatory of Music, public universities and local private music institutions. During that period, he toured the Middle East, North Africa, Europe and the United States giving solo performances on the oud.

Soccer is the great global game: the closest thing we have to a connective cultural tissue that binds our species across national and cultural borders. But only in a world so upside down could “the Beautiful Game” be run by an organisation as corrupt as FIFA and by a man as rotten to the core as FIFA President Sepp Blatter. Only Blatter, whose reputation for degeneracy approaches legend, would hire a war criminal such as former United States secretary of state Henry Kissinger to head “a committee of wise persons” aimed at “rooting out corruption” in his organisation.