The Truth About the Telegraph

The Overland Telegraph Line is hailed as a technological feat that connected Australia to the rest of the world, but for the many Aboriginal nations across its 3,000 kilometre span, including the Kaytetye and Warumungu people, it's a different story one of strength and survival in the face of colonial violence.

Hailed as a triumph of technology, the Overland Telegraph Line was the frontier of British colonisation on the Aboriginal nations upon which it was built. Through firsthand accounts passed down through the generations this film explores the impacts of the Telegraph Line on two neighbouring Aboriginal nations, the Kaytetye and Warumungu people of Central Australia. From initial frontier violence through to the forced removal of children, this film shows that despite the violence of colonisation Aboriginal people have stayed strong and resilient in their understanding of the truth about the history of colonisation on their land.

As we walk through the buildings here and surrounding areas, this Overland Telegraph line history ... there's no mention of Aboriginal people at all.

— Ross Jakamarra Williams