At this very moment, in a small town called Bentley, bulldozers are poised on the brink of destruction. Destruction of clean, safe drinking water, destruction of the local flora, fauna and ecosystem, destruction of the health and well being of…

There is little question that ‘Morning of the Earth‘ is one of the most profoundly influential surf films of all time. ‘The Endless Summer’, ‘The Hot Generation’, Albe Falzon’s magnum opus is in very distinguished, and very minimal, company. When…

As I have recently written, Bali, in the sense of a picture-postcard, tropical paradise, has had its time. Murky waters, trash like confetti on streets and beaches and more traffic year-round than Byron Bay on Boxing Day has left the…

As I write this, I am surrounded by palm fronds and broad, green banana leaves. I sit at a rough hewn timber table, a thatched roof sheltering me from the tropical sun, my love sitting across the table from me,…

There was a time when tattoos were for sailors and criminals. Ink in the skin meant travels to far-off lands, an anti-establishment attitude or gang memberships. A beautifully ornate sleeve of koi carp, dragons and abstract swirls struck fear into…

Meat is as ingrained in Australian culture as VB, thongs and kangaroos. Ask any foreigner to utter an Aussie phrase and chances are it’ll have something to do with throwing a meat-based product on the ‘baahh-bee’. So when this devout…

Mel Dobra is calm – uncannily calm, given that she is just about to embark on an East Coast album launch tour, her first album nonetheless, and also the first time she has undertaken more than the odd one-off show…

The phrase ‘film festival’ usually conjures one of two images; there is the picnics-in-the-park, champagne in plastic cups, big screen under falling night scenario on the one side, and on the other, the Palm d’Or, Hollywood, red carpet and celebrities…

I awake—the diminutive weight of her delicate frame rocking me gently as she perches lightly on the edge of the bed—and I know she has come to say goodbye. I summon as much energy as these pre-dawn moments will allow;…

I heard a quote recently that has buried its way deep inside my mind and heart and, like some wonderful and beneficial parasite, has been steadily growing within me, overcoming me and permeating every aspect of my existence. It comprises…