“On the other side of the world“
Have you ever wondered how the first Cretan arrived in Australia? Who were those brave people who began a journey into the unknown with no supplies, but with a tenacity for life?
Georgios Dokos arrived in Melbourne in 1848 searching for gold and so the history of the Cretan people in Australia began at that same moment. 175 years later we are telling this story.
In the documentary film entitled « On the Other Side of the World » we describe the history of the Cretans in Australia, which is based to a large degree, on the book that was published in 2009 by author and historian Mr. Socrates Tsourdalakis titled “ the Cretans of Oceania from the 19th Century “ and also will include new research from his second book titled “ The Cretan Pioneers of Australia “ that will be published in 2023.
Andriani Aggelidaki, a well-known senior journalist from Crete, travels to Australia searching for this story. She questions, she thinks, she searches. She meets Cretans who keep Crete alive. An entire Crete on the other side of the world. So in the documentary “On the Other Side of the World” we see the beginning of the history of the Cretans in Australia. The people who left our island and moved to Australia, building their lives from scratch.
Andriani meets academics, historians, researchers in Greece and Australia. First, second and third generation Cretans, but also representatives of our Crete who keep the “dialogue” with expatriates alive. These are the protagonists of our documentary.
A whole Crete… on the other side of the world. Through human stories as well as historical, in-depth testimonies, we describe the great history of the migration of the Cretans to the land of Australia and of the migration of the Greeks in general.
Proud to be Cretan
Crete is united in order to make and support this documentary film. Highlighting how Cretans are living in Australia, makes us proud. We will go “On the other side of the world” because we have to.
Partners and entrepreneurs from Crete and Australia are rallying around this project that goes beyond us. Everyone’s contribution is particularly important to be able to tell the story of the Cretans as it really deserves.
This large project is funded by the Region of Crete and the financial assistance of the Cretan Federation of Australia & New Zealand. The documentary film will be produced by EyeQ Creative Media Productions. The official screenings will take place in October in Iraklio and Crete and in November in Melbourne and Sydney. For more information at [email protected] or at [email protected]