Jessica Mauboy has revealed the “struggle” to live in the Western world while remaining “connected” to culture as told through the story of Stan Original Film Windcatcher.
The 34-year-old singer has traded in her microphone for her acting hat, playing Aunt Cressida in the movie which centres around Percy Boy (Lennox Monaghan), a young First Nations kid who is given the gift of seeing Lost Souls — a concept, Jessica says, “we don’t ever get to see” portrayed.
“I think for First Nations mob and particularly for Aboriginal culture, we don’t ever get to see that and we don’t get to see it in this light,” Jessica told Chattr during an interview before the film’s March 28 release.
“And so this [Windcatcher] is going to be very important and such an insight of a young boy and how he deals with it.”
When prompted further, The Sapphires star admitted that the spiritual practice was “something that we rarely speak about in public”.
“We do speak about it to our mob and our circle of mob that do go through that experience,” she said. “And being passed on that ability to do so is a huge deal.”
Further to this, Jess said that “it’s something that I am extremely proud for young mob to do.”
“I think when you come out of the community, there’s a sense of lost belonging. There’s a sense of disconnection and a struggled connection because you want to live in a Western World, but you also want to remain connected to your culture and what you believe in.
“It’s a lot of weight to carry.”
Jessica, who has a very close connection to her familial roots having grown up in Darwin, NT, admitted that “it should be taught that you can have both worlds”.
“I think this film will be able to show that it is possible,” she said, before describing Windcatcher, as “incredibly heartwarming”.
“It’s got such a warmth…and it has a lot of hope,” she said.
After watching the film, Jessica hopes that families with young kids “go away stronger, and [feel] more connected.”
“[I hope] That these young kids go away leaning on their friends, while supporting them and believing in themselves. That’s the bubble of this of this incredible story.”
The Stan Original Film Windcatcher premieres March 28, only on Stan.
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