David Gulpilil

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David Gulpilil Ridjirimaril Dalaithngu AM (born 1 July 1953) is a Yolngu traditional dancer and actor.

Early life and education

Although Gulpilil was a child of 1953, he claimed in the 2021 documentary about his life, My Name is Gulpilil, that he had no idea how old he was. On July 1, 1953, local missionaries registered their birth, based on "guesswork." He was a man of the Mandjalpingu (Djilba) clan of the Yolngu people, who are an Aboriginal group of Arnhem Land in Australia's Northern Territory.

Gulpililililil, a young boy, was a natural hunter, tracker, and ceremonial dancer. Gulpilil spent his childhood in the bush, outside the normal range of non-Aboriginal influences, and was not aware of a white man until he was 8 years old. He had a traditional upbringing in the care of his family until the death of his parents, after which he attended the Maningrida School in North East Arnhem Land, where he was named "David." When he reached his youth, Gulpilil was initiated into the Mandhalpuyngu ethnic group. The kingfisher (the meaning of the word Gulpilil) was his skin group totemic animal, and his homeland was Marwuyu.

Gulipilil became fluent in English after appearing in his first film, Walkabout (1971), extending his linguistic skills in several Aboriginal languages.

Later life and death

In 2017, Gulpililil was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer and was barred from acting in 2019. His illness kept him from attending the 2019 NAIDOC Awards, where he was honoured with the lifetime Achievement award.

On November 29, 2021, Gulpilil died at his Murray Bridge, South Australia. Following his death, his family requested that he be referred to as David Dalaithngu for a period of time to avoid naming the deceased, but many news stories regarding his death refused to use the actor's professional name, while noting that the articles contained his name and image.

Tributes were published in Australia by political figures, including Minister Ken Wyatt, federal opposition leader Anthony Albanese, and South Australian Prime Minister Steven Marshall; actors include Hugh Jackman; film critics; and community elders and relatives, including Witiyana Marika. Long tributes and obituaries were also published in overseas news outlets.

Tandanya's blog on behalf of the Yolngu community and Gulpilil's kin was published on December 2nd, 2021.

The news was also announced in newspapers.

Personal life and family

During the filming of Walkabout, Gulpilililililililililililililililililil suffered from alcoholism having been added to grog. Several law clashes followed in later life. After an altercation at the home of a friend in Darwin, when Gulpilil had reportedly armed himself with a machete after he and his wife had been asked to leave the house by the homeowners, who had reportedly armed themselves with a totem pole and a garden hoe, they were charged with carrying an offensive weapon. However, he was found not guilty after the judge agreed that the machete was used for artistic purposes, including carving didgeridoos, and that it was not meant to be used as a weapon.

A Darwin magistrate issued a 12-month domestic violence order against Gulpilil in 2006 over a dispute that occurred against his wife, Miriam Ashley, who was barred from drinking while drinking. Gulpilililililil was charged with aggravated assault against Ashley in December 2010, with the court hearing that she had thrown a broom at her, fracturing her arm. In September 2011, he was found guilty and sentenced to twelve months in Berrimah Prison in Darwin. He finally became sober after this time in prison.

Airlie Thomas and Robyn Djunginy were among Gulpilil's other wives and partners. Phoebe Marson and Makia McLaughlin are two of his children's siblings. The lives of seven children were saved by Jida (a composer and actor), Milan, Makia, Andrew, Jamie, Phoebe, and Malakai. Witiyana Marika, a Yolngu elder, singer, and band member of Yothu Yindi, is his son by lore.

Several members of his family include: his twin sister (yapa), Mary Dhapalany, a leading weaver; his brother, Peter Minygululu; and intricate drawings; and former wife Robyn Djunginy, who was known for her bottle paintings. Bobby Bununggurr, a musician, dancer, and reconciliation advocate, is among his nephews (waku) and a peace advocate. The two guys travelled extensively together in the 1970s and 1980s, performing, dancing, and singing.

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Career

In 1969, Gulpilil's talent as a tribal dancer attracted British filmmaker Nicolas Roeg, who had been to Maningrida scouting locations for a forthcoming film. Roeg promptly cast the 16-year-old unknown in his internationally acclaimed motion picture Walkabout, which was released in 1971. Any portrayal of an Aboriginal character in Australia prior to this had been played by a white actor in blackface. This was also groundbreaking, because it was the first time an Aboriginal character had been depicted as sexually appealing. Gulpilil's on-screen charisma, as well as his acting and dancing abilities, made him an instant national and international celebrity. He travelled around the world, met with influential people, and was introduced to heads of state. He met and was enthralled with John Lennon, Bob Marley, Bruce Lee, Marlon Brando, and Jimi Hendrix, who were on tour to promote the film. Bob Marley taught Bob Marley how to play the didgeridoo, while Marley introduced him to "ganja."

In many more films and television shows, Gulpilil appeared in numerous more films and television adaptations. He was a lead actor in the commercially lucrative and critically acclaimed Storm Boy (1976). With his role as tribal Aboriginal man Chris Lee, he "dominated" the film The Last Wave (1977).

In 2003, ABC Television broadcast Gulpilil: One Red Blood, a documentary about his life. "We are all blood," Gulpilil says in a quote. We're all one blood, the same no matter where we come from.

Gulpilil was a major creative influence throughout his life in both dance and film. At the 2006 Cannes Festival, he created and narrated Ten Canoes, which received a Special Jury Award. Non-professional Aboriginal actors appear in the award-winning, low-budget film based on a 1,000-year-old tale of misplaced love and revenge. Gulpililil joined Rolf de Heer to film the film, but the director later pulled him out of the project for "complex reasons." Gulpilil also provided the storyteller's voice. In another film, The Tracker (2002), De Heer directed Gulpilil.

Think About It!, Richard Friar's hour-long independent film, starred him in 2007. Former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser, former Greens chief Bob Brown, and David Hicks provided insight into the campaign, which culminated in a detention camp in Guantanamo Bay.

He collaborated with De Heer again in 2014, this time sharing on screenwriting credits for Charlie's Country. The film received multiple awards, including Best Actor in Uncertain Regard at the Cannes Film Festival.

Gulpilil appeared in Molly Reynolds' documentary Another Country in 2015. Gulpilil narrates the tale of his life, beginning with the arrival of the first white men ("ghosts") in the form of missionaries, through The Intervention and the introduction of the BasicsCard, often concealing serious criticisms under his trademark humour.

When she produced My Name Is Gulpilil, which premiered at the 2021 Adelaide Festival, Gulpililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililililil

Gulpilil was known for presenting Aboriginal culture before it was threatened by white civilisations, but the irony is that he was removed from his own culture by doing so. He felt that he was trapped somewhere between the two worlds, with "one tiptoe in champage and caviar, the other in the dirt of his Dreamtime."

He appeared in the Adelaide Festival of Arts' autobiographical stage production, Gulpilil, to standing ovations. This film, co-written with Reg Cribb and directed by Neil Armfield, was based on stories of his life which were turned into a script. These included tales from Walkabout's construction, appearances at Buckingham Palace, and inadvertently triggering a bomb scare at Cannes. The performance was later staged in Brisbane and Sydney. In 1974, he appeared on stage in The Cradle of Hercules; in Brisbane, Prince Philip, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip; the Message Sticks Film Festival in Sydney in 2002.

Gulpililil, Australia's most popular traditional dancer, performed at festivals around the region, including the prestigious Darwin Day Eisteddfod dance competition, where he won four times. Gulipilil's dance troupe debating cultural and intellectual property rights and copyright issues for Australian Indigenous dancers was addressed at the second National Aboriginal Dance Conference in Adelaide (NADCA), which was hosted by the National Aboriginal Dance Council Australia (NADCA). In Rymill Park / Murlawirrapurka, a free concert was held. In 1999, the troupe was given a A$9,000 grant from the Northern Territory Government to attend the third conference in Sydney.

Gulpilil was also an outstanding storyteller throughout his career in dance, film, and television. He drafted the text for two volumes of children's stories based on Yolngu belief. These books also include photographs and drawings by Australian artists, as well as Gulpilil's admiration for the landscape, people, and traditional history of his homeland.

In the Art Gallery of South Australia's collection, a King brown snake with blue tongue lizard at Gulparil waterhole, painted by Gulpilil in 2013–14.

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