By Charlie Hill-Smith – writer & director Strangebirds in Paradise – West Papuan Story. The highest mountains between the Himalayas and the Andes are the snow-topped crags of West Papua (4884m). A shinning, tropical glacier pokes out of the sweltering green of Asia’s largest rain forests. This is the second largest island on earth, with 15% of [...]

NICK CHESTERFIELD is editor of West Papua Media. Strange Birds in Paradise: A West Papuan Story, feature documentary directed by Charlie Hill-Smith. Melbourne: The House of Red Monkey, 2010. 75min. www.strangebirds.com. au Soundtrack: www.wantokmusik.org/ artists_strangebirds.htm As the songman of freedom lies dying from an Indonesian bullet, his spirit spawns a great tree of life, feeding [...]

Documentary-maker Charlie Hill-Smith in West Papua with his hosts. Photo: Strangebirds.com.au Friday, October 21, 2011 Item: 7676 REVIEW: (Pacific Media Watch): As the Libyan revolution hit its peak last night with news of the death of tyrant Muammar Gaddafi, it was no wonder that events in West Papua couldn’t make it into the papers – [...]

by Anthony Bell | June 16, 2010 14:35 | Edited June 16, 2010 14:37 FILMINK sat down for an interesting chat with Australian director Charlie Hill-Smith about his documentary which recently screened at Sydney Film Festival… Director Charlie Hill-Smith’s Strange Birds of Paradise: A West Papuan Story recently screened in the documentary competition at the [...]

Controversial Documentary to play at Barossa Film Festival The Hill-Smith name is synonymous in the Barossa valley and around the world with excellent wine, but at the inaugural Barossa Film Festival 2011; it’s film, not wine on offer. Charlie Hill-Smith is the great, great grandson of Yalumba Wines founder Sidney Smith (1849), and he’s heading [...]

Oz-tak-lihat (Australia doesn’t see) Strange Birds in Paradise: A West Papuan Story (Charlie Hill Smith, 75 minutes Australia, 2009) has recently been released on DVD, with useful and entertaining extras. There are now a number of films available that help in challenging the silence that has characterised Australian politicians public dissimulation in relation to the [...]

Farcical Indonesian Tribunal Exposes Liturgy of Lies. By Charlie Hill-Smith As YouTube evidence of Indonesian soldiers burning the genitals of West Papuan, Tunaliwor Kiwo, beams around the world; the Indonesian military (TNI) has been exposed holding a cynical mock trial in an effort to cover up systemic violence. On command of Indonesian President Yudhoyono, Prime [...]

Strange Birds in Paradise By Stephanie BySouth ArtsHub | Wednesday, July 07, 2010 Australians have such a fascination with the Kokoda Trail, the hardship, the comrade, the pain and the tragedy of ‘defending our shores’, but we know little about West Papua. And we know even less about the suffering of its gentle indigenous people [...]