What does it feel like leaving behind the only house you ever lived in and everyone you have known, to be cast adrift among strangers through long and risky sea journeys, without friends, without language and with no place to call home?
This is how more than one million post- World War II immigrants and refugees were effected by the ravages of war, economic despair and the shadow of the Cold War, as they disembarked at Port Melbourne, and faced a new life in Australia.
Up to the late 1970s, sea travel was the cheapest way to transport millions of people from beyond the Red Sea to Australia. The people featured in the AFTERWARDS series of short- form documentaries came to Australia as children, and in spite of an uncertain beginning, through stoicism, intellect and resilience, have raised families, built careers and are now distinguished Australians – creatively contributing to the fabric of 21st century Australian life.
These thought provoking stories of a shared Australian History are told with humility and dignity.