Crown and Country

About

Crown and Country is an ongoing digital work that supports and extends the film and album of the same name. Made by Wanta Jampijinpa Pawu-Kurlpurlurnu, his father Jerry Jangala Patrick OAM, and the music producer Marc ‘Monkey’ Peckham.

The film and album merges Warlpiri Jukurrpa (Dreaming) songs, cultural stories, soundscapes from the Tanami desert, and Marc's low slung rhythms in a compelling and immersive way of sharing Warlpiri culture with new audiences.

Our goal was to recreate the immersive experience that could honour the voices of Wanta and Jerry and capture the visceral emotions, sounds and visuals of the Lajamanu in the desert through the user interface of the website.

Playing a part in this project has been extremely special for us and opened up profound new ways of thinking and connections for us as a studio.

Wanta and Jerry's motivation to open up means for younger generations to connect with knowledge that has been passed down for thousands of years at such an crucial time in Lajamanu and Australia as a whole is extremely inspiring and meaningful.

Something special

The most meaningful part of this project began far from the screen. We travelled to Lajamanu, on Warlpiri country in the north Tanami, to sit with Wanta and his father Jerry Jangala Patrick. Listening, sharing food, learning on Walpiri country ceremony and conversation. Allowed us to make authentic connections.

Our role was not to translate or interpret, but to design a platform that could hold space and evoke the emotions and feelings of Wanta and Marc's beautiful work. The site is being built as a living archive, growing over time in step with the broader Crown and Country project, filming and making of the second album.

Lajamanu

Our cultural training happened on the job spending time with the team first in Darwin, NT and then in Lajamanu. Taking the 14 hour long bush bus into town was like being in a spaceship going into another universe, breathtaking views through the widescreen view of the windows. 


The overall sensory experience, sounds, smells and vista’s of the northern Tanamai desert is something we wanted to capture in the experience of the website. Layering sound and video into the site allows you to feel and be in Wanta’s Walpiri Universe.

Thank You

Crown and Country invites new forms of connection, reflection and belonging. Many thanks to Kim Williamson and Monkey Marc Peckham for facilitating this project and our trips to Lajamanu and Darwin. And of course to Wanta Jampijinpa Pawu-Kurlpurlurnu and his father Jerry Jangala Patrick for changing the way we see the world.