2024 10 30 – Media release
2.6 seconds. Photo credit: Jesse Marlowe.
SBS, NITV and Screen Australia have launched a ground-breaking documentary that brings to life the fateful encounter between two young men from two very different worlds in the isolated community of Yuendumu in the central Australian desert. We are proud to announce the production of the series 2.6 Seconds. One is black and the other is white.
2.6 Seconds is the story of how the paths of 19-year-old Warlpiri Luricha teenager Kumanjayi Walker and 27-year-old police officer Zachary Rolfe cross paths. It tracks the tearing apart of their and their families’ lives, and the collision of two notions of justice. This case is much more than these two men, telling a deeply compelling, insightful, and confrontational story about the country of their birth.
Angela Bates, Head of First Nations at Screen Australia, said: “2.6 Seconds not only explores the lives of Kumanjai Walker and Zachary Rolfe, but also navigates the complex intersections of culture and justice and explores the We empower our communities to share their truth.” The Department of Indigenous Peoples is proud to support such important projects that play a vital role in elevating Indigenous stories and promoting understanding for all Australians. ”
Joseph Maxwell, SBS’s head of unscripted, said: “With unprecedented access, 2.6 Seconds will provide insight into what happened on the night Kumanjai Walker was murdered, the trial that followed, and the impact on his family and community. We plan to conduct a forensic investigation into the impact.” This series will be a purposeful and powerful examination of these events and their far-reaching impact on the nation as a whole. This groundbreaking series reflects SBS and NITV’s role in telling important and challenging stories that impact the country.
Tanya Denning-Orman, Director of Indigenous Content at SBS and NITV, said: “The death of Kumanjai Walker tore lives and communities apart. For more than five years, we have all seen the media headlines. But now, for the first time, SBS and NITV are working with Blackfella Films to tell this important story and listen to the voices of those involved, and in doing so, open an important national conversation.”
Darren Dale, producer at Blackfella Films, said: “2.6 Seconds” vividly examines the circumstances in which a black teenager died at the hands of a white police officer in a place far removed from our sense of Australia, in four hour-long episodes. A place where you feel lost and almost forgotten, and a place where there are people who have “no rules”. This story reveals a justice system in which racism must be interrogated. It will shock, anger and hurt our hearts again. It will reveal who we still are as a nation. ”
NSW Head of Screen, Cath Hepworth, said: “Darren Dale and the team at Blackfella Films are renowned for presenting bold, ambitious and complex stories and have been involved in many of our country’s most important and important stories. With a focus on nuanced Indigenous stories, we hope this in-depth series will spark many important conversations across the country and be a watershed project for Blackfella Films.”
The four-part series, which will premiere on SBS, NITV and SBS On Demand in 2025, is produced by leading Australian production company Blackfella Films and stars Darren Dale (Australian Wars, Meet the “Neighbors”) and Jacob Hickey (“The Australian Wars,” “Addicted Australia”) are in charge of writing and producing. ) Appeared as a series producer.
Production credits: 2.6 Seconds is a co-production between SBS and NITV and produced by Blackfella Films. Major production investment from Screen Australia’s Indigenous division in partnership with SBS. Funded by support from Screen NSW. Produced in partnership with All3Media International.
SBS/NITV media inquiries
Nikita Jacka | 0425 171 192 | (email protected)
Media inquiries
Maddie Walsh |Public Relations Officer
+ 61 2 8113 5915 | (email protected)
Jessica Parry | Senior Publicist (Monday, Tuesday, Thursday)
+ 61 428 767 836 | (email protected)
Other general/non-media inquiries
Sydney + 61 2 8113 5800 | Melbourne + 61 3 8682 1900 | (email protected)
