The Journey

Australia, 1992

Film
Please note

Sorry, we don't have images or video for this item.

Based on the moving portrayal of the extraordinary journey to Japan of 74 year-old Billie Sinclair, who is deaf, blind and mute. Billie has been deaf since the age of two and lost his sight at age ten, but despite this he is a dedicated traveller who funds his trips by weaving and selling baskets. The landscape of his travels is one of touch and smell, imagination and even memory, for he can still remember the time before he lost his sight as a child. This remarkable man has survived and thrived. His is not a handicap but a blessing for it has encouraged him to keep searching and learning. In Japan he rides a roller coaster, tries his hand at Judo and visits a deaf and blind acupuncturist. His world is so sensual, one almost envies it. This documentary achieves a miraculous thing; it transports those possessed of all their senses into a world where communication is by touch alone. And even more miraculously, this world does not terrify.

Content notification

Our collection comprises over 40,000 moving image works, acquired and catalogued between the 1940s and early 2000s. As a result, some items may reflect outdated, offensive and possibly harmful views and opinions. ACMI is working to identify and redress such usages.

Learn more about our collection and our collection policy here. If you come across harmful content on our website that you would like to report, let us know.

How to watch

This work has not been digitised and is currently unavailable to view online. It may be possible for approved reseachers to view onsite at ACMI.

Learn more about accessing our collection

Collection

In ACMI's collection

Credits

director

Christopher Tuckfield

co-producer

Christopher Tuckfield

Patricia L'Huede

production company

Aeriel

Film Finance Corporation Australia

Duration

00:52:00:00

Production places
Australia
Production dates
1992

Please note: this archive is an ongoing body of work. Sometimes the credit information (director, year etc) isn’t available so these fields may be left blank; we are progressively filling these in with further research.

Cite this work on Wikipedia

If you would like to cite this item, please use the following template: {{cite web |url=https://acmi.net.au/works/83950--the-journey/ |title=The Journey |author=Australian Centre for the Moving Image |access-date=22 August 2024 |publisher=Australian Centre for the Moving Image}}