By: Laura Bennett
The issue of homelessness is a prevalent one in Australia. Pre-pandemic, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said that on any given night in Australia one in every 200 of us will be homeless.
Last year, it was estimated that over 420 homeless people died on Australia’s streets and, increasingly, women over 55 are finding themselves without permanent accommodation.
In time for National Homelessness Week, Australian filmmaker Catherine Hill wanted to change perceptions of homelessness and inspire action to resolve it with her feature film Some Happy Day, a project that gives names and stories to faces often passed by.
“People [experiencing homelessness] are people with full dimensions, they’re not just a history of their trauma,” Catherine said.
“Trauma has brought them to where they are but they have goals: they simply want a place where they can feel safe, where they can afford to pay the rent and have people come back and socialise.”
“Trauma has brought them to where they are but they have goals: they simply want a place where they can feel safe…” – Some Happy Day filmmaker Catherine Hill
Some Happy Day follows Tina, a homeless woman in desperate search of a better life, who meets Frances, a social worker with troubles of her own. Over a single day their lives interweave, and they realise the unsettling, but eye-opening, connections between each of their worlds.
“They have a shared humanity,” Catherine said.
“I’ve always believed if you meet the right person at the right time your world can change, and for Tina, Frances is someone who looks at the strengths of Tina and acknowledges her goals.
“For Tina, it’s having someone actually listening to her, and validating what she wants.”
Some Happy Day is available on SBS On Demand from August 1. Find out more about the film’s social impact campaign and hosting your our screening via the official Some Happy Day website.
Article supplied with thanks to Hope Media.
All images: Movie publicity
About the Author: Laura is a media professional, broadcaster and writer from Sydney, Australia.