Video Release
Wide Open Space Festival is celebrating their 10th anniversary this May 4-6 2018, and have released a special video that captures the magic of WOS as experienced by Nai Palm, the lead singer of Hiatus Kaiyote. ‘Wide Open Circle’ follows Nai’s desert journey earlier this year as she collaborates with local Indigenous band Kardajala Kirridarra, sharing stories that circle back to the importance of the space and place that is at the heart of WOS.
Click image above to watch the video on YouTube.
Wide Open Space festival’s goal is to draw people to the incredible centre of Australia, helping to create connections between people and place through an arts and culture celebration. Thanks to funding received for our 2017 event from Tourism NT, WOS facilitated and filmed the ‘Wide Open Circle‘ video, helping to shine a light on the magic that happens in Central Australia, investigate why people keep returning year after year and honestly share some of the vibrancy that makes Wide Open Space the one festival to commit to in 2018!
‘Multi-dimensional polyrhythmic gangster’ band, Hiatus Kaiyote, hails from Melbourne and singer Nai Palm reflects in the video that Wide Open Space was where her debut festival performance happened, many years ago. Nai shares her own Wide Open Space journey, reflecting on her connection with the land. Nai says, of the environment “There’s something deeply spiritual about this place.”
Perched atop the hill, surrounded by the East McDonald Ranges at Wide Open Space festival, Nai considers all the other festivals that she has had the pleasure of playing at around the globe, and on what makes WOS so special: “it’s a small festival, but it’s all vibe… it celebrates the land (and this is) profoundly beautiful.” This combination of setting, culture and art has seen the event grow a dedicated following with more people attracted to the wonders of the desert every year and become one of Australia’s most enigmatic festivals.
The audience joins Nai on her desert journey to meet and collaborate with the incredibly talented all-female band Kardajala Kirridarra, where new music is cooked up in studio sessions, and then performed at their headline performance at the festival. The Kardajala Kirridarra (translates to Sandhill Women) are a permanent fixture on WOS line-up these days, with their incredible melodies and beats delivering a beautifully woven electronic tapestry. Descendants of a mysterious bush woman from the Northern Territory, these compelling women are from the communities of Marlinja and Kulumindini (Elliott), together with Melbourne based producer Beatrice.
WOS would like to thank their sponsors: NT Government, Festivals NT and TravelNT.com.
Wide Open Circle was produced by Wide Open Space festival, and credits go to David Nixon (Write, Direct, Edit) Scott Large (Executive Producer) and Andre Sawnko, Tibor Degedis and Ollie Eclipse for post-production.
Feature Image Photo credit: Jewelszee