EPISODE 1

Within episode 1 the audience is given insight into the differing perspectives of individuals
Each participant is reflective of the different mentalities and stances held by Australians on a vast spectrum
Inclusion of the Christmas Island boat crash is utilised to gain empathy from the viewer
Political statements from opposing parties indicates the shared views against refugees within politics
Recognises the composers aim to change the mindset held by Australians and politicians so that positive change may occur
Elements within episode 1
Introduction to participants and the nature of the documentary and its purpose
Insight into relative experience of refugees unaware when embarking on the journey
Introduced to the Massoudi family and Wasmi and the other Iraqi refugees
Knowledge gained about the participants and their current understanding of the situation
Audience becomes aware of their contexts through both personal profiles as well as their initial interactions with people of the
refugee status
Audience becomes aware of the values held by participants
What a better way to understand the refugee experience than by living it - David Corlett
Their beliefs will be challenged in extreme situations - Anton Enus
But what do we know of those who risk life and limb to reach these shores - Anton Enus
Contributes to the audiences understanding of the experiences of Refugees as well as explains the purpose of the text
Reaction when phones and passports are confiscated
Discovery that the participants would lose contact with their own families
Reflective of the experience undertaken by boat people

EPISODE 1 HOW ARE THEY PRESENTED WHAT DO WE LEARN ABOUT THEM AND WHAT DOES IT TEACH
US ABOUT DISCOVERY

RAYE - When the boat crashed on Christmas Expected empathy as social worker
Island I thought, served you bastards right!
- Social worker
- initially introduced to her as a rageful figure
- portrays Raye as ignorant and
condescending
This is the beautiful inverbrackie detention The manner in which she describes it informs the audience of her lack of
centre knowledge
Use of the word beautiful refers to a superficial and exterior based
understanding of the situation
Indicative of Rayes initial viewpoint
 I could have gone there with a gun and shot
the lot of them
Upon the confiscation of their items Raye is
distraught this is harsher than death row
Demand all this freedom, all this generosity
Through interaction with Maisara:
I lost my baby like that because I dont have
money
RAQUEL I guess i am a bit racist, I just dont like
Africans
Unemployed from Western Sydney
Low tolerance for non caucasian people
DARREN Businessman from adelaide
Should immediately be expatriated
Further evidence of ignorance
Hyperbole that makes the loss of one's identity - a concept within the
boat journey much more confronting
Accentuates the struggles faced by refugees
- Raye suggests that the experiences of Refugees is satisfactory
- minimal understanding
- her initial understanding was shaped by her context
- She was only given an exterior view from which she molded her
attitudes
Appeals to Rayes maternal side
Discovery that Maisaras experience deeply resonates with Raye due to
her past miscarriages
It is through the maternal connection and the value Raye places on
family that empathy is evoked from her
Raye is an example of a participant who through interaction with
refugees is able to make an almost immediate shift in perspective
Rayes transformative process was evident throughout all three episodes
I didnt really like their food, but I didnt want to say that
- Makes audience aware of the fact that despite Raquels disdain
for African people, she still possesses manners
This is then juxtaposed by her statement I dont like African people
anyway, so it was hard to be nice
- Contributes to understanding of her values and context
- Growing up in Western Sydney
- Blacktown is really black town
- Darren in interview with Wasmi is shown as insensitive
- His pervading necessity to interrogate as opposed to showing
compassion is reflective of his own views and values
- His insistence that the journey by boat is too dangerous and his
deducing of risking ones life as unfathomable highlights his personal
values
- His relation to his own personal experience through the value of his
sons
 - teaches the audience that Darrens value for his family impedes his
ability to feel empathy for those who dare to risk their lives and make the
journey

GLENY Singer - In a sense Gleny acts as a control throughout the social experiment
Open minded - Her tolerance affirms the notion that discovery is a process that not only
stems from a total shift in perspective but also the ability to enhance and
extend ones understanding of an issue
Detention centres are inhumane

ADAM These criminals - Adam

Cronulla lifeguard
Took part in the cronulla riots
Communicating negative view toward
refugees

EPISODE 1
TECHNIQUES USED WHAT IT CONVEYS HOW IT IMPACTS ON DISCOVERY

Opening montage: archival footage of
christmas island boat crash and politician
statements
I stand for stopping the boats before they
leave foreign shores - Gillard
We must stop the boats - Abbott
Shows true and real images that have
been recorded footage has not been
created or staged
Adds history and factual footage
Credibility for the documentary
Gains empathy
Foreshadows the succeeding events
Shows that despite Australia having
opposing political parties, both share
the same view
Representative of lack of empathy and
unawareness of Australians regarding
the issue
The footage of the Christmas Island
boat crash is a technique utilised by the
composer in order to establish the
desperation and the danger that the
individuals undertake in the journey to
get to Australia
Establishes the composer's aim to
convince the audience of the need for
change
Gains empathy from viewer
Refugees, asylum seekers, boat people
Personal profiles
Use of diegesis - anton enus
High angle shot of participants at the old gaol
house
Dr David Corlett
First hand account and interviews
By distinguishing between the three the Refugee: recognised under the 1951
audience is made aware of the three convention on refugees
perspectives held by australians Asylum seeker: seeking international
protection but status as refugee not yet
determined
Boat person: illegal immigrant, queue jumpers
The show employs the use of personal Communicate to the audience the initial
profiles in order to summarise the perspectives
individual's stance on the refugee
situation
Conveys the context in which the
individuals were placed
deep and authoritative male voice Diegesis delivers information that enhances
which can easily lead the audience to the audience's understanding of the refugee
feel that what he is saying is true experience and allowing the audience to
narrator uses very subjective and discover
emotional language such as the words
torturous, war, and death,
audience could easily feel that these
emotions are factual and true without
questioning it because the voice
sounds very knowledgeable
Suggest that they are small and small minded
Acts as an informant for the audience of the Life changing experiment
events and highlights specific and crucial Dangerous refugee journey
information Volunteering for this unique experiment
The use of first hand account footage
and interviews adds weight and clarity
to an argument or point of view
Authenticity
The inclusion of the participants
questioning reveals the spectre of
 emotions that individuals may feel
when confronted

Episode 1 of Go Back introduces viewers to six australian individuals who acts as participants in a social experiment that relatively
documents the refugee experience in reverse
Each of the six individuals offer different stances and views regarding the refugee debate and each individual is reflective of their own
personal context
The first episode is a crucial element of the discovery process as it documents the initial stage of discovery which demands individuals to be
placed apart from their usual surroundings
The use of the montage that begins the series consists of archival footage that both gains credibility for the documentary whilst gaining
empathy
The inclusion of the christmas Island boat crash is both used factually as evidence of the event and also as an instigator to convey to the
viewers the desperation of these individuals
Political statements from opposing political parties communicates need for change within the parliamentary bodies
The first episode documents the initial perceptions of refugees held by each of the participants and it is evident through the first episode that
the values and contexts that influence a person either impedes upon, or accelerates their ability to discover
Through the documentaries use of personal profiles, the composer at the beginning of each episode reveals to the audience the initial
viewpoint of the participant allowing the audience to keep track of the

EPISODE 2 HOW ARE THEY PRESENTED WHAT DO WE LEARN ABOUT THEM AND WHAT DOES IT TEACH
US ABOUT DISCOVERY

RAYE

RAQUEL
DARREN

GLENY

EPISODE 2
TECHNIQUES USED WHAT IT CONVEYS HOW IT IMPACTS ON DISCOVERY
EPISODE 3 HOW ARE THEY PRESENTED WHAT DO WE LEARN ABOUT THEM AND WHAT DOES IT TEACH
US ABOUT DISCOVERY

RAYE

RAQUEL

DARREN
GLENY

EPISODE 3
TECHNIQUES USED WHAT IT CONVEYS HOW IT IMPACTS ON DISCOVERY
INFORMATION ABOUT DISCOVERY IN ALL THREE TEXTS
Discovery consists of stages, it is a transformative process through which individuals gain either new or renewed perceptions and attitudes
Discovery begins with the initial stage where individuals are placed in environments that differ from their usual surroundings
Individuals must be open minded to an extent in order to let discoveries occur
Discoveries are relative to a persons willingness to learn
Darrens closed mindedness affected the process of discovery
He was not able to immerse himself in the experience enough for him to have a complete shift in his stance
It was revealed that despite Raquels apparent closed mindedness, the response made viewers aware of her intentions on
joining the social experiment
Rayes understanding of the need for her to gain a renewed perspective allowed her to have a total shift in her views
ASPECT OF DISCOVERY GO BACK I HAD BEEN HUNGRY ALL THE LOVE AND HONOUR
documentary YEARS Short story
poem

EMPATHY

CONFRONTING
PROVOCATIVE

EVOKED BY CURIOSITY
SUDDEN AND UNEXPECTED

NEW WORLDS AND VALUES

FUTURE POSSIBILITIES

NEW UNDERSTANDINGS
RENEWED PERCEPTIONS OF
OURSELVES AND OTHERS

VARY ACCORDING TO
CONTEXTS AND VALUES
- personal
- historical
- social
- cultural
IMPACT FAR REACHING AND
TRANSFORMATIVE

QUESTIONED OR
CHALLENGED WHEN VIEWED
FROM DIFFERENT
PERSPECTIVES
WORTH ASSESSED OVER TIME

RAMIFICATIONS DIFFER FOR

INDIVIDUALS
TEXTS POTENTIAL TO AFFIRM
OR CHALLENGE WIDELY HELD
BELIEFS

PROCESS OF DISCOVERING
THROUGH LANGUAGE MODES,
FORMS AND FEATURES