Directors Statement

Someone's Taken Our History

When Graeham told me that he wanted to make a music video for Someone's Taken Our History, I was thrilled because I knew that I could make something that would be a strong visual accompaniment to this cathartic song.

My solution to the challenge of visually rendering the idea of history being appropriated was to show emotive excerpts from historical Little River Band footage on televisions being carried out of a warehouse by three masked and anonymous thieves. The decision to have the thieves clad in black body suits and wearing masks was a way to symbolise one of the consequences of identity theft -- the loss of one's own identity.

Another consequence, at least in my mind, is the imprisonment of one's soul caused by a conscience racked with guilt. This idea is rendered visually when the thieves are suddenly imprisoned inside the televisions -- the vessels of history -- after it becomes apparent to the thieves that the amount of history contained in each "television" has made them too heavy to carry, and therefore, to take.

The decision to end the clip with Graeham strumming on a beach at daybreak in front of his "captive" audience was based on my firm belief that this dark chapter in Graeham's life has made him both a stronger person and a more empowered artist -- the dawn of a new and exciting era in his life. And I don't think the outcome would have been any different because the creativity that helped give rise to the rich and inspiring history of the Little River Band is something that Graeham will always own.

Matt Holcomb
2006

Back to Media