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Page 1 of 2 THE RUNNING GAME is one of the best films made ever made about Rugby Union and is now available on DVD. It’s a personal interpretation of the 1981/2 Wallaby tour of the UK, an extraordinary insight into the people and the game itself.
CLASSIC RUGBY FILM NOW ON DVD Available exclusively from smartstreetfilms.com.au Saturday’s great victory over the Wallabies has a strange and interesting connection with the last time Wales won on this ground. The 1981-82 Wallabies lost three of their four Internationals on tour, only beating the Irish, there was an intense cold snap and current Welsh support staff, Manager, Alan Phillips and Physio, Mark Davies played that day. Then, it was all about pride, comradeship and love of the game. The amateur era is a world away from today’s short tours in a professional and sponsored sport. The other difference is that the Wallabies had a film team with them making a documentary about their tour. One of the last long tours of the amateur era. THE RUNNING GAME is one of the best films made ever made about Rugby Union and is now available on DVD. This is a documentary, not re-edited newsreel highlights. It’s a personal interpretation of the 1981/2 Wallaby tour of the UK and Ireland by film makers Haydn Keenan and Peter Fenton. An extraordinary insight into the people and the game itself. And it costs less than a round of drinks. The highlight of the film is the Welsh section - a beautifully observed hymn to Welsh culture and the deep roots Rugby has in it. The hospitality, pubs, choirs, landscape and voices of the people of Wales all help paint a vivid picture of the place and people. Lead up games with Swansea, Pontypool, Lllanelli and Pontypridd set the stage for a titanic clash at the Arms Park. This is a classic for anyone who enjoyed the talents of Gareth Davies, Richard Ackerman, Graham Price, Terry Holmes and Richard Moriarty or simply loves great rugby played by the best. Poetry, music and insight all come together in this film, capturing the spirit of Rugby as it was in 1982. For three months The Seventh Wallabies of 1981/2 made sacrifices to participate which can hardly be understood today. They were sustained by comradeship and hospitality as they travelled through Britain’s worst winter this century. The Running Game is a classic account of the Wallabies’ experiences on and off the field and was a revelation when released. For the first time cameras were allowed into a dressing room. Unrivalled access to the team and the use of ground breaking camera techniques and slow motion montages, complemented by specially composed music and verse, provides a moving and exciting tribute to some of the great players of a bygone era. From uncompromising captain Tony Shaw to Loane, Hipwell, O’Connor, Hawker, Cornelsen, Poidevin and the emerging genius of Mark Ella here are Wallaby legends to thrill younger viewers and take older ones back to a glorious time. It’s now on DVD from Smart Street Films. Available for the first time in Wales, the film is a timely insight into how the culture of Rugby has changed. In the years since it's initial release in Australia the stature of the film has grown. To lovers of the game and the players themselves it has become legendary. As former Wallaby captain Nick Farr-Jones said, " I always ensured that we took a copy of THE RUNNING GAME with us on tour. It is inspiring viewing. It stirs the heart and makes you feel accountable for past Wallaby traditions. Before two of our greatest victories, and we were underdogs both times, at Strasbourg against the French in '89 and again in Wellington in 1990 when we broke the All Black's 23 match winning streak, I played the tape for the team. The effect was tremendous and we won both games." Costing less than £13.00 the DVDs are available direct from the film makers - smartstreetfilms.com.au Not many National teams have their own poets and film makers in attendance to record their feats. But in Peter Fenton and Haydn Keenan the Wallabies have talented artists who captured their spirit with quality film making skills. PETER FENTON: Chief sound mixer on approximately 150 feature films including, Newsfront, Picnic At Hanging Rock, My Brilliant Career, Gallipoli, Phar Lap, Six Degrees Of Separation. During this period he coached a number of First grade Rugby teams and the Sydney rep side. He has made three films on Rugby and one on Boxer Les Darcy. He has had 7 books published including sports biographies and poetry. At present he is a columnist for Inside Rugby Magazine and works as bookies’ clerk when drinking money is low. HAYDN KEENAN: Award winning film Director and Producer. Feature films include 27A, Going Down and Pandemonium. Thirty five year career working the left field in Australian film means you have to be a sociopath or have a sense of humour. Haydn has managed to combine the two. Currently finishing a major documentary on Artist Rock Star Reg Mombassa of Mambo fame and rehearsing Samuel Beckett’s Krapp’s Last Tape. Further information Haydn Keenan 613 – 9521 8598 /
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Smart St. Films Pty. Ltd. Telephone (61 3) 9521 8598 Fax (61 3) 9597 0159 P.O.Box 198 Sandringham, Victoria, 3191, Australia
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