In the Painted Stories film, narrator Vera Koomeeta (Wik-Alken and Wik-Mungkan) tells of the importance of keeping the languages spoken at Aurukun strong and shows how she and other artists and Elders are using their paintings, artwork, language and song to pass on their knowledge of country to younger generations through the Painted Stories and Life Stories Projects.
It is an ongoing process that takes three artists and Elders, Mavis Ngallametta, Vera Koomeeta and Ada Woolla, all the way to Hawai’i to present their creative methods of language revival at the International conference Vital Voices: Linking Language and Wellbeing in Honolulu.
On the closing night they lead the audience in a traditional women’s dance celebrating the coming together of First Nations people from around the world to share their languages and cultures and ways to keep them strong.