Powerful abuse survivor documentary to screen in Ballarat

SHOWBIZ Cinemas Ballarat will host a one-off screening of the survivor-led documentary Left Write Hook on Monday, February 24.

The 6.15pm screening will be followed by a Q&A session with people involved in its creation.

Left Write Hook had its world premiere screening at last August’s Melbourne International Film Festival, where it won the Audience Award for Best Documentary. A national cinema release followed in October.

The film follows eight female and gender-diverse survivors of childhood sexual abuse as they embark on a groundbreaking recovery program.

It combines the strength of boxing with the vulnerability of creative writing and aims to empower abuse survivors to release trauma, reclaim their bodies and reimagine their futures.

The post-film Q&A will be an opportunity for movie goers to hear from those with lived or living experience and to explore the research-based Left Write Hook trauma recovery program (featured in the film) as an alternative mode of justice and recovery for child sexual abuse survivors.

The Left Write Hook trauma recovery program combines boxing and writing to help childhood sexual abuse survivors.

The event has been organised by the Left Write Hook charity – which plans to start delivering the program here later this year – in partnership with the Ballarat Centre Against Sexual Assault and with support from the Collier Charitable Fund.

“The Left Write Hook charity delivers much-needed peer-led support to adult child sexual abuse victim survivors through our innovative, research-based, Left Write Hook trauma recovery program,” documentary producer and charity founder Dr Donna Lyon said.

“We know there is a demand for this program among the survivor community in Ballarat.

“We look forward to sharing at this event information about upcoming opportunities for local female and gender-diverse victim-survivors to participate in a Left Write Hook program in Ballarat this year.”

Writing is one element of the Left Write Hook program. The documentary of the same name will be screened in Ballarat on 24 February.

Dr Lyon will be among speakers at the Q&A session along with Lauren, a participant in the film, documentary filmmaker, researcher and movie writer/director Dr Shannon Owen, and University of Melbourne senior lecturer in criminology Dr Dave McDonald, whose research work examines child sexual abuse and survivor-led truth-telling responses.

Tickets are $10 and can be bought at events.humanitix.com/left-write-hook-documentary-screening-ballarat, with all proceeds to support the charity.

A trailer can be seen on YouTube at youtube.com/watch?v=vq_WC1_GGOc and the documentary’s official website is leftwritehook.film.

If you or someone you know is dealing with issues resulting from sexual or physical abuse, help is available from CASA on 1800 806 292 or casacv.org.au, Lifeline on 13 11 14 or lifeline.org.au, and 1800 Respect on 1800 737 732.