David Batty has made some of the best loved TV shows and documentaries about Indigenous life. He and his Aboriginal collaborator Francis Kelly struck gold 15 years ago with the TV series Bush Mechanics, their hilarious take on getting around the outback with no roadside assistance. As a single dad in the early 1980s, David moved with his young son to Alice Springs. They thrived in a town where young whites were walking alongside a newly radicalised Indigenous population. David joined the media organisation CAAMA (Central Australian Aboriginal Association), and later made television programs in local languages for the Indigenous population, as well as historical documentaries. Seven years ago, a shocking personal tragedy took David to the brink. The solace he found through his work with his Indigenous brothers would save him. Now David Batty is back with a new screen adventure Black As set in crocodile-infested Arnhem Land, echoing the cult classic Bush Mechanics.
