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Clip description
In the pre-titles teaser Clancy (Liza Goddard) gallops on horseback through beach and bush amidst the usual array of featured Australian animals, including a snake which spooks her horse. She falls heavily, observed by a group of Aboriginal men (members of the Aboriginal Theatre from Yirrkala in Arnhem Land). The opening titles then introduce the world of Skippy, her human family and the special relationship between Sonny (Garry Pankhurst) and Skippy.
Curator’s notes
Showcasing the bush setting and a wide variety of Australian animals, this clip also sets up the ambiguous and mysterious presence of an Aboriginal group, in reality from Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory, but supposedly living in this NSW National Park.
The series was shot in northern Sydney at the Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park and adjacent Waratah Park. Twenty-four acres of land was set aside and permission granted to film in a further 500 acres of National Park and to build structures including Ranger Headquarters, roads and a helipad, as a way of showcasing the new NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service department. The Australian bush setting and abundant wildlife proved a big hit with both overseas and local audiences.
