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Clip description
In order to explain the hierarchical nature of the Catholic church and how that can so easily lead to a mindless authoritarianism, Molony tells the story of how his superior denied him the right to attend his brother’s first big league football game.
Curator’s notes
To understand the impact of this extraordinary story, it’s important to understand that the revolution in sexual mores had not yet begun to change the world of young Australians. It’s in this context that we can appreciate what a huge decision it must have been for Molony to leave the church and for he and his wife to tell their story on prime time television.
When Chequerboard arrived on Australian television nothing like it had ever been seen before. Into our living rooms came stories of homosexuality, of struggle street and of young lives destroyed by drugs and alcohol. Robin Hughes recalls that the research team were trained to explain to prospective talent the impact it may have on their lives to have their story told on prime time television. Many of that initial team of researchers, trained by Robin Hughes, went on to become award-winning documentary filmmakers in their own right. They include Tristram Miall, Aviva Ziegler and David Roberts, to name just a few.
This is a great example of interview technique. A very concise story told in one long, unbroken take in extreme close-up, it is extremely effective in drawing the viewer in. It was very sophisticated for the time, and takes great skill from the interviewer to achieve.
