Turning a lens to regional trauma and triumph

Danielle McAlpine Johnson’s no stranger to tough times and triumph, as a documentarian championing heroes of regional Australia.

Danielle McAlpine Johnson. Picture: Supplied

As a documentarian and resident of regional Victoria, East Gippsland’s Danielle McAlpine Johnson has an unflinching gaze, and a determination to amplify the voices who need to be heard the most.

But she’s unafraid to turn the lens to herself, and uses her own personal stories and experience with tragedy to ensure she remains fair, passionate, and loving to her subject matter.

Having grown up on an eight-generation family farm at Longford, Danielle now lives near Ninety Mile Beach with her husband and young children, after a career spent working in television both in Australia and overseas.

“I had just lost my mother to cancer and Dad was left on the farm by himself. Then the pandemic hit, and miraculously when the (television) industry shut down, we managed to get permits to shoot Beyond the Fire, about the disaster recovery from the Black Summer fires,” Danielle said.

“We realised that we didn’t have to have a studio, we could do all our documentary work from the farm, and live in this beautiful space.”

An award-winning documentarian, Danielle’s career has resulted in seven documentaries screened both in Australia and abroad.

Being able to work entrenched in East Gippsland during the fallout from the bushfires put Danielle in a position to connect emotionally with her subject matter, fostering deep connections with people affected by trauma.

“It was uncanny, the people we were working with were dealing with PTSD, trauma, and without realising it as well, I was probably recovering on a different journey. So reliving these stories over and over again, in the editor’s suite, you watch some of these stories up to 50 times, and it can be quite gruelling on your mental health,” Danielle said.

Working predominantly to amplify social justice stories with a regional focus, Danielle is now focusing on her next project, Rural Daughters, focusing on exposing the barriers and success stories of regional women nationwide.

Danielle has partnered with Federation University to publish a white paper, which has already gathered more than 1000 responses from women across the country, covering myriad topics including gender equality, distance and isolation, higher rates of domestic and family violence, the limitations to healthcare services, education and training, natural disasters, childcare, and more.

One story has stayed with Danielle for many years, after wrapping production on Beyond the Fires.

Documentary maker and regional Victorian Danielle McAlpine Johnson. PICTURE: Supplied

“A gentleman who had played the banjo his entire life, he stayed to fight the fires and it wiped out everything … he stopped playing his instruments afterwards. He shared his story with us … he was able to share his story uninterrupted for 45 minutes,” Danielle said.

“He picked up his banjo again, and has played it daily since. He felt seen, and he felt heard.

“Going through all those things it helps you have a real sense of understanding when you’re working with people who are really tender. Our company ethos is about telling stories where passion meets pain, and you find purpose. I find the pain I’m going through, I’ll marry it with this beautiful purpose,” she said.

The Shine Awards is a joint partnership between The Weekly Times and Harvey Norman that is a true celebration of women right across rural and regional Australia.

Use the form here to nominate a rural or regional woman who is making a real difference to her community or industry, and shine a light on their incredible achievements.

Or, send an email to [e-mail]

Nominations close on October 23.