Comparing Ivan Sen's Beneath Clouds with Hannie Rayson's Inheritance. For preparation for a Comparative Essay (Compare and Contrast). Covers plot, text type, creator, themes, Motifs, Symbols, moral, message, lesson and rating.

1. Comparing Hannie Rayson’s
Inheritance with Ivan Sen’s
Beneath Clouds

2. Text Type – Text basics
• Hannie Rayson Inheritance
Late 1990s Australia. Australia
at this time is typified by a
rising swell of conservatism and
the emergence of Pauline
Hanson onto the public
consciousness, as well as the
political scene. Put simply,
racism was in.
The play was published in
2003.
• Ivan Sen Beneath Clouds
Australia in 2002. At this time the
Prime Minister was John Howard,
and Australia was about to enter into
the Iraq war. The film does not set up
the time period of the film and it has
minimal on a very simple, and
intimate character portrait of Vaughn
and Lina.
The film was released in 2002.
Setting
Publication

3. Text Type – Text basics
• Hannie Rayson Inheritance
The pace is breakneck fast from
the beginning of the play, with a
great deal of dialogue, and
minimal description of the scene
to slow it down.
Features flashbacks to the past.
People are represented by what
they say, minimal description of
the characters are provided,
except for their place within the
family.
• Ivan Sen Beneath Clouds
A slow, and peaceful pace throughout
the film, with a focus on mood, and
setting, until the last 10-15 minutes,
where a great deal of action takes
place.
Is a very linear narrative.
A great deal of meaning is gained
without any words being exchanged. A
focus on set, setting, and visuals. When
the characters do speak it is brief, but
illustrative of their character.
Pacing
Focus

4. Creators: Director / Playwright / Author
• Hannie Rayson
• A graduate of the University of
Melbourne and the Victorian College
of Arts. Also received an honorary
doctorate of letters award.
• Recipient of 7 literary awards.
• Born and raised in Melbourne,
Victoria, Australia.
• TV Writer: Seachange and Sloth (ABC,
Seven Deadly Sins).
• Ivan Sen
• A graduate of the Australian Film,
Television, and Radio School (AFTRS)
• Nominated for 26 film awards, won 15.
• European Father, Aboriginal mother,
born and raised in Invernell, NSW,
Australia.

5. Creators: Other Texts / Filmography / Play Bill
• Hannie Rayson
• Play Bill:
Hotel Sorrento,
Inheritance, Please
return to sender, Falling
from Grace, Life After
George, The Glass
Soldier, Leave it till
Monday.
+many more.
• Ivan Sen
• Filmography:
Shorts:
Dust, Wind, Tears
Feature Films:
Beneath Clouds,
Dreamland, Toomelah,
Mystery Road,
Goldstone.

6. Creators: Style, and pre-occupations
• Hannie Rayson
1) Social Commentary
2) Family as Microcosm for society
3) Anthropological style research
4) Class-wars
5) Racism
• Ivan Sen
1) Insiders and Outsiders
2) The landscape as a character
3) Minimalist, non-crowded
cinematography
4) Non-actors in key roles
5) Conflicts, violence and barriers

7. Plot – Acts of…..
• Hannie Rayson’s
Inheritance
Acts of Conflict
• Constant bickering
over the inheritance.
Acts of Love
• When Felix comforts
Lyle’s daughter.
Acts of Violence
• Lyle whips Felix.
• Nugget hits Lyle with a
shovel.
• Ivan Sen Beneath Clouds
Acts of Conflict
• Lina is almost kidnapped
by two men in a car.
Vaughn spits in a
policeman's face.
Acts of Love
• Vaughn and Lina embrace
at the end of the film.
Acts of Violence
• Vaughn attacks the police
officers.
• Vaughn hits one of the
Lina’s potential abductors
in the face with a rock.
• The story of the
Aboriginals pushed off
the mountain.
Acts of Conflict
Acts of Love
Acts of Violence

8. Plot – Key Events
• Hannie Rayson’s
Inheritance
• Orientation: The family
converges on the farm at
Allendale to celebrate
Dib’s and Girlies 80th
Birthday.
• Complication: Farley
dies, Dibs tears up the
will, the inheritance is in
dispute.
• Resolution: Lyle commits
suicide, the farm is sold,
Maureen becomes a
local member.
• Ivan Sen Beneath
Clouds
• Orientation: Vaughn is
informed of his mothers
illness in prison, he
escapes
• Complication: He meets
Lina, they begin walking
to Sydney, seeking a
home.
• Resolution: Lina and
Vaughn are confronted
by police officers, they
attack the police and
escape, Vaughn
discovers his mother
has likely died, the two
part ways.
Orientation
Complication
Resolution

9. Language Use
• Hannie Rayson Inheritance
Slang
Homophobic remarks
Swearing
Racial slurs
Colloquial
• Ivan Sen Beneath Clouds
Racist terms are used sparsely but
with great force
Swearing
Uneducated language

10. Themes
• Hannie Rayson’s
Inheritance Unique
themes
Old people
Family relationships
Generation gaps
Racism as comedic device
The elderly
Multiculturalism
• Ivan Sen Beneath Clouds
Unique themes
Youth & Young people
A lack of adult supervision
Duo-Culture (Aboriginal and
European-Australia)
• Shared Themes
Racism / Predjudice
Family Problems
Double Standards
Indigeneity
Dark Humour
Difference and Acceptance
Identity
Growing up
Discrimination
Country versus City
Identity

11. Motifs
• Hannie Rayson’s Inheritance
Swearing
The inheritance
Recipes and food
Depression
City versus country
Farming knowledge
Knowledge of the land
(directions)
Memories / the past
• Ivan Sen Beneath Clouds
Going home
Finding mum (Vaughn),
finding dad (Lina).
The rock that Vaughn
reaches for when
threatened
The road
The police
Dead animals

12. Symbols
• Hannie Rayson Inheritance
The farm
Lawn Mower
Nugget and Farley’s hat
Pigeons
The Mallee
Pauline Hanson
Eddie Mabo / The Mabo decision
The noose
Homophobia
Plague of rats
Two girls in Blue
Magpies
The whip
The inheritance
• Ivan Sen Beneath Clouds
Photo Album containing Lina’s
pictures of her father
The Mountain
Introduced animals and plants
The black cat and the horse
Power lines
Black Power / Pride
Church and police
The insects
Earth
Ground
Countryside
Church
The road
Fast cars

13. Rating
• Hannie Rayson Inheritance
MA15+
Strong coarse language
Mild Violence
Racist language
Themes related to suicide
• Ivan Sen Beneath Clouds
M
Mild coarse language
Mild Violence
Racist language
Themes related to abductions
*May contain names, images, or voices of
deceased Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander people.

14. Moral / Message / Lesson
• Hannie Rayson’s Inheritance
Family, both adopted and natural
should stick together.
The older generation cannot
understand the younger
generation.
There are barriers that inhibit
Aboriginal progress.
• Ivan Sen’s Beneath Clouds
Don’t judge a book by its cover.
Don’t take your family for granted.
The world isn’t black and white.
The past echoes in the present.
Australia has social problems that
include racism.