Peter Strain

The story of Victor Flanagan who left behind a massive inheritance to walk, mostly naked, across Australia - told through the stories of those he met along the way. 

The story

Victor Flanagan was to follow his father as beef farmer in the rich southwest corner of Western Australia. Instead he walked across Australia from west to east and south to north and paddled a canoe across the Torres Straits to eventually disappear in a remote and wild jungle region of New Guinea. In the process he walked away from an easy life and an inheritance of more than four million dollars. 

A journey of over 9000 kilometers  And he did much of it naked, with just a sarong, a 'begging bowl' and his faithful dog. 

Along the way, he became a catalyst to inspire many people to question where their own 'life scripts' would take them. Victor's story will be told through those he met across Australia and into New Guinea.

The journey

This web based story retraces Victor's path and rebuilds interpretations of his journey through the recall, personal stories and ideas of those he encountered and inspired on the way.

We travel from the southwest of Western Australia, up the west coast to the Kimberley, across the Tanami to Uluru, down to Adelaide, through regional Victoria and NSW, up the coast of Queensland, across the Torres Strait to New Guinea and eventually to a series of remote coastal villages south of Lae where he was officially assumed to have died.

The overall web story will be authored by the principle practitioner of the project, Peter Strain, through the production of microdocos, interviews, photo essays and podcasts.

                          Have you seen the   5 minute Promo Video

Why tell this story?

This is 'one from the heart' for  the production team and those that knew Victor Flanagan.

Peter Strain's unique position in this story is that he grew up with Victor Flanagan. He is also an accomplished media producer and nature photographer.

This is a story he has progressively been compelled to do.  Victor's story comes from within us all. It is capable of eating away at our excuses from somewhere deep inside us all. He didn't sit around and talk, literally...

...Victor 'walked the walk' 

Victor never espoused great theories, or set out to save the planet.  The most he ever stated publicly was that...

...he wanted to 'be more in touch with nature', and

...he wanted 'to show that he could live with less'.

And he did. Agueably  even by our own measures, very few of us will achieve our life goals as clearly, constructively and intelligently as Victor did. 

But to go back a bit, it is easy to see why Peter Strain wants to facilitate the telling of this story. Some years after Victor's mother passed away, Victor and Peter's mother made a joint pact that Victor would call her 'Mum' until he turned 21.       

                                             

                   Victor Flanagan and Peter Strain at a family wedding in 1974 when  Victor was still going to live his life out as a beef farmer.

Peter saw Victor's transition from a West Australian country boy who was to take over his father's beef farm to the extraordinary man who became known as "the Naked Nomad" in many press and media stories across the world. He effected many lives in his journey across Australia.

What will this project achieve?

This website and internet platforms project will tell the world the basics of Victor's story and many of those he effected. It will then be targeted at creating an online community interested in the issues of lifestyle, nature and human survival invoked by Victor's story.  It is intended that further stages will evolve from the interest created on the web, and perhaps more importantly will attract other people who knew Victor to come forward and make contact through the web.  

Any additional funds beyond the Pozible target will create opportunities to deal with new information, stories and regions discovered in the initial site visits. 

The much repeated response when people are told about this project is that...

...Victor's story has to be told.

The commitment and experience of this project team, and the timing of the 3in1/Pozible initiative can make it happen if people get behind the project quickly and generously enough. 

While many people threaten to 'opt out' of societies' scripts created for them - Victor Flanagan actually did it in a spectacular and inspirational way, that had repercussions on many peoples' lives. He walked his walk.

This project will  refresh and extend that legacy.

About the Director

Peter Strain has produced and directed award winning television series, including "the Mary G Show" for SBS. He has been a  Director of Photography on many documentary films. His photos have appeared in numerous magazines, books and newspapers including the Australian Geographic.

                       Peter Strain will retrace Victor Flanagan's journey

What you can do to help in the telling of this story

1. Support this project by donating  (go to buttons on right of this page)

Pledge a donation via the 3in1 fund through this Pozible website to raise ...

...the initial target of (Australian)$9670. 

Because the 3in1 initiative had limited funds from the State Government of $250,000 and the 'big ticket' commercial teams achieved their declared Pozible targets in the first day of the initiative going live, it is left for this project to gain sufficient support over the total 90 days

...please pledge much sooner than later.

If enough contributors get in quickly enough, then the original Pozible target ($9670) can be exceeded over the ninety days to hopefully reach the total funding target of Australian$38,680 which will ensure the safe level to tell the basics of Victor's story. You can pledge any amount from $5 to $2000. 

2. Put yourself forward as a contributor to the story. 

If you met Victor, saw Victor walking, know somebody else who did or have any leads that might flesh out the journey of ideas and memories - contact Peter Strain or Frank Baguley via the contacts on this website. Knowledge of existing photos or footage will make you an instant special friend of this project.

Victor Flanagan and 'Ree' Johnson many years ago before Victor set out on his great walk. Ree is part of the Southwest 'Great Walk' network that grew from a protest walk in SW Australia in 1988. This group inspired Victor and subsequently he inspired them and many others..

Contact with leads, thoughts or questions for Victors story -   

victors.story @ gmail.com     (remove spaces)

3. Suggest research leads.

If you remember seeing television reports, local newspaper reports or any other documentation leads - email or ring the lead through. We can follow up. Even if you simply know that Victor passed by a certain point, that could help in building the links of his journey. Everything counts.

4. Logistics along the journeys paths. 

Suggestions and offers for logistics support along the route will be greatly appreciated to get the story told without damaging the storytellers beyond repair.

5. Please Spread the Word

Tell people about this project.  Ring, email, Facebook, tell and text people who might be interested in helping by donation or spreading the word.

6. What About Now 

Pledge a donation. If you have come this far, you probably understand why we believe...

...Victor's story must be told.

A future for the "Great Walk of the Naked Nomad"

This story will grow in the making, both through the way Victor's and Australia's story is rebuilt in the journey - and in how Web 2.0 feedback guides the narrative,  future funding and the evolving nature and direction of the web project into a Cross Media Narrative - that is, a narrative that can be represented on other communication platforms. It could have an extended life into...

... a future long form documentary,

 print, DVD and emerging application driven opportunities. The story is compelling and inspirational and will resonate with most people's life at sometime. 

Peter Strain (with thanks to Joey King, Frank Baguley, Jack Granich, and the early contributors of story and encouragement)

Particular thanks to Victor Flanagan 

A Transmedia Storytelling project by Peter Strain CONTACT [email protected]

When he was hungry he simply held a bowl out to passing cars and was fed. When he needed water he held out a water bottle. 

He was called Rambo, but victor changed his dog's name to Rainbow.

When 'Mum Beryl' saw this photo of Victor walking across Australia and some had proclaimed Victor 'mad', Beryl said "they don't know Victor - that is just him and it makes perfect sense for Victor to do that - that is just Victor."

Victor Flanagan 1951 - ????

Declared dead by WA court 2008, leaving an estate valued at over $4million

                                  Great Walk of the Naked Nomad

The Nitty Gritty - technical stuff

Plan B

If sufficient the monies are not achieved in this Screenwest 3 for 1 initiative- we will make a shorter version, made up of 4 mini docs, up to 6 minutes long, focusing on the WA aspect of Victor's journey. We will use this as proof of concept.

Methodology

The material will be collected initially at eight locations across Australia and New Guinea. In the Southwest of WA Frank Baguley and Peter Strain will work together to research and film, record and photography people willing to go on record. A customized ex Brits style 4 WD will be used for the filming with an on board edit suite. This is the most viable way of covering the areas up to Coen in QLD. Aircraft and localized transport hire would be prohibitively expensive. The vehicle is sourced already and has been modified for media production. We will upload edited material and author the website ]on the road' initially with media being sent back to Jack Granich in Perth as well for cross platform modification where necessary. This vehicle has been used in other production situations and the costs and considerations are knowable and practical.

Sample materials - see some of Peter Strain's previous work.

1. "The True Kimberley"  Filmed, edited and co directed by Peter Strain.  A  good example of a microdoco by Peter Strain.  

2. "Time Flies" Camera/direction/editing by Peter Strain. Another example of a microdoco by Peter Strain.

3. "Surfing The Menu" Peter Strain was Line Producer for this Broome episode.

  An example of broadcast work Peter Strain was engaged with.

4. Giant Tides website.  Website of Peter Strain's photographic and media work.

What About Now?

Pledge a donation.  If you have come this far, you hopefully understand why...

...Victor's story must be told.