DOCUMENTARY SYNOPSIS

By Sascha Ettinger

At night the cracked, dimly-lit pavements of Kings Cross swarm with the deviants of an unknowable underworld. In the thick of this chaos is a photographer who has seen and immortalised it all. For over ten years, Peter Darren Moyle has been at large with his medium-format camera, illuminating the darkest shadows of the city's psyche. This is a film about his unprecedented photographic odyssey into the murky depths of Sydney and his recent struggle to emerge into the light.

Since arriving penniless in the big smoke in the late 1980's, he has carried his camera to the frontline of the inner-city badlands, traversing terrain that no other photographer could dare to tread. The tireless intensity of his work has meant eating out of bins so as to afford film, sleeping rough alongside derelicts and setting up darkrooms in squats, warehouses and cars. The result is a reservoir of mind-blowing black and white imagery documenting a social history largely absent from the wider collective consciousness.

More than a mere correspondent from the edge, Moyle has had to fight for survival on the street. At times he has come perilously close to losing himself in vice. But rather than be dragged down by an environment notorious for its dead-end culture, this photographer has been able to translate scenes of tragedy into visually astounding art. He is, in a sense, an alchemist.

Times of darkness are coming to a close for Peter Darren Moyle. He wants out of the gutter. His yearning to head home to the wholesome peace of the country and leave his turbulent city life behind is becoming a catalyst for change. With the prospect of an exhibition of his work, this dream may just be possible.

Using interviews and observational footage filmed in dramatic locations in the inner-city, this film will build an uncompromising portrait of Peter Darren Moyle. It will integrate his remarkable life story with his photographic work whilst simultaneously capturing the essence of the urban wilderness so integral to his existence. Most importantly it will follow his ascent as he strives towards his first solo exhibition.