Griffith-produced 'Future Ancestors' podcast to release first episode in late September

A new podcast about Indigenous histories and life stories produced exclusively in Griffith is set to be available for download by late September 2023.

Darby Ingram, a Wiradjuri and Pacific Islander writer, was recently awarded a six-week residency at the shared workspace Rooms of Requirement (RoR Space) on Yambil Street.

She is using her Western Riverina Arts-sponsored placement to launch her new career as a podcaster, making the series ‘Future Ancestors’. The first season will run for eight episodes of around 40 minutes each, in which she’ll be interviewing prominent Indigenous personalities who have a connection to the Riverina.

“I want it to create a resource for the next generation, to connect them to their history,” she said.

“When I was pregnant with my son Archie, I felt handing this information on was important to me and doing it right was important to me. I thought, ‘I know how to interview people’, and I love interviewing and connecting people and I wanted to make the history accessible.”

Ms Ingram, who also works as a student learning support officer at Murrumbidgee Regional High School, has already teed up interviews with a number of high-profile guests.

The podcast’s first season will feature Cowra-born former NRL star Joe Williams, who bounced back from a suicide attempt to become one of the state’s leading mental health advocates, as well as emerging photographer Marley Morgan.

“Depending on the guest, I’m going to have conversations about the work they’re doing now and an insight into where they are from and their life story,” she said.

“For the next season, I’ll be going into Indigenous history in more depth.”

She’ll also be tackling some challenging issues.

“The most controversial episode will be on the Voice, but I am really trying to tread carefully, there’s enough animosity in the community – the purpose will be informational, I would like to release it before the 14 October Referendum to improve people’s understanding. I won’t be giving my own opinion.”

She is an avid listener of podcasts and is learning about the artform from some of the best.

“I really love [comedy podcast] Bobo and Flex. I love NRL, so I also enjoy Bloke in a Bar, he’s so chilled, it’s authentic and conversational. Indigenous presenters Marlee Silva and Nicho Hynes have also just released a podcast, I listen to that to learn about how they conduct interviews.”

Ms Ingram’s inaugural episode will be an interview with her grandmother, Yvonne Ingram, a midwife from Narrandera who has a fascinating life story.

“I got taught my history from my nan and mum, it was very impromptu; if there was an anniversary or someone’s birthday, they’d be someone who’d give me some insight. There was no, ‘This is Wiradjuri history’ – that’s what I can do now.”

The 25-year-old grew up in Narrandera before moving to Sydney, but she had a yearning to return to the Riverina once she had her son Archie, who is two.

“This is the first creative initiative I’ve done since I had him. I would love to thank Kristy-Lee Agresta from RoR and Western Riverina Arts for supporting me and believing in this.”

She anticipates that her first couple of episodes will be available to download before the end of September on the Apple Podcasts app on iPhones and on Spotify by searching “Future Ancestors”.

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