In 2021, NRMA released A FIRE INSIDE – a feature documentary and a book. The film and the book were designed both to engage Australia in the incredible story of the power of help as witnessed during the Black Summer bush fires, and also as ‘the lightning strike’ for the formation of the Australian Resilience Corps – a national movement in partnership with Minderoo Foundation designed to mobilise Australia’s largest contingency of volunteers and prepare and protect Australian communities from future natural disasters.
Case Study
A Film
The Trailer
‘A Fire Inside’ is a feature documentary released in cinemas nationwide and broadcast on NINE. The film follows the journey of those directly and indirectly impacted by the worst fires in Australian history. It presents an inspirational look at the way people respond to crisis and its true cost to the human spirit.
More than just storytelling, the documentary sparked a national resilience movement and invited everyday Australians to volunteer to help prepare and protect Australian communities from fire and flood before they occur. Watch the full film here.
A Book
Created to accompany the feature documentary film, A Fire Inside: The Power Of The Human Help Reflex is a large format illustrated book documenting the 2019–2020 bushfires.
An award-winning photojournalist spent months on location capturing the catastrophic events as they unfolded first-hand and their compelling images made headlines around the world. The photographs have etched themselves into our collective memory, as have the stories behind them: first-person accounts from the people on the ground – firefighters and wildlife rescuers, bystanders who became upstanders, doing what they could to help – reveal a nation galvanised to help.
These accounts, along with insights from anthropologists and those who observe human behaviour, allow us to begin to understand why humans put themselves in danger to help others and what it means to be human.
A Movement
Film End Sequence – Call to action
During the making of the film ‘A Fire Inside’ first responders from NRMA and Minderoo met, and the idea for the formation of a new Resilience Corps – to prepare and protect communities before disasters occurred – was born.
The film ended with a call to action to join the newly formed Australian Resilience Corps. The Resilience Corps has become the fastest growing volunteer organisation in Australia. Educational materials based on the film were created and mapped to the Australian high school curriculum, reaching approximately 10,488 students to date. 44,000 people accessed the A Fire Inside website in the first 3 months, which provided resources to Give and Get Help.
The Film: Nº1 Documentary in Australia
Source: Nine Network
The Book: Nº3 Best Selling Book in Australia
Source: Weekend Australian
The Australian Resilience Corps: Fastest growing volunteer organisation in Australia
