Left Write Hook Documentary Screening & Panel Discussion

For eight survivors of childhood sexual abuse, a groundbreaking program combining boxing and creative writing, turns into a journey of recovery, transformation and friendship.

As a part of our She Who Persists exhibition programming, join us at The Dax Centre for a special screening of the incredibly moving documentary, Left Write Hook, followed by a panel discussion with the film's director, Shannon Owen, creator of the Left Write Hook program, Donna Lyon, and two program participants, Lauren Wraight and Julie.

WATCH THE TRAILER HERE: Left Write Hook (Official Trailer) on Vimeo

Film Synopsis:

Left Write Hook follows the journey of eight female and gender diverse survivors of childhood sexual abuse, who participate in an innovative recovery program combining the physicality of boxing with the emotional power of creative writing. Gaining a space to release their memories, reclaim their bodies and imagine new lives for themselves.

Through powerful participatory filmmaking and with unprecedented access, this documentary captures an amazing journey of self-discovery, resilience, recovery, transformation, and friendship, as they begin to regain agency and take back their power.

Left Write Hook offers audiences a profound understanding of what it means to be a victim-survivor today, and the power and strength that can come from connection and healing.

Date: Saturday 1 March 2025

Time: 3-6pm

Location: The Dax Centre & Kenneth Myer Auditorium, 30 Royal Parade, Parkville, VIC.

Tickets: $35

The screening and panel will be followed by refreshments in the gallery. We will also provide refreshments during the film.

Please be advised that the documentary and panel discussion will involve discussion of lived experience of abuse and lived experience of mental ill health.

Learn more about the Left Write Hook program:
Left Write Hook

Please reach out to info@daxcentre.org or call 9349 2538 with any questions.

Learn More About Our Panel Members:

DR ANITA MOSS

Sane Board Director, Panel Mediator

Dr Anita Moss has been a Peer Ambassador for SANE since 2016 and brings over 20 years of experience as a GP Obstetrician. Anita is passionate about empowering clients, particularly young people, to make informed healthcare decisions. She continues to provide healthcare services at an Indigenous Health Service in rural Victoria and also works in a metropolitan practice. Anita completed the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners’ Future Leaders Program, further cementing her commitment to high-quality healthcare and mental health advocacy.

SHANNON OWEN

Director, Producer of Left Write Hook

Shannon Owen is a documentary filmmaker and researcher whose work explores the change making potential of documentary storytelling. Working closely with participants, her films reveal the human impact of broader socio-political issues. Her work has scrreened widely through film festivals and broadcast and exhibited at the Australian National Portrait Gallery.

A/PROF DONNA LYON

Producer of Left Write Hook

Donna Lyon is an Associate Professor in film and television at the University of Melbourne and founder and CEO of the Left Write Hook charity, combining writing and trauma-informed boxing for survivors of child sexual abuse. She produced the feature DISCLOSURE (2020), the documentary LEFT WRITE HOOK (2024) and is editor of a book of survivor stories. Donna is a survivor of ritual abuse and incest.

PIXIE

Left Write Hook Film Participant

Pixie, known as queer graphic memoirist Khale McHurst, works on the lands of the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation. Their work explores mental illness, queer relationships, and growing up in a religious cult. They enjoy a boring life with their wife and fur family.

LAUREN WRAIGHT

Left Write Hook Film Participant

Lauren is a disabled and neuroqueer survivor advocate interested in what it means to live our ethics publicly. Drawing on her lived experience of complex trauma and chronic illness, they work to support human systems to become kinder, more relational, and responsive to trauma in individuals, relationships, and cultures.

Contact the host of Left Write Hook Documentary Screening & Panel Discussion at The Dax Centre