What Was Rosalie Kunoth-Monks Known For?

Rosalie Kunoth-Monks was known for being the lead actor for the groundbreaking Indigenous Australian film “Jedda” in 1955.

Rosalie who came to the limelight as a teenager is also known as the Arrernte Anmatjere advocate for Aboriginal rights.

Rosalie died at age 85, in Alice Springs hospital on Wednesday, after having several strokes.

Rosalie was born on 4 January 1937 in Utopia, Northern Territory (Arapunya), to the parents of the Anmatyerre people. Her paternal grandfather, Harry Kunoth, was German, hence her German surname. He and her grandmother, Amelia Kunoth, co-managed several cattle stations in the Northern Territory.

In 1951, Kunoth was 14 and staying at St Mary’s Hostel in Alice Springs when the filmmakers Charles and Elsa Chauvel recruited her to play the title role in their 1955 film Jedda. Her nickname was “Rosie”, but the Chauvels changed her name for the screen to Ngarla Kunoth.

Rosalie was the first Indigenous Australian female lead. The groundbreaking film was played for audiences at the Cannes Film Festival 60 years later in 2015. This experience inspired the play and TV play Burst of Summer.