Sydney

I was born in….New Zealand and, like many of my friends, hit my early 20s and disappeared off in search of adventure. In the decade since then I’ve lived in London, done big trips around India and Asia and found myself back here in Sydney, enjoying every moment of this awesome city. My favourite local films are….I love Baz Luhrmann’s creativity and his films,  even though they’re not necessarily ‘local’. Romeo and Juliet is my favourite film of all time. Controversially, I even liked Australia, though I’m a little out on a limb with that one. Other favourites: Animal Kingdom, Wolf Creek, Candy, Balibo, Little Fish, Samson and Delilah. The TV shows Love My Way and Offspring are also worth a mention. When I need a reminder of home, I listen to…..music by Dave Dobbyn, Bic Runga and any kind of Dub music always make me think of home #1 (NZ). I’m still working on the soundtrack for home #2 (AUS). My favourite time of the year is……summer of course! When it ends I’m already anticipating the next one. My all time local hero is…..I’m constantly inspired by my friends. My favourite local phrase is…..‘brunch?’. My favourite words of wisdom/words to live by are….this is a really, really long quote, but an awesome one:  “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn’t serve the world. There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We are born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us, it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” Marianne Williamson. What I love most about my home (country) is….where to start! The weather, freedom, nature, opportunity and the fact that I’ve managed to find the most amazing bunch of progressive and inspiring people here to hang out with.

I was born in…..Auckland, New Zealand, and I have spent most of my adult life in……Sydney, after moving here in my early twenties. My favourite local film is…..The Castle. When I need a reminder of home, I listen to….Led Zeppelin – it reminds me of being a teenager in the North Shore of Auckland. My favourite time of the year is….Spring – before the humidity of Summer. My all time local hero is….Cate Blanchet. My favourite local phrase is….Stone the Crows! Only when said by Alf from Home and Away. My favourite words of wisdom/words to live by are…..‘don’t sweat the small stuff’. Easier said than done. What I love most about my home (country) is….the ability to escape the city and within an hour’s drive be in the middle of nowhere.

Lisa Siberry is a freelance writer and digital product manager for the ABC.

I was born in….Sydney, raised in Melbourne, travelled a heap and ended up back in Sydney. My favourite film is…..Gone with the Wind. When I need a reminder of home, I listen to….Debussy. My favourite time of the year is….April. My all time local hero is…..my husband. My favourite (Canadian) local phrase is…..“Right On”. My favourite words to live by are……“the shortest answer is doing the thing.” What I love most about my home (country) is……the light. And the sound of magpies in the morning.

I was born in….Hong Kong. I have spent most of my life in……Sydney and now I live in…..Sydney still! My favourite local films are…..Candy, Samson and Delilah, Mary and Max, and Animal Kingdom. When I need a reminder of home, I listen to……a playlist that I constantly save to called “songs for right now”. It’s got all the songs that make me beam from ear to ear! My favourite time of the year is……Spring, with Summer coming in a very close second! My all time local hero is…..Ronnie Kahn, the founder of Oz Harvest which delivers excess food that would otherwise go to waste to those in need. And if I could name another – Jono Fisher, the founder of Wake Up which is a community group created out of a desire for a kinder society. My favourite local phrase is…..“way out near whoop whoop” (it means some place far away). I kept hearing this when I first came to boarding school in Sydney and wondered where this amazing town was that everyone seemed to live near…My favourite words of wisdom/words to live by are…..be in love with your life. every detail of it. – Jack Kerouac. What I love most about my home (country) is…..the salty sea and the sunny skies.

Viet is a local with a penchant for strange foreign language films and making stuff, like food, furniture and clothing (you can view her fashion collections at www.lac-viet.com). She currently lives between Sydney and London.

I was born in….Sydney, I have spent most of my life in….Sydney and London and now I live in….Sydney. My favourite local films are….can’t remember the last Aussie film I saw as they aren’t all shown on overseas cinemas but I loved Priscilla Queen of the Desert and Strictly Ballroom back in the day. I got sent the Tropfest dvds each year while I was living overseas, which are always enjoyable. When I need a reminder of home, I listen to…..my parents’ voices (on the phone) and maybe Nick Cave. I remember dancing drunkenly to Down Under after the Socceroos tied with Croatia in the World Cup soccer, some years back, in London. Doubt I would ever do that here but things like that are definitely heightened when you’re overseas. My favourite time of the year is……autumn in Sydney (beautiful amber leaves everywhere, not too hot and just before hayfever strikes) and spring/summer in Europe when the cities and canals come alive. My all time local hero is…..I suppose most kids growing up in Marrickville, Sydney in the 80s thought Jeff Fenech the “Marrickville Mauler” was pretty entertaining. Later I remember admiring the former Justice Michael Kirby of the High Court (even though he is a monarchist) and then decided we were kindred spirits when I found out that we were born in the same hospital and went to the same schools. He has had a far more remarkable life – but I have 40 years to catch up to him! My favourite local phrase is…..Haha, there are so many! Maybe “I love youse all” (infamous Jeff Fenech quote). My favourite words of wisdom/words to live by are….I have a terrible memory for these things but I recently read The Happiest Refugee for book club and remember the author, Anh Do, quoting his father: “there are only two times. Now and too late” – which I will try to remember when I find myself procrastinating, which is most of the time! What I love most about my home (country) is….that there is water everywhere. Literally. It just takes a minute to walk down to the river, which leads to the sea. And the water out of the tap actually tastes good.

Sally Langford is the founding editor of The Localist. She is also a freelance writer.

I was born in…..Brisbane, Australia, I have spent most of my life in….Australia, the UK and Brazil, and I now live in….Sydney. My favourite local films are….Lantana, Bran Nue Day, Shine and Rabbit-Proof Fence. When I’m away from home, and feeling nostalgic, I can’t resist the quintessentially ‘Sydney’ film, Looking for Alibrandi. When I need a reminder of home, I listen to…..Kung Foo Sing by Regurgitator. My favourite time of the year is……January! Sunshine, the Sydney Festival, picnics, ocean swims, reading in the park, outdoor music festivals – there is no better way to start the new year. My all time local hero is…..Aamer Rahman. Based in Melbourne, Aamer Rahman, in my opinion, is Australia’s very best stand-up comic. He says it how it is, he fights injustice through humour and he makes bigots feel really uncomfortable. He represents, I really hope, Australia’s future. My favourite local phrase is…..“She’ll be right”. No matter what happens, it’s all going to be ok. It’s all going to be alright. There is something uplifting and comforting in its simplicity – even when everyone knows it is not necessarily true. My favourite words of wisdom/words to live by are….“If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away” – Henry David Thoreau. What I love most about my home (country) is……the wide expansive skies, the scent of gum and tea trees, the constant chatter of native birds and the boisterous thunder of a sudden summer storm.