Synopsis

Between June 5th 1990 and February 23rd 1991, a short-lived Children’s Edu-tainment Program called ‘Hug the Sun’ ran on local TV in Perth in Perth, Western Australia. Thinly disguised as a variety show, Hug the Sun’s real purpose was the educate its audience in the history, teaching, principles, and values of the notorious Cult of Oxtos - a strange sect who worshiped the Sun and whose members all disappeared on the hottest day on record - February 23rd, 1991 when the mercury hit 46.7C. All that remains of the Cult are the few scattered episodes of ‘Hug the Sun’ taken from bootleg VHS - each featuring a mix of music, magic, puppets, animation, animal experts and the unfiltered imagination of the three hosts BJ, Linda, and Pudd as they explore the main themes of their Sun worshipping religion. Regular guests throughout the series include: Paps O’Sullivan - an aging but skillful magician. Sol - a puppet friend of BJ’s who is eager to learn the ways of Oxtos, and a clean stand-up comedian: Frank Yabby-Bait (whom in 1998, was found dead on the Island of Majorca in the home of Australian con-man Christopher Skase). ‘Hug the Sun’ was known for its Playschool-styled narration over archival footage as well as having various vox pops on the streets. It covered the niche topics and views of The Cult of Oxtos, while in studio, simple animation techniques were used to tell religious parables of the cult’s origins. The handful of surviving episodes are all that remains of the Cult’s existence today and the best archival reference for us all to know about this strange and mysterious show that may, or may not, have ever existed in the first place.

Filmed and Post Produced in Western Australia on the Traditional Country of the Yamatji Badimia, Yamatji Nanda & Noongar Whadjuk peoples