Perrücke

Through the intimate eyes of a daughter and filmmaker, Perrücke tells the story of Barbara and Joe as they recall love, adapt to a life with illness, and wrangle with the fear of what lies ahead.


My parents have been together for almost 35 years. They share the same values and passions for life, have proudly raised three children together, and have remained madly in love throughout. Then my mother was diagnosed with peritoneal cancer.

Six months after diagnosis, I begin filming them. Mama has had surgery and chemotherapy treatments. Her physical indicators are good. The hair she lost has started to grow back in little silver curls. She decides to stop wearing her brown wig and let her hair go grey. Soon after, the physical pains that remain are side-lined by the news of a rising tumour marker.

Entering my parents’ life with a camera, I record their struggles, healing, and attempts to cope with an illness that threatens to separate them. Stubbornly rejecting defeat and holding on to family and love, they grapple with pain and uncertainty.

What if the cancer does return?


Director/Producer: Julia Alcamo
Edit: Jeanna Mortimer
Original Music: Charles Harrison
Sound Design and Mix: Guy Dowsett
Colour Grade: Mike Sanders
Graphics: Sheila Placiego