The story of Charles Blackman, one of Australia's most celebrated painters, who fought his way out of an insecure childhood to progress from colouring in Ginger Meggs in a newspaper to the pinnacle of world art. The story is told by Blackman, his good friend Barry Humphries, and actress Kate Fitzpatrick, the subject of Blackman's 'Nightmare' series of paintings. The program looks at his contribution to the development of a unique sense of Australian identity in the art world,and explores the influences on his work. An imaginative documentary involving sequences of ballet, animation and fantasy.