Visakesa has worked in Sri Lanka as a human rights lawyer and law academic. He has also worked in Australian community legal centres and several NSW Government departments. He received a doctorate from the Australian National University for his research on the use of confessionary evidence under counter-terrorism laws. He was a Creative Fellow at the Sydney Social Sciences and Humanities Advanced Research Centre and the ANU Humanities Research Centre.
Vissa brings a unique interdisciplinary lens to his work at UNSW Law & Justice, where his award-winning films Paangshu and Munnel serve as powerful extensions of his research into post-conflict justice, human rights, and the role of women in reconciliation in Sri Lanka.
His three feature films include Sayapethi Kusuma (Frangipani), which won the Best International Film Award at the 2015 Rio LGBT Film Festival; Paangshu (Earth), which won the Jury Award at the 2019 Religions Today Film Festival; and Munnel (Sand), which won the 2023 Tiger Jury Award at the International Film Festival of Rotterdam.
Vissa has also published two novels – Tigers Don’t Confess and The King and the Assassin. He also made a documentary titled Payanam (Journey), which premiered at the 2024 Sheffield Documentary Film Festival. He has written and directed several stage plays, including Forbidden Area, which won the Gratiaen Prize in Sri Lanka.
What project are you working on that excites you?
My research activities have focused on the themes of justice and human rights in the South Asian region. I am interested in non-traditional research outputs and community impact. I have recently completed a feature-length essay film titled ‘32’, on torture in police custody in Sri Lanka, specifically featuring the landmark fundamental rights case Sriyani Silva v. Iddamalgoda of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka. This film will be complemented by a text-based research piece which I am currently working on. The materials assembled in the essay film include interviews with torture survivors, retired police officers, lawyers, and medical practitioners. This research will also explore the Buddhist idea of ‘hell’ and the justification of the use of physical violence against suspects, investigating the rationale behind public support for torture in police custody. The film will be used as an advocacy tool by Sri Lankan human rights campaigners, thereby increasing the research impact by reaching out to non-academic audiences. I am looking forward to completing my text-based research piece and am excited about launching this essay film soon.
What do you hope to achieve with your research/impact & engagement in the next year?
I am in the process of developing a research plan to investigate the criminalisation of same-sex acts and cross-dressing in the South Asian region. For example, the archaic Penal Code of Sri Lanka prohibits same-sex acts between consenting adults through the offences of ‘carnal intercourse against the order of nature’ and ‘unnatural sex’. The Penal Code also prohibits ‘personation’, allowing the police to arrest transgender and cross-dressing persons. While many researchers have published on the psycho-social impacts of these laws, hardly any legal analysis has been conducted; hence, a gap exists. I intend to investigate historic law records of Commonwealth jurisdictions and compare such materials with domestic cases to clarify the meanings embedded in substantive criminal law in relation to these offences. In addition to developing a text-based academic publication, I hope to create a documentary film to improve research impact within the community. I think this is a 3–4 year project.
What research/impact & engagement achievement are you most proud of and why?
I can’t pinpoint one specific research output as such. The traditional research work I have published in text form has been circulated among smaller academic audiences. The non-traditional research outputs presented in art form have reached much larger non-academic audiences, generating significant justice impact. For example, my first feature Frangipani is still being used as an advocacy tool by LGBT+ organisations in Sri Lanka and India. Also, in 2023 I was engaged in research on conflict-related sexual violence in Sri Lanka, where we used applied theatre in memory work and presented survivors’ stories through an essay film titled Payanam.