The 72nd Sydney Film Festival program was officially launched today by festival director Nashen Moodley, unveiling an exceptional line-up, including 15 films direct from the Cannes Film Festival including Jafar Panahi’s It Was Just an Accident and Kelly Reichardt’s 1970s-set art heist drama The Mastermind. Other highlights include The Life of Chuck starring Tom Hiddleston; debut Australian director Amy Wang’s SXSW-winning satire Slanted; Sundance comedy hit Twinless; the sweeping queer romance On Swift Horses with Daisy Edgar-Jones and Jacob Elordi; and Dreams (Sex Love), winner of the Berlinale Golden Bear.

“The 2025 Festival offers a bold and expansive view of cinema today, with films that confront the urgent realities of our world, while also revelling in the power of imagination and storytelling,” said Sydney Film Festival Director Nashen Moodley.“From astonishing Australian debuts to daring new works by global auteurs, this year’s program is a celebration of creative risk, personal vision and artistic resilience. We invite audiences to explore this thrilling line-up, connect with filmmakers from around the world, and share in the transformative joy of cinema.”

“The Sydney Film Festival is the highlight of the year for NSW film fans and is part of an amazing lineup of cultural events that kick off as the cooler weather kicks in. As this lineup confirms, you will always see the best films in the world at the Sydney Film Festival. You won’t find this carefully curated collection of films from your couch, so I implore you to get down the festival and join the experience,” said the Minister for the Arts John Graham.

In 2025, the Festival will present 201 films from 70 countries including 17 World Premieres, 6 international premieres and 137 Australian Premieres, bringing together hundreds of new international and local stories, with more to be announced. This year also sees the addition of the iconic Sydney Opera House as a screening venue, joining the State Theatre and cinemas across the city – allowing Festival goers to experience some of the world’s best cinema in one of Sydney’s most celebrated cultural landmarks.

The 72nd Sydney Film Festival will open with the Australian Premiere of Together, written and directed by Australian filmmaker Michael Shanks and starring Alison Brie and Dave Franco. The breakout hit of Sundance, Together is a bold new Australian feature that blends domestic drama with a devilishly supernatural twist, offering an off-the-wall and twisted take on codependency. Writer and director Michael Shanks will attend Opening Night to present the film.

Ten outstanding new Australian documentaries will compete for the 2025 Documentary Australia Award, with a $20,000 cash prize presented to the winner. The prize also makes the winning film eligible for Academy Award consideration.

World Premieres include Floodland, Jordan Giusti’s deeply moving portrait of a flood-affected community in Lismore, Australia’s most disaster-prone postcode; Joh: Last King of Queensland, Kriv Stenders’ captivating portrait of controversial Queensland Premier Joh Bjelke-Petersen; Journey Home, David Gulpilil, a powerful and intimate record of the renowned Indigenous actor’s final journey to his Homeland to be laid to rest; The Raftsmen, Chadden Hunter’s high-seas yarn revisiting a daring 1970s raft voyage across the Pacific; and Yurlu | Country, Yaara Bou Melhem’s deeply personal portrait of Elder Maitland Parker’s environmental and cultural fight for his Wittenoom homeland.

Australian Premieres in competition include Deeper, Jennifer Peedom and Alex Barry’s high-stakes chronicle of Thai cave rescue hero Dr Richard “Harry” Harris’s attempt to achieve the world’s deepest cave dive; and The Golden Spurtle, Sydney based Constantine Costi’s charming and hilarious portrait of the World Porridge Making Championship in the Scottish Highlands.

Also in the running are The Wolves Always Come at Night, Gabrielle Brady’s story of a Mongolian family forced to abandon their nomadic life; Songs Inside, where female prisoners find healing through a unique music program; and Ellis Park, Justin Kurzel’s debut documentary, about musician Warren Ellis and his passionate work rescuing animals in Sumatra.

Other local productions are having their Australian Premieres: Birthright, Zoe Pepper’s biting satire about a disillusioned generation and the housing crisis; Went Up the Hill, a gothic tale of grief and possession starring Vicky Krieps and Dacre Montgomery; and FWENDS, Sophie Somerville’s Berlinale award-winning ode to messy, modern friendship.

Sydney Film Festival runs from 4-15 June 2025. Tickets and Flexipasses to Sydney Film Festival 2025 are on sale now. Please call 1300 733 733 or visit sff.org.au for more information or to book.

See below for your complete list of Australian feature films and documentaries screening at this year’s festival. 

Birthright

Written and directed by Zoe Pepper
Produced by Cody Greenwood
Starring Travis Jeffery, Maria Angelico and Michael Hurst

After an eviction, a son and his pregnant wife refuse to leave his parents’ home in this biting satire about intergenerational wealth. A breakthrough Aussie dark comedy debut.

Newly evicted and jobless, 30-something Cory (Travis Jeffery) and his heavily pregnant wife, Jasmine (Maria Angelico), have no choice but to move into his childhood home – but just until they get back on their feet, of course. But this temporary measure slowly becomes a parasitic imposition on Cory’s baby-boomer parents (Michael Hurst and Linda Cropper), with absurd and ludicrous consequences. Cory is determined to prove that he can earn his stripes as “man of the house” – even if that house isn’t his. Sharp and farcical, Western Australian director Zoe Pepper’s transition from stage to screen is a twisted take on privilege, the housing crisis, and a disillusioned generation that hits very close-to-home indeed.

Dangerous Animals

Directed by Sean Byrne
Written by Nick Lepard
Produced by Troy Lum, Andrew Mason, Pete Shilaimon, Mickey Liddell, Chris Ferguson and Brian Kavanaugh-Jones
Starring Hassie Harrison, Jai Courtney and Josh Heuston

A shark-obsessed serial killer is on the loose in this nail-biting Aussie horror-thriller, starring Yellowstone’s Hassie Harrison. Coming to Sydney shores direct from Cannes.

SFF is delighted to welcome back Aussie genre ace Sean Byrne (The Loved Ones; The Devil’s Candy, SFF 2015) with this breathlessly exciting shark horror serial killer thriller. Primal fear strikes from the moment we meet Tucker (Jai Courtney, Stateless), an aggressively friendly Gold Coast ocean tour guide who also happens to be a shark-fixated serial killer. Harrison shines in the leading role of Zephyr, a fiercely independent and resourceful surfer whose endless summer chasing waves comes to a terrifying halt when she crosses paths with the smiling psycho. Gripping psychological drama, pulse-pounding horror and spectacular action make this a memorable journey to the dark depths of the ocean and the human mind.

Death of an Undertaker

Written, directed and produced by Christian Byers
Starring Christian Byers, Michele Salamone, Rosa Peronace

A Leichhardt funeral parlour provides the unlikely setting for this singular debut docufiction feature from actor-turned-director Christian Byers (Bump, The Narrow Road to the Deep North).

Shot over eight years, this hybrid documentary is set in a real-life funeral home on Leichhardt’s famous Norton St, and features an admirably game cast of actual morticians. Joining them on-screen is writer-director Byers (actor in The Tree, SFF 2010; The Moogai, SFF 2024), who stars as Sparrow, a part-time worker whose fragile psyche begins to fracture in the lead-up to his first exhumation. On the brink of homelessness, Sparrow is offered shelter in the flat next door to the parlour, as the boundary between life and death – and work and self – dissolves into oblivion. Bleakly funny and formally playful, Byers’ lo-fi debut is a singularly strange and striking entry for the Australian film history books.

Deeper

Written and directed by Jennifer Peedom
Produced by Jennifer Peedom, Blayke Hoffman, Paul Ryan

The hero of the 2018 Thai cave rescue, Dr. Richard “Harry” Harris, attempts the world’s deepest dive in Jennifer Peedom’s (Sherpa, SFF 2015; Mountain, SFF 2017) enthralling doc.

In a remote part of New Zealand’s South Island, “Harry” and his fellow underwater obsessives set out to dive deeper than anyone ever has before. Controversially, they plan to use hydrogen as a breathing gas – its explosive nature adding to the many hazards the close-knit team faces. As the 2019 Australian of the Year prepares to confront the dark waters and life-threatening cold, he questions the costs of his passion. In this SXSW-selected nailbiter, Peedom and co-director Alex Barry capture the tension, euphoria and mateship of this endeavour using Harris’s own vertigo-inducing cave footage, along with DOP Ben Dowie’s striking above-ground imagery and a compelling score by multi-award-winner Antony Partos.

Ellis Park

Directed by Justin Kurzel
Written by Justin Kurzel and Nick Fenton

Warren Ellis, the brilliant Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds musician, reveals his life’s ups and downs as well as his dedication to wildlife in Justin Kurzel’s (Snowtown) doco debut.

Beyond music, Ellis’s passion project is a wildlife sanctuary in the forests of Sumatra: at “Ellis Park”, trafficked and mistreated animals are nursed back to health by a devoted team of carers led by indefatigable activist Femke den Haas. Returning a creature to the wild, Ellis brims with the same ardent candour as he does when jamming with his dad back in Ballarat. In telling his life story, from playing his first gig to forming The Dirty Three and beyond, he draws a bow between his hedonistic, addictive years, his redemption, and the sanctuary’s traumatised residents. Kurzel’s inspiring documentary, scored by Ellis, is an apt celebration of his talent and humility, and his commitment to the animal kingdom.

Emily: I Am Kam

Directed by Danielle MacLean
Additional Direction: Dena Curtis
Written by Danielle MacLean
Produced by Danielle MacLean, Anna Grieve

A revelatory portrait of the trailblazing artist Emily Kam Kngwarray, from the Utopia community in the NT, whose work reshaped the international contemporary art world.

One of Australia’s most celebrated figures, Kngwarray is the highest-selling woman artist in national history. Known for her strength, wit and radiant presence, the Anmatyerr Elder found global fame in the late ’80s with large-scale paintings deeply rooted in her connection to Country, culture and community. With collectors including actor Steve Martin, her work fuelled worldwide interest in Indigenous Australian art. Director Danielle MacLean (We Are Still Here, SFF 2022) follows the preparations for the National Gallery of Australia’s major 2023 Kngwarray retrospective, while rare archival materials let the artist, who passed away in 1996, speak in her own words.

Floodland

Written and directed by Jordan Giusti
Produced by Rachel Forbes and Gal Greenspan

A deeply moving story of love and loss set in the northern NSW town of Lismore, Australia’s most flooded postcode and site of the nation’s most costly climate disaster.

Focusing on several residents, director Jordan Giusti (Grevillea, SFF 2020) filmed over three years as a series of catastrophic floods tested community resilience. Lismore born and bred Eli loves his flood-prone town and recently purchased a home with a view down the creek. He’s a pragmatic guy: if flooding is predicted, he’ll just move the washing machine and stock up on beers. Eli’s friend Harper, tired of political complacency, turns to activism, while Carlie Atkinson, a Bundjalung-Yiman social worker, sets up a groundbreaking First Nations healing centre. With trauma bubbling up and talk of government buybacks dividing neighbours, locals must question whether they can find the strength and spirit to stay.

Fwends

Directed by Sophie Somerville
Written by Sophie Somerville, Emmanuelle Mattana and Melissa Gan
Produced by Sophie Somerville, Carter Looker and Sarah Hegge-Taylor
Starring Melissa Gan and Emmanuelle Mattana

Two besties reunite over a weekend in Melbourne in this freewheeling, fast-talking buddy comedy about modern female friendship. A buoyant, Berlinale prize winning feature debut.

Taking a breather from her Sydney lawyer job, Em heads to Melbourne to reconnect with her old friend Jessie for the weekend. Where Jessie’s head is in the clouds, Em is decidedly more level-headed. From the city to the inner north, the two twentysomethings walk and talk, bonding over office horror stories, breakups and existential crises. Long takes and meaty monologues lend a distinct vulnerability to this tale of modern female friendship from two-time Dendy Award-winning filmmaker Sophie Somerville (for Peeps, SFF 2021, and linda 4 eva, SFF 2023). Fwends, her feature debut and winner of the Berlinale Forum’s Caligari Film Prize for innovation, is a prickly and perceptive slice of mumblecore, Australian style.

The Golden Spurtle

Written and directed by Constantine Costi
Produced by Rebecca Lamond and John Archer

A crowd-pleaser set in a picturesque Scottish village where contestants from around the globe have gathered for the annual World Porridge Making Championship. CPH:DOX 2025.

The sleepy Highlands community of Carrbridge, home to numerous amiable eccentrics, comes alive each year when the Porridge Committee begins their preparations. Then the contestants arrive, including reigning champ Lisa and seven-time finalist Nick, a health food aficionado, along with contenders from Canada, the Netherlands and Zimbabwe – and Australian newbie Toby (a taco chef!). The judges pick up their spoons… the oatmeal battle is on. Director Constantine Costi – also an acclaimed theatre librettist and director, most recently bedazzling audiences with Siegfried and Roy: The Unauthorised Opera – captures the charm and spunk of this Highlands competition with warmth, respect and lashings of humour.

Joh: Last King of Queensland

Directed by Kriv Stenders
Written by Kriv Stenders and Matthew Condon
Produced by Veronica Fury and Alan Erson

A captivating and cautionary portrait of one of Australia’s most controversial politicians, Joh Bjelke-Petersen, whose career can be seen as a playbook for the Trump era.

Premier Joh Bjelke-Petersen reigned over Queensland for 19 tumultuous years (1968–1987). Hugely popular, he presided over enormous growth – but corruption raged under his tenure, as did electoral manipulation and often violent suppression of dissent. Director (and Queenslander) Kriv Stenders (The Correspondent) tells Joh’s story through rare archival footage and revelatory interviews, exploring a life shaped by a hard yakka, god-fearing upbringing on his family’s farm. Trump’s spectre is evoked in Joh’s famously mangled and meandering way of speaking – brilliantly dramatised by Richard Roxburgh – alongside his unyielding execution of power and the desperate denial of his final days in office.

Journey Home, David Gulpilil

Written and directed by Maggie Miles and Trisha Morton-Thomas
Produced by Rachel Clements, Jida Gulpilil, Lloyd Garrawurra, Trisha Morton-Thomas and Maggie Miles

A powerful record of grief, community and ceremony in which the renowned Indigenous actor is laid to rest on his Homeland of Gupulul in Arnhem Land, NT.

A Yolŋu man, David Gulpilil lived a traditional life in the Arafura Swamp before being cast at age 16 in his first film, Walkabout, in 1971. He became an industry trailblazer, always navigating two worlds – although his Yolŋu culture was rarely in the spotlight. Before his death in 2021, Gulpilil’s family promised to lay him to rest at his birthplace of Gulpulul, and guide his spirit back to a sacred waterhole known as Marawuyu. This would prove an epic journey involving planes, boats and helicopters, and months of waiting for the right seasonal conditions. It’s the remarkable final chapter of his incredible story, as narrated by Hugh Jackman and cultural storyteller Baker Boy and skilfully chronicled by co-directors Maggie Miles and Trisha Morton-Thomas.

Lesbian Space Princess

Written and directed by Emma Hough Hobbs and Leela Varghese
Produced by Tom Phillips
Starring Shabana Azeez, Bernie Van Tiel and Gemma Chua-Tran

Introverted lesbian space princess Saira goes on an inter-gay-lactic mission to rescue her ex from evil incel aliens in this riotous, Berlin Teddy Award-winning Aussie animation.

Awarded LGBTQIA+ cinema’s highest honour at Berlin, this rip-roaring comedy centres on Saira, introvert heir to the throne of planet Clitopolis. She’s still reeling from being dumped by her hot bounty hunter girlfriend, Kiki, when Kiki is kidnapped by the “Straight White Maliens”. Steeling herself, Saira recruits the help of an enby popstar and a cantankerous boomer spaceship and launches a mission to rescue Kiki and, she hopes, win her back. The love child of Adelaide’s Leela Varghese and Emma Hough Hobbs, complete with a stellar voice cast including Shabana Azeez (Birdeater, SFF 2023), Richard Roxburgh, and the Aunty Donna boys, Lesbian Space Princess, is a one-of-a-kind, out of this world triumph.

Make it Look Real

Written and directed by Kate Blackmore
Produced by Bethany Bruce and Daniel Joyce

For the first time on screen, witness the important work of an intimacy coordinator, one of the most discussed film industry jobs today, in this buzzy Australian SXSW title.

Claire Warden is an internationally in-demand intimacy coordinator who has helped to choreograph numerous sex scenes in major Hollywood films and TV shows. Hired for the Australian film Tightrope by director Kieran Darcy-Smith, Warden must balance his vision with the safety and comfort of the actors, ensuring both parties feel supported. There are scenes to be blocked and modesty garments to be designed, all in line with the actors’ personal boundaries. Blending insight and entertainment, this layered documentary feature debut from SFF alum Kate Blackmore (The Butter Scene, 2021) illustrates the benefits of having an intimacy coordinator on set as it reveals how the illusion of sex on screen is made.

Mullet

Written and directed by David Caesar
Produced by Vincent Sheehan
Starring Ben Mendelsohn, Susie Porter and Andrew S. Gilbert

A 4K restoration of David Caesar’s Aussie gem, which stars Ben Mendelsohn as an outsider returning to his South Coast, NSW hometown after a long absence.

When locals in Coollawarra (population, 1491) talk about Eddie, nicknamed Mullet, they say things like, “People might love him, but they don’t like him.” Three years ago, Mullet disappeared without a trace. Now he’s back, only to discover that ex-girlfriend Tully has married his older brother Pete, who’s also the local cop. What hasn’t changed is Mullet’s ability to unsettle his family and ruffle the town’s social fabric. Caesar’s AWGIE-winning screenplay bristles with droll humour and aching insight as Mullet’s return uncovers the dreams and disappointments of those around him. This bittersweet gem is bolstered by a superb cast, including Susie Porter, Andrew S. Gilbert, Kris McQuade, Tony Barry, and Wayne Blair.

Muriel’s Wedding 

Written and directed by P.J. Hogan
Produced by Lynda House and Jocelyn Moorhouse
Starring Toni Collette, Bill Hunter and Rachel Griffiths

This ode to dreamers is one of Australia’s most cherished classics, powered by Toni Collette’s luminous breakout performance and a joyous ABBA soundtrack. Newly restored in 4K.

Thirty years since Muriel Heslop (Collette) walked down the aisle, she remains one of Australian cinema’s most unforgettable heroines. Stuck in the fictional dead-end beach town of Porpoise Spit, lonely Muriel struggles with fake friends, a crook father and slacker siblings. Her only comforts are her ABBA cassettes and fantasies of a glitzy wedding. After retreating to Sydney, she seizes a chance to reinvent herself, even if it jeopardises her one real bond, with new bestie Rhonda (Rachel Griffiths). Muriel fearlessly embraces daggy outcasts and quirky Aussie humour: from Muriel and Rhonda’s karaoke take on “Waterloo” to the devastating aftermath of the titular wedding, P.J. Hogan’s film brims with iconic moments and tremendous heart.

Together 

Written and directed by Michael Shanks
Produced by Alison Brie, Dave Franco, Mike Cowap, Andrew Mittman, Erik Feig, Max Silva, Julia Hammer and Tim Headington
Starring Dave Franco, Alison Brie and Damon Herriman

Codependency takes on a twisted new meaning in the most anticipated Australian film of the year. Michael Shanks’s off-the-wall debut features “transformative” performances from Dave Franco and Alison Brie.

Long-term loves Tim and Millie (real-life couple Franco and Brie) move to the country and find themselves launched on a devilishly unexpected ride that will bring them closer “together” than ever. Australian writer-director Shanks pulls off dizzying feats of tonal wizardry, expertly balancing a carefully calibrated relationship drama with wildly escalating body horror. A hit at Sundance, Together heralds the arrival of a bold new talent and stakes its claim in the growing wave of contemporary body horror. Simultaneously wildly funny, unhinged and profound, it’s an exceptional achievement elevated by spectacular turns from its fearless leads.

Planet City

Directed by Liam Young
Produced by Agustín Almodóvar

In a world-first, designer, director and BAFTA-nominated producer Liam Young brings his visionary speculative film PLANET CITY to life in an immersive experience like no other.

In a world of escalating climate crises, bold dreams aren’t optional—they’re essential. What if, instead of unchecked expansion and environmental destruction, we radically reversed our course? What if the entire global population lived in one hyper-dense city, leaving the rest of the planet to rewild? Presented in partnership with Vivid Sydney and accompanied by a live performance of its haunting Forest Swords score, this boundary-pushing event presents a breathtaking image of a radical new world order. Join us for this revelatory and urgent examination of our choices, our impact and the possibilities still within our grasp.

The Raftsmen

Directed by Chadden Hunter
Produced by Chadden Hunter and William Ward

Fifty years on, revisit the ripping high-seas yarn of 12 adventure-mad misfits who pursued a perilous attempt to sail the vast South Pacific Ocean on mere log rafts.

In 1973, 12 men gathered in Ecuador at the start of a seemingly impossible mission. At the helm was Captain Vital Aslar, a prophet-like leader with a Salvador Dali-inspired dream to cross the South Pacific – roughly 14,500 kilometres, non-stop. The largely inexperienced crew began by building their own vessels from trees they’d felled. Then they headed out into the blue: navigating by the sun and stars, they encounter myriad creatures, tempests and doldrums as they make their way from Ecuador towards Australia. Award-winning documentarian Chadden Hunter blends original 16mm footage with stories from the surviving rafters, vividly conjuring a dreamlike adventure in which each voyager is pushed to their limits.

Somersault

Written and directed by Cate Shortland
Produced by Anthony Anderson
Starring Abbie Cornish, Sam Worthington and Erik Thomson

Director Cate Shortland made waves with her sensual Cannes-selected debut, set in Jindabyne and starring an unforgettable Abbie Cornish as a young woman in search of connection.

A catastrophic fall-out with her mum sends Heidi (Cornish, Bright Star) fleeing on a charter coach to frosty Jindabyne. Beautiful and fragile, Heidi searches for work, shelter and companionship in the alpine town, and finds hard partying and hook-ups. In a packed bar, she catches the eye of Joe (Sam Worthington), a local who takes her back to the Siesta Motel. His emotional reserve contrasts her vulnerability, and he’s captivated but wary of her intensity. Hypnotic, tactile, and memorably scored by Decoder Ring, Somersault (SFF 2004) won all 13 categories at the 2004 AFI Awards. Now lovingly restored, this landmark of contemporary Australian cinema will seep under your skin.

Songs Inside

Directed by Shalom Almond
Produced by Katrina Lucas, Lauren Drewery and Shalom Almond

Witness the healing power of song and musicianship as a group of women prisoners pursue a unique music program in this inspiring documentary. Audience Award-winner, Adelaide FF.

Beyond just learning how to sing and play the ukulele, these 10 women are writing their own songs – in preparation for a prison community performance with the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra. The Songbird program, helmed by First Nations singer-songwriter Nancy Bates, is designed to boost confidence and self-worth – but it requires much of the participants, all of whom struggle with the impacts of trauma and addiction. Though the women open up a little more with every song, each rehearsal, laying bare one’s traumas can be overwhelming. Director Shalom Almond spent six months filming in the Adelaide Women’s Prison with unprecedented access, and the result is both shocking and uplifting.

The Unshakeable Destiny

Written, directed and produced by Nikki Lam

Witness the world theatrical premiere of an ambitious trilogy exploring Hong Kong in flux by acclaimed local artist-filmmaker Nikki Lam.

This playful, expansive trilogy explores the artist’s evolving relationship with Hong Kong as the city undergoes its own upheavals. Reworking the visual language of Asian futurism, some scenes are shot on lush 16mm, immersing viewers in swoony Cantopop and late-night neon; other scenes move away from the nostalgic, stylised world of Wong Kar Wai. Working with actor Ching Ching Ho, Lam deconstructs the fictions of Hong Kong’s screen archive and her own attempts to capture memories of a disappearing homeland. This moving reflection on artmaking in the diaspora draws on collective memories to imagine possible futures.

Went up the Hill

Directed by Samuel Van Grinsven
Written by Samuel Van Grinsven and Jory Anast
Produced by Vicky Pope, Kristina Ceyton and Samantha Jennings
Starring Vicky Krieps, Dacre Montgomery and Sarah Peirse

Vicky Krieps (Phantom Thread) and Dacre Montgomery (Stranger Things) star in this haunting, wholly original tale of grief and possession set in remote New Zealand. Toronto 2024.

With his arresting second feature, the promise shown by Sydney-based New Zealand filmmaker Samuel Van Grinsven in his SFF 2019 audience award-winner Sequin in a Blue Room is fully realised. Jack (Montgomery) has arrived at a distinctly unwelcoming manse for the funeral of Elizabeth, the artist mother he barely knew. An unnerving atmosphere hovers in Elizabeth’s cavernous and isolated house as Jack attempts to connect with Jill (Krieps), his mother’s fragile widow. Riveting gothic psychodrama follows when Elizabeth’s restless spirit begins to inhabit the minds and control the bodies of both Jack and Jill, with Van Grinsven’s expert tonal control matched by the bravura performances of Krieps and Montgomery.

The Wolves Always Come at Night

Directed by Gabrielle Brady
Written by Davaasuren Dagvasuren, Otgonzaya Dashzeveg and Gabrielle Brady
Produced by Julia Niethammer, Ariunaa Tserenpil and Rita Walsh

A Mongolian family must leave their nomadic desert life after a devastating storm in Gabrielle Brady’s stunning, Toronto-selected follow-up to her multi-award-winning debut.

As in Island of the Hungry Ghosts, Brady here crafts an inventive hybrid of documentary and fiction in telling the poignant story of Davaa and Zaya (credited as co-writers), their four children, and the numerous animals in their care. When their livelihood is destroyed in a fierce dust storm – supercharged due to climate change – the couple make the heartbreaking decision to leave the desert and their beloved animals, and move to the city. Brady, who lived in Mongolia in her twenties, deftly portrays the family’s turmoil in adjusting to settlement life and soul-destroying work, haunted by dreams of their herding past and ancestral homeland. A festival hit imbued with beauty and a deep, poignant sense of loss.

Yurlu | Country

Directed and produced by Yaara Bou Melhem
Written by Yaara Bou Melhem and Maitland Parker

A panoramic yet intimate portrait of Aboriginal Elder Maitland Parker and his fight to heal his mining-impacted homeland and preserve his culture for future generations.

The breathtaking red landscape of Wittenoom in WA’s Pilbara region is scarred by millions of tons of toxic waste from asbestos mines that once operated there. With an exclusion zone of nearly 47,000 hectares, it’s the largest contaminated site in the Southern Hemisphere. It is also the ancestral country, or Yurlu, of Banjima Elder Parker. Director Yaara Bou Melhem (Unseen Skies, SFF 2021) documents Parker’s environmental and cultural activism, right up until his death in 2024 from mesothelioma, an aggressive form of cancer linked to asbestos exposure. From the campfire to his hospital bedside, Yurlu | Country follows Maitland’s battle for justice and the environment, and his unbreakable bond with Country.

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