First Nations filmmaking in Australia is going through a transformation that’s been decades in the making. It’s not just that more Indigenous films are being made. The fundamental power dynamics around who controls these stories, who profits from them, and who decides which ones get told are shifting in important ways.

I want to talk about what’s happening without overstating the progress. There’s still a long way to go. But the trajectory is genuinely encouraging.

Institutional Changes

Screen Australia’s First Nations department has been operating with increasing autonomy and influence within the agency. The Indigenous-specific funding programs now have dedicated assessment panels composed primarily of First Nations practitioners. That means the people making decisions about which Indigenous projects get funded are themselves part of the communities those stories come from.

This might sound obvious, but it’s a relatively recent development. For decades, Indigenous filmmaking in Australia was filtered through non-Indigenous gatekeepers who decided which stories were “authentic” or “commercial” enough to support. The shift toward Indigenous-led assessment is structural, and it matters more than any individual funding decision.

Screen Australia’s Indigenous feature development programs have also expanded, creating clearer pathways from short films to features for emerging Indigenous filmmakers. The pathway model means a filmmaker doesn’t have to make the jump from a ten-minute short to a full feature without support.

Creative Control

The most significant change in First Nations filmmaking isn’t about money. It’s about control. Indigenous filmmakers are increasingly insistent on maintaining creative authority over their work, and the industry is gradually learning to respect that.

This shows up in practical ways. Protocols around cultural consultation, community consent, and the representation of sacred or sensitive material are more formalised than they were ten years ago. Screen Australia’s Pathways and Protocols guide provides a framework, and most funding bodies now require compliance with these protocols as a condition of support.

It also shows up in the creative work itself. The films being made by Indigenous filmmakers today don’t look or feel like the Indigenous films that non-Indigenous producers were making twenty years ago. They’re formally adventurous, tonally diverse, and frequently resist the expectations that non-Indigenous audiences might have about what an “Indigenous film” should be.

The Talent Pipeline

The talent coming through is extraordinary. This isn’t a single generation of filmmakers. It’s a sustained pipeline that includes writers, directors, producers, cinematographers, editors, and actors who are building careers and mentoring the next cohort.

Several Indigenous filmmakers who started with short films five to ten years ago now have feature credits and are developing their second or third films. That continuity is important because it creates role models and proves that a sustained career in filmmaking is possible for Indigenous Australians.

Training programs like the AFTRS Indigenous program, the Adelaide Film Festival’s Indigenous fellowship, and various state agency initiatives are contributing to this pipeline. But the most effective development often happens informally, through mentorship within the Indigenous filmmaking community itself.

Festival Recognition

Australian film festivals have improved their engagement with First Nations cinema, though there’s room for further development. MIFF, SFF, and AFF all program significant Indigenous sections, and several regional festivals have dedicated Indigenous strands.

International festivals have also been responsive. Indigenous Australian films have premiered at Venice, Berlin, Sundance, and Toronto in recent years, and the international appetite for these stories is genuine and growing.

The challenge is ensuring that festival recognition translates into sustainable distribution. Too many Indigenous films get their festival moment and then disappear. Distribution strategies need to be built into the project from early on, with particular attention to reaching Indigenous audiences in communities that don’t have easy access to arthouse cinemas.

What Still Needs to Change

Progress is real, but significant gaps remain. Funding levels for Indigenous filmmaking, while improved, still don’t reflect the proportion of Indigenous storytelling demand. The industry’s diversity at senior leadership levels remains limited. And the commercial infrastructure for distributing Indigenous films to Indigenous communities is underdeveloped.

There’s also a responsibility on non-Indigenous industry professionals to educate themselves and to not expect Indigenous filmmakers to do that education for them. Protocols exist. Resources exist. Read them.

Looking Forward

First Nations cinema in Australia is not a special interest category. It’s a central part of the Australian screen story, and its growth strengthens the entire industry. The films being made right now are among the most important and artistically vital work in Australian cinema.

If you’re not watching, you’re missing the most exciting part of what’s happening in our national cinema.